How Camping Turned into Collecting

I didn’t set out to become a collector of camper and RV models. Like most lifelong hobbies, it grew naturally out of childhood experiences that stayed with me long after I didn’t fully realize they mattered.

My dad was a schoolteacher for nearly forty years, which meant one important thing for our family: his vacation schedule always lined up with ours. Every spring break, summer vacation, and winter break, we were on the road. It was my parents, my two sisters, and me, traveling across the United States as often as time and money would allow.

On a teacher’s salary, luxury wasn’t part of the equation. We camped. A lot. We started with tents, moved up to pop-up campers, and eventually graduated to a small popup RV called a Chinook. Every trip involved the same rituals—setting up camp, breaking it down, learning how to make a temporary home feel permanent, even if only for a few days. Those trips weren’t just vacations; they were lessons in independence, curiosity, and the joy of mobility. Looking back, it’s no surprise that vehicles designed for travel and living on the road would later become such a powerful focus for me.

Around the same time, I was developing another fascination. In the early 1970s, I found myself drawn to photos and stories of brass era antique cars. I loved their shapes, their details, and the sense of history they carried. My mom noticed this and, for my ninth birthday, gave me a few Matchbox Models of Yesteryear. That gift flipped a switch. I was hooked immediately.

From that point on, any spare money I earned—from chores or mowing neighbors’ lawns—went toward model cars. There was a Ben Franklin store nearby, and I’d make regular trips to see what new releases had come in. By the time I left for college, I already had what I’d call a respectable collection for a kid who started with pocket change and patience.

Like many people, I stepped away from collecting for a while as adulthood set in. But once I had my first real job and got married, the hobby came roaring back. A visit to a toy auction, and my first exposure to serious reference material like the MICA collectors guide and other dedicated collectors, completely changed my understanding of what collecting could be. I realized there was depth, history, and community behind these little vehicles. I started corresponding with other collectors the old-fashioned way, by mail, filling gaps in my collection and learning everything I could.

For a long time, my focus remained on classic automobiles. But when Mattel acquired Matchbox and the Models of Yesteryear line began to lose its footing, I started looking for something new. That’s when everything came full circle.

I stumbled across a photo of a beautifully rendered Airstream camper model made by Brooklin in one of Bob Hooper's flyers. It stopped me cold. It wasn’t cheap ($65 back then), and I hesitated longer than I’d care to admit—but it was a camper. And once I finally bought it, there was no turning back. That single model unlocked decades of memory: childhood road trips, campground mornings, the smell of damp canvas and pine trees, the feeling that home could be wherever you parked it.

From there, the collection grew organically. Shasta Airflytes. Vintage caravans. Motorhomes from all over the world. I wasn’t chasing toys anymore, I was preserving experiences in miniature. If it was a camper or RV, the rules didn’t really apply. Scale didn’t matter. Materials didn’t matter. What mattered was whether it captured the spirit of travel and possibility that had shaped me early on.

Today, when I look at a model camper on a shelf, I don’t just see a vehicle. I see my family setting up camp. I see highways stretching into unfamiliar places. I see how something simple like a teacher’s summer break, a modest camper, or a toy car can quietly define a lifetime passion.

All of this came flooding back this morning when @karl sent me some pics from an old print edition of MAR. While I had the Bijou travel made for me by a guy in Australia, I never got the tow vehicle. I'd still love to find the complete set. This article also reminded me I need to acquire the Bijou AOMA and the Digue from Parade.

Collecting campers and RVs isn’t about accumulation for me. It’s about memory, movement, and the idea that the journey itself is worth preserving, even at 1:43 scale.