The Grand Tour (in 2 minutes or less)

Today we’ll try to leave the Dent Fiasco behind, and focus upon happier topics. How about a quick guided tour?



Our Airstream is a 25-foot model -- squarely in the middle of the species size range. I like to think that this trailer includes “everything we need, and nothing we don’t.”

In the wide world of RVs, we’re a relatively small fish. That said, I’m convinced that the Airstream is more comfortable than our old brownstone apartment in Greenwich Village -- and we don’t have any mice.

On that note, I’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon aboard the RV. It seems that once one mentally adjusts to the amount of living space available -- whatever it may be -- that amount of space quickly becomes “normal.” It makes one reconsider the trend of ever-expanding American homes. How much space do you really need?

A Dent in Our Enthusiasm?

'Twas not a happy day. We retrieved our Airstream from the RV service center. In addition to the potentially nuclear refrigerator, we had them working to repair the front ceiling fan. Dubbed a "Fan-tastic Fan," it's basically a ceiling fan that blows air either in or out the RV, through the roof.

When we arrived home with our Airstream, we discovered a HUGE dent on the roof -- right next to the front ceiling fan. This dent did not exist last week, when we dropped off our trailer to have the work done.



To the untrained eye, this may not seem like a big deal. But Airstreams are finicky beasts -- restoring that damaged aluminum to its original condition will not be an easy (nor, I'm afraid, an inexpensive) task.

So we had to rehitch the Airstream, and drive BACK to the service center. I spoke with the general manager. He was very nice and apologetic about the situation, and has offered to repair the damage.

We still plan to depart for Yellowstone on Monday as planned, but I'm afraid our "tin can" will be a little less aerodynamic. We don't have time to fix it before we depart, so we'll have to wait until August to have the repairs done.

So Where’s The Airstream?

So, you must be wondering about our Airstream? It hasn't yet made a blog video appearance.

Alas, it’s in the shop for a minor recall repair. Apparently our refrigerator has this tiny little design problem which might cause it to dump ALL its propane and do a nuclear bomb impression. No big deal. Call me crazy, but we’re having it fixed anyway.

In the meantime, I will attempt to distract you with this generator. Woo hoo! It putters like a kitten. It's a lovely shade of blue (although Kristy called it “Smurfy”). Last night Kristy’s father Harry helped us with the assembly, and we started it for the first time. Ahhhh... magic moments in the RV life.

Itinerary (Itinerarium Airstreamus)

For some reason, I find the word "itinerary" almost impossible to spell. But I digress...

As for our travel ITINERARY, we really only have a few dates & events that are set in stone:

July 2 -- Depart Birmingham, getting off to our typically delayed mid-afternoon start.

July 3 -- Arrive in Kansas City to visit Sean's family.

July 4 -- Detonate fireworks, consume beverages.

July 5 -- Depart Kansas City.

July 7 -- Arrive in Yellowstone National Park!

Everything beyond July 7 is wide open. I'm thinking that we will go north to visit Glacier National Park on the Montana/Canada border. Then we will perhaps head further west to visit our brother-in-law Wes in the Seattle area. We will return home sometime in August (probably just before kickoff of the first college football game!).

A Boondocking We Shall Go

In RV parlance, to “boondock” is to camp without water and electricity hookups. It’s also called “dry camping.” Boondocking presents a few logistical questions, the most important of which is, “How can we avoid being driven insane by this relentless summer heat?”

Water is relatively easy. Our Airstream has a 60-gallon fresh water tank. This provides enough water to last anywhere from a day to several days -- depending on how stingy one becomes with water. You have to be careful with showers; no long, hot soaking showers are allowed. But the classic “RV shower” really isn’t too bad. It’s probably similar to what they do in the military: you only run water when getting wet, or rinsing.

The bigger problem is electricity. Although our RV has two big batteries, they don’t provide enough power to run the A/C. That why we have a generator. Our choice is the Yamaha EF3000iSEB. The “B” stands for “boost” -- it’s got some gee-whiz technology that boosts power to help air-conditioning units start with ease. Plus, it’s quiet, only delivering the amount of power we actually need.

The upside of boondocking is that it’s usually FREE. This is among the most liberating aspects of RV life. An RV offers the ability to travel anywhere around the nation, carrying your own stuff, and you can stop pretty much anywhere you damn well please (assuming it’s kosher with the local authorities).

While we certainly won’t boondock our entire trip, I’m sure we will do so several times along the way.

One Week Until We Set Sail!

On July 2, Kristy and I will depart "The Ham" (Birmingham) and head to the great American West. We were married on May 20, so this is the first stage of our honeymoon -- the domestic stage! We also plan to travel internationally, but first we are puttering around the States.

We will be driving a Ford F250 pickup truck, behind which we'll be towing our "studio apartment on wheels" -- a 25-foot Airstream Classic travel trailer.

People have asked the question, "Why did you choose an Airstream?"

Our answers vary, but at the heart of the matter is the unique Airstream experience. There's an entire community of extremists-- I mean, enthusiasts -- who are focused upon Airstreams. And we wanted to join their number.

What we'll be doing in this trip is nothing new; in fact, it's become an American tradition (at least for those Americans who don't mind handling their own sewer hoses). The iconic "silver bullet" travel trailers have been fixtures on American highways for almost eight decades now.

We look forward to not only seeing parts of our country we've never seen... but also seeing our country in a way we've never seen it.

So, stay tuned... the blog is just beginning!

Sean