Jenna Nienhuis

Set sail: A classic camper with nautical roots.

*featured in the October Issue of Wildsam Magazine

Renowned boat manufacturer Jensen Marine of Costa Mesa, California, decided to get into the booming RV scene. Their designers imagined a rig tough enough for seafaring, but made for the road. The Balboa Motorhome debuted as the first B+ van of its kind, promising not to ‘squeak, leak, rattle, or rust’. The manufacturer installed a solid piece of fiberglass, as on a sailboat, atop Chevy, Ford, and Dodge chassis, creating a stylish family van that fit into a parking spot, just like a station wagon.

The boxy open floor plan highlighted ample storage, a wet bath, a kitchenette, a classic rear entry, and expansive windows that brought the outdoors inside. About 14 dealers —mainly on the West Coast — sold the Balboa. Though a relative success, the camper ultimately fell victim to the energy crisis of the early 70s. Only about 1,000 campers ever reached the market.

Nowadays, these rigs are uncommon in the wild — unless you’re in the tight-knit coastal town of Cardiff-by-the-Sea, California.

On any given beach day, several head-turning Balboas join the lineup of Sprinters, Westfalias, and creeper-vans-turned-surf-mobiles at the intimate Cardiff State Beach lot. Back doors open to reveal a sea-green playground where long and short boarders wax poetic from sunrise to sunset. Salty kids draped in towels crunch on Doritos while seagulls lurk around the edges in envy. 

The Balboa phenomenon here in Cardiff is powered by Paul Tralka, who started the one-man, backyard van restoration shop known as Freedom Vessel. Paul bought his first Balboa from a ninety-year-old former pilot over a landline, and it checked every box. “It worked all the time, had power, space, and big windows so I didn’t feel trapped or guilty if I was inside of it while camping,” says Tralka. 

From there, curious gull-like bystanders and friends inquired about where to get one, so he started restoring and selling them one by one, saving these relics from junkyards and “Grandpa’s backyard” around the country. The demand for Balboas runs year-round in this sweet spot home base, where the van complements the town’s nostalgic hippie culture and amplifies the outdoor lifestyle. 

Paul has since renovated over 40 Balboas, including the first one ever made, named the Surveyor after a lunar vehicle of that era. Each van has a story and distinct personality, costing a quarter of the price of a new van, but with a 50-year-old caveat: it may or may not make it to Alaska. 

“Our Balboa’s name is Loretta,” says local owner Agatha Borrelli, “and she is absolutely a Loretta.” More than a recreational vehicle, their van serves as a spotlight in brand photo shoots for Borrelli’s production company and a post-surf therapy lounge for her husband’s clients. 

From the wisdom of the sea came a short-lived but longstanding van, a pioneer for Chinook and others in its class. Now transforming a beach town, the Balboa community and Freedom Vessel are making good on Jensen Marine’s original adage: getting there is all the fun.