Way back in the spring of 2006, my husband and I brought home a new baby… a BIG baby… a 32,000-pound, 35 ft baby—our new Winnebago Journey recreational vehicle, a home-on-wheels. Now she is twenty years old with over 100,000 miles.

Like the rest of us as we age, some changes and upgrades were needed for Miss Winnie. My hubby pulled up the carpet and laid down laminate flooring. He removed the accordion blinds and installed roller shades. The front window shades are motorized. The old fluorescent ceiling lights were replaced with LED lights. The original Sleep Number mattress was ditched years ago when I woke up one morning laying on the plywood support. This past winter Hubby (with me as assistant) mounted stainless steel skirting panels. The old girl’s got some bling!

(NOTE: The featured photo of Miss Winnie is before she got her bling-things)

Miss Winnie has accomplished much in her years camping with us:

• First trip (the shakedown trip, March 2026) – Lake Lunga, Quantico, VA
• Traveled as far north as Fairbanks, Alaska and as far south as Key West, Florida.
• Camped in the four corners of the continental United States: Bar Harbor, Maine; Fairchild Air Force Base, Spokane, Washington; San Deigo/Coronado, California and throughout Florida.
• Driven on most of the transcontinental U.S. interstates: I-10, I-40, I-70, I-90 (east-west bound), I-5, I-15, I-55, I-75, I-95 (north-southbound)
• The strangest thing to happen to Miss Winnie – the front windshield cracked while the RV was parked in the driveway at home before we got on the road. Yes, it had to be replaced before we left. Ca-ching! Ca-ching! Ca-ching!
• The most pleasant things about RVing – driving on the road and watching the changing scenery; relaxing under the awning crocheting or reading; knowing you can walk down the hill from your site and over to the pier to go fishing; sitting with others RV campers at a bonfire on a winter’s eve wrapped in a blanket. 

 Although we don’t travel across the country like we used to, our RV still gets us where we need to go. Miss Winnie will be our one and only RV. She’s been real good to us.