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Isolation Glamping Global Virtual Camping Fun

Shari Sullivan’s 1967 Fireball Meteor in Grand Lake, Colorado

With many of our cherished gatherings, shows and events often booked a year ahead of time, the sudden change to this year’s event schedule caused by the Coronavirus Pandemic restrictions came as a real disappointment. Not to be deterred and being the innovative and creative lot that we are, groups began to form their own versions of “isolation camping” events. Using the social media hashtags like driveway getaway, global virtual camp, lockdown camping, driveway camping and more, groups of campers began camping together “virtually” right where they were; in driveways and backyards, all over the world. Images and videos were shared on social media and a sense of kinship, community and bonding was forged despite the restrictions on travel and physical contact. The memories these events created were priceless (and not just because of the lack of petrol money required to attend them!)

Kandas Tedesco’s “Jane the Camper” in Knoxsville, Tennesee 

Kandas Tedesco, who lives in Knoxsville, Tennessee encouraged members of her Glamper Sisters group to join in on the #drivewaygetaway and was thrilled with the response. “It was great to see so many people enjoying themselves, spending time with their families and coming ‘together’ in such a unique way. I think we can all agree 2020 is going to be a year to remember! My hope is that through this event, we can take away some positive memories too”.

Jesse & Debbie Hurley from Knoxsville’s 1961 Shasta Airfl yte “Dolly” 

Also in quarantine and taking part in the event with their 1961 Shasta Airfl yte were Kandas’ parents; Jesse and Debbie Hurley who enjoyed the “virtual escape” from the isolation hum drum. “Camping and traveling the world is such a big part of our lives, and being quarantined in one place has been hard, but the driveway getaway allowed us to sit back and reflect on how much of lives we really take for granted”.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world in Langwarrin, Victoria, Australia, a 1963 Pasadena caravan named Pearl became an essential retreat for a household of seven people in isolation together. “During the week she is an ‘offi ce’ for one worker at home and one learner at home, then on the weekend Pearl is our destination of choice with lights and a fi re!” says owner Nicky. For some couples and families spending a lot more time together than they usually would, the caravan in the driveway has become an essential escape to solitude; the only chance to get some peace and time out. For Carolyn in Budgewoi, New South Wales, having the caravan parked in her driveway gave her a quiet space away from the incessant Coronavirus news reports and talkback radio that her husband likes to listen to. A quirk that never bothered her so much until she

found herself suddenly unemployed when the pandemic hit, “If it wasn’t for my vintage princesses in the driveway and having my pleas for silence thankfully met with his purchase of Wi-Fi ear buds, I surely would not have coped” she says. “Bringing her home to my driveway for some much-needed TLC and spending time fussing over her along with an extended global vintage community was the best medicine ever for this caravan tragic soul during these COVID19 times”. Jenna and Jeff Hampton are the proud parents of an eleven-month-old son. While Jeff went to work, Jenna found it challenging working from home with the baby without the distractions of daycare and daily visits with grandparents. “Saying we were all going stir crazy is putting it mildly!”, said Jenna. “Our baby boy got to set up his ‘camper’ and enjoyed playing with Sasquatch during the day and at night we set up the tent in the living room and “camped out”. We connected with campers from all over the world through social media. We also made some great memories as a family and can’t wait ‘til our little guy is bigger to tell him. It was so amazing to be a part of something so wonderful during such a dark time and we can’t wait until the next ‘global camp out’!” Single Mum of two and owner of a cute little vintage camper named “Elliemay”, Kourtney Hurley was thankful for the opportunity to “escape from reality”.

Nicky & Andrew Johnston in Langerin, VIC with ‘Pearl’ the 1963 Pasadena

 Jenna & Je Hampton’s 11-month-old son’s 1st campout with “Bonnie the Camper”

“Having to learn to work from home and begin homeschooling all at once, we were desperate for a break!” she told us. “When we heard about ‘camp from home’ we were all in! We packed up our camper as usual and pulled it right into the front yard. We enjoyed hotdogs, s’mores, and then settled down for movie night in the camper! It was such a great way to escape reality and connect with our own family and others from all around the world virtually!

Meanwhile over in Geelong, Australia Dennis and Sandra Virgona were doing some not-so-socially distanced camping with their virtual “neighbours”, having a hilarious happy hour in their garage with a bunch of pink fl amingos and their travel buddy dog Tess. “We were all doing our best to social distance; however, the fl amingos were a little over friendly!” writes Sandra.

Jamie Metz’s Serro Sco y “Lucy the Glamper”

Kirsten Butler & “Archie” in her 1969 Olympic “Ziggy Stardust” in Byron Bay, Australia 

Kourtney Hurley’s kids from Knoxsville, TN with “Elliemay the camper”

Justine Carragher of Uki, NSW’s 1964 Sunliner “Da odil” & 1971 VW Superbug

Karyn McKay from Fife, Scotland’s Sprite Musketeer

Caravan “Flora Mary”

Sarah Moore & Vince Emge from Knoxville, TN own “Della Rae” a 1970 Yellowstone Capri

GeriAnn & Je Horne and their 1971 Wilderness “Amazing Grace”

And over in another corner of the world a cute little pastel-coloured caravan called “Flora Mary” made a cozy retreat from the Corona madness for its owner Karyn in Fife, Scotland. GeriAnn and Jeff Horne had worked all winter preparing their 1971 Wilderness “Amazing Grace” and, like so many of us, were excited about the upcoming camping season until the pandemic put a halt on them doing what they love. When they heard about the “driveway getaway”. GeriAnn says she was “all in” “The hubs and I set the camper up,

built us a campfi re, and camped in our driveway along with friends from all over the world. We used Social Media to keep up with the others, talked, shared pictures and video chatted while camping alone/together. So, even though the year 2020 started off on a bad start, I do have to say our Camping season started out with the most unique camping trip we ever had!” with an extra bonus: “The on-site amenities were the best we’ve ever come across!” For Sarah Moore and Vince Emge from Knoxville, Tennessee the Glamper Sisters call out to partake in the #drivewaygetaway was not just a muchneeded escape from self-isolation, but their fi rst “outing” in their trailer Della. Sarah expressed a sentiment that was shared by most participants interviewed for this story: “It was an honor to get to be a part of something larger than us and feel that we are not alone in all this”.

Little Van WITH Big Ideas

i, I’m Lisa and I grew up in an outer suburb of Melbourne and spent many wonderful holidays with a big group of extended family members, camping in the bush or by the beach.

As a young adult, I continued to enjoy tent camping with my partner Rob, and when our kids came along, we upgraded to a trailer-tent. It was great in theory, but it was cumbersome and time consuming to pack away, so the novelty soon wore off and we eventually stopped camping. That’s when the idea of buying a small, cheap caravan took hold and wouldn’t let go. Although I knew it was a great idea, Rob unfortunately did not agree, and the idea was shelved for a few years. Persistence paid off however, and in 2011 the search to fi nd our little caravan began. It was during this search that I discovered Vintage Caravan Magazine and I was instantly hooked. I knew our caravan had to be pre-1980, so it wouldn’t be classed as “modern” and in January 2012 we bought a tiny 1979 10- foot Coronet that I named Wanda. I did her up as best I could inside and out, and we enjoyed many weekends away in her.

Fast forward to 2020 and we currently have three caravans and have sold three more. I don’t buy them to renovate and sell. Each one has been bought with the intention to restore and keep. The trouble is, there’s always another one around the corner that needs to be brought back to life. So when I see one that I just have to have, another has to fi nd a new home.

And that brings us to the story of Gidget. In August 2018 I saw an ad on Facebook Marketplace for another 11-foot York caravan on a nearby dairy farm, so I jumped in the car and raced over to “just have a look”. This one was built in 1977 and was completely original and looked to be in pretty good shape. It was registered, with a working fridge and minor water damage. I bought it on the spot for $2,200 then headed home to tell Rob what I’d done. I think I was more surprised than he was! I wasn’t looking for another caravan and I certainly didn’t need another caravan, but now here I was with three caravans in various stages of restoration. I had every intention of giving this one a quick makeover and selling it, but the water damage turned out to be much more extensive than originally thought… isn’t that always the way? The more time and eff ort I put into restoring it, the more I connected with it, and soon it occurred to me that this could be the perfect little girly van for me to take away with some

like-minded girlfriends. That’s when the name Gidget popped into my head. With a lot of hard work and a lot of help from others, that daggy little caravan has slowly transformed into the perfect little getaway van that I fondly call my Getaway Gidget.

Gidget’s transformation started with the removal of the water damaged wall and ceiling panelling and overhead cupboards. Only the kitchen base cabinets and wardrobe, and a few wall

panels remained unscathed. Once it was stripped back and the mould was removed, I employed a carpenter friend to help me replace the rotten roof timbers and ceiling and wall panels, and to rebuild the dinette seats and the kitchen’s overhead cupboards. I then began on the interior by undercoating and painting. When choosing the wall colour, I thought I’d save some time and money by foregoing the sample pots. I knew I wanted a citrus yellow, so I just picked a colour from the brochure and painted all the walls, but that turned out to be fl uorescent green, so I picked another colour and painted… then picked another colour and painted. I am currently on my fourth colour choice!

I have restored every window by removing them one at a time, picking out and replacing all the perished window glazing rubber around each pane, polishing the aluminium frames and resealing them back in place. It would take me days to complete each one and I managed to break three panes of glass in the process. There are seven windows and nineteen panes of glass in that caravan. I swear I will never do that job again! It was worth it though, because those wind-out louvered windows are very practical and easy to use.

Another huge task was to remove and restore all the aluminium trim along the exterior edges of the van. Fortunately, Rob was happy to help with that job as well as restoring the chassis A-frame & tow hitch. She has a new set of tyres, a new bracket for the spare tyre and I had a spare wheel cover custom made using a design created by our younger daughter. I’ve added a small television with DVD player so I can watch old movies and sitcoms from the 70’s, and I gave an old broken radio a new lease

on life by gutting it and installing a small Bluetooth speaker inside so I can stream my favourite tunes - mostly Aussie bands from the 70’s. Finally, Gidget was off to the local spray painter for a professional exterior 2-pac coat of paint. I happily splurged on this because by then I knew she was going to be mine forever. I then applied bright fl ower stickers to really brighten up her exterior and now I can’t help but smile every time I see her.

I always focus on original-to-the-era pieces and only buy modern retro inspired item if I can’t find what I’m after. As a child of the 60’s & 70’s,

I find myself drawn to the architecture, furniture and décor from the era.

One day, my kombi loving friend Maria and I were applying undercoat to the walls when we both happened to look down at the newspapers spread out on the fl oor. Maria said, “Oh how cool is that surfboard” and that’s when I realised we were looking at a photo of Kathy Kohner, who is the real-life inspiration for the fi ctional character of Gidget. The 1957 novel, “Gidget: The Little Girl with Big Ideas”, was written by her father Frederick Kohner and that book inspired the very popular movies and tv show. Here we were, standing in Gidget and laying at our feet was a two-page spread about my caravan’s namesake! I hastily rescued the article from impending paint splatters and stored it safely away.

Maria has been a great help and a patient sounding board throughout this whole process. I knew I wanted to retain a retro 70’s theme for the caravan but the interior colour scheme really came together when she found a roll of vintage wallpaper at our local vintage market. There was just enough to cover one wall and it took us the better part of an entire day to install it. As well as installing wallpaper, painting and general decorating, I have sewn two sets of curtains, the doona cover, cushion covers, and an acrylic canvas awning. Of course, my most favourite pastime has been sourcing the vintage and retro inspired décor. I always focus on original-to-the-era pieces and only buy modern retro inspired item if I can’t fi nd what I’m after. As a child of the 60’s & 70’s, I fi nd myself drawn to the architecture, furniture and décor from the era. I especially love the retro textiles and kitchenware and my studysewing-guest room is rapidly becoming a shrine to the 70’s.

In April 2019 Gidget was fi nally ready for her fi rst outing. Unfortunately, Rob had work commitments and couldn’t join me, so I towed her the fi ve-hour journey to Picnic Point on the Murray River near Mathoura, New South Wales, where I was to meet up with more than forty members of my extended family. I was so excited and nervous during the

drive, mostly because I wasn’t sure which roads to take and at one point, I did have to make a U-turn after following a narrow winding road that turned out to be taking me in the wrong direction. By the time I made it to Mathoura I felt like I could just keep going and head for who knows where? Queensland perhaps? But of course family were waiting, and I was eager to catch up with them. We gathered there to commemorate the passing of my grandparents, my father and my uncle who all used to love camping along the banks of the Murray. Understandably, it was a bittersweet

occasion for her inaugural outing, but also a wonderful opportunity to once again be camping with family like we did back in the 70s, albeit in much fl ashier caravans! Gidget was a big hit with the family, many of whom own modern caravans that are twice her size.

Gidget’s next outing was to Tarra Valley in south eastern Victoria. Rob and I headed off for a long weekend with our two travelling companions, our mini Schnauzers Harvey and Sadie. We stayed at the Best Friends Holiday Retreat, which I highly recommend if you love to travel with your pups. I’ve since taken Gidget away on a few more adventures including the annual Bridgewater Vintage Caravan gathering near Bendigo in Victoria, where Gidget sat between Lisa Mora’s Priscilla and Carolyn Cameron’s. It was a great weekend and I can’t wait for the next one. I also organised a vintage caravan gathering in my hometown and despite the wet and windy weather, it was a great success and likely to become an annual event.

Unfortunately, all our upcoming events have been cancelled or postponed so for now, while I wait for the caravan parks to reopen, I’m content to hide away in Gidget, sipping on hot coff ee and leafi ng through the pages of Vintage Caravan Magazine while I dream of new adventures, of the places we’ll go and the people (and caravans) we’ll meet.