LIFE IS A DANCE~Salome-AZ, Pt. 2

Michael Bublé -  'Feeling Good' Lyrics: 

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsNM7BP0I0M)

Sunday, Oct. 20th: Holland surprised me with a daytrip to Salome again, this morning: this time, he drove further … and what a surprise, his surprise turned out to be :-D

Salome-AZ from Quartzsite-AZ; 39 min (38.5 mi) via I-10 E, US-60 and US-60 E

Something new: a cute painted rock, as we were leaving The Pit Stop, for our morning drive ;-)

He's also been talking about checking out various RV Parks around here (before we settle down in Yuma-AZ), because he knows I like to move around - as we passed Ramblin' Roads 55+ RV Park, I commented, "it's not very full; seclusion suits me …" and he replied, "that's because the party hasn't started yet." And I burst out laughing, because it's true: [peaceful and quiet 55+] loses it's meaning very quickly, if geriatric party-hardy over-aged teenagers flock to the desert to let their hair down to rock and roll 'round the clock (like they do at Del Pueblo RV Resort, in Yuma-AZ). Mid-November seems to be the time RV Parks start filling up everywhere, in AZ - and some places, like Del Pueblo, have a continual house party atmosphere going on: the drinks never stop flowing, the loud and raucous chatter never stops, and testiness can quickly sour the atmosphere.

We want to avoid that.

Today, we traveled further into the boundaries of Salome-AZ … and enjoyed finding, seeing, and experiencing the "to do" items pointed out in Wikipedia's Salome-AZ report :-D

Return trip to Salome-AZ … and beyond ;-)

Daytrip route to Salome-AZ

Stone façade building ruins at circle roundabout on hwy. #60; near Desert Wells-AZ

It appears to be that this was once a full-service gas station, in Route 66's heyday; originally, it was a Stage Stop Route.

Stagecoach Stop: 

(https://www.parkerpioneer.net/news/article_5ce31a9c-c2b7-5381-a33c-27c31c3b32aa.html)

McMullen Valley Region-AZ

In doing research about the places we visited this afternoon, I read that Wyatt Earp had visited many of the places we did today … as well as Parker, Yuma, and California. I got so excited, Holland raised one eyebrow in humor; but I didn't care that he was having fun with my excitement to think that we may have walked over places Wyatt and the rest of the Tombstone gang walked over, while passing through these places on our little adventures. I may not get to Tombstone because of the high altitude - but I'm seeing, and living in places Wyatt saw and lived; that's okay, too - and kinda-sorta carries a Bucket List vibe ;-)

Yes, I do know he lived an outlaw life. I also know that times were hard back then; and we all have a little outlaw past of our own, that would bring a blush to cheeks if those pasts were highlighted like the outlaws of historical renown.

Wyatt Earp: (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyatt_Earp & https://westadamsheritage.org/wyatt-earp)

Dime store novels, and journalistic entertainment like 48 Hours, draws attention … but visiting actual locations where outlaws that "made the West" regularly tramped about; and backcountry towns that "made their mark in States" is what interests me: probably because I'm a bit of an outlaw, myself ;-)

A water well drilling rig; across from stone façade ruins.

Air Drill working a gravel pit; Desert Wells-AZ

Drilling rig: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drilling_rig)

Holland has worked an Air Drill in his working years.

Water Tower; Harcuvar-AZ

Native American Metal Sculpture Art; I could not find out anything about the artist; next to a Flea Market Bldg., near Salome-AZ

Goal reached ;-)

Salome-AZ:  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salome,_Arizona & http://www.ontheroadarizona.com/salome.html)

Historical Founding Marker.

The town was founded by three people Dick Wick Hall, Ernest Hall, and Charles Pratt. Pratt named the town after his wife, Grace Salome Pratt. It is said that the name came about because she walked 'through hot sand without shoes … causing her to dance around in pain.

Established in 1904, Salome started as a business venture between 3 men: Charles H Pratt, and Earnest and Dick Wick Hall began plotting a town site based on the speculative path of railway traffic.

They missed the mark by over a mile and the town was moved to the current site.

Mr. Pratt's wife, Mrs. Grace Salome Pratt gave the town not only it's name but also it's slogan, when one hot day she took off her shoes … and immediately began to dance (out of pain, not seduction) across the burning sand grit. The forever town slogan "Salome, where she danced", was born :-D

Dick Wick Hall~The Sage of Salome:

(https://truewestmagazine.com/the-sage-of-salome-21/): I subscribed to this western magazine for years in the 1980's - "going south" was always in my back thoughts ;-)

Also, Dick Wick Hall:  (https://www.paysonroundup.com/opinion/columnists/dick-wick-hall-in-rim-country/article_15515e38-cebf-11e6-b43f-7bd9a7946456.html)

Weary travelers traveling Route 66 from Chicago to California, would have passed through Salome-AZ, to get there. Needing some place to pull over for a rest (either push on to Los Angeles, or backtrack to Phoenix-AZ), they would have found a welcome at one of several motels in Salome.

A vintage postcard showing one of the motel's along Salome-AZ Route #66

Scheffler's was shady stop (and I don't mean that in a positive light); it had a bit of a shady Vegas vibe to it, with slot machines, gambling, and female company for those seeking that venue: from the layout of the swimming pool, it's obvious that it was situated along the highway, for the sole purpose of luring lonely men in.

Scheffler Motel Swimming Pool & Rec Room; Salome-AZ

Scheffler Motel Rooms; again, designed in a circular rotation building format.

Vintage Scheffler Motel Postcard

A Madam, A Murder, A Mystery News Article: 

https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/a-madam-a-murder-a-mystery-6420333

Holland did a little 4-wheeling to get me to the pictures I wanted ;-)

A t.o.w.e.r.i.n.g. dust devil dancing in one spot …

What Is A Dust Devil?: 

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKdHG6cRyzw&t=126s)

Also, I did not know this about WA State, and I lived in (visited every corner of it, too) WA State for most of my life, until I married Holland and we started traveling the USA …

The Dust Devil Capital of the World: 

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3fsGbBWbbA)

Can't find any info on this building - lots of people asking online forums, & no one knowing.

Row houses; Salome-AZ

Towering cactuses; Wenden-AZ

A colorful desert spot, in Wenden-AZ

What a wonderful sight to see along the highway route!

Defunct Sunset Motorcourt is now operated as an artists colony, on Highway 60; I LIKE this … I can 'identify'  ;-); Sunset Motel, Wenden-AZ

I like color … and this place certainly had a lot of color going on :-D

The Sunset Motel was built in 1951 on Highway 60, in Wenden, Arizona: and has not been in business for decades. L. B. Irwin, built this motel, and he and his wife Ruth, ran it until his death in 1968 or 69; it was run by a caretaker Ruth's death in 1976, and was lost to back taxes sometime after that. New life was breathed into the defunct motor court in 2011, when Bonnie Powell bought it and operates it now, as an artist colony. The vintage road sign still stands as a weathered testimony to it's past life.

An impressive Saguaro cactus; Wenden-AZ

Thunderbird Shapeshifter metal sculpture; Wenden-AZ

The Thunderbird of Native Americans:  (https://www.legendsofamerica.com/thunderbird-native-american/)

We turned around at the outskirts of Wenden, and backtracked to a side road in Salome: this road took us on a winding backroad through mountainous desert that eventually linked us to the I-10 freeway, back to Quartzsite.

Indian Hills RV Resort; #67668 Salome Rd, Salome, AZ

Indian figures are everywhere throughout the Park …

Each parking area has a tribe name assigned to it.

There are 2 teepee's, on astro turf, for camping rentals.

The Park tour was fun; Holland gave me my DNA fix ;-)

The Little Roadside Chapel; #68630 Salome Rd, Salome, AZ

Chapel from Indian Hills RV Resort; 2 min (1.1 mi) via Salome Rd

Artistically designed glass windows.

Inside the little chapel is pretty roomy, considering that it is small ;-)

Above entrance door.

While driving up to the "S" peak, behind the chapel, a little ground squirrel darted out in front of us and scurried quickly into the rocks lining the roadway … coming back down, 2 or 3 quail ran across the dusty road, and into the shouldering shrubs.

Salome Mountain-AZ

Holland is granting me my Desert Dream :-D

The little chapel was the last bit of civilization along that back road. Further along, we could see that it was open range road - so, we kept our eyes peeled for wandering livestock; we did see carcass remains of a cow someone had hit.

About an hour and a half into this stretch of our Daytrip drive, we passed from La Paz County, into Maricopa County; and Holland said Maricopa County is part of Phoenix - and that was cool for me, because last time we were passing through Phoenix, it was on the freeway and I did not get to enjoy the desert vibe "feeling" of being in Phoenix. Today, I was feeling the vibe ;-)

We tied back into the freeway at #81; my phone gave a Tonopah-AZ reading, but we knew we hadn't gone that far.

A cool mountain feature along the freeway, back to Quartzsite-AZ

Holland really is the best traveling companion for me - and a good husband for me, too; because he's informative, fun, humorous, curious, like me, & challenging - in short, he makes life interesting; I like that. I like adventure.

When we got back home, we unwound and relaxed; Holland did more ghost ton researches … and I watched an old vintage Agatha Christie movie, that kinda fit the day's atmosphere ;-)

1945 Colorized 'And Then There Were None' Full Movie:  (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAlEj_bspgE)