Holtville Hot Springs

The afternoon before we left Slab City, a nice couple from Saskatchewan, moved in "next door." Ellie rushed over to introduce herself to their border collie, Zip, and their other dog, Maya. At age 8, Zip still has more zip than Ellie does at age 5--Loren and Sandy couldn't believe how "calm" Ellie was! I guess it's all relative! Loren and Sandy have been wintering in Arizona for 11 years, and knew everything about everyplace. They told us about the hot springs camping area and how to get here. We had seen it in our guidebooks, but the camping area next to it is designated a BLM Long Term Area, and we don't have a permit for that, so we didn't pay much attention.However, Sandy told us about the 14 day BLM Free Camping Area just two miles away, which is where we are now. We are camped in the desert a couple of miles south of Interstate 8, about 15 miles east of Holtville CA and about 40 miles west of Yuma. The desert isn't totally flat here; we found a spot tucked down in and protected from the wind that can really blow at times. The area is crisscrossed with many, many dirt roads. Some are formerly paved and some are just dirt tracks; but it's all fairly level aground, and we are at or below sea level, so biking is a breeze, even for my out-of-shape body.

The people here, both in the long-term area and the short term one, are friendly and fun to talk to. Many have been coming to this spot for years. We've met people from all over the United States as well as lots of Canadians. One couple from Nebraska, Jim and Phyllis, come in October and stay until April, in a motor home not much bigger than the Palms. Jim was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma 15 years ago, and was supposed to die within 2 years. He's still going strong with the help of 2 bouts of chemotherapy a year, in April and October, whether he needs them or not. He has to go into the Cancer Center in El Centro CA (about 18 miles away) every six weeks to get his ports cleaned out, has to rest a lot, but rides his bike, hikes, and is doing just fine. A little bit ago, Steve returned from a rabbit reconnaissance mission with Ellie with a woman in tow. She is camped about a half mile from us, but got lost out in the desert, without water, on her morning walk. She lives full-time in her RV, just she and her cats, is easily 70 years old, rail-thin, skin like leather, and a pale yellow braid halfway down her back. She says she walks at least 5 to 7 miles a day. Yesterday she walked to the hot springs from her camp, which she clocked at 5 1/2 miles each way. Oh, she has a motorcycle too, but it's in Slab City right now with some friends, and she has to go back there for it. She accepted a glass of water from us, but refused a ride back to her camp. I think the term "tough old broad" was coined with women like her in mind.

The actual hot spring is about two miles from our camp. The water is piped from 800 feet below ground, and enters the first pool at 104 degrees, then flows out of that pool into a smaller one, which is somewhat cooler. From the 2nd pool, the water flows down into a beautiful little lagoon ringed with palm trees. People swim in the lagoon too, but right now, it's pretty cold--about 64 degrees. Both pools are concrete, and someone comes and cleans them once a week. The first one is about 5 to 5 1/2 feet deep, depending on how many people are in it, and you have to stand (on tiptoe for me) or hang off the edges, as there are no seats. The second pool is smaller and shallower--holds 5 or 6 people max; you sit lined up with legs outstretched, two or three on each side. They've also rigged up an open-air shower. Water from the main pipe is diverted into a secondary pipe with lots of holes. Since it comes right up out of the ground without being esposed to the air on the way, it's the hottest of all. Very fun, and very relaxing.

I don't know how long we'll stay here. The Holtville Carrot Festival starts Saturday, and is supposed to be a lot of fun. They have a big carrot-themed parade with floats, a Carrot Queen (no, I'm not making this up), a cooking-with-carrots competition (last year a snowbirder from the BLM Long-Term Area won with her carrot cake), and who-knows- what else. Sounds like a hoot!