If you’ve known me for years, or at least a week, you know I’ve been obsessed with the van/camper/tiny home kind of lifestyle.
I wanted to buy a van and hire a friend to convert it into a stealth camper ~ because marketers on instagram can make it look oh, so hip and easy.
I’ve daydreamed about a big old Class A motorhome ~ because I’m spoiled and don’t want to ‘rough’ it. But you have to have big truck power to pull those. Big, expensive truck power.
I had some real happy jealousy for a friend of mine when she moved out of Chicago in Summer of 2020 and went all in for an SUV and Jayco ~ a tow behind travel trailer. Small, light and worked well for her.
She methodically booked sites and routes in advance, learned many lessons and enjoyed remote work in tune with nature for nearly a year. She adorably told me sorry when she pulled the trigger, for beating me to it, I suppose. I cheered her loudly!
How I’d do it, when and with what kind of ‘rig’ was always a huge unknown. Actually, it was all a lot of indecision and what could I live with or in! Still is.
Ultimately, I admitted I lack the skills or clear vision for building a camper van and it just takes way too long. I’m not the most patient person either. ‘Make a move, even if it is wrong’ is a personal motto.
A Class A (or C) still sounds fun, but I didn’t want to spend house kind of money on a structure that travels. Plus, then I’d have to tow my car, a fairly heavy car. Stella is my 4Runner and she has to be in the pack.
In this case, she gets to lead the pack. Travel trailer it is and once that decision was made, I bought the third one I saw. (see above patience comment)
She’s a beaut, right?!
It seemed like forever that I’d been looking, until I pulled the trigger and thought “holy crap, girl, why you gotta make snap decisions like that?”
Which is just fear talking. Because that large learning curve on so many things just got very real. I pick her up tomorrow afternoon. Frankly, I’m a bit terrified. I have like *this much* of an idea of how to back up and level a camper.
I’m grateful to have excellent company and help for her first voyage. But a single overnight will just graze the top of the iceberg of camping functionality I will be learning. All the while hoping I love this life I’ve romanticized for a long time.
I’ve been watching a few camper setup videos, gaining some imaginary confidence and then my roommate shared this great little “book’ she got.
This is the most hilarious and coincidental timing. These pictures show part of a ‘book’ her eight-year old nephew made. It’s adorable. There’s this great blue and green Jayco on the cover, but also his name so I didn’t grab that photo. But it’s [his] Camping Adventure Guideline and It. Is. Everything.
I’m excited about this journey, full of anxiety for some aspects of it and still had to just laugh out loud at how humbling and hopeful an 8-year old’s art project was. Hey, he may be smarter than me on campers right now. But I got years of other experiences on him and can drive a car!
My favorite car, which pulls the camper, which begins the journey.
Be Nurtured and Grow 