Category: Airstream Meetups

Categories
Airstream Meetups

Airstream Meet-Up: AudreyAirstream

Through Instagram we realized that Heather & Jeff of Audrey Airstream would be in Napa, California the same time as us! After visiting with Sam’s family in the area for almost two weeks, we were just about ready to head back across Nevada to take care of the Utah house. Knowing they were coming into town, however, we extended our stay by just a few days in order to overlap. So glad we did!

Who Are They: Heather, Jeff, and their Airstream named Audrey

Website: AdventureswithAudrey.com

When We Met Up: April 2014

A Little About Them: Heather & Jeff were on a 2 month trip around the western US during a break from working. They both had just quit their jobs and were taking a break before heading back into the work scene. They hail from Las Vegas, NV.

Hiking in Napa_004

After a few back and forth emails with Heather about where we wanted to meet up, I finally had the  idea to go hiking in the Skyline Wilderness Park where we were staying. Jeff is a avid hiker, and I know that Heather often tags along (although she says she can’t go as far as her husband!).  We picked a trail with some potential views of the city and had a great time. I was SO impressed with Jeff and my kids. Andrew talked his ear off about everything under the sun and Jeff amazed Rachel with his grass eating skills. I’m now convinced that if I ever need my kids to hike without whining we have to take Jeff with us. They still tag rocks and yell “Switchback!” when turning sharp corners.

Hiking in Napa_007

Afterwards, we hung out for a bit at the Airstream and ate Triple Berry and then Mango & Pineapple Sorbet. Yum!

Hiking in Napa_008

We are so grateful to have met this amazing couple! Part of the reason we LOVE traveling (and in an Airstream to boot!) is the amazing community of people that we associate with. We haven’t met anyone that wasn’t gracious, willing to help with anything, and amazingly nice and good with our kids. Plus, when they come bringing Annette’s Chocolate you just know you are bound to be friends. 🙂

Hiking in Napa_010

Categories
Airstream Meetups

Airstream Meet-Up: ADVODNA

SAMSUNG CSC

While in Petaluma, CA we had the opportunity to meet up with another Airstream family! These meetups are seriously one of my favorite things about traveling. Dave & Ann (and their daughter Wynne) own a little farmlet on the outskirts of the city and invited us out to see the animals, and check out their on-going Airstream renovation. Not new to adventure, these two drove the Pan-American highway from SF down to Panama (pre-kids). Now, they are renovating their 2005 25′ CCD Airstream in preparation for new adventures after the arrival of baby #2 in July 2014. In the above photo, their new Airstream is on the left, and they just sold their smaller Airstream on the right. Gotta make room for more kids!

AVODNA Meetup_005

We got to feed the sheep and chickens, and the kids LOVED gathering eggs from the hen house. Dave & Ann sent us home with fresh farm eggs and they were delicious! Sam and I have begun talking long-term plans and we’d love to someday end up on a small farmlet with chickens, bees, and maybe a few other animals. Seeing their property and how peaceful it was totally fueled that desire.

AVODNA Meetup_004AVODNA Meetup_002AVODNA Meetup_001

About a week later we got together again this time out at the KOA where we were staying. We had a hot dog/marshmallow roast, played on the playground and had a great time!

AVODNA Meetup_013

We hope to catch up with them later in July when we are back in California, or once they get on the road. They are talking about driving to Alaska next summer and we just might have to get on board with that!

AVODNA Meetup_010

Categories
Airstream Meetups

Airstream Meet-Up: Where is Kyle Now?

Airstream Meet Up Where is Kyle Now

Meet Kyle of Where is Kyle Now? This guy is awesome. He has been traveling in his Airstream for more then 5 years, and we caught up with him at Usery Mountain Regional Park in Arizona. Talking Airstream travel with Kyle is a great way to test theories about maintenance, safety, and gear. If a problem hasn’t happened to Kyle, it isn’t likely to happen to us lesser mortals. This guy has been everywhere! Pressure too high on a water connection? Never happens. How often do you only have a 50 amp connection? Not often, but it DOES happen. Ever had the Airstream roll when you are inside it? Only twice, but it was enough to scare the crap out of him…

IMG_4220

Kyle started working remote back when 4G and LTE wasn’t even dreamed of yet, requiring him to seek decent wifi and slow connection speeds. I enjoyed picking his brain about networking gear, antennas, and the joy of the location flexible work life. Kyle also inspired us with his stories of Alaska travel, including traveling the Inner Passage and meeting an angry bear face to face.

Kyle’s Airstream is a much shorter (and lighter) 23 foot International CCD. The interior styling matches ours, and he’s customized the interior to match his needs. I’m particularly jealous of his table mount upgrade, and may pursue something similar in the future.

If the pictures look like we both just woke up, that’s because we had. These were taken the morning we left, and hadn’t really got the day started yet. We hope to meet up with Kyle on the road ahead, wherever we run into each other again!

IMG_4222

Categories
Airstream Meetups

Airstream Meet-up: Repairstream

RepairstreamWe landed in San Diego a few weeks back at the same time as another Airstream family. Repairstream is a mobile RV repair service that travels to you for repair. Pretty cool, huh? We met up with them at Cabrillo National Monument to earn a Jr. Ranger Badge, visit the tidepools, and hang out. They also had with them Grandma and a niece who flew in from Missouri to visit.

We spent time comparing home school (road school) ideas, destinations, floor plans (they have a 2008 model with bunk beds!), religion, and the debate on selling the house (or not). The kids seemed to get along great and it was fun hanging out with another traveling family. A few days later the kids and I traveled down to the KOA where they were staying and we all went swimming in the pool.

Hopefully our schedules will collide again as they were super fun!

IMG_5276IMG_5280IMG_5255

 

Categories
Airstream Meetups

Airstream Meet Up: Scott Jarvie

An Airstream Meet Up with Scott Jarvie

Scott Jarvie is an amazing photographer and friend from back in Utah. We first met him at a Utah Photographers Meet-Up in Salt Lake City, and have interacted in various ways over the years. He primarily is a wedding photographer, travels a lot, and recently ran a successful project on Kickstarter called “Faith In America“. His idea is to travel to all 50 states photographing religious buildings for ALL religions. Popular ones, out of the way ones, small ones, big ones, you name it.

THE NEED FOR FAITH IN AMERICA
It’s about uniting people of all faiths together. They all have faith, they all believe in something and we can celebrate that.I will do this by focusing on the major symbols of Faith… the religious buildings. The buildings that bring all these communities together and were a vital part of American History. -Scott Jarvie 

By the end of Jarvie’s Kickstarter funding period, we were in Virginia, working out the specifics of buying and living in an Airstream. Suddenly we noticed that Jarvie had a similar idea. He bought a 19′ Bambi trailer, gutted it, and re-did the inside to fit his needs. He has a huge desk with two monitors for editing (totally jealous) as well as a lot of Goal Zero battery and solar polar (also jealous). We watched him work on his trailer and get ready for travel, and then tear across the country headed for fall in New England.

He ended up in Virginia just about the time we left (November 2013), and we met up near Williamsburg for a morning to hang out, chat, see each others’ Airstreams and enjoy some local BBQ for lunch. It was great to see him and hear updates on his project. We knew we would travel much faster than he would, so it was our only chance to meet-up.

Its been fun to see where his journey takes him, as well as the amazing photos he takes along the way. Recently, he even went to church with THE Robertsons from Duck Dynasty!

The end goal of his journey is to produce two books: one of religious buildings of all faiths, and one specifically of LDS Temples. You can still pre-purchase these and help fund his journey HERE. Books are due out by the end of the year as he plans to wrap up his journey November 2014.

You can also follow him on Instagram, Facebook, Google+, YouTube, or his Blog.

IMG_2266 copy