place to camp for the winter

[rubbertramp2020]

I plan to drive from Humboldt County to Slab City in the Sonora desert soon. I need to find somewhere I can camp for free and write. Ideally I would also work.
I can supply some groceries and help with transport anywhere I can do this.
Please send me any info of anywhere in California apart from Slab City where this is possible.
This includes work exchanges or just a place in the desert where I can camp.

 

[Almost There]

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There are thousands of places for you to camp for free, BLM (Bureau of Land Management) and National Forests all have dispersed camping available. The only proviso with this is that you  have to move every 14 days (rules vary for distance). If you want to stay in one spot all winter then maybe a low cost ($180 for winter) LTVA (Long Term Visitor Area) may be better suited. Which one you choose will depend on what you're driving since not all vehicles are allowed at all of the LTVAs, some must have regulation holding tanks etc.

Perhaps a caravan might suit you for getting started and learning the ropes of a nomadic lifestyle.

 

[Gypsy Freedom]

slab city may be a good option over the winter, if you like it out there. might not be for everyone.

also check into the LTVA spots in south east CA and south west AZ mith not be "FREE" but darn close and probably cheaper than many free options since they usually have water, trash, and some have restrooms and are close to small towns where one might work

last i heard it was about $180 for the entire winter season of about 7 months with in and out privilages and being able to move from one to another for a change of scenery.

just google BLM LTVA and you should have no problem finding the current options and details

 

[MrNoodly]

A few exits west of Yuma (in California, off I-8) is Ogilby Road. The first section requires a dune pass, but north of the railroad tracks are several miles of boondocking spots where I've spent several winters. I've never encountered any time limit enforcement. Yet. There's water and trash at the rest stop two more miles west from Ogilby Rd. It's a quick run to Los Algodones for meds/dental/optometry/tacos and Yuma has all the supplies and services you might need. (Three Walmarts, for example.)

 

[bullfrog]

I'm a little confused with what you plan to keep warm and shelter in when you say camp. Are you looking for a place to shelter like a seasonal job with room and board or property on which you can stay and in what? All of the places above will have periods of cold nights and high winds over the winter do you have the means to survive on open desert?

 

[rruff]

I need to find somewhere I can camp for free and write. Ideally I would also work.

There are bazillions of places. Most BLM land, National Forest, state land, etc. If you have a capable rig you can get to some really beautiful places and not see another human.

It's probably best to seek work seasonally, rather than try to work and boondock at the same time. I worked at a National Park in the summer for awhile. In a 6 month season I made enough to last 4 years.

 

[bullfrog]

Many writers have made a whole career out of just living this lifestyle. Depending on your viewpoint Abby and Barr are just a couple. Maybe looking at their lives, career choices and subject matter will help with yours.

 

[Seeker/Wanderer]

I stayed over in that area for a couple weeks during the winter and found it extremely boring. Nothing but a lot of old people hanging around in the desert. A little too fatalistic for me so I journeyed back to NM on the border where it would be chilly sometimes because of the elevation but way more interesting. Very basically though it appears that all rubbers must migrate either to the SW or to FL (way more expensive) unless you have a winterized rig and are into that sort of thing. I stayed at a park in Edmonton that said it was open year-round. Good grief. Apparently, some favor the TX coast though as a resident here for decades I can tell you it is no FL. You must travel extensively to make these determinations for yourself which is the whole point. Personally, it was much more rewarding when I did it as a young man with a backpack and a tent. From Islamorada to Togiak for example. Very cool and completely unacceptable for a 62 yr old today. What a drag.

 

[notsosure]

National parks? Are they min wage? 4 yrs of money is? Aren't vehicle repairs more abundant? Did you take the seats out of your SUV? Do you feel on the run? What about saving for the next vehicle? Glad you have work.

 

[bullfrog]

Government work pays well and even seasonal positions come with the ability to buy health insurance but it is hard to get hired. The easiest way to get hired is an emergency local hire. To do that you have to have lived within a certain area for a period of time and meet the required qualifications. Many that have been hired that way have worked within the park for the concessionaire at lower wages so they can live in the park or nearby long enough to meet the requirements and demonstrate their abilities to the people that will then want to go out of their way to get a proven good employee that knows how to survive in or enjoys working in that location without the hassle of having to provide housing. Once you are permanently hired more opportunities open up for transfers. This process is can take many years like in my case or just a few like in my wife's as the demand for different areas of work determine the speed of hiring.

 

[notsosure]

Yes, the housing yuk with drunk kids from my experience. I may have something for the winter, but afterwards......? I see the tear drops with the kitchen on the back. That is not safe in bear country? I was in the mountains in CO in 2000 and could get an apt. for 500.00. There was no craigslist, now I see they are four times that. Government work is?

 

[rubbertramp2020]

Thanx for all of the useful info so far.
Ideally what I would find is a place where I could camp and do yard work and other casual work nearby enough to keep the car running and support myself.
The most important thing is to have a good vibe and be around the right people.

 

[rruff]

National parks?  Are they min wage?  4 yrs of money is?  Aren't vehicle repairs more abundant?  Did you take the seats out of your SUV?  Do you feel on the run?  What about saving for the next vehicle?  Glad you have work.

Depends on what you do. I started as a dining room host (MW with some tips), and moved up to waiter. I made ~$20/hr in tips working the dinner shift (~$20k in 6 months) You definitely want a tipped position. Bussers did pretty well (at least mine did) and the guys who helped people carry luggage made good tips also. I got "free" unemployment the rest of the year. Did it two years. This was 17 years ago. Prior to that I didn't work at all as I'd saved enough to live off the interest, but then interest rates dropped a lot.

My living expenses for the 13 years I lived in my vehicle were about ~$3k/year for everything except depreciation. Figure maybe double that in today's money. Gas, food, insurance, license, maintenance, etc. That truck was a good friend, never let me down. '84 Toyota 2wd. The only expensive repair was a new clutch near the end. For the 1st 10 years I lived in a shell on the bed, then built a relatively huge camper I could stand in. It was too big for that truck though.

 

[rruff]

...or just a place in the desert where I can camp.

I was just thinking, if you want to live on an extremely low budget you could spend the winter in a tent on the Reservation just outside Yuma. If you get rid of rent and vehicle both, expenses go way down. At least 20 years ago I saw a lot of people doing that. It would probably be nice to have a bicycle for trips in town.