In March 2015, Red Rock Canyon, the maiden trip to make sure all systems operational..and they were. We even watched a DVD on our monitor and didn’t deplete the battery..Lots to learn..
When we weren’t camping at music fests, it was plain old camping and we have averaged about 10k miles a year on Vinny. We camped at national, state and county parks, private parks and lands, went to weddings/parties, music shows-our own and as fans, visited friends and family, camped in super-booms and even camped while supporting the convalescing friends.
We camped in snow, rain and wind. We camped at rivers, oceans, mountains, valleys and forests.
I had joined the women’s camping group Sisters on the Fly (SOTF) in 2015 and I would take Vinny on many different events with this group where he would provide shade for playing Ukulele,
Or travel as far away as Arches, Zion (Watchman Campground)
and Capitol Reef NP where he would boondock on public lands for the first time.
No more retrieving the trailer from the parking spot, down the driveway up the steps, pack it and back down again usually at least 8000 steps just to pack it. Vinny was parked right at our side gate and could be loaded up anytime in any matter. He was always ready and we could get to the long weekend adventures fast
or long trips to far away place like the Redwoods
From SOTF, four of us would form the Radlers (German word for bikers) group since we bonded over a really long and strenuous bike trip while at a SOTF event in Lake Tahoe in 2018.
We have no mission statement or bi-laws just to have much laughter. Well maybe there is one parameter, Caroline must get into a body of water, even if it is in a freezing stream in April in Sedona;
Thanks to Caroline’s influence, I soon had a Stand Up Paddle Board that would “make the cut” in our VanGo lifestyle. We would go on to do multi-week trips in the spring of 2021 to Sedona and the Grand Canyon in the snow.
Then a summer California Coastal Redwoods followed by Lake Siskiyou and Baker Lake (notice his mosquito netting he’s ready for the east coast) .
Orcas Island and Olympic Peninsula in 2022 would come next. John would be allowed to accompany us occasionally, and he affectionately called our group the Honeys because they would hear me say hi “Honey” every night when I phoned him, and then they started calling him “Honey.” So he was back at them.
Vinny went as far east as Colorado, far west as Orcas Island, and north as Baker Lake. He has been to Yosemite on several occasions,
When I retired, I started listening to podcasts and learned about Bob Wells and Quartzite – the gathering of all camper styles from destitute people living in cars and vans to the super rich who show up as snowbirds. I listened to the audio book Nomads. Somewhere here it was beginning to work into our brains as John had already retired from the College, and we were trying to contemplate where we should retire. When the answer to this question was “unknown” entertaining the thought of finding that perfect spot emerged.
Vinny was certainly getting around the west…but he wanted more… and since we had no idea where we wanted to retire, nor had grandchildren-just grand dogs, and had our long-time music maker friends in Florida, we decided that would be the destination when John would throw in his lab coat for good. We loved the outdoors, hiking and experiencing new landscapes and looked forward to never worrying about a busted sprinkler or blown down fence. The photo below was only about 110 degrees, notice the fan and the shade tarp.
We would become bonafide Snowbirds, wintering in Florida and going wherever the good weather, outdoor adventures and music would take us.
Travels with Vinny VanGo 