Event of the Month

A massive migration occurs every February when the Quartzsite Pow Wow gem and mineral show transforms this dusty patch off Interstate 10 near the California border into a sea of shimmering recreational vehicles. In addition to the five-day pow wow and the agreeable 70-degree temperatures, what prompts this impressive RV front to roll into town is a desire to be a part of a community that has become a kind of mobile Main Street U.S.A.

These modern-day pioneers, many with Midwestern or Canadian accents, ride their high-tech wagons into town, circle them where it suits them, and establish temporary ownership by paying the Bureau of Land Management $26 and pitching a welcome mat onto the desert floor.

People from throughout the world rendezvous here every year with friends old and new. Most are rock hounds, outdoor lovers who search for the vivid gems and minerals Mother Nature tantalizingly hid in unremarkable rocks strewn about the landscape.

Their destination is the open-air pow wow, where hundreds of lapidarians sell minerals, gemstone jewelry, and every doodad a rock hound could want from the card-table displays in front of their RVs.

Just as the displays are home-grown, the pow wow has the air of a country fair about it. Exhibitors market handcrafted clocks, sculpture, and artwork all made from the rainbow of colors concealed inside ordinary looking rocks you or I might kick out of our path. But primarily they sell gems and minerals in various stages of improvement: azurite, fire agate, jasper, tourmaline, turquoise, malachite and, yes, quartz.

Although wary of revealing their favorite rock haunts, rock hounds are eager to share their passion. The Roadrunner Gem & Mineral Club takes neophytes (and pros) in hand, leading them on free field trips in February to surrounding rock havens. To investigate this fascination with leaving no stone unturned, I joined a Saturday morning jaunt into the hills. I wondered if mytennis shoes would suffice for what I imagined would be a healthy hike to the mother lode.

Event of the Month YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE ROCKS IN YOUR HEAD TO ENJOY THE QUARTZSITE POW WOW

Our caravan of cars and trucks, most with out-of-state license plates, snaked off State Route 95 north of town. We pulled to a stop in a rock bed about a mile off the road. I jumped from my car and was still limbering up for the anticipated exertion when I realized that the hunt had already begun. Once their feet touched the ground, the rock hounds' search for valuable stones was on. Some stayed close to their vehicles; others fanned out for a few hundred yards, letting their trained eyes act as divining rods.

All it takes to be a rock hound, I learned, is a rock pick, a satchel, a pair of garden gloves, and an abundance of patience. Looking for gemstones and minerals among a field of earth-toned rocks seems like the proverbial hunt for a needle in a haystack. More than once I discovered a promising specimen the pros classified as a "leverite." I was impressed until they defined the term. "It's junk. Leave 'er right where you found 'er." I kept my finds anyway. Beauty is in the eye of the rock hound.

Plenty of people must have the skills that rockhounding requires. As many as 1 million people are said to roll through Quartzsite during the show. Some, like Dave Blakemore, a part-time gem trader from Wanganui, New Zealand, travel great distances for the pow wow's trademark variety and reasonable prices. Blakemore uses the gathering as a warm-up to the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show. Held the weekend following Quartzsite's big event, the Tucson show is considered the preeminent gem and mineral sellathon in the entire country. A close cousin is the Phoenix Gem Show (coming in March). The Quartzsite Pow Wow runs Wednesday through Sunday, February 3 to 7. Admission is free. Several privately owned swap meets, held from early January through March, also draw crowds. With only three small motels in town, rooms are snapped up months in advance. Blythe, California, 20 miles to the west, has several motels. Rooms there also go fast. Parker, Arizona, a 30-minute drive north of Quartzsite, is another alternative for lodging.

WHEN YOU GO

For more information, telephone the Quartzsite Chamber of Commerce at (602) 927-5600.

But at least a few hundred thousand rock hounds prefer to stick around and enjoy Quartzsite's languid pace. The pow wow is not just an event in Quartzsite, it's a powerful magnet that has prompted carefree retirees to create a communal home away from home. Thanks to their energy and enthusiasm, the winter calendar here is packed with smaller gem shows, ubiquitous swap meets, and enough social events to keep well-worn dancing shoes moving.M