The First Year

We spent the first summer of owning "The Navion" thoroughly enjoying it with our children and grandchildren. We were away every weekend and with Dales schedule a lot of weekdays also. We spent time in the B.C. interior near Princeton, tubing and rafting on the Similkameen River with our Family.

Our beautiful spot along the Similkameen River.

We took two grown daughters, our two still at home teenagers, and six grandchildren under the age of 12 for a week. Once again we used the backroads and found a wonderful spot on a forestry road right along the river. With no facilities, we depended on "The Navion" for all our necessities of life and it didn't fail us. We had to head into town on the fourth day to sani-dump and fill the water tank  but we were also low on groceries so it was a good reason to go anyhow. We just pulled her out of "Tent Town" and along with the mini-van we headed in! With our last trailer we were lucky to go all of three days without having to refill and we've never had that many depending on it!

"Camping" in Luxury - full hook-ups, pool, mini golf, video games, etc!

We spent time in Washington State, in both serviced and non serviced site's, Porteau Cove on the Sea to Sky Hwy and many other places that summer.
In December we once again went south to Southern California.We had my friend Gloria travel with us and there was plenty of room.  We had found it uncomfortable watching the main TV from the dinette and since we spend a lot of our time eating outdoors we were on the lookout for a sofa/bed couch of some sort to make it comfier.

New Sofa Bed - lift 1/2 way with the strap for storage
and all the way to flip into a double bed.

We found one that fit the bill at Camping World in San Martin, CA. It pulls forward and then the back drops to form the bed and the whole underneath is storage - we wouldn't have the loss of storage we had with the dinette. It was on sale from $900. to $499. While waiting for them to bring one in from the warehouse out back we learned they didn't have any more but we could have the floor model and I bargained another $100. off (and no tax as we were heading to Oregon and could buy one there tax free) - added bonus! We had to dismantle the dinette and store it under the bed and behind the new sofa until we got home. We then advertised it on Craigslist and got $350. for it. We now had the floorpan that we had originally liked and it only cost $50. - lucky us!
One of the worst things happened to us on the way down - while plugged into an electricity site we had a power surge and it blew the Microwave part of the oven and both TV's - the original one and the NEW one we had just installed in the back bedroom. No surge-protector - a lesson we learned the hard way and you will see remedied in a future blog.

Our First Long Trip - June 2013

Our first long trip was to Southern California and Nevada in June of 2013. We learned a lot about "The Navion" on this trip and we grew to love her more and more. We found that it drew in a lot of people with it's unique style and many people talked to us, asking questions about it and touring the inside. We got a lot of compliments about it.
We had a wonderful trip except for getting it stuck in the sand at Walker Lake, NV. - word of advice - even if there are other campers off road and down in the sand close to the water it doesn't mean that you can - they all had four wheel drive!

Stuck in the sand with the sun going down!

We did find out though about CoachNet - which is like AAA for RV's. We got our first year free in our package that came from the dealer. I should mention that it's worth it - we renew it every year. We used it 3 times in our first 7 months! Every time, the phone operators were polite, cheery and always helpful. 
Another thing we got in our dealer package was information on WIT Club which I checked up on  online and we joined right away. We also joined our local WIT chapter - Fraser Valley Explorers. Both clubs are fun and helpful for things you may need to know - a network of information. It gives us an excuse for little get-a-ways that we always thoroughly enjoy.

One thing we did realize on our trip was the fact that it would be nice if the front seats would rotate to make extra seating. The newer models come with this but ours didn't. As soon as we got back I researched this modification online and found quite a bit of information on it. I found a few places that sold adapter plates and also what problems etc. people had with each one over another, on the installation but we settled on ones from Discount Van & Truck (part #114022) which we ordered online. We did have a little bit of adjusting to do on one of the bolt holes (needed drilling out slightly) but they went in and look great.

Adapter to make the seats swivel

Another problem people had with them is when they rotate they catch on the base and people were cutting the plastic "cover" on the seat to make it swivel properly. I realized all you had to do was pump the seat up to the top before swivelling - maybe they didn't realize the seats are adjustable. No cutting needed at all! There were also comments on how they wouldn't swivel on the drivers side because of the hand brake being in the way - we fixed that by releasing the handbrake, swivelling the seat and then reapplying the handbrake! You also have to put the seats all the way forward, swivel around halfway and then push the seat back  again. Even easier - open the doors, swivel around with no problem and then close the doors again! SIMPLE!

Swivel seats make it more cozy to sit
 with good friends like Tony and Allison!

We ordered the passenger one first because of the comments about the hand brake and when we ordered them they happened to be on sale ($169. from $199.US.) Once we had it installed and realized how to overcome the hand brake problem, we ordered another one a few months later. Unfortunately, they weren't on sale and they wouldn't match the previous price for us.

This trip was also where we learned what "The Navion" could do and the power it had. We like to avoid the main highways and stick to the less travelled roads. After leaving Reno, we headed N.on #395 to Susanville, the #44 to Old Station and then toward Redding. We then joined the #299 W. to the coast. When we reached Willow Creek, we decided to take a side road, the #96, through the Hoopa Indian Reservation, north to Weitchpec. Just on the other side of the town there was a smaller side road and so we crossed over a bridge and followed it. It went from two lane paved to one lane paved and narrowed even more and then eventually became gravel. We climbed higher and higher through switchbacks and steep grades. We met few other vehicles until we neared the top.

Pretty flowers.

There were some surveyors mapping the road. They told us where we could get some good views  and when they learned I was a photographer they also told us about some special flowers further along the road so we stopped so I could photograph them and the beautiful panoramic vista below. No photo can do it justice - it seemed like we were at the top of the world with nothing below us but beautiful scenery.

On Top of the World!

We travelled on, seeing Schoolhouse Peak Fire Lookout and the path to Historic Lyon Ranch, slowly dropping again to a few Forestry trails along what we learned was Bald Hills Road and out to the coast at Orick. It was the most spectacular drive I'd ever experienced. A larger RV would never have passed through those switchbacks and we were so glad that we had "The Navion". It didn't hesitate at those switchback hills - it climbed them like nobody's business.

The First Few Outings - the start of our Learning Curve!

Our first few outings were done nearby our hometown of Cloverdale, BC. We drove a few miles south to the USA border and kept to the Pacific Northwest. One of the reasons that we had picked "The Navion" was so that I could  drive it. Being a Transit Bus Driver, Dale had no problems - he could drive and park anything but I wanted something I could handle alone. In fact, the very first outing was done by me alone because Dale had to work.
There is no problem with me handling "The Navion". It is built on a Dodge Sprinter chassis and can be parked in a regular parking stall at any shopping centre. It is slightly narrower than my parents dual-wheeled Pick-up Truck!

One of the first lessons we did learn the hard way however, is to pull in the drivers side mirror when parking on a narrow street. A truck went by and clipped ours breaking it - and there was a cost of $649 to replace it (It's a Mercedes you know - something you'll hear often for parts and repairs)!

Fold up your mirrors or pay the price!

It may seem like the mirrors don't move but they do pull in - a little stiffly but "Click" three times until they're flush with the window - both driver and passenger side.


One of the first modifications we did was to insulate the cooler. Not all models come with this option but ours did. Right beside the main door is a pull out drawer. Open the lid and inside is a plastic bin with  drain hole. It is great for keeping drinks cool on ice or if you're a fisherman - your catch. We found however that a bag of ice doesn't last the day so we fixed that problem.

Fully Insulated and Duct Taped

We went to our local hardware store, bought a sheet of thick styrofoam insulation, cut it to fit the sides and bottom of the "cooler", glued them in place (Leaving a hole for the drain plug) and then wrapped Duct tape around it all to protect from the elements. We now find that one block and two bags of ice will keep things cold for 2 to 4 days depending on the temperature and how many opening and closings of the drawer there are.

New bed base with new mattress on it and still lots of storage underneath.

The next modification was to the rear bed. In our model the very large rear storage compartment opens up into the back bed and the bed can fold up to accommodate large items such as a bike or set of golf clubs. Unfortunately, there is a metal bar on that side to give it strength and even with a mattress topper it is very uncomfortable on that side of the bed (which happens to be mine!). Not planning on carrying any large items in that compartment we chose to make a plywood platform there. We then took both halves of the folding mattress to an upholstery shop and had new sturdy mattresses with memory foam topper made to fit into the existing covers - goodbye metal bar digging into my hipbone! The bed is very comfortable now.

Welcome!

Welcome to our Blog! We, Dale and Kay, started this Blog as a way to show others the wonderfulness of Travel and RV'ing in a "Skinny Minnie" and hopefully give some helpful hints of things (good and bad) that we've learned along the way.
 When we bought "The Navion" we were not new to RV'ing or  even to Winnebago products - we have owned many a Van Conversion, Travel Trailer, and other Motorhomes, even a 1975 Winnebago Brave that we nicknamed "Winnberghini" that we loved for years. However, when we were introduced to the Navion at the dealership it was LOVE at first sight and this love has grown enormously in the almost two years we have owned it. Let me give you a bit of background.
In March of 2013, we were taking our children and grandchildren from Vancouver to Disneyland for Spring Break in our Dodge Durango and 2001 26Ft. Travelite Trailer when the truck broke down near Portland, OR.

Doing what we did a lot of with this combo - "Filler up"!

We weighed our options and opted to rent a 40Ft. Georgetown and continue our trip and deal with the problem on the way back. The comfort and coziness travelling inside of the motorhome brought back memories of our old "Winnberghini"

"Winnberghini" and "Bob" the boat

and our other 26Ft. Vanguard RV that the decision was made to trade in the trailer for another Motorhome ASAP when we got home.

The old Vanguard called "RV".

Recently, we had downsized from our very large home of 25 years to a Townhouse with limited parking and so we went in search of a van conversion or even a "Rialta" - one of which we had seen on our travels.

 We headed out to Traveland, close to our home and met salesman Lorin Collins. We explained what we were looking for and were told that "Rialta's" were hard to find and expensive but he had something that might fit our needs. He showed us some ex-rentals - a 2008, 2 X 2011, and a 2012 Itasca Navion. Like I said previously - It was LOVE at first sight. We spent about 4 hours going over all four models and comparing the likes and dislikes. We finally settled on the 2008. I liked the colour scheme best plus the fact that it had less "dings" and "wear and tear" by the rental part of it's life and Dale liked the "Refreshment" cooler on the outside as well as the lower milage and price compared to the other three. 

"The Navion" as it sat on the lot at Traveland

Traveland does a complete service and cleanup before it lets the Rigs off the lot so it was a very, very long week to wait until we could pick it up. We have never been so happy as when we finally took possession of "The Navion" and the love for it has grown greatly everyday that we've owned it! 

Kitchen and Master Bedroom

Dinette Area

Front Bunk and Cab Area