On Wednesday, March 9, we arrive at Picacho Peak State Park, which is off of I-10 between Phoenix and Tucson. My intention is to stay 4 nights, (at $30 a night!), but after our evening walk I find myself feeling so good about this place that I decide to stay a whole week. No, we won’t be hiking the wonderful trails here, but there are plenty of paths and low-traffic, paved roads to walk on, and it’s a pretty desert surrounded with mountains.
We have an electric hook-up, there is water here and a dump station. There are clean, huge showers.
We take our morning walk early on Thursday because it’s going to be a hot day.
Our campsite here at Picacho Peak State Park.
The sun rises behind a stately saguaro.
As the heat increases we retreat to the cool, comforting air conditioned Casita! I read, while Joy and Shiloh nap. Well, I nap a little bit too. 🙂
When the evening begins to cool we head off for another walk around the park. Meandering down the road I see another woman walking towards me with two small dogs. As we draw closer, my attention is on the dogs as it usually is, making sure all dog vibes are good between my kids and those approaching…..but wait….these dogs are familiar….that littlest one looks like….and the other one…..
Oh My Gosh….could that be….yes it is! Reggie and Bridget!
I look up at the woman. Knock me over with a feather!…
SUE?? I ask…
Yup. RVSue and the Canine Crew! ( http://www.rvsueandcrew.net ) I explain that I’ve been reading her blog from almost the beginning and we stand, talking. She’s already snapping pictures of Joy, Shiloh, Bridget and Reggie as they greet each other. I take 2 pictures of the crew, but I’m rather excited and they don’t turn out well. Here’s one though.
Well…a lot of us like our butts left out of pictures anyway, so I think Bridget would be pleased with this picture.
We continue on our walk together and talk about things that full time RV/ solo women/dog moms/ bloggers, find interesting!
So as you see this meeting was completely accidental. Sue has made it very clear on her blog that she doesn’t want people to seek her out. She loves her privacy and alone time, and has a huge blog following. I totally understand that, and gave up the idea that I would ever meet her a long time ago, because how likely is it that someday I would be walking down the same road that she would be walking up??
But there we were, and it made me very happy because Sue has been a great inspiration for me, as well as a teacher, and it was nice to be able to tell her that in person. Her straightforward ‘can do’ attitude, helped me realize I ‘can do’ it too! I’ve written about her here before ( first time was an early post I wrote called “A Blog About A Blog”).
Sunset with Sue.
Bridget and Joy are both beginning to fade from their walk as we approach WS, so Sue and I go our separate ways. She plans to leave the next morning.
So glad the planets aligned and brought us together for a little time…I sure enjoyed it!
One other thing I want to tell you about today….I’m UN-damning the Clam.
See, I have the Clam up again.
I decided to just be rebellious and NOT follow the instructions when I put the Clam up this time. I PULLED one side out, but then I fought my way inside and PUSHED the other sides out, and ….presto…..it went up pretty quickly! Including staking, it took me approximately 5-7 minutes this time, down from 45 minutes (along with cursing and tears) the first time. The video on You Tube shows a big guy doing it in 45 seconds, though that doesn’t include staking.
As I post this, it’s Saturday, March 12, the weather has cooled down to comfortable, and I’m as happy as a…..CLAM. 🙂
The peak for which this park is named….Picacho.
Wandering Spirit 
How lucky for you!!
I know. Makes me happy😃
How great that you bumped into Sue….I know a lot of folks would like to meet her including me….you keep up the good work on your blog
Chuck
Hi Chuck and welcome! I never would have gone looking for Sue and disrespecting her wishes to be left alone, so it makes me really happy that we met ‘ by accident’. It’s so right, since she has influenced my life so much.
Now. When am I going to run into Mick Jagger walking his dog? 😀
Yes really fun! Unexpected fun. 😀.
This really is a pretty park. Saguaros everywhere and they make me smile.
Rvsue is a great inspiration and your dogs are beautiful!
Hi wildflower in prescott! I was just in Prescott for 2 weeks and really enjoyed it there. A few blogs ago there is a lovely picture of the full moon over Watson Lake. Lovely downtown area…very dog friendly. I gave Joy and Shiloh a bath at The Barkery. Fun fun!
Thank you, Micky, for writing about our meeting each other and for posting a photo of my crew. It was a nice surprise for me, too, to have a chance to talk and walk with you. It made our brief stay at Picacho Peak SP special!
Love your blog! You have a great writing style and you know how to match your writing with great photos. Hug Joy and Shiloh for me and continue to enjoy your life on the road!
Sue
Hi Sue, and thanks for your kind words about our meeting and my blog. Now Picacho Peak SP will always be a special place for me….I’ll have a very nice memory of meeting Sue and the Crew.
Consider Joy and Shiloh hugged. Please do the same with HRH and Reggie! 😀
What fun. Looks like the fur kids had fun too. It’s it neat when you can be respectful of folks preferences but get to spend some serendipitous time with them in a way that works for both of you. Now you can cross meeting RVSue off your bucket list.
Hi Reine, so good to hear from you. You know what surprised me?…how very little Reggie is! Downright tiny! He could pass for a motorized chew toy. I think my dogs were surprised and amused by how little he is too…and how fast and in constant motion. Funny little guy!
Sweet!! That is exciting! I have been reading your blog as well as Sue’s for a while now. I have always thought that it would be so cool if the two of you camped at the same place and met- such a simple and rewarding pleasure. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Monica, I’m so glad to hear you’ve been reading this blog for awhile. Glad to have you here!
I thought meeting Sue would be cool too, but I really didn’t think it would happen! So glad it did. Sure has made my stay here a pleasant experience.
Hi Micky! I left a message for you on RVSue’s Blog. I can just imagine how you felt when you recognized Miss Briget and Reggie Man…WOW how good was that to meet RVSue. I really enjoyed her company at Roosevelt Lake last year. Lucky me too!!! Happy to hear that things are good with you guys!
Hi Krystina,
Springtime in Vermont! Well, be glad that you aren’t trying to drive your RV in that mud. Soon you will be knee deep in flowers and green grass, how fun!
Meeting Sue and the crew was a really special experience. I’m glad to have been in the right place at the right time. I’m glad you and I met, too, Krystina. Remember the cold snap and the big snow in September, in Box Elder, SD where we were? We met Brian there too, (whom I recently met again at the Fiberglass Rally in Quartzsite.). You were getting solar, Brian was getting his mail, and I was getting my drivers license.
So many good people out here…I do love this life!
So glad I found another great blog to read. Look forward to hearing more about your travels.
Hi Sandi, welcome to this blog. And I’m glad you have decided to ride along with us!
OK, now that’s just TOO cool.
As I while away the months till I live on the road I have daydreamed at my desk at work (yes, I am seriously under supervised 🙂 ) about what it would be like to accidently run into RVSue like that. I imagine I would be just as tongue tied as when I once shared an elevator with Jerry Garcia (my equivalent of you running into Mick) All I could do was stare stupidly and as he got off I said “thanks for everything.” He gave me a sweet smile and nod.
So glad you had a chance to spend some time with her and the famous crew. Did Joy and Shiloh bow to HRH as they should?
It really was cool Rick!
But first, let me tell you, If I met Mick in an elevator I’d probably turn into a veggie. I might never speak again. I’d be a smiling veggie though.
But in this case with Sue, trying to prevent the excited dogs from tieing us into one large knot with their leads, Shiloh barking and Sue snapping pictures through it all, I really didn’t even think about the possibility of being tongue tied. Dogs are great, aren’t they?😀
When the dust settled from all that, there was so much to talk about, and Sue is so down to earth, conversation was easy and enjoyable.
I think my dogs were so humored by little tiny Reggie running around like a loose cannon that they forgot to bow to HRH. Joy got reprimanded. Shiloh then stayed out of her way. 😂