Leo Roth
Staff writer
June 28, 2009
Kim and Josh Wooten were returning from one of their frequent tent
camping trips when they spotted a VW bus chugging past.
The iconic symbol of 1960s and '70s counterculture seemed to speak to them.
"They're just so ridiculous," Josh Wooten said, referring to the long
boxy vehicles.
Ridiculous in the best sense. Soon, the Wootens were talking about
purchasing a camping version of the famous Volkswagen transporter
the forerunner to the minivan and taking an epic trip.
"When we started planning on what to see around the country, we
couldn't decide so we just said, 'Let's do the whole thing,'" Kim said.
And so, the Henrietta newlyweds did almost that.
The park-crazy Wootens they were married at Letchworth State Park
last October recently returned from a 4½-month honeymoon that would
make recreational vehicle owners smile and old hippies tear up.
With their cat "Fink" and dog "Westy" as companions, Kim and Josh
camped in 24 states from January to May, traveling in a vintage 1978
VW bus, specifically, a Westfalia conversion pop-up painted lime
green and bearing peace symbol stickers.
Cross-country coaches in their alma mater Rush-Henrietta School
District, they became cross-country drivers and put 15,000 miles on
their beloved "Woot Wagen." That's the nickname given their vee-dub
in an online poll. The odometer now reads 142,000.
That Kim, 24, and Josh, 26, felt a connection to the "hippie van"
comes as no surprise to family and friends who think they would've
made great flower children.
The eBay entrepreneurs who sell antiques and collectibles don't put a
high value on material things. People, pets, a hike in the woods and
a good song matter most. They are avid runners.
Josh, who owns a liberal arts degree from Mansfield University where
he starred in cross-country, is a self-described wanderer who likes
his hair long. Kim wears necklaces holding tiny peace symbols. She
painted Sixties Era flower-power designs on the ceiling of their bus.
It's as if they were born 40 years too late.
"I think people think that of us," Kim said with a laugh. "But I
don't feel it because that's who I am."
By dipping their toes in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the
Wootens discovered an America that no book or documentary can do justice.
Living out of their VW bus equipped with sink, fold-out beds and iPod
sound system, checking into affordable state and national parks, and
eating lots of pasta, PB&J, oatmeal and yogurt, they saw the country
on a mere $250 a week.
And while hippies never chronicled their journeys and stayed in touch
with loved ones through a professionally done Web site with pictures,
blogs and video, modern free spirits with a laptop and wireless card
do. The Wooten's entertaining and inspiring
www.greenbusadventures.com has had almost 2,000 unique visits.
Their motivation was time honored: do something profound before life
becomes complicated with schedules, kids and a mortgage.
"We ran into a lot of people who said, 'I wish I did that when I was
20,'" Josh said. "It was definitely worth it. We did it our own way
and we have a ton of memories and a new network of friends."
That they ever pulled out of the driveway is a testament to perseverance.
A 1976 VW camper found in San Diego for $2,500 that they originally
planned on using caught fire in 2007 while Kim was driving. The bus
was destroyed. The Wootens lost $10,000 in belongings, including all
of Kim's clothes she was taking to a new residence, but she escaped unharmed.
"I felt like I was in an action movie," she said.
What they didn't feel was discouraged.
Soon, Kim and Josh were VW bus shopping again, finding the Woot Wagen
on craigslist from a seller in North Carolina for $7,400. While it
appeared in much better shape, it wasn't. The pop-up leaked, the
steering was shot and there were electrical problems. And surprise
it had no seat belts.
"Why would I ask if it had seat belts?" Josh said. "It was a nightmare."
A good mechanic and $2,000 in repairs secured a New York state
inspection sticker and some peace of mind.
"Everyone said get a new one. Family and friends wanted to see us
safe, of course. But we were dead set on it (a vintage model)," said
Josh of the classic first- and second-generation Type 2 micro buses
Volkswagen manufactured between 1950 and 1979. "I don't know,
something about the freedom."
The fire had a profound effect on Kim. She began planning less and
living more. She erased a laminated trip map she had worked on,
painstakingly detailing every state, road and park, grabbed the GPS,
and told Josh, "Let's just go."
"We knew a few states we wanted to see, some spots, but basically we
went without a plan," she said.
When you let a trip unfold like that, that's when it becomes a true adventure.
You wind up seeing the Corn Palace in South Dakota, Potato Museum in
Idaho and the UFO Museum in New Mexico.
You learn to rope cattle in Boseman, Mont., and, as runners, make a
spiritual visit to Steve Prefontaine's memorial in Oregon and jog a
lap at historic Hayward Field.
You wind up singing Sonny and Cher's "I Got You Babe" with strangers
at a karaoke bar in Georgia and working as roadies for a band from
Australia performing in Austin, Texas, that's managed by a high school chum.
There is also plenty of time to be awed by Bourbon Street, the Hoover
Dam, Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore, the Petrified Forest and a
California sunset. To hike, explore and breathe the air.
Even bus breakdowns turned into enjoyable experiences as the Wootens
discovered a network of VW fanatics out there.
In North Carolina, one happened by, quickly fixed what they thought
was a major gas leak and invited them to hang out for the weekend
with his VW bus club. In Texas, mechanics at a major VW repair shop
told Josh how to repair a busted clutch cable with a $12 part and
gave him the tools.
When they reached California, the Wootens were fascinated to see they
were far from alone driving a VW bus.
"They're everywhere," Josh Wooten said. "There are people out there
that bused out and never left."
Still living the dream with gray hair and grandkids.
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