Florid said:
False assumption. I have a hatchback, I keep the rear seat down so the back cargo area is completely flat. I sleep on the diagonal. I'm 6' and can sleep flat on my back if I want, I barely fit. I usually prefer to sleep on my side though, and I can't say it's bad for my back in any way. Problem is more shoulder or hips, if I don't have enough padding.
Cars with more traditional trunk, a lot of 'em you can knock out the barrier between the trunk and the back seat. Since you only need to stick your feet down in there, it can become like my hatchback.
RJCooper said:
Trying to curl up like a cockroach in the back seat of my car was sheer hell. That was the beginning of my urban camping learning curve. I was trying to clear out a storage unit in Seattle that I hadn't looked at in 4.5 years. I was desperate to get the job done and exhausted all the time from really bad sleep. I'd find a park once morning came and lay out on the grass for a few hours to recover from my nightly ordeals. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore, after 3 weeks of torture I packed my car and drove 2 hours away for the woods. I came back several week later and realized I could minimize my gear by throwing it into my storage unit while I was in the city. Having freed up my car space, I was able to give the flat back, diagonal sleeping method a try. The rest is history.
Spirituallifetime said:
Bad idea. You have just cut yourself off from the vast majority of "camping" spots in an urban area. If you've minimized your gear and you are self-contained for sleeping in your car, anywhere you can park is potentially a "campsite". Almost every inch of the urban fabric has laws against setting up tents and camping. No, I don't believe in paying for campsites, ever.
Even in the woods, not having to set up and take down a tent is incredibly convenient. I would move around a lot to recharge my deep cycle battery with my driving, so I could run my laptop. Not needing a tent saved me easily an hour a day of setup and takedown.
