Goodbye, TOW-Wanda! Hello, Big Bird!

I knew after driving in high winds for two and a half hours…we’d made the right decision!

Y’all are going to think we need an intervention. I mean…why have one camper when you can have four, right? Well…our long term thinking is still to have ONE good camper for camping in, and the ‘67 Franklin for a renovation project. As you may remember, we’ve….I’VE had a mishap buying a used camper. I bought a small camper that ended up having a BIG rot problem and it literally started falling apart as soon as I got to Colorado summer before last. I ended up selling it for half what I paid for it. I was disappointed in myself because I didn’t do my due diligence and have the camper checked out. Lesson learned.

Then, we bought this darling little a-frame this summer. It really is sweet, but the sleeping arrangements weren’t ideal. Mr. FixIt and I couldn’t sleep in the same bed because it meant someone was going to have to be squeezed into the tight angle. He’s a bit claustrophobic, so I’d have to be on the inside, which meant I’d be climbing over him multiple times a night to go to the bathroom. That just wouldn’t work. It’s a perfect camper for one person, though. What we ended up doing when he camped with me was leave the dinette down all the time with a twin mattress on top and he slept there. That was great, but then there was no place to sit inside and eat and play cards when/if it rains. It was a dilemma.

In the last couple of months, we’ve had to go to Columbus to see the endocrine surgeon and to get scans. We also drove through and back on our trip to Colorado. We kept seeing these a-frame campers on the lot of Specialty RV Sales. We stopped several times and looked at them several times. One was just like ours. The other was what is called a “high side”. It’s a lot taller and a couple feet longer than Birdie, but that extra room has a lot of advantages.

It has twin beds with a fill piece that turns it into a king bed. The only downside of that is, you lose easy access to the storage under the beds. Because of the higher sides, you get a taller fridge with a freezer compartment…something I didn’t realize I would REALLY miss. And, because the sleeping situation was solved, the dinette can stay up full time. This particular model also has a dormer over the dinette that offers extra headroom. And there is a storage bin on the front of the camper to carry chairs and extra items you may need for camping. Oh…and the coolest thing…the roof has a power assist to raise it up!

When we were camping this past week, we had to drive up to Columbus for another scan. As we drove by the RV place, Mr. FixIt saw another a-frame camper parked on the lot so he wanted to stop on the way back. We had a look at it, but it just wasn’t exactly what we wanted. For one thing, it had been used pretty hard in Alaska. For another, it was six years old and you start getting some issues unless you have taken impeccable care of a camper.

We really weren’t in the market for another camper. After all, we just bought Birdie a couple of months ago. We thanked the fellow for his time and started to leave. As we were walking away, I turned to Mr. FixIt and said, “Do you suppose they would take Big TOW-Wanda in trade? We could get a better trade in with her than with Birdie.” He said he really didn’t want to stay there all day, but I said, “Just let me ask him real quick.”

Yeah…three hours later, we walked out owning a brand new 2021 Rockwood 213HWOR. Dealers are desperate for good, used campers and…like used cars, they are paying top dollar for them. The fact this camper had been on the lot for six months made the dealership even more motivated to move it out. The price had come down quite a bit since we first looked. And we threw out a ridiculous number that we wanted for a trade in. When we got down to within $250, we were in. God provides for us in many ways.

AND, we unloaded the big camper. I loved TOW-Wanda when I got her. She was perfect for what I needed her for. However, we never once took her camping in the last three years because…she was just too big! Every time I took her out, it felt like I was moving a house. It was just too much. I camped out in the field with her, but that was it. There are places now that have campers for rent so you can get a good feel for what would really work for you. We knew after the trip to Colorado that we LOVED the a-frame. But, we wanted just a little bit bigger to sleep comfortably and to have the dinette to use.

So, we are camping again! We have this next ten days free. I don’t know if we’ll stay out that long, but this will give us a chance to test out the new camper and iron out any rough spots. Oh, and her name. Since the other a-frame is Birdie because she looks like a birdhouse…this one is Big Bird, because she’s much bigger.

Now, we’ll have a little a-frame for sale before too long…Birdie needs to leave the nest!