Vanagons in the Valley ’24

Friday, July 12, 2024 – Sunday, July 14, 2024

Upon rolling in, we had lots of stares as people eyed up the van (as a van-people do), appreciating all the body work and new paint we had applied painstakingly over the winter months. (Throughout the evening, many people would come to talk to us about the van and discuss all we had done to her last winter.) We settled in, got our camp chairs, and listened to the bluegrass band that was our entertainment for the weekend. We also walked around to visit other people and check out their van setups. There were a couple MASSIVE vans directly from Europe that looked like they were on stilts. They had full kitchens, convertible bunk beds, an eating nook- they were really cool (and large). We also noticed that many of the people who attended this event brought a lot of…stuff. Some had complete set ups with outdoor furniture and lights. Others had brought tools and parts to work on their vans with other like-minded people. Others just had their van packed with comforters and clothing, even though the temperature was in the high 80s. We had many people comment on our van because we pack very lightly in comparison. While we feel like we bring a lot of stuff sometimes, it doesn’t compare to some of the things others brought for the weekend. We actually had space to cook and sit in Charlotte.

On Saturday, we piled into a couple cars, strapped our double innertube (with a cooler and cup holders!) on top of the vehicles, and headed down to the river access of the Juniata River. We were initially made fun of for our connected innertube, with people claiming that we would get stuck frequently. To their surprise, we had a lovely float and were extremely comfortable with lots of cool drinks. I don’t think we got stuck once! When we got back, we ventured out into the river for a little bath. It was shocking how strong the river was even at shallow depths. Jeffrey enjoyed looking at the bed of the river looking for treasure as well. That evening, we met up with one of Jeff’s coworkers and his fiance that was at another site in the campground. They had brought an entire fridge and stove for their week of fishing and camping! When we returned to our site, our group was giving out door prizes! We ended up taking home a step-up attachment (to be able to climb up to the top bunk of the van easier) from Van Cafe (a popular website to order vanagon parts from)! We were pretty excited! We enjoyed tortilla pizzas for dinner while listening to bluegrass music again.

On Sunday morning, we chatted with the only other person our age in attendance at this event. It was nice to connect with someone like us! We walked around and talked to a few others too. We learned that many don’t use their vans to camp like we have (at least not in western PA). A few had said that this event was the first time they had taken their van out all summer. (By this point, we had camped basically every weekend above 50 degrees.) We left around noon to get back home to prepare for the week ahead. We had such a fun time connecting with other “van people” and enjoying their company.

On our way home, we stopped at Little Buffalo Creek State Park. They were having a meet and greet with a falcon and owls! I especially loved how cute the owls were!

It was on the way home from that that we started having some issues with the van. Whenever we came to a stop or started to slow down, Charlotte would start to lose power and just stop in the middle of the road, completely dead. At one point, Jeff and a few other guys in cars behind us jumped out and pushed Charlotte into a nearby parking lot. It was not our finest moment. After some diagnosing, we determined our fuel pump was dying. After letting her sit a little, she started up again and we were able to make it up the big hill outside of Cresson, but we died shortly after at the top of the hill.

We called AAA, but Jeffrey learned that O’Reilly Auto Parts (down the hill we just struggled up) had a fuel pump. So instead of waiting for AAA, we flew back down the mountain and made it to the auto parts store where Jeffrey changed the fuel pump in the parking lot. Thank goodness I married an engineer! His knowledge has come in handy so many times on our trips! We then drove back up the mountain, had a 40-minute phone call with AAA trying to cancel our tow, and stopped at an ice cream stop for dinner. Was that risky? Yes, we totally could’ve died on the side of the road again. Were we hungry? Also yes. And a lot of times, food takes precedent. After having milkshakes, hot dogs, hamburgers, and mac n cheese bites (a very healthy dinner after a long day), we finally made it back to the safety of our home. What an adventure!