In the past, the full time RV life was reserved for the retired and snowbirds, finally finding ways to travel and enjoy life when older age sets in. Not anymore. Nowadays, more and more millennials are catching the RV bug, some bringing their family around with them.
Meet Tyler and Lindsey. These two are currently based in St Louis and renovating a 50-year-old Airstream to make their home for the next few years. They plan to be year-round 4 season wanderers and are customizing their Airstream to fit themselves, as well as their "children" - a dog and a cat. "The camper turned 50 years old in 2018 and was ready for a general makeover," Tyler says, "It was in good shape compared to the other prospects we researched, but it was a long way from what we needed." They decided to build it up from scratch, to give them the confidence to trust their new home, as well as to make it more their own style.
How Tyler and Lindsey met is a bit typical in present day society (online), with a little bit of a twist. They met in the Quad Cities on the Mississippi river. "Here was our first conversation," Lindsey recalls:
Lindsey to Tyler: “Please tell me you’re from Colorado”.
Tyler: I am from Colorado.
Lindsey: Really?
Tyler: No. You told me to tell you I am from Colorado, so I did. I just wanted to give you what you wanted, even just for a brief moment to then have it savagely torn from your desperate hands. I am from the Quad Cities.
Tyler adjusts window awning on their classic Airstream on a nice sunny day in St. Louis. [Photo/Andrew Malo]
That was over a year ago and, since then they made some pretty strong life changes together, such as buying an Airstream and a plan to move across the country. Tyler has always had an interest in living in a van. "Before we met, he was going to buy a van and travel," Lindsey says, "He’s a minimalist, a builder of things, an outdoor enthusiast, and an adventure junkie… his life may never become stagnate." Tyler knew he met a match with Lindsey as she always loved travelling. In her early 20's she went to Morocco to study Arabic and fell in love with wandering. "She is professional, intelligent yet humble, and driven to achieve her goals," Tyler says.
Their serious interest in RVing happened on a trip to the Smoky Mountains a few months back. "We decided to book our rooms through Airbnb and one lodging option was an Airstream Camper and Lindsey was instantly smitten by the style," Tyler recalls. So they decided to try to live full-time in a trailer. They looked at campers, vans, RVs, and even tiny houses, before settling on the classic Airstream. "Over the next 5 months we both scoured the internet to find the perfect trailer for us. We researched and toured numerous trailers even taking an 18 hour round trip just to see serious prospects in person all to no avail until, we stumbled upon a fresh lead out of Columbia, Missouri," Tyler recalls.
The one they got was in a great original condition and well loved by the folks they bought it from. "The previous owners camped in it as soon as a few months before we bought it from them," Lindsey says, "They were really sad to see it go but had other life events going on. As we drove away, tears were coming down the wife’s eyes while the husband held her." The minute Tyler and Lindsey saw it, they knew it was the one. "We love everything the Airstream stood for," she says, "Being in nature, traveling, meeting people, and living life to its fullest."
Lindsey had no previous handyman skills, though now, "I am the rivet queen," she laughs. Tyler has always tinkered with things and he says, "I'm YouTube certified." Most of their renovations and techniques come by Airstream forums, helpful family, and Googling it. "The hardest part about researching the renovation is finding the correct jargon to input into Google in order to yield a positive search result," Tyler says. "An example, for Airstream specifically, would be skins. Skins refer to the interior walls of the Airstream. In order to yield a more positive and direct search result you would want to search skin, not Airstream interior walls."
They are excited to make the trailer their own. Lindsey says, “We want it to be minimalist as possible, so we plan on having a composting toilet, one sink (in the kitchen), fresh water and grey tank. I didn’t want to have to deal with cleaning a black tank. Plus, we like to compost!! It’s very important for us in accordance with the way we feel.” They are adding solar panels in the hopes of becoming self-sufficient, as well as beds for everyone - Tyler and Lindsey, plus their two “fur babies” - Kookie, the Siamese cat and Cosmo, a lab boxer mix. You can follow them on their journey, from the building of their Airstream dream, to the travels they are going to embark on at their Instagram. And who knows? Perhaps it’ll inspire you to start your own Airstream dream.