It was one year ago that I woke up in my house in Durango, CO from sleeping on a camp pad, threw all last minute stuff into Minnie the Motorhome, went to the Title office to sign the papers for the sale of my house. Then I drove to Santa Fe, New Mexico to my Mom’s to repack the motorhome and sort my possessions out.
Usery Park east of Mesa, AZ in January.
This first year brings about a range of emotions from fear to joy about living a nomadic life. When I hit the road, I was still in recovery from losing my beloved Dad and dog, Minnie. The desert helped me heal, the wide open spaces, walking in beautiful golden light between cacti opened my eyes to a world without cold and snow.
Usery Park, on of my favorite places so far! It’s a Maricopa County owned park.
Wow, what an amazing ride it’s been. I started out the new year in Phoenix, AZ, wide eyed about living in a motorhome with no home base. Everything I did was new, new landscape was overwhelming, every person was new, every place I drove was new and some places had scary traffic. I didn’t have a car, so I drove the motorhome everywhere. My friends thought it was all fun and games for me, but it was a lot to keep together those first few months, sometimes it still is overwhelming being in a new place each week/month. I can see that fulltime RVers that have been on the road for a few years, have eased into this and of course return to places that they like and are familiar with. I’m getting to that stage with each passing month.
I am meeting new folks all the time and I have a little posse built so I have more company now, fun folks to do things with, I like that a lot. One of the best parts of this lifestyle is spending time with people, real time, not a day but a week or two, getting to really know someone, their hopes and dreams, their pain. It means a lot to me to make these connections and hear their stories.
Amy from gopetfriendly.com, so fun to know other fulltime RVers.
January and February & part of March I spent in southern Arizona. Mesa, Tucson, Tubac, Bisbee were all wonderful places to enjoy the beautiful Sonoran desert. Each place has its special gifts and people to offer. Hiking in the colorful and lush desert, amazing sunsets, and great new friends made it a winter to remember.
Bisbee, AZ is filled with art everywhere.
March took the boys and me to Baja to my beach camp where we had our first beach visit of the year. My little beach camp is a lot of work to keep going, but there is no place that I know of to compare to this little desert beach gem to. Next to Jojoba Hills an Escapee Park 14 miles east of Temecula, CA (between LA & San Diego). I got the taxes done there and met some fine people that are now good friends.
View from my Baja beach camp near San Felipe on the Sea of Cortez.
April brought us to the most beautiful place, Sedona, AZ to cat sit for my good friends Diane & Eric. Then my good buddy, D. flew out from the East Coast for a week of hiking, eating and kitty sitting which was one of the highlights of the year.
There are over 200 trails to take in Sedona, so much to see!
Walking the kitties, Tanner & Blue
Work with Sojos Pet Food came to me in May and I started doing demos in Santa Fe, New Mexico and celebrated my Mom’s 85th birthday with a fun party. So nice to have the family together and enjoy one of the wettest and most beautiful springs in New Mexico. I love working and spreading the good word of whole nutrition for pets, I strive to have more steady employment in the coming months.
The boys and I snuck up to Durango for a few days in May. This is one of our favorite walking places when we lived here and it’s never been this green, I was in awe, so much beauty.
My Mom looking great at 85!
Minnie Pearl, my Mini Cooper came to me in May and changed the way I travel. Driving when towing is a different ball game, you can’t back up while towing so it changes everything. It’s worth giving up options when traveling to have the flexibility when parked. I love having a car and wouldn’t be without it.
Minnie pulls the Mini Pearl
Minnie my beloved Jack Russell’s memorial is in Santa Fe at my Mom’s. I got it all fixed up this summer with some plants and my favorite rocks.
In June I visited my friend Jennifer in Salida, CO and stayed on the mighty Arkansas River. One day Jennifer captained 5 gals down the river in a paddle boat at flood stage; it was a very exciting run with giant waves and 3 bridges that we had to flatten ourselves in the boat to go under. Yikes!!!
Looking good here! There was a professional photographer that was sitting on a rock who took these. Thanks to Pamela for purchasing them.
We’re going in!
Coming out of the hole. There is a also a photo that all you can see is water, no boat.
Then off to Golden, CO for 2 weeks to stay at my oldest friend’s house. Lisa not old; we are both the same age! Lisa & I lived in Houston, Texas for Kindergarten and 1st grade as neighbors. Then her family moved to Kentucky. We pen-palled for years and we both have a stack of those letters. We met up at places along the way in life, her living with me in Telluride for a semester in college. It’s nice to have someone in your life that knows you from waaaaay back and have similar values. I had the pleasure of visiting her parents in Portland, OR this fall which is a highlight of the year. The time in Golden was absolutely magical; green grass, rolling mountains, delicious garden meals, yoga, enlightening conversations and lots of work for Sojos.
Best buddies for a lifetime drinking mojitos.
Golden, CO in August, soooooo green, my favorite color!!!
August brought the boys and I back to Santa Fe to make a doc and dentist appointment, sometimes you have to stop to take care of life. It was a great time with my Mom, hanging in the beautiful high desert, greenest summer ever in the mountain west!
Mick, Romeo and I made our way to Oregon through Durango, Telluride, Utah and Idaho. The time spent with friends is the most special and memorable and I enjoyed seeing very dear friends in Colorado.
hanging out on Eileen’s street in Telluride, CO
hiking with good buddies in Durango, CO
2 months in the great state of Oregon, wow, this place is something! High desert, dark green forest, water everywhere, crabs (yum!), coast line to make you swoon, the funkiest city ever, mountains of gold, and so much more. I will be back and back to Oregon, there is so much more to see and this is one of the most dog friendly states I’ve ever seen. It’s really a special state, I highly recommend a visit, it doesn’t matter where, it’s all amazing.
On the Oregon Coast.
Oregon Coast
Bend, OR land of recreation galore.
And now, one of the places I had most wanted to visit, the central coast of California. The weather here is 65° in the day, 48° at night, year round!!!! Yes, it’s nirvana and I could stay here a long time, but the desert calls so we’ll be off to Borrego Springs to meet some single RVers for Thanksgiving, then to the Palm Springs area for a couple of weeks to explore and hang with new friends. In mid-December I’ll leave the Minnie Motorhome and drive the Mini Pearl car to Santa Fe for Christmas.
Morro Bay, CA. Our home for 10 days.
2016 here we come, I have no plan yet, but something will form soon. I hope you plan some fun travels for 2016. Let me know your favorite places to see.
I’m so glad you had such a great year! Looking forward to your posts in 2016!
Juliet, It’s so nice to know how happy you are. I loved reading about your life. How exciting. Best of 2016 to you and your doggies. Have a great rest of the year. Hope to meet up with you some time in the future. All the best, Karen Friedman
I am so impressed!
What a year, Juliet! I loved seeing the beautiful scenery and reading about your new life and all the amazing places you and the boys have been to so far. Wishing you many, many more exciting adventures!
I’ve really enjoyed your site and your FB page. As I commented earlier, wish I would have been following you when you were on the Central CA Coast. I live in San Luis Obispo, have a Minnie almost identical to yours, am a dog lover and lived in Colorado for many years. Wish we could have met!
These pictures are beautiful, and you sound happy with where you are in life. This sounds like a truly incredible lifestyle. I’m absolutely jealous, but I don’t think I have that in me to be comfortable not knowing what was next. I’m the type of person that always needs a plan and routine.
hello Alix, plan and routine are great, but sometimes it’s fun to mix it up, maybe a little road trip or vacation? I do love this life, I meet so many amazing people and hearing their stories is the best part.
We love Oregon! You should let us know the next time you’re here. Beautiful pictures!
Would love to visit terrier friends, not sure if we’ll make it to Oregon this year or not. I love it there, so will definitely be back.
I am pretty new to your site, so this was a really great way for me to learn more about you. I’m so sorry for the loss of your dad and Minnie. I think it is very brave of you as well as amazing for you to embark on this adventure. It sounds like you have a wonderful year. I hope this year brings you lots of joy and fun adventures!
Beth, thanks so much for your sweet note. I appreciate the thoughts and look forward to following you at the dailydogtag.
Wow! Amazing adventure, fantastic photos. I’m so sorry for your losses. I understand the need to just “go.” I lost my wonderful Mom in November, and my beloved heart dog Gibson a month later. Sometimes I wish I could just go somewhere by the ocean or looking at mountains to “breathe” again. This really resonates with me. I have RA and we have been thinking of relocating to AZ, so I was thrilled to see the AZ photos! Good luck and here’s to more travels and adventures in 2016! Looking forward to more from you!
Hello Fivesibesmom Thanks for the thougtful comment. So sorry about your Mom and Gibson, that’s rough. There are many great places in Arizona, maybe it’s time for a road trip to check out some places. The dry climate might be good for RA. Take care and thanks for reading.
Solo and getting ready to hop on the road with my pup here in the next couple months. Looking at a similar get up, and roaming the same areas. Thanks for the confidence and inspirations!
how exciting that you are getting on the road soon. You can do it girl, there are quite a few singles out here, mostly women. Let me know when you hit the road, I am happy to help and provide any info you need. Best to you!