It's scenic, vast and has the kind of Springtime weather we'd take any time. And, this time of year, it's a popular stopping place for fellow fulltimers.
This week we've had the great pleasure of having first-time meetings with three wonderful fulltiming couples and fellow bloggers.
We hooked up with Sandie and Jim on our service overnight in Prescott. Like us, they began their fulltiming adventure last year. In fact, Sandie served as the "president" of our Escapees fulltiming Class of 2009. This delightful couple has covered some serious miles in their first year. And, also like us, they have purchased a new rig on the road. We have followed their blog since its beginning, so when we met up it felt like we were meeting old friends. It was a treat to finally meet the people behind the words.
Sandie and Jim have magical powers, too. On our first day here in Camp Verde, we were settling in for a very lazy day after back to back travel days. With a commitment to making no plans for the day, we took Sandie and Jim's call. These two cheerful souls asked if we would like to join them on a day of sightseeing. And, of course, we said "Yes!" We're so glad we did. You can read about our comings and goings with Sandie and Jim in Prescott and Sedona on Bullwinkle's Travels.
Thanks to some crummy weather east of here, we were able to hook up with Linda and Denny. We've been following their blog since we've been following blogs. When we read that they were camped in nearby Cottonwood, we wrote from Tucson to see if we could meet. Their original plans had them leaving before our arrival. But, when they saw the forecast for storms along their planned route, they decided to layover for a few extra days. Thank you, Mother Nature!
We stopped by their place on the way to Walmart the other day. These fulltiming veterans have been on the road since 1998, and it's obvious that the lifestyle suits them very well. They share a sense of humor we really enjoy and instantly made us feel comfortable. Like us, they are exploring the country for, among other things, that place that they'll call home one day. And, like us, they have yet to find it and are loving the exploration. There are still many places left for us all to explore. Linda and Denny also bought a new RV in the last year. (Look at all of us fulltimers stimulating the economy!) Their 2011 Heartland fiver is a very warm and welcoming home. The time we had to spend with these two was far too short. (Our fault!) We look forward to spending more time with them down the road in the future.
A recent email from Ellie and Jim announced that they would be arriving at Dead Horse Ranch State Park during our stay. We made plans to meet up and spend an afternoon exploring the nearby quaint mining town of Jerome. We've been reading their blog forever and share many mutual friends, so again the experience was like meeting old friends for the first time. We shared stories of how we got hooked on fulltiming, and the similarities were uncanny. Over tasty burgers, local wines, shopping, sightseeing and yummy ice cream, we had a great time getting to know this wonderful couple better. (A post is in the works. Watch for it at Bullwinkle's Travels.)
After a very social week with these three very special meetups, we are thankful for one of the most unexpected benefits of our new lifestyle. We started out being a bit concerned that this might be one of the loneliest chapters in our life. Much to our surprise and delight, we have a growing group of wonderful new friends across the country. Us? Lonely? Never!
Many thanks to Sandie and Jim and Linda and Denny and Ellie and Jim for sharing some of your time in this beautiful part of the country with us. We wish you all safe travels and look forward to seeing you again soon.
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