good article on vandwelling and confinement due to coronavirus

[brahmon]

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/rv-and-van-life-trouble-coronavirus/index.html

 

[JohnnyM]

Thanks, Brahmon, good piece.

It was interesting to read that some Canadian RV Parks are closing their doors to new arrivals. I follow Chrome Valdez at vancityvanlife on https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC85rJiWmYQV8Shk3QWXT8MQ. and I've always gotten the impression from his vlogs that Canada (or at least British Columbia) is much more liberal about boondocking and urban vandwelling than we are here in the states. Maybe so, maybe not.

Or maybe he's just lucky.

Johnny

 

[brahmon]

sad story... yesterday i met a nice elderly couple from florida who shipped their new pro master to hawaii before this clusterfk started. now they’re suffering because hawaii is very vanlife unfriendly now with covid19. nowhere to shower unless you wanna risk citation, fines and even jail. all parks closed.

praying this ends soon!!

 

[maki2]

Pretty much tough on everyone almost everywhere. Almost every state now requires a person coming into the state from other states, especially the hard hit states, to do a 14 day self quarantine. The only exception are people who are coming into the state for work.

Of course the only work going in the majority of the states is for essential businesses so there has to be exemptions for medical personnel to be able to get right to work where they are needed. As well as the military personnel and national guard who are coming in from elsewhere to help out.

 

[DLTooley]

Local authorities rationalizing their abuse with a public health argument is very sick - and a hazard to everyone’s public health by displacing a group that is most capable of physically distancing.

 

[bullfrog]

If you look at the spread of virus and compare it to Google's map of tracking GPS cell phones you will see why some rural counties and National Parks with limited medical resources are closing parks and permitting only locals to self isolate by staying close to home in campers without any consideration for full timer RVs or vandwellers. Fortunately there are several counties that have not done so with lots of BLM land. The ones that have mostly were packed with tourists treating this as a vacation. Zion National Park closed totally after they were slammed by people from out of state metro areas trying to escape the virus and just plain tourists who brought the virus with them. The lack of testing and the fact you can infect others before you have symptoms is really making the virus spread.

 

[DLTooley]

The lack of medical resources in rural communities is an issue - one that needs to be solved and is solvable.

We need a list of Counties that are accepting folks without full time residences. San Juan County near Bullfrog was functioning as same for nearby Moab, but was closed based on an interpretation of an ambiguously worded order.

Colorado has waived Medicaid residency requirements both for visitors and for residents currently in other States.

Stepping back a bit van lifers can be a burden to rural communities in general. That rural choice is a good one for most, rural homelessness being a healthier option as opposed to the concentration camp of urban homelessness. Urban communities compensating rural for accepting their displaced would be a cost saving win win for all.

SW Colorado needs designated refugee spots. Cortez has the best services, Telluride’s County has some very isolated high desert country.

Building a military field hospital in such a location that has enough capacity to also be available to the resident population seems pretty easy.

Here’s where I’m camped in my own SW Colorado County, which is also shut hard. I believe we could open it with the provision of a field medical facility. Basin would be a good spot and also has five Hunter cabins only rented seasonally.

 

[bullfrog]

Be careful out there and watch the weather for rain. The National Guard has flown in aid and staff to the Navajo Reservation in northeast Arizona to help with an outbreak of over 100 cases. Take precautions if you go southwest into Blanding, Bluff or Mexican Hat area. Kayenta was basically locked down as when I passed through a few days ago you could only get gas with a credit card. Tribal Police were present.

 

[DLTooley]

That’s my regular area this time of year. I do a variety of archaeological volunteer stuff including with Forest Service. I’m based out of San Miguel these days and there’s some pretty good country out here, but it’s hard closed to non-residents.

Last I checked back side of the La Sals, Montrose County and Montezuma County around Mesa Verde were still good and if you don’t have a fixed residence technically legal on the State Order.

We need some sort of designated spot or spots here in SW Colorado.

 

[crofter]

Thanks for the tour. Awesome country there!   -crofter

 

[Qxxx]

...back side of the La Sals, Montrose County and Montezuma County around Mesa Verde were still good and if you don’t have a fixed residence technically legal on the State Order. 

We need some sort of designated spot or spots here in SW Colorado.

What about 141? It's very remote, but within driving distance of Cortez and Monticello.

 

[DLTooley]

That’s what I was thinking, but there’s a hard shut down in the whole County, due the ski area at higher altitude.

I’m attending the online Board of County Commissioners and working on it. The Sheriff definitely doesn’t like me, he’s a an old school establishment democrat, as is one of the Commissioners.

 

[Van on 66]

That’s my regular area this time of year.  I do a variety of archaeological volunteer stuff including with Forest Service.  I’m based out of San Miguel these days and there’s some pretty good country out here, but it’s hard closed to non-residents. 

Last I checked back side of the La Sals, Montrose County and Montezuma County around Mesa Verde were still good and if you don’t have a fixed residence technically legal on the State Order. 

We need some sort of designated spot or spots here in SW Colorado.

I have been very fortunate to have been able to stay with friends just south of Phoenix in the midst of all this, but it is getting HOT here now.  I was considering heading up to southwest Colorado and even possibly home basing around the Montrose area.  Do you know how things are going there right now since Colorado has stepped back on their stay-at-home orders?

 

[DLTooley]

I keep bringing it up in San Miguel County, but it’s the State Order that’s the toughest. Montrose County rescinded their fire ban.

They are talking about opening some ski areas May 23rd if conditions allow.

The State is limiting essential travel to within County and ‘recreational’ travel to ten miles from ‘home’. But that’s just not possible in this part of the State and there’s no explicit language concerning folks whose home is mobile.

My takeaway is that you’d likely be fine, but if someone wanted to mess with you they could.

Here’s the last State Order:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1w4xfCKF3ELTULfpqLoASRofW_LRb2glz/view


Montrose County:

http://www.montrosecountyjic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Amended-declaration_epidemic_1.pdf

 

[DLTooley]

I’m in Naturita now, Sunday, far Western Montrose County. This is isolated country and it’s as busy as I’ve ever seen it, including mountain bikers, orv folks, and a few rv sorts.

MOST of the plates are Colorado.

I’ve seen at least a Utah, California, and Washington. There is an under sheriff for this whole part of the county, you could probably ask him directly. I’ve never met him.