A Herculean effort to restore a vintage family travel trailer is finally done. The Kelly family’s 1958 Aloha is now looking as good as new thanks to Leslie’s brother Chris' labor of love.

He’s not alone in tackling this kind of painstaking project, as a growing number of Americans are discovering the joy — and the frustration — of breathing new life into something on its last legs.

Many companies specialize in these kinds of extreme makeovers, including an outfit in the Spokane Valley called GT Services. For the DIY crowd, all sorts of advice is available online, including a bunch of instructive and entertaining videos on YouTube. If only it was possible to work with that time-lapse kind of speed!

For Chris, the makeover was a work-in-progress for many years because he’s got a full-time gig serving as the gregarious bar manager at Sulla Vita in Leavenworth and has a busy social life that involves golfing and a daily cold plunge in the Wenatchee River. Yup, even in the middle of winter.

It took a while to find the ideal setting to do the work. Thanks to a friend, he was able to park the travel trailer in an old barn during the winter months. That’s where he pulled off the finishing touches that made the old girl shine —  literally. He buffed off the tired old finish and repainted the red accent color.

When Chris and Leslie’s grandparents bought the Aloha in the 1970s, it was already looking a bit worn. It served as a “summer home” that sat on the family’s property near the Icicle River in Leavenworth. They used it while building a retirement home.

After the home was finished, the Aloha was parked next to it and served as a quasi-guest room and kids’ playhouse for many years until Papa sold it. Chris and Leslie bought it back in 2006 from the river guide who had used it to tour the region. After years of use, it was in pretty rough shape.

So the makeover began way back then. It was baby steps for many years and Chris did all the heavy lifting, installing custom bench seats in the dining area while dealing with a serious hornet infestation one year and a mouse infestation during another.

Eventually, Leslie signed over the title, but not before enjoying some nights in the Aloha as it was being renovated, sparking her eventual interest in RV living. 

Now that it’s restored, the Aloha is being used to welcome family back to the Northwest. Laurel, Chris and Leslie’s sister, had the pleasure of using it as a crash pad while visiting her son, daughter-in-law and grandkids.

If you’re tempted to head down this path and restore a vintage travel trailer, consider staying in one first. There are a few resorts in the Northwest that specialize in that kind of retro-cool accommodation. We’ve enjoyed bunking at the Sou’wester in Seaview near the Washington coast and at The Vintages in Oregon’s Willamette Valley wine country. Recently, we got a big kick out of an overnight at the lovely Trailer Pond in Paso Robles wine country.

As much as we loved the vintage vibe of all those spots, we are definitely not in the DIY camp. That’s why we (mostly) love our modern motorhome. Still, those vintage rigs never fail to impress — as long as someone else does the work.

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