In 2018 Sara and I remodeled an Airstream travel trailer, after we had difficulty finding a home for rent in Nevada County, California. Sara's dog Diamond was not welcome by most homeowners, as Huskies are considered agressive dogs. While frustrating at the time, it ultimately turned out to be a good thing.

After finding a truck and driving across the country looking at Airstreams, we found an older slightly beat up trailer in Reno. We enjoyed a little sightseeing at Lake Tahoe and southern Colorado, then drove to Texas and parked on my family's property to start the remodel.

The carpet was replaced with hardwood floor, and the front couch was removed and replaced with a u-shaped couch with underseat storage. I also moved the electrical breaker from above the bed to the closet, replaced the air conditioner, added a composting toilet, and a desk / kitchen prep table.

Sara made all of the seat cushions and a new mattress out of foam and latex rubber, covering them with custom ordered material. I made new window headers, then she covered them with matching material, and also wrapped the window drapery ends so they would match.

It was a lot of work, but by the time we were done the Airstream was pretty comfortable on the inside, despite looking a little worn on the outside. We were able to travel back out west, spending a lot of time in the Rocky Mountains.

What we discovered over the next several years, is that travelling by RV allows you to get a real feeling for the places you visit. After years of being the tourists who stay in a hotel only long enough to see a few sights before leaving town, we began to spend weeks or months in the same place.

Traveling by RV allowed us to really connect not only with the place, but with the local people. Everything looks different when you are immersed in it, and suddenly small towns in flyover states we used to drive past without paying attention, became places with interesting stories, rich history, and welcoming people.