Airstream – Riveted

Our Airstream is For Sale

Laura Domela — Wed, 26 Dec 2018 20:46:35 +0000

We bought our 2010 Airstream International CCD 27FB brand new in 2010 (when we traded in our 2005 22′ Airstream International for five more feet). We’ve traveled much of the US and big chunks of Canada, and have had some incredible experiences and met some of the best people we know because of this Airstream.

Four+ years ago we bought a boat, and things changed a bit for us. The on-the-water lifestyle is one we seem to be living now, to the exclusion of many other things we still love but don’t use. In the last four years, we’ve spent over 900 nights on our boat, and we’ve used our Airstream for two weekends, a year or so apart.

Rather than keep this beautiful trailer tucked away in a cozy RV garage without sunshine and fresh air, we’d love to find it a wonderful new home with people who want to take it hiking and kayaking and exploring beautiful landscapes.

Click here for specs and more info

(Floor plan image courtesy of Airstream.)

Ten Days in Yelapa, Our Shower Iguana, and a Bigger Airship

Laura Domela — Tue, 27 Nov 2018 02:15:39 +0000

A lot has happened since I last posted (in May!) We lead the first flotilla from the San Juan Islands to Juneau, Alaska, then met our next flotilla in Port McNeill and headed down the west side of Vancouver Island, then made one full flotilla circle around Vancouver Island starting in Roche Harbor and ending in Victoria, BC. We had a blast, and we have five more flotillas planned for the summer of 2019.

Toward the end of our last flotilla (while on the outside of Vancouver Island), we learned of a Nordic Tug 42 for sale out of Sidney, BC. Photos looked good, specs sounded good, and to make a long story short, we sold smaller Airship (our Nordic Tug 34) and have now moved up to a 42! If you want more details and photos, here they are.

We sold the airplane before we left for Alaska, and we’ll be selling the Airstream any day now (2010 27’FB International CCD with a ton of upgrades — let us know if you’re interested…it’s not listed yet but will be soon). So we’re putting all our eggs into the boat basket, since it has proven to be the vessel of choice these days. We spent over 900 nights aboard Airship/34 in the four years we had her, and I know we’ll keep up the trend on the new Airship, so why not streamline?

But right now, we’re back in Yelapa, Jalisco, Mexico, enjoying the sun and sea (and tequila). Our friends Tiffani and Deke met us in Puerto Vallarta about a week ago and we water taxi’d to Yelapa where they spent a week with us (left yesterday, sad face). We’ll spend four more days before heading back to Portland and then up to the boat to help with upgrade projects that are happening now!

For Thanksgiving, we had the cooks from a local cafe (Cafe Eclipse) come to our casa and cook dinner for us: homemade guacamole and salsa, margaritas, carne asada, grilled fish, veggies, homemade tortillas, and coconut and chocolate pie from the Yelapa pie lady. It was delicious, and we even watched two humpbacks breaching out in the bay right from the dinner table. Pretty great!

Here are some photos from the past week:

Leaving Puerto Vallarta by water taxi

The view from Casa Pericos

After getting settled, we headed into town to grab dinner at one of our favorite eateries–Taqueria Los Abuelos. Tiffani and I had tacos (very good), and Kevin and Deke both ordered the special, which was a Chile Relleno con Camarones. It was extra delicious, and I wish it was on their permanent menu!

Sunset from Casa Pericos, first night in Yelapa

Path through town as it crosses the river

Local signage

" data-medium-file="https://i2.wp.com/www.riveted-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/yelapa-0222.jpg?fit=300%2C225" data-large-file="https://i2.wp.com/www.riveted-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/yelapa-0222.jpg?fit=1000%2C750" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-24251" src="https://i2.wp.com/www.riveted-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/yelapa-0222.jpg?resize=1000%2C750" alt="" width="1000" height="750" srcset="https://i2.wp.com/www.riveted-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/yelapa-0222.jpg?w=1000 1000w, https://i2.wp.com/www.riveted-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/yelapa-0222.jpg?resize=300%2C225 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" data-recalc-dims="1" />

Local signage

We picked up a few things at the market for breakfasts and snacks (eggs, chorizo, stuff to make salsa, coffee, tortillas and chips), as well as a bottle of the locally made raicilla to try (which comes in this fancy bottle):

Raicilla is made from the agave plant, but is less of a mezcal or tequila, and more of a local “moonshine” specific to this area of Jalisco. Until recently, buying it here from the locals is the only way to get it, but there is now one distiller, La Venenosa, that has started to market a legal brand of raicilla. It got an interesting flavor and some definite similarities to mezcal, but it’s for sure its own thing (and there’s no way we’ll be able to really even dent this bottle we bought, so we’ll find someone to pass it on to before we leave).

Tuesday was the first of our two charter outings with Garcia Charters.

We trolled for about five minutes before we caught our first fish (a bonito). Today brought in 3 bonito, and about 30 skipjack. (We kept one skipjack that Juan Carlos made ceviche with, and threw the rest back.)

The lighthouse at the southernmost tip of Banderas Bay.

Back at Casa Pericos, we learned that we had a shower iguana (he’s still here).

The next day we thought we’d wander over to La Playa (the more touristy area of Yelapa). The moon is nearly full so the tides have been high, which means shoes off to wade across this area to the beach.

Heading to La Playa

We sat at a table and had some lunch, while this big iguana came a little too close to Tiffani’s shoes

Back at Casa Pericos, Tiffani and Deke heading out for a paddle (photo taken from our room).

We went out again with Garcia Charters on Friday after Thanksgiving: fishing first, then a stop out at Islas Marietas

Geared up and ready to swim through the sea cave/tunnel into “Playa del Amor” — a white sand beach inside a crater! Tiffani and Deke on the left, and one of our charter guides, Jonas, on the right.

This is such a cool thing to do from Yelapa (or Puerto Vallarta). Next time we may spend the first part of our charter snorkeling at the islands instead of fishing, since there’s much to see out here, but today we just had a quick swim into the crater with a great view of the local blue-footed boobies. (Two of them were positioned right at the sea cave opening, showing off their bright blue feet, just like Disney would have designed if this was a ride!) If you want to get a good overview of what this place looks like, check out this image search result.

Late morning view from Casa Pericos

On Saturday, we headed back over to La Playa and the far side of town. Deke decided that since Tiffani had never parasailed, today was going to be her day.

Making our way through town. We rarely get lost now after a few days navigating the winding cobblestone paths.

Looking down into the village/bay from the path above town

Local foliage

When we arrived at the spot to cross the river, it was WAY higher than it was the previous time, so we walked further on the path up river and crossed at the bridge.

Looking up river, taken from the bridge

The bridge across the river

Love this cool structure

Wood slat details

Kevin, Deke, and Tiffani

We arrived at La Playa and found the parasail guy, who he quickly got Tiffani ready, called the boat, and made it all happen!

Getting instructions for take off

There she is, flying over Yelapa

Coming in for a landing

Tiffani said she was super scared at the beginning, but that after she relaxed into a little bit that it was really fun and the view was amazing.

We had such a nice time with Tiffani and Deke, and we’re enjoying the last few days here just relaxing and cooking and watching the sea life from our balcony–the other day we watched a manta ray jumping out of the water over and over again just out near the rocks in front.

Shiny Shacks | Airstream Repairs

Laura Domela — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 18:21:02 +0000

We have used our Airstream exactly twice since we bought Airship in September 2014. The first time we got back to our poor neglected shiny buddy, we noticed a little soft spot in the floor (front port side, next to Kevin’s side of the bed). It was small and in a low traffic area, and since we keep the Airstream inside when we aren’t using it, we didn’t feel rushed to get it repaired, but it was definitely on the list.

Then last month when we spent that week at the coast with it, the soft spot seemed like it had grown a little, and we also learned that we had a leak in our fresh water tank. Two things wrong = repair time. We’ve had plenty of experience with the local (and not so local) Airstream dealers/service centers, and our experiences have not all been awesome, so we contacted our friend Brad at Shiny Shacks in Salem, and asked if he wanted the gig. Brad primarily works on older trailers (40s 50s 60s)…repairs, rebuilds, remodels…but he was up for working on our 2010 model, so off to Salem we went.

This is Brad, with his 1962 Airstream Flying Cloud:

If you saw the other post about our first visit to Shiny Shacks, then you’ll already know this, but it is one of the 8 known survivors of Wally Byam’s Caravan Around the World (1963-64). The trailer belonged to Airstream photographer Fran Hall during the historic trip around the world, and Brad’s got a photo of it in front of the Kremlin in 1964. The Kremlin. 1964.

Update: Brad just sent me this photo to show you:

Anyway, here are some “during” photos of the repairs Brad did (photos courtesy of Shiny Shacks):

Well hey, look at all that rotted wood! Brad said the rot occurs because “Airstream places a thin insulation barrier directly over the frame and under the subfloor. It is not porous, so water coming in at the wall finds its way on top of the insulation. Because the insulation is supported at the frame rail, outrigger, and perimeter channel, the water pools in the center. This pool leaches up from below into the subfloor and creates dry rot. A couple of periodic holes in the insulation sheeting could have prevented this.”

We opted for a seam, rather than removing the bed and nightstands and pulling up the entire piece of flooring. This allowed Brad to get in there and just fix the problem area. Plus, we normally keep a rug there anyway, so the seam will never show.

Regarding the leak in the water tank, Brad had just done the exact same repair on a 2014 Airstream. It was a broken seam on the water pump inflow line. Seems the factory has an issue with their spin welder. Brad says, “The fact that the tank sits between the axles makes every vibration jam the rigid Pex line down like a jackhammer on the valve fitting. Perhaps a flex line at that point would avoid the issue.”

But now, it’s all fixed and no more leaking!

Brad is such a pleasure to work with. He does good work, his prices are more than fair, and he really thinks about the best and most economical ways to fix things. We highly recommend Shiny Shacks!

Sun and Projects

Laura Domela — Tue, 04 Apr 2017 01:33:39 +0000

We’ve been at home working for the past few weeks and will be heading back to the boat in a day or two. I have had some photo shoots in the studio, and we’ve been trying to take care of errand-y stuff while we’re in town.

This morning, we took our Airstream to see our friend Brad Taylor down at Shiny Shacks for a couple of fixes and tweaks. We’ve got a small soft spot in the subfloor (probably due to a leak in a window), and on our last trip to the coast we discovered we have a leak in our fresh water tank. Off to the shop she goes!

Brad has a pretty great collection of vintage trailers. Example: in the center of this photo you’ll see a 1962 Airstream Flying Cloud. It is one of 8 known survivors of Wally Byam’s Caravan Around the World (1963-64). The trailer belonged to Airstream photographer Fran Hall during this historic trip around the world, and Brad’s got a photo of it in front of the Kremlin in 1964. The Kremlin. 1964.

Here’s a zoomed in crop so you can see the tour stops:

Impressive, isn’t it?

Anyway, not much else to report at the moment. We have some boat projects coming up (just regular maintenance stuff before we head to Alaska next month), and we have a new outboard to install (Zoooooom! Enough of the Torqeedo!) so we hope to have something fun to post soon!

Sun! We’ve got sun!!

Laura Domela — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 01:22:27 +0000

Woke up this morning to a clear blue sky and this hot bright thing poking through the blinds! Such a nice surprise. Similar to yesterday, we did a bunch of work in the morning, and then headed out for a late breakfast and a little exploring.

Today’s destination was the town of Seaside.

It’s been ages since we’ve been to Seaside. We grabbed some food at the Firehouse Grill (where “late breakfast” didn’t turn into lunch because they serve breakfast until 3!) and then walked down to the beach.

We decided to check out the Seaside Aquarium today. The Seaside Aquarium has been open (in this same spot) since 1937.

The building was constructed in 1924, and was originally a saltwater bath house and swimming pool called the “Seaside Baths Natatorium”. The natatorium closed in the early 1930s, underwent major renovations, and in 1937 opened as the Seaside Aquarium. Here’s an early pic of the building:

The aquarium experience was better than we’d expected. As you enter the building, there’s a pool off to your left where maybe a dozen harbor seals hang out waiting to splash water onto the guests be fed by the guests from small trays of herring pieces. For two bucks you can get your own tray of herring (comes in a red/white checked take-out dish, very similar to what you get fish & chips in, for example, so pay attention). Anyway, I thought the whole “seal feeding” gimmick was going to be obnoxious, and it was…a little bit. But it was also kinda fun. The seals work hard to get your attention and are pretty good at clapping, barking, splashing, and looking cute so that you’ll throw some fish their way.

One seal got an eensy bit impatient, however, and could pull some pretty big water with those flippers…throwing it directly at the guests, right through the fence (no glass). Kinda makes you NOT want to give that particular seal a treat, but hey, it apparently works for him.

Anyway, there are a bunch of tanks with cool fish and anemones and eels and other neat things in ’em. Here’s a closeup of grumpy wolf eel:

This octopus was my favorite though:

Its eyes were closed and you could watch (close up in this open, no-touch tank) its breathing. We could look straight down into its gills as they opened and closed, and as water pushed out of the funnel/siphon (the tube on the left, near the “neck” of the octopus in the photo). It was super cool. (Would have been cooler had the octopus been awake and climbing around the tank, but we’ll take what we can get!)

Still sunny outside!

Walking back through town:

From the bridge that crosses over the river at Broadway Street, we could see a bunch of pedal boats shaped like giant swans…which was quite a fantastic image (just google it, you’ll see what I mean). They were all clumped together at the dock, but I had only my wide wide lens with me, we were too far away, and I apparently didn’t want the photo badly enough (but now I wish I’d made the effort).

On our drive back down to Nehalem, we pulled over and got a couple of nice shots back toward town.

Our campground is down there somewhere, hidden behind the dunes:

We got back to camp and took off on our bikes for a nice ride out to the boat launch and beach…a little over 5 miles. And guess what? It’s still sunny!!!

A Rainy Day in Astoria

Laura Domela — Thu, 16 Mar 2017 16:55:42 +0000

Yesterday, after some work in the morning (oh, and more rain…did I mention it’s been raining out here?) we drove north up 101 to Astoria for some late breakfast that turned into lunch at the Bridgewater Bistro. The Bridgewater Bistro is in a 100 year old cannery building, just to the left of where I’m standing to take the above photo.

We had a salmon BLT and some fish and chips…both were great! After lunch (still raining) we went over to the Columbia River Maritime Museum. It’s been a few years since we last visited, and it seems like they’ve really increased the scope and quality of the exhibits since then.

We spent some time reminding ourselves why we don’t really want to cross the Columbia Bar in Airship:

This abalone and sea urchin fishing boat was swept out to sea during the 2011 Japanese tsunami. Two years and 5,000 miles at sea later, it washed ashore at Cape Disappointment in Washington. The boat’s owner, Katuo Saito, 72, was found and contacted, and though grateful his boat had been found, he did not wish for it to be returned to him:

Ships in a line, anchored, waiting to cross the bar. (We counted eight of them.)

The 20 minute movie at the museum right now is a 3D film about hurricanes and had some fantastic “How’d they do that?” footage! Afterwards, we went and toured the lightship Columbia. This lightship was basically a floating lighthouse, stationed about 6 miles off the entrance to the Columbia River, and served as a major navigational aid where it wasn’t feasible to build a lighthouse. Lightship No. 604/Columbia, left her station in November of 1979 after being replaced by an automated navigational buoy. She’s now part of the maritime museum and your entry fee to the museum includes a self guided tour of the Columbia.

I was trying to get a shot of Columbia’s pilothouse, but the reflection was a little much. Instead, I got this cool photo of ghosty Kevin with pilothouse and portholes.

We saw a 4:20pm screening of Jordan Peele’s film “Get Out” (good article about it here, without spoilers), which we both enjoyed quite a bit. As we left the theater we noticed it was not raining, so we drove south and out to Ecola State Park for a little walk and some gorgeous views:

Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, taken from the car window:

Hope this non-rain trend continues for a few days!

Interior Living Space, Compared

Laura Domela — Wed, 15 Mar 2017 18:20:51 +0000

We’ve logged almost 700 nights in our Airstream since we purchased it in 2010 (a 2010 27’FB International), and almost 600 nights aboard Airship (2013 Nordic Tug 34) since it joined our family in 2014. We’ve returned to the Airstream for a week of camping on the Oregon Coast (OMG is it ever going to stop RAINING??), and we can’t help discussing the things we find different/better/worse between the interior living space of the two “vehicles”. We aren’t taking into account things like self-propulsion…this is just about the living space design and interior.

Airstream 27FB Plan

Airstream 27FB Plus Points

Airstream publishes a much better graphic of its interior layout than Nordic Tugs does
There is a LOT of storage.
Bigger fridge and freezer
Bigger, separate shower
Quite a bit more closet space
The Airstream’s Amana stove/oven kicks the butt of the Force 10 we have on Airship. Sure, it’s not as shiny, but we’ve got three full burners (rather than one fullish burner and one “sorta kinda keep warm” burner), and…a vent-a-hood!
The heater in the Airstream heats the interior in no time
Bigger bedroom/master stateroom, in all dimensions

Nordic Tug 34/Airship Plan

Nordic Tug/Airship Plus Points

Far better craftsmanship…lots of real wood (because weight is not much of an issue)
More windows
Built-in generator
Better fresh water system, variable speed pump and much higher capacity tank (100 gallons vs. 39 gallons)
Privacy of master stateroom from guest sleeping area is better and more separate

Overall though, the Airstream wins in the category of interior living space. If we moved up to a Nordic Tug 40 (with hydronic heat, a better oven/stove, and bigger fridge/freezer by default, we’d be even with the Airstream in terms of interior living space…well, probably we’d be ahead, since we’d gain a separate stateroom for guests.

Other Observations Not Related to Interior Living Space

Campgrounds are like marinas. You’re almost always too close to your neighbor with the yippy dogs. With a boat you have the option of anchoring out.

Airship anchored at Teakerne Arm, British Columbia

With an RV (and a lot of planning and local knowledge) you can boondock “away from it all” on public land, but it takes a lot more work to find a scenic, off-the-grid place to hang out. But, as with boating, if you camp in the off season, you can go to normally crowded places like this and not see another RV:

Airstreaming the Badlands, South Dakota

The boat has to bring its own outside space with it (upper deck, back cockpit, bow) but the Airstream gets to use the campground and surrounding area as its outdoor space.

Airstream at Athabasca Glacier, Alberta, Canada

However, if you’re camped somewhere and it’s just raining and raining and raining (like the past few days here at the Oregon Coast), then your outdoor space is a bit more limited.

Freedom from roads is a plus with a boat.

Airship in Melanie Cove, Desolation Sound, British Columbia

Showers, Rain, Drizzle, Cloudy with a Shower

Laura Domela — Tue, 14 Mar 2017 18:29:30 +0000

This is what our week sounds like, per Accuweather.

It rained most of the day yesterday, but we got a short break and braved our way to the beach for a walk. This is what our campsite area looked like when we left:

The beach was quiet and beautiful and we had a good walk.

There were all these weird finger-shaped (and sized) things that had washed up on the shore:

I got close and they were definitely organic (but no bones, so…not fingers).

My first thought was starfish legs, but upon closer inspection we decided they were probably small sea cucumbers.

However, once back at the Airstream (and internet) we discovered they were not in fact sea cucumbers, by pyrosomes. They are bioluminescent (when alive) and can get as large as 60 feet long. Each one is actually a colony of cloned creatures called “salps” about 1 cm long each, connected together by tissue to form what looks like a rubbery, plastic tube. Winter storms have caused many of them to wash ashore and they’re apparently all over the Oregon Coast right now. [Source]

Bird-shaped driftwood:

Same driftwood, different angle:

Not many people on the beach today:

Heading over the dunes and back to camp:

When we got back to camp, our moat had mostly disappeared, but I’m thinking we need some Xtratufs for the Airstream as well as the boat!

We went to dinner last night in Manzanita…a restaurant called Blackbird.

For starters we shared a radicchio caesar salad and some bacon-wrapped apricots (stuffed with goat cheese and marcona almond). Both starters were fantastic. For our main course we shared some Ricotta Gnocchi (with lamb bacon, shaved fennel, basil and tarragon pesto, maitake mushroom, parmesan), and a delicious prawn dish , but I don’t have all the ingredients for that one because it wasn’t on the online menu. I’m not sure which entree we liked the best. The portions were perfect, too…perfect enough that we got to share a chocolate pot du creme with sea salt on top for dessert.

It rained like crazy all night last night, and early this morning the wind really kicked up. We slept in a bit, made some late breakfast, and are having a lovely anniversary day at the coast.

We Took the Airstream to the Oregon Coast

Laura Domela — Mon, 13 Mar 2017 19:22:07 +0000

We’re at the Oregon Coast in the Airstream this week. (That shot above is looking back toward Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock.) Remember the Airstream? It’s been so long, but we seem to have retained the skills necessary for hooking the trailer to the truck for towing, running all our systems, and remembering where things are.

We got settled in our campsite yesterday afternoon (arrived around 4pm) and then got out our bikes for a nice bike ride. It was right around 60 degrees F and we rode for an hour or so (without jackets, even!) There’s a nice loop that takes you around the airport and out to the beach…

So pretty!

Last night it started raining and hasn’t quit since (it’s after noon on Monday now). Accuweather shows nothing but rain rain and more rain today (well, and also tomorrow, and maybe Wednesday too), and we’ve got a nice moat developing around the Airstream. Upside? We’re getting a ton of work done here.

Tomorrow is the 20th anniversary of the day we got married! On March 14, 1997, we drove downtown to pick up our judge, brought him back to our house, and got married in our living room in front of a fire, with our good friends Jake and Patti as official witnesses and Larra and Christy (daughters from Kevin’s previous marriage, then 8 and 10) as unofficial witnesses. We poured champagne, went to lunch downtown after delivering our judge back to his office, and then had a fantastic trip to Costa Rica. Seems like just yesterday, and seems like forever ago. Best 20 years ever!

The nice restaurant in town wasn’t open tomorrow, so we’re having dinner there tonight. Tomorrow I’ve got a massage scheduled, and if it stops raining, Kevin’s going to fly his new Mavic on the beach for some drone photos. I think we’ll cook dinner for ourselves and open a good bottle of champagne and maybe play some scrabble or something.

Dealing with Steamy Windows

Laura Domela — Sat, 04 Mar 2017 00:05:51 +0000

If you travel by boat or RV during cooler temperatures and you aren’t a robot, then you know. Condensation is an issue. We’ve tried many things to keep the windows clear. After all, so much of travel is about the view, right? On Airship, for a while I used just a squeegee, but then where does the water go? I added to that method a chamois to absorb the moisture first, then followed up with the squeegee, but it’s still a bit messy. And if you have living breathing human beings inside with the heat on, no amount of staying on top of it will take care of it for good.

We recently picked up one of these babies on Amazon, based on a recommendation from a friend (Hi Wanda!). It’s the Karcher WV50 window vacuum cleaner.

It was thirty bucks, it’s rechargeable, and we have room for it on the boat. All that, and it’s fun to use! You vacuum/squeegee your windows when they get fogged up, and they end up clean and clear and dry. Sure, they’ll fog right back up when you boil water for tea or pasta (or have ten people over for a cocktail party), but hey, remember — it’s fun to use! It has a good-sized reservoir that you empty when it gets full, and it gets full surprisingly fast!

All in all, it was a great purchase and it’ll stay on the boat. On cold and rainy days like today, we’re anchored off of Orcas Island near Double Island, and the windows pretty much look like this, all the time:

Until I use the “vacu-squeege.” (That’s rain on the outside…I won’t bother with that.) Yeah, the condensation eventuallys come back, but at least I know I’m getting a lot of the moisture out of the air each time.

Anyway. There you go. Recommended product!

IMPORTANT NOTE: The photos above are taken in the salon, while at anchor…not underway. We have fans to keep the pilothouse windows defogged while underway. Whew!