The time we came down with Wanderlodge Fever, aka how we became Wanderlodge people.

We were what Wanderlodge folks call SOBs (Some Other Bus) people. We were primarily Class C owners, flimsy stick built RVs on expensive Mercedes Sprinter 3500s, but after a miniature deer completely wiped out my front end in the middle of nowhere North Dakota (see my other blog) I started looking for something different.

It was love at first sight. I was at an antique truck rally and caught sight of a vintage Wanderlodge FC and it may be a sin, but I had bus envy. I got home and spent way too many hours online, calling current and past owners knowledgeable about these machines who freely talked to me for hours, even flying out to look at other Wanderlodge FCs and PTs in hopes of finding the exact right one. Sometimes sucking in my co-workers for a flight across country, they knew for me money wasn’t an issue, it was about finding the exact right coach that has been well cared for, mechanically sound and most importantly cosmetically clean inside and out. I wanted it to look as close to new as possible, a tough ask for a almost 40 year old coach.. I can fix anything mechanical but paint isn’t on my list of skills!

On my searches through Wanderlodge Facebook groups I came across a post by Dean and Katie Bolinger. They indicated they were thinking about selling their 1983 Wanderlodge FC. I looked through past Facebook posts and caught a glimpse of their coach, the paint was unusual and looked unlike anything I had seen before, so I immediately reached out. They sent more pictures, shown below, and after a few phone calls we agreed on a price and date for pickup. I booked flights and against the strong objections of my local bank manager, shoved many tens of thousands of dollars in $100 bills inside my briefcase and grabbed the next flight to Seattle.