Airstream Spring Cleaning

I spent this morning down on my hands and knees, cleaning up all the dust and dirt that accumulated in the Airstream last year. When I got done I decided to use my new wide angle lens to take some pictures, because the wide angle makes it easier to take pictures of such a small space. So here’s a little tour:

Some people seem to think we are ‘roughing it’ when we go camping in our tiny camper. It may only be 17ft, but it is anything but ‘rough’.

A couch, and a dinette, both of which can fold down into perfectly comfortable beds. And your eyes are not playing tricks on you, the table is angled – that way it is as long as possible, while still leaving plenty of room to get in and out the door. On one rainy day while camping with our friends we had ten people hanging out in here!

Also – last year I converted it to LED lighting, and several years ago I put in a propane furnace just like the new Airstreams have (after the original furnace had a minor explosion while lighting it on a trip, and I decided it was time to upgrade to something with modern safety features)

It has a full kitchen – sink with hot & cold running water, 3 burner stove, oven, and refrigerator which runs on propane or electric if we are at a spot where we are plugged in. We often camp at places where we are not plugged in, because we have enough battery power to enjoy all the amenities for a long weekend.

One day when we had a friend over, and the power went out in the house, we moved the party out to the Airstream, because it was all charged up and ready to go.

It also has a full bathroom – sink, toilet, and a shower in the middle. We don’t use the shower, there is usually a good camp shower available when camping at state parks, and the trailer is so tiny it will get pretty fogged up inside, but it’s there in a pinch. It also usually has the best view out the back window, because for some reason campsites often back up to beautiful views and rippling streams. This is why new Airstreams have switched it up and put the bedroom in the front, and the table with wrap around windows in the back, so they can enjoy the best view from the lounge instead of the toilet!

That’s the whole tour of our adorable 1968 Airstream Caravel. Forty-eight years old (thirteen of those years spent with us) and still making ‘happy campers’ every time it rolls out on the road.