#3) 1975 Kit

I bought the third camper after Doug retired and we had fallen in love with dip netting on the Kasilof River.  The old Shasta was just to small for the four of us now that he was home full time. I found a 1975 Kit Camper that had it's original pink appliances and a new coat of paint. The previous owner had put a huge axle on the thing so I felt like it could go anywhere without worry.  I still owned my little Shasta and did not plan on selling her, she was just to special for me.

We bought a new to us truck to tow the bigger camper and I think we owned it only a couple of months before Doug passed away.  We never got to use our Kit camper and knowing I was going to move eventually, I didn't wait to sell it.  When I think of this trailer now it's bittersweet with what could have been for our family.

#2) 1957 Shasta

The second camper I purchased was in 2008 after we moved from Juneau to Eagle River, Alaska. I was lucky enough to find a 1957 Shasta camper.  Two owners before me had redone the inside with wood paneling. The original stove/oven worked and all the tail lights but it had no working electric inside. Much like the Tardis it was bigger on the inside than the out. -At least it felt that way.

My kids were small and with my husband away frequently for the Coast Guard we stayed close to home.  It was easy to hook up and take 2 miles down the road to Eagle River Campground where we would camp over the weekend. If we felt particularly adventurous we would drive to either Elmendorf Air Force Base or Ft. Richardson and camp on base. One memorable trip on Ft. Richardson involved my son breaking his arm, luckily we were very close to the hospital on base!

Later after Doug retired, we took it dipnetting on the Kasiloff River. Alaska residents are allowed to use a giant net (see below) to catch salmon. The fish just swim right in with the tides! Many Alaskan's count on this yearly bounty to fill their freezers. We camped and fished for 3 days at Crooked Creek RV park.

This was one of our last big family trips. I look back on it and am so very grateful for the happy memories.  After Doug passed away in 2011 I knew eventually we would be moving to Oklahoma to be near family.  I had to make a choice either purchase a utility trailer to haul home our household goods or choose my little Shasta to tow and part with almost everything else. So with great sadness, I sold it.  I knew one day I would own another but it was hard to let her go.