| The Glory That Is Q: by Alice Zyetz |
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When I first started RVing thirteen years ago, I had heard insiders refer to Quartzsite, Arizona, as "Q," the place in the desert "not to be missed." Driving east on Interstate 10 in mid-July that first year, I saw a sign heralding Quartzsite. "We have to get off here," I told my husband. "Everybody says you have to stop in Q at least once." So we did. I looked around at the barren sun-baked roads, the lack of people, the occasional boarded up businesses, and wondered what Q they were talking about. In 1875, Martha Summerhayes described this place as being the most melancholy and uninviting that she had ever seen, saying that it "reeks of everything unclean, morally and physically..." As far as I was concerned, it hadn't changed.
But then I returned the following January to a teeming metropolis of tens of thousands of people, mostly living in their RVs scattered throughout the area north and south of the Interstate. According to official counts, more than one million people visit the area during the winter season from November to April.
Modern-day Quartzsite, which started as a community hosting a small informal rock and gem show that attracted rock hounds, has grown to the winter home of major RV shows, swap meets, hobby and craft shows, vintage car exhibits, parades, neighboring bluegrass and jazz festivals, and of course the perennial rock and gem shows. As a result, a winter community exists that has created a variety of activities that serve the visitors when they are not shopping.
You are welcome to visit just for the day or
as long as the whole season. Quartzsite is conveniently located
seventeen miles east of Blythe, CA, at the intersection of
Interstate 10 and US 95. [Map]
BIG SHOWS
Quartzsite Sports, Vacation & RV Show, held in January. his huge show takes place in the "BIG TENT", just 1/2 mile south of Interstate 10 on State Highway 95. No charge for admission or parking. The attendance for the 2006 show was estimated at well over 150,000. There will be several hundred new and used RV's on display in 2007 and over a dozen service bays will be offering immediate installation, repairs & service on many of the items that will be exhibited at the show. The exhibits range from generators, lifts for handicapped RVers, Biodiesel fuel, inflatable boats, to the Pampered Pooch collars for the ever-present small but darling RV dog. And, of course, there are plenty of dining options since this is a RV gathering.
Tyson Wells Arts And Crafts Fair, held in February.
Tyson Wells Rock and Gem Show, held in January. You may find amethyst from Brazil, opals and crystals from Australia, turquoise from Africa and the U.S., fossilized geodes and ancient bones from everywhere.
Tyson Wells Sell-a-Rama, held in late January. Another incredible swap meet.
QIA Pow-Wow, held in late January. The original super show to raise money for the town's recreation center that started the Q phenomenon
See Chamber of Commerce Calendar for complete schedule.
If you're looking for antiques, T-shirts, souvenirs, socks, wind chimes, pottery, polished rock eggs (and other items), slices of rocks for any craft use, wood carvings, clothing, medical aides, dolls, Indian blankets and jewelry, and much, much more, then Quartzsite is the place to come to in the winter. There is an old saying that if you can't find it in Quartzsite, then it hasn't been thought of yet.
MUSIC
Blythe Annual Bluegrass Festival at the Colorado River Fair, held on the third weekend in January. Three full days of bluegrass plus a quilt show
Blythe Jazz Festival, held in late February. Three days of jazz. Jamming. Impromptu musical jams every day at the Q.I.A., senior center, many of the RV parks and BLM campgrounds. Look in local newspaper. Bring your instrument and join in.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
Check the calendar of the local newspaper as well as the Q.I.A. and Senior Center for the variety of classes and activities, including jewelry making, rock hounding, square dancing, various craft projects, line and social dancing, bingo, potluck dinners, etc. For more information, check out Jaimie's column on wintering in Quartzsite. More about Quartzsite is also online here.
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GATHERINGS
Many groups use January and February in Quartzsite as a time to get together. They will meet at the same campground or agree on a special location where they dry camp (boondock) with no amenities except friendship and the ubiquitous potluck meals. In addition to shopping at the shows and swap meets, when our group (more than one hundred rigs) gathers, we have a list of activities that are open to all: bicycling, four-wheeling through the back roads, bird watching, hiking, writing, beading, singing at a jam session or karaoke night, sharing other boondocking sites, sharing expertise, chatting with old and new friends, and so on. We all leave enriched by the fellowship and abundance of activities.
BEAUTY OF QUARTZSITE
One of the joys of being in Quartzsite is that
you can shop until you drop one day and the next day travel
just a few miles away and still enjoy the beauty of the rugged
Mojave Desert and the surrounding mountains. Go south, off
of U.S. 95, and explore the Kofa Mountains, including a climb
to Palm Canyon, a gorge populated with native palms. Try four-wheeling
through the back roads around Quartzsite. Or drive 17 miles
west to the Colorado River to enjoy a variety of water sports.
Or simply wait until the crowds leave and enjoy the late Spring
when the quiet and the wild flowers return to Q.
WHERE TO STAY
If you motel, you can always stay in Blythe, just 20 miles away. If you want the comforts of an RV or Mobile Home park, you have more than 70 to choose from in Quartzsite (Choose RV PARK/CAMPGROUNDS/MOBILE HOMES) or you could boondock on BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land. You can stay for free for 14 days on dispersed land (no facilities at all). Or you can pay a moderate amount and stay for up to seven months on LVTA (Long-Term Visitor Area) that includes access to fresh water and dumping facilities.
QUARTZSITE ATTRACTS INDIVIDUALISTS
When you visit, you will see the variety of RVs that come to Quartzsite. The photo at the left pictures one more contribution to the spirit of Q.
Alice Zyetz
12/3/06
(Updated July 31, 2023, RTA)
