Note: I was recently reviewing my blog site in July of 2026 and fixing broken links. I came across this post from April 2024 that never got finished or posted. I’m completing it, but it may have a little less detail than usual.
Of course, all of our adventures are about exploring and seeing interesting places, but the goal this time was a little different. If you have been following our story, you will know we have rented different RV’s of various sizes and types to try out. We started first to see about traveling in an RV and how we liked that. Then later we tried different models to judge the size and features we would want if we were to have our own. One of the biggest stumbling blocks in our decision-making process is that Steve loves to drive, but I do not. I especially couldn’t see myself being comfortable driving a big rig. As much as my preference is not to drive us, both being able to is important for a number of reasons. Whether I keep working or not, I have a lot more time for travel than Steve and a little more inclination to do so at this point. All this brings us to the purpose of this trip. Could we find a van that I would be able to drive for some solo trips if we chose to buy an RV.
Vanture is a PA based company that custom converts cargo vans. We spent a lot of time talking with their folks at the Harrisburg RV show a few months back. They have a few rentals of their various “builds”, so you can try them out for size, comfort, features, etc. We knew we wanted to try something small, the model we rented was just under 18 feet, shorter than a lot of cars. We wanted a shower and some sort of bathroom. If we were to ever have someone do a build for us in the future, we also wanted good materials, not some of the chemical laden laminates that the mass produced vans have. By compromising a little on the length and the timing of our trip we were able to rent the van we wanted to try from Sunday until Wednesday. We therefore picked our stops based on what was reasonable in that time and gave me enough chance to drive on major and back roads.
We picked up the van on Sunday, after a nice brunch nearby at Cafe Ole in the Valley. We got a tour of the features and how to use everything. The van is equipped to be off grid, with solar and the engine feeding the batteries that run the fridge, heater, hot water and power. There is a large water tank that can be refilled from a hose, though we didn’t need to refill it. A decent sized grey water tank is connected to the sink and the shower. It’s easy to dump which we did twice, but probably didn’t need to the first time, especially since we only used the shower once, mainly to test it. The toilet is what is known as a cassette toilet. It means it is self-contained and you have to take the top off to dump the bottom. It might be convenient for off-grid camping but it is bulky and heavy and not our first choice if we purchase a vehicle later. Mostly we used facilities when we stopped especially at campgrounds. A toilet and shower are still something that we want for middle of the night or really cold nights, but not sure that we would choose the way theirs were done.
Enough bathroom talk. Driving the van was great, even for me. The large double mirrors on both the driver and passenger side showed the van all the way to the back, leaving no blind spots. There is no rear window, so the mirrors give you the information you need, except to back up, but there is a camera and screen for that. The front windows give a great view, and the small hood allows excellent visibility too. I found quickly that driving the van was as easy or easier than my car. I still preferred my usual role as navigator but I feel confident that I could take a van like this out on my own. There are a few times when I missed turns trying to keep track of everything, but either turned around to get back to where we were going, or skipped a few minor stops that Steve would have turned around for, hence why I like navigating.
Our destination was the Finger Lakes Region, where we had booked two nights at the Watkins Glen / Corning KOA Campground. Using RoadTrippers app, along with AllTrails, to look for places along the route, I noticed we were passing 7 Tubs Recreation Area. I knew about this area from some research I am doing for a novel I am writing. It is one of the stops my main character makes for a quick walk. I found it researching the area but now we had the chance to visit. It was so lovely, I need to add some description to my book. It reminded me of Ricketts Glen, which is also in the book, but I have visited there before. It is on a much smaller scale than Ricketts Glen, which is known for a large number of diverse waterfalls off beautiful trails. Here the falls were smaller but plentiful and required some but less climbing to see multiple lovely areas and falls. It was a perfect short De Tour on a very pretty day.
We continued our drive toward the campground and the lakes. Since we were okayed for late check in we decided to have dinner in instead of cooking that night. There is a totally vegan, Thai restaurant in town with a lot of gluten free choices, Thai Green Elephant. The Spring Rolls with peanut sauce were delicious. My Pad Thai was a little sweet but good and Steve had some drunken noodles. We finished everything, no leftovers.
The campground was interesting. We booked at the KOA for two nights and one we visited before near the Delaware Water Gap for one night, just so we had reservations. We talked about revisiting those plans closer and seeing if we could find a less commercial choice, for a better price closer to our trip but never actually got back around to it. The campgrounds are pricey as campgrounds go, because they have all kinds of features we don’t need, mostly geared to families with children. This one had an indoor pool, which we didn’t remember, so we didn’t bring bathing suits. It had bouncy beds, a zip line (which was closed for the season) and more which we didn’t explore. The upside is that it is extremely well maintained with nice showers, clean bathrooms and clean sites. Our site was a little closer to the road than we would have liked but we were secluded from all the other campers so it was very peaceful.
The campground hadn’t gotten firewood for the season yet, but we were able to get it right down the road. As it had rained earlier, the wood was a little too wet to burn well, so we didn’t stay with it too long, but at least it helped to dry the wood for the morning. In the morning we cooked our breakfast of french toast and veggie sausage, over the very hot fire. Having no agenda we were able to relax and read by the nice morning fire.
Eventually we headed out to see the sights and let me practice driving some more. A lot of things aren’t open 
except the wineries this time of year. We could have visited dozens of them, it kind of reminded me of Napa Valley. That wouldn’t have done a lot for my driving trial so we passed on them until one visit at the end of the day to Bully Hill Winery. It was a good choice for us with lots of sweet wines to taste. In the meantime we just enjoyed the scenery and had a great Mexican lunch nearby.
We weren’t sure if we were going to stay in the area in the morning or head down to the Watergap Area, so we decided on one more stop after the winery. Watkins Glen State Park is known for its gorge and beautiful waterfalls. They are doing maintenance until some time in May on the main gorge trail, but we figured we’d see if we could walk a bit of the Rim Trail. After a false start navigating to the wrong entrance, we found signs for the gorge trail, a suspension bridge and another spot that sounded promising. It was a hike down a lot of steps, which we knew meant we would need to come back up, but we took the chance. There wasn’t too much that could be seen from where we were but we got a few nice views, dragged ourselves back up the steps and figured at least we had seen something there and without the crowds of summer.
The second night we had a much more successful fire, we didn’t need to cook anything, so we just enjoyed the warmth and the relaxation. In the morning we built another fire to cook over. One of my favorite camping breakfasts. First Steve cooked up some diced potatoes with garlic powder. Then empty onto a plate. Next in the pan, veggies and lox to fry a bit, mix in the eggs and everything is ready to eat. Just scoop the deliciousness from pan to plate. Took our time, got some showers, relaxed and then headed Southwest.
Setting the gps to stay off of toll roads, we headed to Tunkhannock Viaduct. It was an interesting structure and we were glad to see a train crossing to know it is still in use.
I noticed that we were right outside of the town of Hop Bottom, which means nothing to most people, but has a lot of sentimental meaning to me. Many, many years ago my Mother and I were returning from a trip to Binghamton to visit someone at the University there. My mom, who inspired my love for adventuring and back roads, drove through the town of Hop Bottom. That was the start of our first trip to the Poconos, somewhere we then vacationed year after year. Even before that trip, we would often spend Sunday afternoons driving around rural areas in South Jersey, “trying to get lost”. My mom’s theory was that every road, eventually leads back to a road you recognize. Those trips were some of our best times together, and I am only rattled when lost if I have somewhere to be at a certain time.
As I scanned the apps looking for a lupper stop, I came across a Scranton restaurant that mentioned they would be closed that day due to President Biden being in town. We therefore tried to avoid Scranton so we didn’t get stuck in motorcade detours or traffic, but as it wound up we found an interesting sounding restaurant right on the outskirts of the city and had no issues.
When we arrived at the campground we were pleased to see that someone had left several pieces of firewood to supplement what we had left. We again were in a lovely isolated spot. We took a walk over to the campsite where we had stayed on our last visit to see if the horses were hanging out behind the fence, they were not, but a whole flock of deer were. We relaxed at our site, finally lighting that final fire and enjoying some of the wine we had bought. It was a clear night with lots of stars, some UFO’s (probably satellites) and Steve even saw a few meteorites falling. I was busy reading my ebook and missed those.
In the morning Steve cooked me a birthday breakfast on the induction burner provided with the camper. We took our time as we didn’t have to return the van until the afternoon. Once we had packed up and were on the road it started to rain, so we pretty much drove the 2 hours back to Vanture straight through. After unloading the van and handing over the keys, we were ready for lunch. We found an interesting place. It’s the home of a company called LUHV. They make vegan products that are sold in many places but they have a cafe at their location. What items were gluten free were different on their menu and the list they gave us at the cafe, but I went with a safe and delicious mushroom sandwich.
