Long term parking in the middle of nowhere?

[BackToBasics]

I'm running in to a bit of a wall, here.. I'm trying to plan on a place I can go during the summer to escape the desert heat.. I'm unsure of how packed free campgrounds become, not to mention, I don't have 4WD, which cuts me off from some areas, nor can I afford the gas to jump from campsite to campsite trying to find somewhere to stop, I either find&nbsp;two free sites within&nbsp;70 miles of eachother that don't reach capacity, and stay put for at least two weeks each, or go just about broke.. <br><br>Has anyone ever been able to just go out on some rarely used backwater road and park it without being bothered by police? The thought of a ticket is scaring me, one ticket and I'm not eating for a month... Either that or I go in to debt. To live like this without my pockets being emptied, I'm going to have to find a way to stay stationary for long periods of time.<br><br>Even if you're not answering my questions directly, feel free to leave advice and input.. There's got to be some option, and having never done this before, I don't know what the options are.<br>

 

[4x4tour]

Well, without having a Topographic BLM/NFS handy with you (do you?), you could look at sites like this until you find the area you're wanting to camp, then look that same area up in google earth for directions to it.... Give me an area and I'll check. <br><br>http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/energy/geothermal/geothermal_nationwide/Documents/GIS_Data.html<br><br>http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en.html<br><br>http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/forestvisitormaps/<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>&nbsp;<br>

 

[oldnjung]

<P>National forests, some national parks have lots of boondocking spots. BLM land, also. Mountains are cooler in summertime. Check out favorite spots to boondock on this site. Also, it is surprising where one can go with two wheel drive. I have crept along on very rutted roads with bushes scraping the sides of the van. I avoid mud or very rocky roads. Park and walk&nbsp;for 30 minutes or more, to check out the path/trail/road. Good Luck!&nbsp;</P>

 

[BackToBasics]

<P>My mental disabilities and limited income are making it very difficult to plan this out.. Lol,&nbsp;I took a look at all the links posted here and considered the information given.. Tenn. is too far. I'm horrible with maps, and I've sort of been forced in to this&nbsp;lifestyle so there's no escaping it..&nbsp;I dunno, I wish I could let people live in my mind for a bit so they could understand how difficult this is for me.. After&nbsp;5 months&nbsp;of research, I'm still confused, my condition makes it very difficult for me to juggle a bunch of responsibilities and bits of information. I guess I'll just have to hope that if I ever run in to a cop again, he/she's a good one and understands my disability/plight. You said you were a cop, or ex-cop, 4x4?&nbsp;I'm not sure. What do you suggest the best way to handle them would be? Think I'll be bothered off the side of the road in some backwater place?</P>

 

[4x4tour]

In this economy, you're 1of 1000's boondocking.&nbsp; Cities/counties are laying off officers/deputies all over the country, so most of them don't feel like busting other prople's chops anymore. They are just too short staffed and morale is in the dumps.&nbsp; They know (or should know) that they could be in your position in a jiffy... <br><br>It couldn't hurt showing any medical docs to any officer who you may come in contact with (to play a sympathy card).&nbsp;<img src="https://vanlivingforum.com/images/boards/smilies/thumb.gif" align="absmiddle" border="0"> &nbsp; Just be cool, tell them your situation and Im sure you'd be fine. <br><br>It's the 1%'ers that cause issues with boondocking.&nbsp;&nbsp; I met a couple yesterday who were boondocking at the lake.&nbsp; Very nice people...&nbsp;&nbsp; <br><br>

 

[BackToBasics]

That's a relief.. From my appearance, they just mess with me because they think I'm a punk ass trouble maker.. The medical documents are a good idea though, and not to mention, I have a cute little disabled girlfriend that would also go hungry if my measly monthly check was hit at all, and she doesn't have any sort of income at all.. Top that off with having to live in the back of a truck.. They'd have to be monsters to not just leave us be, especially since we're trying our best not to be public nuisances.. But, you know, some of those cops are just dick heads, joined the force to exploit their power, which isn't too bad in most cases, but the heartless ones can be downright damaging to your life. Hope I NEVER run in to one..<BR><BR>Glad you gave me that idea with the medical docs, that's totally going to work! I have a friggin' STACK of them! AND bank statements to prove my pitiful living expenses! Man is that a huge weight off my shoulders.<BR>

 

[Les H]

Check this guy out...he has lived 21 years in a van on BLM land in Arizona. It's long,(80 someodd pages) but he talks about how he does it. Might be worth reading...

http://www.hipforums.com/newforums/showthread.php?t=291549

Les

 

[dragonflyinthesky]

Check this guy out...he has lived 21 years in a van on BLM land in Arizona. It's long,(80 someodd pages) but he talks about how he does it. Might be worth reading...<BR><BR>http://www.hipforums.com/newforums/showthread.php?t=291549<BR><BR>Les

Some fun reading Les, thanks

 

[wasanah2]

I'm running in to a bit of a wall, here.. I'm trying to plan on a place I can go during the summer to escape the desert heat.. I'm unsure of how packed free campgrounds become, not to mention, I don't have 4WD, which cuts me off from some areas, nor can I afford the gas to jump from campsite to campsite trying to find somewhere to stop, I either find&nbsp;two free sites within&nbsp;70 miles of eachother that don't reach capacity, and stay put for at least two weeks each, or go just about broke.. <br><br>Has anyone ever been able to just go out on some rarely used backwater road and park it without being bothered by police? The thought of a ticket is scaring me, one ticket and I'm not eating for a month... Either that or I go in to debt. To live like this without my pockets being emptied, I'm going to have to find a way to stay stationary for long periods of time.<br><br>Even if you're not answering my questions directly, feel free to leave advice and input.. There's got to be some option, and having never done this before, I don't know what the options are.<br>

I dunno if this would help you or not, but in my research of auto-camping, in the past, if you went to a farmhouse and asked if you could camp on the edge of his property, you're almost never refused.  You're supposed to be as neat as you can be and respectful, yes sir, no sir stuff.  In the old days it seems everyone parked along the road on private land with permission.  I wouldn't stay all summer, but maybe you could ask to camp there for a few days and then move on to another farm.  No one can give you a ticket if you have permission to be there!    And when you're there, they might let you fill your water jugs.  Just a thought!  And for the older country folks, I'd put a ring on that girl's finger.  After all, you're protecting your wife and finding a safe location to sleep for a few nights while both of you get back on your feet.

I knew a guy who worked traveling but didn't want to spend money at hotels.  He would sleep (with permission) at COUNTRY church parking lots in his van.  He got permission after showing up at a Sunday service and staying through it and putting a few bucks in the plate.  Everyone was thrilled to see someone new.  After it was all over, he explained that he was working and had no place to stay, could he park in their parking lot when not working?  Many of these country churches have outdoor vault toilets and water spigots.  Sometimes they even offered to let him plug in a drop cord to the van.  He stayed one week, then by the next Sunday, he scouted out the next country church and would do the same....always showing up on time for the service and talking to them afterwards.  Often he was invited to eat a meal with the people there.  The ring on the finger would also apply here.  Also you don't need fancy clothing in the country.  People go in whatever as long as it is modest.

One thing.  I read this over and over in research.  People who let you stay like that, you need to thank them after you leave.  You never know if you need to go by that way again and use their land again for parking.  Get some postcards and write down their addresses in a book, and send a heartfelt thank you to each for letting you stay and let them know you safely made it to your next destination.  Next time you go that way again, they will be happy to see you and your wife and will welcome you as old friends.

 

[sometimesido]

holy 6 year reply batman!

Hope it still helps OP.

 

[user 423]

...if you went to a farmhouse and asked if you could camp on the edge of his property, you're almost never refused. 

Sorry but this is a pretty naive statement. It depends greatly on who you are. It may be (mostly) true for females but if you're a male in a van you would be looked upon with quite a bit of suspicion or even outright hostility. Minority male, even more so. Sure there's lots of great folks out in the country but in these times, I think the majority would be pretty cautious about having a stranger hanging around their property. Personally, I couldn't imagine approaching some random farmhouse and asking the resident if I could camp on their land.

 

[rvwandering]

This thread is from 2011. You're welcome to post on it but the original poster hasn't signed in for 6 years.

 

[user 423]

It's an old thread with a new reply that begs for clarification. TMTOMH