Glad you are back and safe.  Here are a few more thoughts:

1.  The Vanagon diesel setup is fairly conventional even though the vehicle is not.  I would think that in the land of big diesel power (Peoria), there would someone who would be willing to work on the engine and fuel system and maintain it for you.  The rest of the vehicle is the same as other Vanagons.  While they are not plentiful, they are fairly straightforward and the VW dealer or other VW shops can work on them.  Remember Downs Import that I told you about earlier will work on them if you can't find someone local.  Remember that you would have had this issue whether you broke down in MD or not, so don't let your recent experience cloud your judgment.

2.  I have rented U-Hauls and trailers for such things.  I have broken down in a major way twice so am "experienced."  You CAN do it yourself, but it would be nice to have someone along to help get it loaded, etc.  This is not cheap.  I'd say in the $3-700 range, depending on how successful you are at finding good prices on the rental units.  It would be best to drive out in another vehicle with an accomplice, pick up the rental units there, load up, and drive both back.  There are other possibilities if you know someone with a big (powerful) pickup.  You rent a trailer or tow dolly here, drive out, load the van and drive back.  This would be in the $1-200 range for rental.  Another possibility is to have it shipped back, but I don't have experience in that method.

3.  While there is a certain amount of appeal to having Karl do the work, he is not the only one who can do it.  A problem with having him do it is if he does the work and you pick up the van and try drive home, any kind of problem means that you are broken down on the road again and then you WOULD be wanting to get rid of it.  I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with Karl's work at all, only that doing something soon is better than waiting, and having the work done local to you keeps you and the shop physically close so if there are problems, they can be addressed quickly and cheaply.  I have done enough work on cars to know that my confidence in the vehicle and in the quality of my work improves greatly after a couple of thousand mile test drive.

4. I think that in the long run, you will be more satisfied with a vehicle with more power.  There are many on the list who will disagree and many who will agree.  But YOU have to choose.  If you are always going to use it in "blue highways" mode, then the current setup is OK.  But if you will have to depend on it to get you places with time constraints, the current setup can lead to frustrations and the risk of trying to push the vehicle beyond what it is safely capable of.  Of course, this means more $$$ and adds to the pleasure of trying to find someone to work on it.  The more unique the vehicle is, the more challenging it will be.

5.  I would go over in your mind what got you to the decision to buy this particular vehicle in the first place.  Most of the factors which lead to the decision are probably still true.  Your eyes are open a bit wider to the possibilities of bad things happening, but the vehicles are reliable once you get the bugs fixed and you won't find many alternatives out there.  I wouldn't give up on the dream yet.

Take care

Tom
'71 Westy, '85 Westy, '91 Carat