One of the “most” things to find at Quartzsite is the enormous flea market – – well, multiple markets really. The most extensive, the most variety, the most vendors, most unusual, most cheesy, most ridiculous, most amazing. I have come to more deeply appreciate the similarity of the words “bazar” and “bizarre”.

All week, we’ve been spending a bit of each day nosing around hundreds of booths, trays, tables, boxes, and simply carpets or plain dirt. We spend our time looking at this and that and marveling at what gets arrayed and, presumably, sold. There’s really cheap crap, lots of Chinese plastic junk, and some surprising pockets of wonders, bargains, and/or rare oddities. And then there’s weird stuff. And regardless of whether we’d EVER spend a dime on any of it, endless hours of entertainment and head-shaking amazement.

Here’s a sample contrast: wall-long racks of $15 chintzy necklaces, accented by a $3,500 five-foot-tall geode from Brazil.

And what desert traveler could resist taking home an African ju-ju mask to help spruce up the living room décor?

Animal-lovers, DO NOT go up this aisle. Although they’re all non-endangered and renewable, there’s a lot of dead carcasses behind these keepsakes. BTW – – it’s really obvious why the Indians and early settlers liked buffalo robes. Those things are warm.

If the mere skins are not enough for your rustic urges, how about some mounted heads? No hunting required, just cash or Visa.

And for just that perfect touch to the man-cave, maybe a dried-out cow skull with a painting of the noble red man on it? Wow, talk about the essential West, huh? I can smell that sweaty saddle leather just thinking about it.  

Metal sculptures – – some creative and a tad artsy (like the saguaro imitations), and some just pure inelegant trash.

Remember when you couldn’t give away a Volkswagen Thing? Well, it looks like some folks might not recall those times, or at least are unmitigated by the illogical excesses of past markets. This little jewel (?) was priced at $25,500.

Another enigmatic display: the rich beauty of polished rhyolite, carefully sculpted into the shape of Frosty Freeze ice-cream cones.

Let’s not forget the commodity tents, full of supplies and tools for every trade. This is where the bargains can be found (for the careful and knowledgeable shoppers only). Flanked of course by pickups and 4×4’s and their manly drivers.

At this tent, you can get ready for Halloween, or perhaps some pentagram-based voodoo dances. You pick.

And last, but hardly least, is this perfect example of the age-old conundrum:

“Is it an antique, or is it just trash that hasn’t found a rightful place in the landfill yet?”

And with all this, there is more, much more. We probably won’t see all of it, we’re just kinda worn out by now. Maybe next year.