Port Aransas South Jetty

Homes away from homes

On the road again Clockwise, from above: Bruce and Carolyn Coonrod of Pierre, S.D., love their 1987 Airstream Excella, parked at I.B. Magee Beach Park; while on the road, Billy Jack, of Westcliffe, Colo., tows his Harley Davidson motorcycle on a trailer behind his camper-equipped pickup truck; Sheila and Jess Eisler of Canada relax next to their sumptuous 39-foot Winnebago Adventurer. They range from the massive to the compact, and from the vintage to the brand-spanking new.

The recreational vehicles that call Port Aransas home this time of year are as varied as the Winter Texans who own them.

For Billy Jack (that really is his full name), a small camper resting astride his Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck is plenty. The truck and Big Foot-brand camper together are only about 25 feet long, but they've got everything the retired Federal Aviation Administration computer technician needs.

"It's a diesel pickup, and it has a lot of power. The camper has a TV and all the conveniences," said Jack, who is single and travels alone in the camper six months of the year, when he isn't living in his Westcliffe, Colo., home. "I've got a refrigerator, microwave and a queen-size bed in that camper."

STAFF PHOTO BY DAN PARKER Asked if he ever gets stir-crazy in the small space, he shook his head, then added, with a laugh, "It encourages you to spend a lot of time outdoors."

At the other end of the size spectrum are Sheila and Jess Eisler, of Brantford, Ontario, Canada.

Although they intended to downsize from a 36-foot RV with their latest purchase, they went instead with a 39-foot long Winnebago Adventurer, a monster motor home with two slide-outs and plenty of elbow room for these Winter Texans.

"We saw this layout, and it was different. The kitchen is in the front, and the living room is in the middle," Jess explained.

Their 2006 Adventurer has many features that make it extra comfortable. There is a sliding pantry drawer, lots of cabinets and a refrigerator with an ice machine. A doorway leads to the bathroom from the living room, and also connects to the rear bedroom.

STAFF PHOTO BY MICHAEL CARY Jess pointed out that the air conditioning unit, usually mounted on the roof, is located at the rear underneath the bedroom, which streamlines the Winnebago for windy days on the road.

"We're really happy with this motorhome. We're in here for six months, and we want to be comfortable," Sheila said.

Also camping in Port Aransas this winter have been Bruce and Carolyn Coonrod, of Pierre, S.D. They are fans of travel trailers made by Airstream, a 77-year-old company whose mobile abodes feature distinctively sleek, shiny aluminum outer walls.

Airstream trailers have a lot of fans out there in the world. Nearly 14,000 of them have banded together to form the Wally Byam Caravan Club, an organization named after the founder of the Airstream company.

The Coonrods are members of the club, and they also are members of an organization within the Wally Byam Caravan Club - the Vintage Airstream Club. The couple has been camping in Port Aransas in a 1987 Airstream that's just a few years shy of being considered a vintage model by Airstream enthusiasts. Back home in Pierre, the Coonrods have a 1968 Airstream that is decidedly vintage.

The couple got their first Airstream, the 1968 model, by accident. It was willed to them by Carolyn's father when he died in the early 1970s. As the couple learned more about Airstreams, they fell in love with the brand and bought a second Airstream.

The Coonrods once took part in a caravan of more than 20 Airstreams that cruised throughout much of Baja, Mexico. They expect to join planned caravans in Louisiana in March and in Alaska next year.

The couple also has attended at least 20 rallies of Airstream owners and their trailers all over the country.

"We like the vintage people you find out there," said Bruce, who is retired after working for years as the editor of

South Dakota Conservation Digest, a magazine put out by the state's Game, Fish and Parks Department.

"You start getting to know people, and you want to see them again."