![]() ![]() Weight and aerodynamics play a big part in that."Īirstream has already been toying with the idea of electrification the company unveiled the eStream concept last year. "Towing a travel trailer cuts down on the range. The trip was provided by GlamStreams breaks from £550 for three days in vans sleeping four or five."Our customer base is about twice as likely to own an EV than the general population," said Bob Wheeler, Airstream's CEO. Perhaps with Elvis crooning I Just Can’t Help Believing over the stereo. Nick has thoughtfully provided the trailers with cocktail shakers and a Bluetooth system, so you can mix a dry martini and toast both the sunset and Wally Byam, the man who designed these “land yachts and travel trailers” in the 30s (as the brass plaque beside the door tells you). There’s the small River Mells nearby, with pleasant walks and swimming spots, while Orchardleigh estate and lake are close, along with the Macmillan Way, Bath, Glastonbury and Wells.īut while there is plenty to do during the day, nothing beats coming back in the evening to a field of Airstreams glistening beside the nightlights, as if a little bit of Texas had suddenly come to Somerset. It makes for a quite delightful camping experience – I certainly don’t feel like trailer trash, more trailer royalty. Every few years the Airstreams need polishing, like silverware, to restore their patina. Nick also set up workshops to restore and maintain the trailers, choosing to use derelict farm buildings that did not need any new building. The furniture is all secondhand, with a 50s and 60s vibe.Īirstream interior. Even the frying pans have plant-based coatings and are recyclable. Any wood products, such as worktops, have come from FSC-certified suppliers, and he has paid for appliances that are built to last on the grounds that “in-built obsolescence is immoral”. When restoring them, he used only recycled original parts from other Airstreams – such as the instantly recognisable aluminium panels – rather than new parts. All the Airstreams have water-free composting toilets so that you can take them to remote places (or, for that matter, festivals). His aim has been to produce vans that can be off-grid to minimise their impact. ![]() Nick has installed solar panels and low-voltage electricity and followed rigorous ecological principles. Every few years the Airstreams need polishing, like silverware, to restore their patina With the oval shape, it avoids that boxy feeling I remember from my experiences of a British caravan in Suffolk – along with those laminated plastic strips that always came unstuck from the inside walls. Inside, the Airstream immediately seems more spacious than your average caravan, with a great deal more headroom. The feel of the riveted blue aluminium reminds me of a small plane. ![]() I’m in a nine-metre blue one called Beth, after the woman in Florida Nick bought it from when he saw it sitting abandoned in her field. “They were too big for a container so I had to pay for ‘roll on/roll off’ to Southampton – but at least, because they don’t have an engine, there was very little import duty.”Īirstreams in situ. Nick, a burly and jovial giant himself, clearly managed to work his charm and ended up with a fleet of Airstreams, which he shipped back to England. It wasn’t always easy to get negotiations started, though: “I felt a bit embarrassed driving up to some old boy on a porch in a green Jag and with my English accent – ‘Goddamn you talk funny, boy’ – so it took a while to put them at ease.” The Florida sun is very good at conserving them – although I did buy one that had bullet holes in it.” So I went over to visit him and borrowed his vintage green convertible Jaguar to go on a tour of the boondocks to see if there were any old Airstreams for sale. “It was easy for me because my dad, Ken, has been living there for years, near Fort Lauderdale, which is where they used to make Airstreams. ![]()
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