What exactly is Nonnie’s Diner? It’s a 21′ Mountain Series Outdoors RV, model 21RD. From the sales brochure:

DESIGNED FOR CAMPING ADVENTURES IN ALL CLIMATES & TERRAIN (WE COMBINED OUR MOST POPULAR FEATURES INTO THIS ONE SERIES)
THESE PEOPLE LOVE CAMPING IN ALL AREAS (STATE & NATIONAL PARKS, NATIONAL FOREST, RV RESORTS, KOA, BLM, OFF-GRID, ETC.)

It’s not pretty, it’s not a “wow, what a cool trailer”, it is very very functional. It’s built tough to drag into the mountains, or all the way up the Al-Can to Alaska, and not have things falling apart all the time. It is also the maximum size (21′) for many of the National Parks in the Olympics and the Provincial Parks in British Columbia. But it also is very comfortable (although some mods are coming at the main seating area).

We tow her with a 2020 Toyota Tundra. We figured out which trailer we wanted, and bought a truck to match that was capable of pulling it. Rob is adding some additional mods to the truck like a bigger fuel tank, air bags, bigger stiffer shocks and struts, and a sway bar. The truck is super comfortable and gives us a nice ride on our way camping.

Why a travel trailer? Because Rob & I love to camp, and there is so much to see and do that we can’t get to on the boat. And we both know there is no way we are ever sleeping on the ground again.

Here is a pic from a favorite search site called Campendium, that aggregates together all the National, State, Regional parks, plus private campsites, plus BLM spots, and even some off grid.

There are other sites like HipCamp that advertise more unusual camping spots, like literally back yards and random fields people rent for a little $$.

And then there is Harvest Hosts, our absolute favorite. It’s a subscription service that allows us to stay at wineries or breweries or working farms. The camping cost is free, but a required stop in the tasting room always ensures we show our appreciation by purchasing some wine. There will be plenty of blog posts about wineries, as Rob & I both love learning about wine making and wine makers both.

All that makes it look super simple to go snag a camp site, right? Not so. Think Covid, wrecking everything. But there’ll be more info about that in a future posting.

When? Well we were going to wait until retirement to get the trailer. When Wilma passed in 2019 we started thinking more about retirement and we bought the Tundra. Then, just randomly, I checked Craigslist for a used ORV. They were already hard to find, and we had a very specific size requirement, so my expectations were low. But Bingo, there was one in Sequim! The original owners from Oregon bought it to stay near their child and grandchild while son-in-law was posted with the Coast Guard in Port Angeles. They had lived in the trailer for a year and were ready to sell and go back home. We came to a mutually agreed on price, and Rob & I literally saved 30% off showroom price and she’s in absolutely like new condition.

Why is she Nonnie’s Diner? That’ll all be explained in time. I’m late starting this website, but until we had the right name I wasn’t ready to start writing. This site will be used to keep track of camping, Harvest Hosts stays, and local hiking trips in the beautiful Pacific NW.