Vintage Camper Diaries: Our First Trip

A few weeks ago, we took our first trip in our newly renovated 1980 Triple E Travel Trailer. We were itching for one last weekend skiing in the mountains and since hotels are pricey, we thought we’d save some money and take the camper! Never before did we think we would be camping and skiing in the same weekend, but springtime in the Rockies is a climate unlike anything we’ve experienced. Perks of living in Alberta. Our furnace works like a charm, so we were quite content to spend the first weekend in April in a travel trailer.

Before we talk about the trip, here are our final shots of our renovation project (we’ll link to our before & afters below!)

Now for the adventure! We left Athabasca on Friday evening and headed for Hinton, Alberta. Although the trailer definitely upped our gas mileage, it is a breeze to tow and our brakes and tires are in great shape. The only trailer park we could find that is open this early in the season was Gateway RV Park, just off the main highway. It’s just a parking lot with picnic tables for each site, but the traffic sounds weren’t too loud, the sites were full-service, and the owners were lovely and very accommodating. Much to our satisfaction, the beds are incredibly comfortable and the nighttime vibes are so cozy. I slept as well as I do at the cabin, which is a high bar to meet.

When we woke up on Saturday morning, we perked some coffee, got dressed for the day, and loaded the truck with our gear. It was a snowy day, but you’d never know from inside the camper. Marmot Basin is a good hour-long drive from Hinton, but there are no privately-owned campgrounds in Jasper and Parks Canada Campgrounds aren’t open in April, so we had to deal with the drive. It’s nothing to complain about though, because it’s one of the nicest drives out there. When we got to the hill, which by now we have gotten a lot more familiar with, we skied straight to the lift thanks to the convenience of our Marmot Escape Card.

Our second day of skiing was even better than the first. The sun was shining, the views were spectacular, and the powder was fluffy and deep. I was so glad my sister came on the trip with us because the three of us didn’t stop laughing the whole day. We enjoyed beers and caesars in the chalet and it was so warm and sunny that we didn’t have to worry about stopping to warm up at all. We skied from open until closing and it was so worth the exhaustion. We all agreed that it was the best skiing we’ve ever done in our lives.

Our first weekend in our camper was a huge success and we are so excited for a summer of adventure. We have big plans: we’ve already booked campsites in national, provincial, and county parks and we’ve been doing research into legal and ethical off-the-grid camping (boondocking!). Stay tuned for these adventures, camping tips (as we learn them), inspiration posts, and more!