We contend with ever increasing diesel prices and dramatic climate change, as we travel the long way from Roseville, California, to the annual Burning Man gathering in Nevada's Black Rock Desert. This is the story of our caravan to Bozeman for the WBCCI International Airstream Rally, our subsequent participation in the Maple Leaf Trail caravan through Alberta and British Columbia, and our return home.
Gary had given each rig a small black bear to decorate thematically for a contest. Much more effort went into this than we anticipated, not that it would have altered our entry.
The Dutch Lake owners acted as judges, and the Grand Prize went to Rosemary for the decorated bear on the blanket. The bear on the flowerpot tepee was also a winner. Our entry? The bear with a maple leaf for a fig leaf, carrying the “EH?” flag.
What is WBCCI? A club limited to Airstream owners, formally called the Wally Byam Caravan Club International. There are units throughout the US and Canada. Local units have their own programs of caravans and rallies. The national club holds a rally once yearly that thousands attend. For many of us the annual international rally can be the jumping off point for a caravan in the US, Canada, or Mexico.
Why caravan? To each his own, but this has worked out very well for us. We’ve been places and seen things we would otherwise not have gotten around to if left to our own devices. While traveling we do not have to worry about where we will be on a particular night or what we will do the next day, and yet there are plenty of free days to relax, do laundry, or explore. The costs are high but reasonable, at least through WBCCI, as the leaders are not paid and most places grant discounts to groups. And the fact that we all own Airstreams provides a common point of interest for participants, something to talk about as you get to know someone, a support group if you are having equipment problems.
Through WBCCI caravaning we’ve widened our circle of friends to include people we otherwise could not have known – people from all over the country, from all professions, with very different backgrounds and experiences. I’ve provided a few sentences describing many of these people to give you an idea of who goes on caravans.
Age? Well, this club is aging and losing members, a problem faced by many social groupings. The youngest person on this caravan is 13 and he is traveling with his grandparents.
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