![]() ![]() Quartzsite was a perfect candidate for boondocking because there are many well-established campsites, and the freebies are better than the paid sites. In Quartzsite, we saw no reason at all to stay in one of the private parks in town, where we would be squashed in with hundreds of other RVs and have little in the way of privacy or views. Our very first significant boondocking stay, at the Dupuis Reserve near my hometown in Florida, was ideal for getting situated in the rig. In a few other cases, national forest boondocking was just more appealing than any nearby options (like in Tuskegee and in Butte) with the added benefit of being free. In 2018, some of our best boondocking sites ( Badlands, Grand Tetons) offered spectacular views while putting us right in the heart of the locations we wanted to visit. It’s a perfect marriage when the best camping is also free. What we really want is to camp in great places. But we are not always looking for the most budget friendly option. In the world of RVing nightly camping costs can vary greatly depending on the setting - we have paid up to $60/night in a private park - and a cost of $0.00 per night sure helps bring our average camping cost down. It was fantastic to experience a little community here on the road, and we really enjoyed ourselves. Other than Marshall, whom we had encountered by chance at the Badlands in May, it was our first in-person meeting with this group of fellow full-time travelers. We spent a lovely evening enjoying a campfire with a group that was parked about 9 miles north of us and included Tim & Amanda, Dave & Shannon, Jeanette & Eric, Taylor & Beth, Sue, and Marshall. We also had some opportunities for interesting hiking in the wildlife refuge and on the multiuse trails (hiking/biking/OHVs) on the surrounding BLM land.Įven more exciting, since so many RVers descend on Quartzsite in the winter, we crossed paths with several people we had previously only met online. ![]() We had only a handful of neighbors within sight, and we were far enough away from town to enjoy dark skies for star viewing. Instead, we enjoyed a site off of Palm Canyon Road, one of the main points of access into the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. Since we were not planning to stay more than 14 days, we didn’t head into the relatively busy LTVA. Even with all the hiking we’ve done, I’m not ready to show quite that much skin yet! □ For example, we heard about, but did not visit, the Magic Circle - 320 acres of BLM land within the LTVA that is home to a winter community of nude/naturist RVers. Within this vast swath, there is something for just about everyone. The LTVA covers more than 11,000 acres, and for a fairly nominal permit price (currently $180 for the season) a visitor can camp for any length of time from September through April, and have access to water, dump stations, vault toilets, and dumpsters. The area is so popular with winter RVers that the BLM has established a long-term visitor area that caters to people who want to stay more than 14 days. ![]() When there are hundreds of thousands of acres of available land, people can really spread out and enjoy the desert scenery from relatively private campsites. Virtually the entire area surrounding the town - for miles in every direction - is owned by the Bureau of Land Management, and BLM rules typically allow free camping on their land for up to 14 days. The biggest feature of the Quartzsite area is the huge number of well-established desert camping areas. ![]()
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