Why I Renovated and Live in a 43-Year-Old Caravan

Renovating a tiny retro caravan called Mary was a big ask for a school teacher who’d never used a jigsaw before! Following the call for adventure, Georgia describes the bumpy ride that led her to the wild simplicity of life on the road.

Who is Mary?

Mary has been my 12ft off-grid caravan home for the past five months. She started as a pipe dream that I wanted to live out, but finding the right caravan – small, quaint and imperfect enough for me – was the first challenge. I envisioned a life of minimalism, simplicity, adventure, and waking up in a new location each week.

Eventually, I found her – a 12-foot Millard 1980s pop-top caravan. She had pizazz, character, and a retro-vibe to boot – she was just the right fit!

Why a caravan?

I already had a fully functioning and reliable car – a Toyota Prado – and didn’t want to get rid of it. It gave me freedom, reliability, and space to overnight car camp. However, deciding to embark on a year-long trip around Australia, with the intention of still working intermittently, but also hiking, surfing and taking multi-day trips required more than the Prado could provide.

A caravan seemed like the right choice. It’d give me a little haven to come back to: a small plywood-packaged home to find familiarity on the road.

Renovating the Old Girl

I spent the better half of nine months renovating this little beauty. Long nights, weekends, and early mornings were consumed renovating Mary in my small hometown of Yamba, NSW. I had no idea how big the job would be, until it began. Spending most nights working on the caravan after a day at my teaching job – essentially becoming a non-certified tradie lady by night – was arduous, but fun.

The renovation was overwhelming and there was so much learning and failure involved. But the process allowed me to get to know Mary, and at the same time stretch my own knowledge and patience while rebuilding something special.

This journey has been an immense learning experience. Despite limited practice hammering, screwing or chainsawing anything, I’ve come to understand what each tool does. It feels empowering to use these instruments for their purpose.

Learning the best tips for cutting timber, mimicking skills of trade professionals, discovering how to wire electricals, and learning how off-grid solar works have all helped me grow. I’ve learned things the hard way and failed over and over before being successful.

From Dream to Reality

The name Mary eventually morphed into ‘Something about Mary’, as the dream of renovating became reality. She was a project to clear my mind of work clutter, and to find mindfulness and enthralment in skills outside of the education system. Mary became a  reason to switch off, to find more presence in an experience, and to understand the intricacies of re-building something to live in.

In my research, I came across the word ‘hygge’, which refers to a Danish concept about the creation of spaces that support nourishment, comfort, and relaxation. This is something that I’ve always unconsciously tried to re-create in new spaces and tents (outdoor education as a teacher means tents have often been my home for weeks at a time).

Putting love, organisation, and cosiness into a space that I can crawl into and feel comfort and peace in, is important to me. Renovating Mary to be a space for happiness and a nook to seek warmth from during an adventure of uncertainty was definitely a priority.

Caravan Life

Living in Mary has given me so much flexibility to work in outdoor education, relief-teach along the way, and to store an array of hiking gear in her for the next expedition. It’s also given me much more room for my other toys – surfboards, skateboards, snowboards, fishing gear – so I can hit the road, water or snow whenever I please.

Mary and I have ventured from Yamba to the Mornington Peninsula, taken a beautiful journey down the Great Ocean Road, driven across the Yorke Peninsula, through Dhilba Guuranda-Innes National Park and ventured south of the Flinders Ranges. She’s sat cosy and awaiting my return when my car broke down twice (she outlived the Prado, despite having 43 years under her wheels). And finally, she’s made it to the unforgettable Red Centre.

Thankfully, Australia is a user-friendly destination in the caravan department – with many areas to fill up water, dump my orange peels, and pump up her rubber on the long open roads.

Living in a caravan devours your energy, but you get even more back from the adventurous days outside surfing new breaks, hiking grandiose mountains, and exploring new places. Better yet, all of this is accompanied by an already-made bed, kitchen, and a space to read a book after a big day.

My favourite part of caravan life, especially with a retro-girl like Mary, is the conversation starters she gives me. People admire her from afar or come closer to hear about her story. Old codgers tell me about their previously-owned retro caravans with delighted smiles on their faces. She definitely stands out from the hordes of modern-day mansion caravans!

Finding a home for Mary each night is simple because she’s small enough to fit almost anywhere. She’s exceptionally cute shacked up in national park campgrounds or parked on friend’s driveways when I drop by for a visit.

When Parts Stop Working

Since Mary’s an old girl, I still find myself tending to her maintenance, fixing the roof along the way, installing new water tanks, re-fixing doors, re-attaching something that flew off on a corrugated section of the drive, and upgrading parts of her to suit my current needs. It can be a lot, but without these quirks she wouldn’t be Mary. It’s incredible to see how comfortable a tool in hand has become as part of this experience.

The water tanks often need to be refilled, tending to her small maintenance issues is on-going, and finding a home for her when I leave interstate for work is an arduous effort. However, she’s created a magical life for me, so it’s worth it.

The Simple Life

Mary makes me think about my waste, reminding me to consume just enough, and avoid over-consumption. She has a large enough fridge to keep produce fresh and cold, without digging in the back and realising there’s two-month-old cheese at the mercy of mould…

She has a few cupboards to keep all the necessities: a couple of bowls, plates, cups, and fry pans, plus an extra fork or two for the odd friend that comes to stay. Her lounge room turns into a single bed when these friends visit, and she has a small cupboard for minimal clothing, and an area under the bed for some of my outdoor education gear and Finska set.

A New Way of Life

When I bought Mary, I’d never towed a caravan before and barely knew how to reverse one. She didn’t have a training manual on how she works. Even moreso after renovating her, it was like getting to know a new friend. She gets a little wind shook from the road trains, but holds her own. She’s simple to reverse – a few whiplash neck jerks help! And she handles the rocky sloshy roads with ease.

Mary turns heads in camping spots, especially those of the oldies that walk past without a welcoming ‘Hey’ but instead a ‘Bout 12 to 13 foot, right? Millard? 1980 or so? I used to have one of those back in my day’. These simple interactive conversations with strangers bring me so much joy!

Not Such a Newbie Anymore

Five months on and Mary and I are a beautiful combo deal. She gives me off-grid solar power, water, fire, warmth. She keeps my food cold and my things dry. I’ve almost forgotten what it feels like to live in a house – spending most days outside, shaken by the elements of nature. Escaping into her walls when it’s pouring rain and finding gratitude for her peanut size amongst the other huge caravans is a happy experience.

Purchasing, renovating, and living in Mary is my attempt at living life intentionally and with balance. I want to seek out a life of minimalism and creativity, and create a space where I can slow down and listen to my own inner chimes.

With this caravan, I’ve managed to create a life more connected to nature, other people, and myself. Mary’s a constant reminder to stay present and to live seasonally, with flow, fun, and rejuvenation. She helps me to disconnect from mundane routines, mindless scrolling, and the discontented culture of the overworked. Now, touring the bountiful roads of Australia with Mary, I’m re-connected to remaining wild.

Go on, do it!

If you’re wanting to renovate or purchase a caravan, you’ll not regret this experience. Ask old codgers for advice, learn through failure along the way, and relish  the journey and excitement of building your own home. If this rookie who’d never used a jigsaw before can give it a red-hot crack, then anyone can! All it takes is actioning that pipe dream.