Friday, February 10, 2012

ROADRUNNER VISIT TO QUARTZSITE JANUARY 27 - 29

The MFC Roadrunner camping group was formed in 1966. The group went camping once a  month for many years, usually to undeveloped campsites for dry camping. Lucy and I joined in 1966 when we had our green Volkswagen Westphalia camper. Over the years members’ equipment migrated from tents and tent trailers to trailers and finally to motor homes. Anyone with any kind of equipment was and is welcome to join.

In recent years enough members are on the road with their RVs in the summer that there are no regular summer campouts. Now our largest annual outing is at Quartzsite AZ during the RV show period in January. In the winter thousands of RVers gather around Quartzsite to camp, some for many weeks, on the nearby BLM land or in RV parks in the area. There are lots of vendors booths selling a wide variety of wares. The area looks like a very large swap meet. 

A gem and mineral show is held there annually, with many vendors having permanent buildings for selling their minerals. This year Jo bought a cut stone  which a friend has cut and finished into earrings and two pendants.

 Our main socializing is around an evening campfire. This year, as in many earlier years, we were joined by a group of machinists from the Phoenix area who are friends with some of our Roadrunner members. There were 45 in our extended group in all. I will identify just the Roadrunners in the below pictures.

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Second and third from left are Greg and Cheryl See, the hosts of the outing.

 

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Jo’s son, Jeff Clyde, is at far right.

 

 

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Beginning second from left, Jeff, Jo, Mike Williams, Barbara Williams and Maxine Stone.

 

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The red lines appear to be fast-flying sparks from the fire. In the center are Gayle and Bill Kaml. Gale and her sister, Cheryl See, are daughters of one of the founders of the Roadrunners, Hamilton Bushie. Ham  loved large campfires, and he often threw enough wood on a fire to make one with flames five feet high. Such a fires became known as Bushie fires. Our fire at Quartzsite resembled a Bushie Fire!

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