Last time we discussed my introduction to the use of Vardos in the SCA and today we will start investigating them, and their cousins.

When I noticed that there were a ton of Vardos at Pennsic this year I decided to take an active look at some of the different type of wagons that were out there and what they were being used for. Because I am actually running a shop in the market I know that I did not even come close to seeing all of the Vardos and other wagons, but I tried to investigate some that I remembered were not standard living quarters, because that may be a unique concept for some folks. I am also going to mention a few things that I think Vardo owners need to consider when building and parking their Vardos.

The first thing that I noticed this year was this Vardo that arrived right across the street from our encampment.

When it arrived it just looked like a box, and there was nothing above the seam in the wood that I have marked with a yellow arrow. When I came back later in the day, there was a canvas cover on the wagon that had turned it into a place to live. I spoke briefly with the owner at the end of the war and she said she thought it was probably going to undergo a complete rebuild. I suggested that she put reflector tape on the tongue of her trailer or possibly add a solar lantern so that people could see it at night. I had watched multiple people and cars come within a very small number of inches of crashing into the tongue of her trailer in the dark. It had been parked too close to the road by the people who transported it, and the tongue was black with no reflectors. Looking objectively at the canvas, I think it would have leaked badly if there had been a serious rainstorm with wind. This is an excellent example of why we should look at historical wagons. Think of the Conestoga wagons that the pioneers in the western US used. The canvas on those wagons wrapped completely around the corners so that driving rain could not get in easily.

This picture shows the sort of Vardo that I see in Arizona, although the ones that I have seen usually have a tighter cover. They are sort of a miniature version of a Conestoga wagon. The canvas cover is on all of the time. I did not have a chance to chat with the owner of the this Vardo to see if they drive the Vardo with the cover in place. The big advantage that I see to always having the cover on is that the Vardo is ready to use almost instantly when you arrive, just like our old RV used to be.

The first Vardo that I ever saw at Pennsic, was a very different design.

Next time: More Vardo Details

I have been playing actively in the SCA for over twenty years. When I started we were mostly day tripping to events, because we still had kids at home that required at least some supervision. Many of our friends also day tripped because of work schedules and other obligations, and the area of the kingdom that we lived in (East Kingdom) had huge numbers of events within easy driving distance of our home.

Our first real camping event was actually the Pennsic War in PA. We purchased a new cabin tent for the event, loved it, and put Pennsic as a permanent event on our schedule. But at this event we were exposed for the first time to Gypsy Wagons. There weren’t many of them, but they were really cool. This wagon has been in the same place on the same street for as long as I can remember.

We also saw a giant Pirate Ship!

Jump ahead a few years and we were in the West Kingdom. I never saw any gypsy wagons there (or Pirate ships), but RVs were becoming increasingly common and there were also some tent campers and camper vans. We had an RV ourselves. I have to admit it was pretty awesome. No folding up the clothing; the carefully ironed tunics and gowns were simply hung in the closet. And with the greater distances that we often drove to an event, we could roll in to a site at midnight and be in bed at 12:10 AM, with an inside flushie as a bonus. We were set up with a propane heater, a frig, a propane stove, and ceiling fans. If we had a hook-up, which we did at some campgrounds, we even had a microwave and an air conditioner. Luxury camping at its best.

Jump forward another twelve years and we are in Atenveldt. And this is where we were exposed to the use of Vardos at weekend events. To be honest, we had never heard of the term. Technically speaking a Vardo is a traditional horse-drawn wagon that is used by the Romani people of Great Britain (gypsies). But except for the horses, and the lack of a wood stove, these camping wagons looked like Vardos. We actually knew two couples who had built their own canvas covered Vardos. Like the RV that we used to have, they had the advantage of being a self-contained dwelling. You could just roll in to a site, chock it so that it didn’t roll away, and have a “home”. The chance of snakes, scorpions, or high water from a rain storm being an issue was minimal. You couldn’t easily level it the way you could our RV, but it was still an amazing camping solution.

This year the proliferation of Vardos and other wagons at Pennsic was really noticeable. There have never been any on our block before, but this year there was one directly across the street from us, and several more down the block.

Next Time: Investigating the Wagons