Blythe, CA

December 14, 2011

It's been a busy few weeks in Blythe.  We've done lots of exploring including a small ghost town just north of us.  Midland was known in the 1920's as the place to buy snow for the movie industry!  The town held 1000 people and everyone was employed by the gypsum company.  When fake snow was no longer used in the movies gyprock was produced until the early 70's, then the town died.  All the buildings were removed, the only thing standing is the school chimney and there are a number of concrete pads for the homes.  The local historian lives in his own trailer with a number of other trailer folk, aka squaters.  Cheap living!  There's nothing there.  Photo albums and some memorabilia is kept in a metal garbage can with two heavy hunks of metal holding all in place.  A sign says to go ahead, open the lid, sit down and enjoy reading Midland's history. 

The cotton fields are fascinating to us.  They are about 3 feet tall and in full bloom.  The crop is picked by a machine that looks like a big 3-seater outhouse, but obviously isn't.  The cotton is picked and hard packed into huge, semi-sized, bales before being taken to the cotton gin here in Blythe.  The first crop is the whitest, although there are still lots of seeds, dirt, dust and whatever else inside the cotton fluff.  A few days after the first picking the "outhouse" goes over the field again and again a third time with each crop grayer than the last.    After the gin removes all the impurities the clean white cotton is put into much smaller bales, wrapped in green plastic and shipped to China, England and other parts of the U.S. to be turned into fabric.  A new friend, Donna Mae and I were driving around the other day and we found the gin, inquired as to tours, were told no, but we asked lots of questions!  Each acre produces 3 to 4 1/2 bales of cotton before the crop is then tilled back into the soil.  The seeds that were removed in the gin are now clean and are sent to dairy farms for cattle feed.  Some of the seeds are also sent away to be treated so they can be planted again.

The hay fields are cut 10 times a year!!!  The hay fields are irrigated by flooding not sprinkler systems and look very strange under water.  The crop is shorter, but apparently higher in protein than that grown in the Okanagan and with 10 crops a year, it's a huge money maker. 

There is a huge lemon orchard at the edge of the desert near us here at Rancho Ventana RV Resort.  The orchard is L-shaped and has thousands of trees.  The trees are huge, covered in lemons and grow very close together.  After the picking is complete which is happening now, a machine goes between the rows chopping branches to form a wider gap between them.  Obviously, they grow back quickly.

Without the Colorado River this whole area would be desert.  Aquaducts are everwhere and apparently the water table is only about 12 feet below ground level.  Sprinkler systems are not used at all.  Ditches are between the vegetable rows and flooding is routinely used.  Donna Mae and I went to a small farm where the farmer grows and sells his own produce.  We've had the best broccoli, lettuce and celery we've ever eaten!  Fresh is best!

We spent one morning in Los Algodones, Mexico and enjoyed wandering around.  Did a bit of shopping and then really enjoyed an excellent lunch at Jose's.  We each had two shrimp tacos with all the trimmings plus a hunk of delicious barbecued chicken.  Although people wanted us to buy their jewellry, etc., they weren't pushy.  Much nicer than Acalpulco!  Donna May kept the dogs that day and we stopped at Cibola National Wildlife Refuge on the 1 1/2 hour trip back.  Other than one road runner we saw lots of coots swimming.  Now we know where they go when they leave Vernon! 

On the return trip we saw 4 odd looking aircraft hovering above the desert.  Managed to get a few photos of these odd machines which turned out to be V22-Ospreys.  They are vertical take of and landing aircraft.  They are being developed for the marines. 

We have Christmas lights on our RV as do many of the residents here.  Rancho Ventana is also decorated and it does look strange to see all the palm trees lit up.  We walk around the property nightly and enjoy everyone's decorations.

Love and hugs
Colleen