How much trouble do you have parking overnight and stealth camping?

I don't understand why people have such trouble stealth camping and parking overnight!

I've been living in my van for the better part of 2 years now and perhaps I'm just lucky but I've never been hassled by the police. 

I tend to prefer walmart parking lots, truck stops, highway rest stops, cracker barrells, and quiet neighborhood streets with road parking. There is definitely some guidelines I follow, and that I believe everyone should follow as well.

1) Don't stay somewhere longer than 1 night (unless you have permission or it's a paid spot). I move around a lot but I also have to stay put for work when I'm on assignment. If I'm going to be in an area for a while I'll spend the first week or so discovering different "sleep spots." This might be the Walmart in town, or the neighborhood road that allows overnight parking, or (my personal favorite) a nice free camp site on some BLM land right outside of town. I'll drop pin's at all these locations and then spend my time in the area rotating through them, never staying at one longer than 1 night.

2) Arrive late. I roll into my sleep spot when I'm ready to sleep. That is all it's used for. I don't watch videos on my phone or cook dinner. All that is done somewhere else. I roll into the spot, shut off my lights and engine, and go to bed.

3) Leave early. On the flip side, the very first thing I do when I wake up is... well, pee. But after that, I leave. I'll drive to the closest (anywhere else) and make my morning coffee and plan my day. 

4) If spotted, leave. I don't take any chances. I had a nice spot in a neighborhood back in Missouri. I would spend 1 night a week there and it was close to my work. I loved it. One night I rolled up like usual and I was just getting ready to crawl into the back of the van when I noticed the owner of a nearby house was standing on his porch just staring at my van. I waved at him, pretended to be looking at my phone for a few minutes, and then took off. I didn't stay there again.

5) Don't park directly in front of someone's house. Try to find houses on corners that might have a long fence along one of the streets. Churches in neighborhoods are also nice if there is street parking. My ultimate favorite, however, is apartment complexes. Now I don't stay in the parking lots, but if you find an apartment complex that has street parking, that's perfect.

6) Be respectful. Remember our lifestyle is viewed as strange to the vast majority of society. We might think we have every human right to sleep peacefully in our vehicles but not everyone views it like that. I'm from Seattle and I don't really blame people for thinking this way. If you have ever been to seattle, the city is litterred with derelict RV's and people living out of their cars. When you drive down Alki Beach and see clothes lines and mountains of bike parts, tarp awnings and trash strewn about you might get a sense of how other people might view our lifestyle, even if the vast majority of us don't live like that. So be respectful, quiet, and unnoticed. 

Here is some more info on Stealth Camping and Overnight Parking, if you are interested.

Have you had any troubles stealth camping? Do you have any other tips? Let me know

Cheers!

for me it's simple I don't sleep in places I have to hide. I have only been hassled once and that was in the late 80's in a "Park and Ride" the officer was nice and told me where I could sleep. highdesertranger

VanFocused said:

Have you had any troubles stealth camping? Do you have any other tips? Let me know

Click to expand...

There can be quite a difference in how successful you are depending on the city/area you are in.  I've experienced the 'knock' about 3 times but that was over many years. Told to move along just once and 'welfare' checks the other times and really wasn't hassled.

All were while I was parked on city streets. Most of the time it's WMs, Cracker Barrels and rest areas while travelling but I'd rather stay in USFS campgrounds or boondock. Just depends on where I'm headed.

The thing about moving around a lot is that if you're driving a gas hog, you are eating into any savings that goes with the mobile lifestyle.  Short trips around town are harder on a vehicle because the engine doesn't get up to operating temp. So in the long run you may spend more on upkeep/repairs. If you run the engine to run the A/C or heater in varying climates, you will spend more money there also.

Oops.

I am still in sticks and bricks. I enrolled in a website nextdoor.com. I can validate any time something "unusual" appears in a neighborhood - car, person, animal, child, etc - the residents go ballistic - who is that?, what are they up to?, etc. key is to avoid attracting attention

Here's an informative yet funny vid I found on YouTube called '111 Hot Tips For Stealth Living In Your Vehicle' from the Funkbutter Mindshifting Factory
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU6Lh4efM5qDsvGiZpmFmmw

Never had any real trouble in over 2 years other than when rain might have created mud that I am cautious about getting stuck in. Or some areas that I might cause my vehicle to get scraped on the underside. But it is not as if I expect to be able to camp just any place I feel like.

I have never had any issues either. Whenever I select a place to stay, I immediately get in the back and remain unseen until morning. I usually park among other similar vehicles to blend in.

I've only had one incident. It wasn't a cop or a neighbor.
I was parked in an industrial area. It was kind of last minute because my usual areas were messed up by street sweeping and a film crew.
So i pulled up on a pretty vacant black with a bunch of warehouses in an obscure part of Brooklyn.
The next morning I get a bumper tap by someone, like when you are trying to park and there isn't enough room. Except there were not any other cars for blocks. Then a 2nd one.
I jumped up and was able to see a red SUV behind me. By the time I got dressed and was ready to pick a fight the guy was gone. I don't know if he parked in the building or around the corner?
It was very strange.
Happy that he took off. He woke me up in a bad mood and I would really have tried to fight over that nonsense.

In general I keep a low profile.
Try to find areas that a van blends in. Blue collar areas with lots of work vans. Industrial parks and big box store areas where you see a lot of white vans.
I've found a few areas where it's kind of on the edge between commercial and residential.
Like the OP said. If you can find a place on a corner where the long side of the lot is taken up by a wall or hedge.
Another one I figured out is a lot of towns have 2hr or 4hr parking zones. Those are only in effect from 8am to 6pm or so.
I can often find a spot that isn't in front of a house or a business. It's just some side street behind a restaurant row or something.

I do have a band habit of revisiting places for wifi.
There are often Starbucks or Panera that I can get a signal from out in the parking lot or on a side street.
There are a few apartment complexes with guest wifi that I have been exploiting for months.
It's not even a wireless plan limit thing. Some areas the wireless signal is just crap.

As I move into the next phase of my vehicle customization I'm worried about losing anonymity.
My van is going to be more memorable when it has a roof vent and solar panels, and when it gets painted blue.
At that point I may just have to go fulltime at campgrounds and BLM.
Personally I can't stand the Wally world parking lots. Too many people coming and going. And in a lot of cities young car jocks like to meet there with their sport tuned coupes.

I often stop outside McD's and BKs for WiFi. Lot of times you can get it in the lot without going in. Of course, it's hard to not go in and get a coffee at McD's. They really do have good coffee. large for a buck... Good deal.

wow typos in abundance. Wish the edit function didnt time out.
I meant vacant Block not vacant Black.

Oh yeah also about stealthing. The only stuff I leave in the front cab area are things that would lead you to believe its a work van.
Tape measure, box of screws, etc.
No clothing, backpacks or other stuff that hollers I live in here!
Also, I have a blackout curtain right behind the front seats. It's dark enough and has no pattern. So when you look in from the outside it seems you are just seeing a black void behind the front seats. Like an empty van.
As it gets hotter though I find sleeping inside is unbearable unless I crack the windows.
So I try to park someplace where there won't be any foot traffic on the sidewalk side and I can roll the window most of the way down.
then only crack the street side window a little.
Of course some people may not be comfortable with any windows open while they sleep.
And then there are bugs to deal with.
Need to get that roof vent installed!

I'm in a larger 24 foot camper but many times I have just pulled over at a Waffle House, eaten a meal and then asked the over night staff working inside if I can get a few hours sleep in the rear of their parking lot. They have never refused.

The first few months are the hardest. After that you have experience and you get pretty good at scouting ahead using internet source information for potential safe locations to stay instead of just showing up clueless. Just call it “on the job training”

Want your van windows down for ventilation?
But you get cranky about intrusive bugs?
All you need is a 3D printer!
.