Riveted Aluminum Creates Decades of Connected Travelers
My first Airstream sighting happened as a kid when my family and I rolled past Helen, Ga, headed toward Hiawassee, Ga.. Nestled in a valley just before we climbed the switchback mountain to Hiawassee, a community of silver rocket-ship-like oval vehicles rested on the grass. Every one was the same, cute as ever, parked at exactly the same angle, and nothing like I had ever seen before. Yet, every single time we traveled, we saw the valley loaded with what I would come to know as Airstream trailers. As a kid, I didn’t know what that assembly of travelers meant. Fifty years later, I finally figured it out.
At The Range Vintage Trailer Resort in Bristol, Texas
The Feel of Airstream
Talk to people who own an Airstream, and they swoon over the product. Hand-made, riveted, and uniquely made, this trailer is recognizable anywhere it goes. But more so than it’s design and construction, it’s the Airstream community (airstreamers, they proudly announce) that facilitates a lasting devotion to the trailer.
Their tag line—”live riveted”—speaks to the lifestyle. “You’re riveted to something and unable to tear yourself away,” explains the Airstream website. Permanent attachment - the pieces of aluminum attach to the other much like the owner to his home. And it not only is the product but the community that cements a person’s relationship to this brand.
Eric McHenry, international president of Airstream Club, says, “Whether it’s your first adventure or your hundredth, being a part of Airstream Club International means a neighbor is never too far away to lend a hand, share and experience or shoot the breeze.” Their tagline—We Rally Together—fuels the club. “We are a diverse and welcoming group of airstream owners who help you to stop worrying and start relaxing.” Throughout the world—18,000 members worldwide—clubs offer a place to pop-in. Not only do the they gather for shared experiences but they also provide education of the Airstream trailers and help newbies figure the ins-and-outs of life on the road.
Having been a member for 15 years, McHenry remembers how he felt the day he and his wife LaVerne walked into his first gathering and felt as though they had been there their entire lives. “It’s our goal,” he says, “that every new member has that same positive experience.”
From caravans (Route 66, Alaska, etc.) to specialty clubs (Indie Streamers, Stella’s Sisters, Boondockers, etc.), meeting the needs of the members is a common vision.
One of the vintage trailer rentals (2013 model) at The Range Vintage Trailer Resort in Ennis Texas.
How It All Began
When the story began with the declaration that, “Wally’s wife didn’t’ like to sleep on the ground,” I knew I could relate to this woman. And being a good man, Wally Byam solved the problem. That was Marion, his first wife. In 1929, he got the idea to build a travel trailer so that Marion could enjoy the camping experience. Trial after trial resulted in a tear-drop shaped structure with a sleeping space, a stove, and an ice chest. They both loved it, and Wally published a DIY guide on how to build one. Demand exploded and he opened a a small trailer factory in California and called it Airstream—like the way they moved “like a stream of air” down the road.
For Wally, a “way of life” was the main aspect of Airstream. In 1951, the first Airstream Caravan went through Mexico to Nicaragua in Central America. He and his second wife Stella would lead caravans through Europe and even Africa. Each caravan became a fact-finding mission of how to improve the trailers.
Today, lovingly referred to as the “Mother Ship,” Jackson Center, Ohio. is where all the trailers are made.
Irish Millie (right), a devoted Airstreamer, shares her skills of towing and backing, the two factors that scare most people who consider a travel trailer.
What NEW In 2024
The line-up of Airstreams, including the new 2024 models, offer everything under the sun. They took the elements of prior production and elevated the lines.
2024 Interstate 19 X Touring Coach
The WOW factor has arrived. The rugged meets royal as this touring coach sits on a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter can chassis and is complete with 4 x 4 capabilities. Whether on the interstate or off-road on the rocks, the Interstate provides comfort while adventure is at the forefront of the itinerary. Whether in traditional campsites or boondocking spots, the Interstate can take you off the grid, well beyond the path more traveled. Rather pricey (200K +) but the amenities make off-the-beaten path a piece of cake. Features an outdoor shower, wet bath, all-terrain tires and expansive power.
2024 REI Special Edition Base Camp
Full disclosure, I could see this beauty behind my Jeep Wrangler. At 3,500 pounds, the trailer is definitely a contender for a weekend on the road for work or pleasure. Unanimously, the favorite of the group, this REI Special Edition Basecamp focuses on sustainable design, materials and feature. It incorporates fabrics and laminates made from post-consumer recycle materials and cabinetry crafted from lightweight and sustainable grown wood. This Airstream puts you in the middle of nowhere with interior space that provides everything you need. The 16 foot and 20 foot offer ample space for dining, working and sleeping. There’s a wide gallery across from the the three-in-one wet bath, making this beauty more than you come to expect. Sleeps up to 4. Single axle.
The 2024 Rangeline offers a pop-up for upstairs living!
The Rangeline Touring Coach, built on a RAM 3500 chassis, is designed for comfort and ease. There’s flexible storage and dynamic living spaces that can easily be transported into your next need. An expansive interior is kept bug-free with the sliding screen door and key components for comfort and efficiency. The optional pop-top is ideal the kids. 21 foot.
2024 Trade Wind
I was sold at back hatch.
With over 93 years of production, Airstream has designed the all-new Trade Wind Travel Trailer that takes you off-grid for extended periods of time. From a weekend camping trip to boondocking (camping on public land outside a designated campground) adventures, this versatile and powerful vehicle is designed for the modern on-the-go traveler. It features the company’s most popular 25FB floor plan with a transitional space for working, dining and sleeping. 2 axles. Sleeps up to 5.
There’s also a 2024 Pottery Barn Special Edition available with two floor plans.
Wally Byam’s Creed | “My Dream Belongs To You”
As I listened to the Airstreamsers share their stories of travel on the road and the gifts that the open road so graciously provided, I wanted that, too. As a traveler by trade, I wanted what they had. The freedom. The comraderies. The adventure. The serendipity of not knowing where you were going next. The realization that home was wherever they were and it was a close as the vehicle they towed behind their truck or Jeep.
And when the Airstream representative shared Wally Byam’s Creed—the words he lived by his entire life—it all came into focus.
“In the heart of these words is an entire life’s dream. To those of you who find in the promise of these words your promise, I bequeath this creed… my dream belongs to you.”
To place the great wide world at your doorstep for you who yearn to travel with all the comforts of home.
To provide a more satisfying, meaningful way of travel that offers complete travel independence, wherever and whenever you choose to go or stay.
To keep alive and make real an enduring promise of high adventure and faraway lands… of rediscovering old places and new interests.
To open a whole world of new experiences… a new dimension in enjoyment where travel adventure and good fellowship are your constant companions.
To encourage clubs and rallies that provide an endless source of friendships, travel fun and personal expressions.
To lead caravans wherever the four winds blow… over twinkling boulevards, across trackless deserts… to the traveled and untraveled corners of the earth.
To play some part in promoting international goodwill and understanding among the peoples of the world through person-to-person contact.
To refine and perfect our product by continuous travel-testing over the highways and byways of the world.
To strive endlessly to stir the venturesome spirit that moves you to follow a rainbow to its end… and thus make your travel dreams come true.
– Wally Byam
If these hand-made aluminum bodies of adventure teach you anything, it’s this: the world is at your doorstep, and all you have to do is go. Like so many #airstreamers we met during our two-day immersion into the brand of Airstream, they wouldn’t have it any other way.
