I love tenting because of its simplicity, but my absolute favorite way to camp is in my 1973 Volkswagen Westfalia. Her name is Connie and she means the world to me. For the longest time, I had a lot of anxiety about taking her out because of mechanical issues, but in the last year she has driven so beautifully. My partner, friends, and I have taken her camping all over Vermont and even into Burlington for a night in the city!
The ice box and pump sink don’t function, there’s no heat or AC, the radio is broken, and I backed her into a tree at Grand Isle Campground last summer, but we love love love camping with Connie. The nostalgic vibe of being in the forest, unplugged, and with a classic campervan is truly unmatched. We camped out at a Cage the Elephant concert this year and so many people came to hang out with us. She is certainly a crowd pleaser. My absolute favorite thing about camping in this rig is the stories I hear from other people about their experiences with old VWs. I'm never truly alone in a campground with Connie, there are always friends to be made!
I do eventually want to get an awning I can drill into the side to have and fix the interior parts that don’t work. My partner and I have also toyed with the idea of building out a school bus as a more reliable camping vehicle and leaving Connie to her vanity uses. What would you prefer; a more modern Sprinter or school bus type of van camping? Or would you risk a spin in a vintage rig like Connie?
HERE HERE TO OLD-SCHOOL VANS
I am the proud co-owner of a 1998 Ford e150 named Sage.
We lived in Sage for a year, traveling around the Western United States. At this point, she's got at least 220k miles but runs well. Like yours, the heater sucks, and the A/C periodically stops working. We're hoping to get 300k miles out of her, but we will see. In the meantime, we are saving to eventually replace Sage with something more modern and that can accommodate not just a dog but also a third human.