New RV!
Putting the exciting news up front (I do hate clickbait), we accidentally bought our Retirement RV a little sooner than expected. An Airstream Rangeline! Which also means we’ll be selling the Lance (sad face).
Picking out our Lance was about a year-long process. Innumerable visits to many RV dealerships. Walking around them. Walking in them. Picturing us camping in them. Getting kicked out by security because “you can’t sleep here overnight.” Bitch, please. I lie down on that bed before I buy it!
Taking our time to pick that Lance out was almost as fun as buying it. What we (I) really wanted was an Airstream but back then there was no way we were going to afford that. We could barely afford the Lance, but at least it was the next best thing in my opinion. So the Airstream dream slipped into the back recesses of my mind and sprouted roots that dug deep and held.
The retirement RV was going to be all metal construction. No more applying sealant to the seams as a cyclic maintenance routine. No more wondering if this would be the time the slide decides to not work. Is it going to start leaking around the slide? How long is this frame and plywood sheet house going to last?
It was a major compromise from the both of us. Carol wanted a motor coach. Something she could comfortably drive. I wanted an Airstream – the classic bullet shaped aluminum riveted trailers. The Rangeline is our compromise. All steel construction. No slides.
We initially went to the Airstream dealer to just have a look at the touring coaches. See what they looked like inside. Would we think we’d be able to downsize that much? Dude made us an offer we couldn’t refuse and we bought it on the spot.
This will certainly be a huge learning curve as we transition from camping in what essentially was a mobile home (trailer) with walk-around queen size bed, full kitchen with oven, stove, full-size fridge and freezer, table that seats six, walk in bathroom with shower and full vanity over the sink to store all my assorted sundries, separate closets and wardrobes, and food pantry.
Transitioning to what’s basically a cargo van. But Airstream does find a way to maximize what little space it does have. Definitely a 2-person only RV with a full-size bed that folds up and out of the way for maximizing cargo space when traveling. Could have opted for a pop-up top. Nope! Just another place to worry about leaking later.
Due to its much smaller footprint, we will be able to fit into a ton of more spaces than what we have been accustomed to. It is hard to explain the anxiety one gets when rolling into a camping area, knowing that out of the 30 different spots available, your rig will only fit into 5 of them, and let’s hope there is at least one of those 5 available. This van will fit just about anywhere.
All of the usual places we repeat camp? I can think of all the spots that are available to us now. City of Rocks. Aguirre Springs. Oliver Lee Memorial. Bryce Canyon. Zion. Joshua Tree. Fort Davis.
Sad to see the Lance go, but we will be selling it. The Airstream dealer graciously offered to sell it on consignment, with no fees.
This is going to be a wonderful next chapter in our lives!