Santa Cruz?

Guest · May 21, 2013

I'm looking for a few places near Santa Cruz, anywhere within a half an hour radius. I've tried searching for dispersed camping sites but no luck. I'm completely new at this. Literally just bought an RV last Friday, four days ago, and I'm setting to leave in a few days. I've read the book by Bob and it was inspiring. Thank you Bob, and thank you to everyone else here who's helped me with their wisdom and knowledge and kindness. Boondockers and vagabonds are nice people, lol. This has been my dream since I was a kid, and I can't believe I've actually gone through with it. Oh boy. 

grahamspader77 · May 21, 2013

I went through Santa Cruz recently and found zero places to park/camp. If you travel a bit south, however, you will find the Las Padres National Forest and Kirks Creek Campground. Lots of great places in the Big Sur region.

Guest · May 21, 2013

It's getting down to the wire. I got a job in Santa Cruz and really need to find a place to park a class C Dodge Tioga RV. I believe it's 19' but I'd have to double-check. Look for a place preferably in the country/off-grid. Any help would be greatly appreciated.  Since I've got an automatic Corolla, I can't flat-tow it, and I can't afford a tow dolly to get the two front wheels up. So I think I've come up with a solution. Either I drive the RV down first, then take the Amtrak back home and then drive the Corolla down, or vice versa. Driving the Corolla down first might give me the advantage of being able to scope for a place easier, or park in the Amtrak parking lot over night or someplace else, and then going back home on the train to take the RV. Ticket will only cost $44!  Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm jumping in the deep end, and man it's nerve-racking and exciting. I don't think I would have ever done this if it weren't for Bob and his website and his book. Wish me luck.

caseyc · May 21, 2013

On my first overnight camping trip with my van a couple years ago, I went to Santa Cruz Big Basin. I forget what the camping fee is, but there were quite a few tourists there. Did you say you have an RV?  If so, I would tell you that the road leading up to Santa Cruz Big Basin is hell-ish! White knuckles for miles driving up there and back down! The one single mountain road is very, very narrow with many blind curves.  That narrow road is NOT wide enough for 2 vehicles to pass at the same time, especially if one vehicle is an RV.  One vehicle needs to pull over to the shoulder in order for the other vehicle in the opposite direction to pass you on the same road. If you do a search on YouTube, there are some videos that tourists took of the road to that campground.  Freakin scary!  I will never go back to that campground ever!  Seriously.  It's an accident waiting to happen.

Guest · May 21, 2013

What other options do I have? I'm worried. I think I might go up and down the coastline and try and scope out a place. Worst case scenario, they just ask me to leave right? Or what about going into a state park and going off the beaten path? Like Bob wrote in his book, but I think it may have been dispersed camping or something.  Can you stealth park with an old 1974 19' Class C RV that looks like a meth lab? Would the places Bob mentions be possible, like 24-hour grocery stores and restaurants, busy apartments, a motel, or an industrial area? I'd just be doing it temporarily until I find a good place outside the city.

Guest · May 22, 2013

<div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: start;">"Now that you know there are 450 million acres acres of public land in the United States that are free for camping, how do you find a sweet spot? Some states, like Wyoming and Utah have vast tracts of public land while others, especially those east of the Mississippi may only have a few pockets of free space.</div><div style="text-align: start;">The best resource I have on the road is my National Geographic Adventure Atlas. Not only does it mark all the developed (usually fee) campgrounds in National Parks, State Parks, Recreation Areas, National Forests and on BLM land, it also shades in National Forests and BLM lands, where you can camp almost anywhere, for free.</div><div style="text-align: start;"> </div><div style="text-align: start;">National Forests and BLM land are both almost always marked with large brown conspicuous signs that say: Ã¢Â€ÂœEntering Public LandsÃ¢Â€Â or Ã¢Â€ÂœEntering National ForestÃ¢Â€Â. Once youÃ¢Â€Â™re sure youÃ¢Â€Â™re on public land, watch for dirt roads that lead off the main road. In National Forests vehicular side roads (as opposed to foot trails or ATV roads) are usually marked by a brown fiberglass post with three or four white numbers, indicating the Forest Road number.</div><div style="text-align: start;"> </div><div style="text-align: start;">These side roads often have multiple pull outs and/or end at a dead end. Any spot thatÃ¢Â€Â™s out of the way, clear and level is fair game for camping, unless marked with a Ã¢Â€ÂœNo CampingÃ¢Â€Â sign. Ideal spots will be off the road far enough for privacy, have space to maneuver a car, room to pitch a tent and in my case, park a Teardrop  and have a nice rock fire ring already in place."</div><div style="text-align: start;"> </div><div style="text-align: start;">Is this true? This gives me hope. So maybe I just need to find a national or state park near Santa Cruz then? And I have another question. Can I just claim public land for myself? Stick a stake into the ground and yell, "I CLAIM THIS LAND." I mean come on, there's millions of empty acres. What's a guy gotta do, buy it from the government or something? No one's ever going to use it. I'm going to write my congressman.</div></div>

Guest · May 22, 2013

So my new stategy has been going all over Google Maps street view. Still need a good place. Please help.

caseyc · May 22, 2013

Worst case strategy if you can't find anything: park at a place to sleep when it's just past sunset and nearly full darkness. Then go to sleep and wake up to move to another spot early morning before everyone else gets up.  If you regularly do this, and regularly find a new and different spot, this will help you to avoid trouble. Parking at the same spot too long is what gets you in trouble with the neighbors calling police and having your vehicle ticketed and/or towed. Obviously, it's a hassle to constantly park at different spots, but this is about as sure fire as it gets for keeping out of trouble.  I know this from personal experience having once owned a 22' Class C Jamboree RV. That RV was a constant headache for me due to parking too long at the same location and getting a bright yellow notice plastered on my windshield saying "WARNING-Violation Notice, etc, etc".  Neighbors didn't like me parking in the same spot for more than a couple/few days, and cited the "72 Hour Ordinance" law. Obviously laws vary in different counties as to how long you can stayed parked in city streets at the same spot before needing to move.  I ended up selling that RV at a loss just because of parking issues.  Now I have a full size van.  I only got the same stupid violation notice one time when a neighbor complained I parked my van in front of their house for several days in a row.  Nowadays, I simply move my van to a different spot every 2 to 3 days, and that now keeps me out of trouble.  Counties keep coming up with more and more strict laws about RV parking in city streets.  It's only getting worse, not better, from what I can tell.

Guest · May 23, 2013

Thank you. Strangely in a way, maybe sometimes it's kind of safer to try and park a class C rv that sticks out like a sore thumb in the city, and maybe sometimes it's harder to do it in the more rural areas, where the locals notice anything out of the ordinary much more readily. Harder to blend in and camouflage. I sort of practiced looking just in my area today, not Santa Cruz, and passed some industrial areas, and quiet residential and commercial areas, and I thought to myself, "I bet if I parked and slept here, no one would really notice or care." Kind of counter-intuitive.  Oh, but my dream is to find some beautiful secluded spot. Away from all this noise. My heart and soul needs it. I wish I could just bawl out my eyes night and day. I'm tired. And I miss her. What the hell is it that we're looking for? I mean come on, some of us do this not because we need affordable shelter or not because it's fun, but because we need to. And we look for truth in nature, in ourselves, in poetry and books, in philosophy. But God is the only one who can fill that damning void.  So anyway, I got into contact with someone from an ad on Craigslist. She lives out in the forest/mountains. She told me she might know someone who might have a place for my RV, and I'd pay something like $200 a month. It hurts, because Bob in his book talks about how he's only spent $10 or however much, in years. So man, that hurts, especially having so little money. But, it would still save a lot of money. And every chance, I'll be hunting for that beautiful, perfect spot insane writers spend writing at. And it will cost what it ought to cost: free. And we can be free from every single prison, including the prison of this body and this life. Encumbered by flesh. Heh, sorry. Anyway, I know what the meaning of life is. It didn't take decades of meditation, or an LSD trip, a climb up Mount Everest, or a near-death experience. It is in the eyes of every single human being on this planet. And it is to do good, to save life. Salvation.  Maybe I'll put out an ad on Craigslist, like some others have. More likely to be in the city, but hopefully just temporary until I find a place. Worse comes to worse, I know someone who knows someone who might let me park in front of their residence. Lol, real adventurous "Into The Wild" right there, huh? In front of an upper-middle class home in a safe neighborhood. Possibly even gated. Don't even have to worry about bears and coyotes. How daring and adventurous. Maybe some teenage kids might pelt some rocks at my RV, or try to smoke pot inside it while I'm at work. Just like Thoreau, really.  I re-read Into The Wild some time ago. I have no doubt in my mind that if Chris were an atheist, whatever he went through, at the end of his life he believed in God. I was an atheist once, but I swear I was actually an agnostic, or really, I believed in God, I just didn't know who or what He was specifically. I believed that there must be something more. And I believe all of us, even atheists, believe that. They may reject the notion of a traditional Judeo-Christian God, and who wouldn't with the state of things, but I believe the overwhelming vast majority of atheists are actually agnostics, and believe in something else, something more. Just not knowing what.  Chris McCandless' last words were: "I HAVE HAD A HAPPY LIFE AND THANK THE LORD. GOODBYE AND MAY GOD BLESS ALL!" I find that so sweet and sincere and beautiful. So desperately beautiful. What does a man go through when he slowly starves to death, and in complete awareness of his imminent death? There's something so comforting and relieving about death. So hopeful and yet hopeless. He handled his death so well. He seemed grateful, so grateful, and okay. Like that terrible movie, American Beauty, where Kevin Spacey says at the end that he was so grateful for every stupid little insignificant moment in his life. But oh, his beautiful wife and daughter. Oh I saw a child today in a cart, and she shouted to her mother, "Faster mommy!" And I thought, "Yeah I'm ready to die. This is a good moment. Nothing could be more beautiful." Lol. My God, more than enough. I've had more than I've deserved. It's just so beautiful those little things. The joy of a child. What could be more? What could be more.  Anyway, I need a place to stay.

Noah · May 23, 2013

I think you are getting yourself worked up... So many people are living this way, we just don't notice because we are too busy with our own lives or choose to ignore it.  Have you heard that the native americans didn't even see Columbus's ships coming because it was such a foreign concept to them? They only saw the water rippling out in a strange way. I think Vandwelling is similar. Unless it's forced into people face, they will just walk right past. The fact is, there are laws in place for so many things that just about everyone is in violation of at least one of them. If sleeping in your vehicle is the only one they can catch you breaking, you won't get a ticket. Worst case is maybe be asked to move along, in which case, you say, "I've just arrived here for a new job and am looking for a place to stay, is there somewhere I could park that might be more appropriate in the meantime?"  Even the nastiest cops I've talked to will suggest a campground or industrial area or parking lot that won't mind my presence. Just be honest about the situation, No shady attitudes or lies. No one has ever gotten a ticket that I know of. It's not practical to charge people money or put them in jail because they are living within their means. Especially when it's a rising trend and there are literally hundreds of thousands doing it. As far as stealth goes, I bagged the idea 18 months ago.  People get more upset when they are suspicious of someone than when they think their lifestyle is a bit strange. JUST MY OPINION, but I sleep better at night with people knowing I'm in there sleeping, not coming up with their own ideas about meth labs, kidnapped kids, theivery, etc.  I also enjoy myself more when I'm not hiding constantly. Good luck to you. My advice is to not waste a quarter tank of gas looking for the perfect spot every night. Just don't stay in one place for more than 10 or 12 hours at first, get to know the area, and you'll find which spots are good and which are busy, cop infested, and full of snobs who don't support it. I think you'll find that most will respect you when they know what you are doing and envy your freedom. -Noah

owl · May 23, 2013

  I agree with Noah. The stealth thing is not really necessary. The authorities are well aware of who is there and why. When you get to the Santa Cruz area find a campground or rv park for a few days and go from there. The people you work with will know the area better than you and will have suggestions to help I'm sure. Sometimes business owners with a lot or warehouse of some kind will let you park in exchange for you keeping an eye on the place for them. If you can, make a list of references of folks you know who can be contacted to vouch for you. It will come in handy for providing reassurance to them that you are a good guy. It is easy for us to tell you to relax and one day when you are an old hand at this you will be doing the same thing for others. Take care and good luck!

caseyc · May 23, 2013

Every city and county has different parking rules, of course.  Here's an example of one, per below.  Many RVs get tickets or warnings for the 72 Hour rule, per below. <a href="http://www.sfmta.com/cms/penf/indxpkenf.htm#donotleave" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.sfmta.com/cms/penf/indxpkenf.htm#donotleave</a> 1.<a name="donotleave" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> Do not leave vehicle parked for more than 72 hours. The maximum on-street parking time limit in San Francisco is 72 hours (3 days). This rule also applies to vehicles with residential parking permits. Stationary vehicles parked beyond 72 hours can be cited and towed. In addition, street construction and other special events can sometimes require removing parking from a street with as little as 24 hours notice, so itÃ¢Â€Â™s a good idea to check your vehicle every day to ensure that no temporary restrictions have been posted on the street.

offroad · May 23, 2013

This is a lot of possibility, more than you realize 1)  Go to a homeless shelter.  Tell them you live in a van, but dont know where to park it.  Do they have any suggestions. 2)  Go to a church, that runs a homeless or poor mission.  Do the same. 3)  Contact urgent social services, do the same. 4)  Do the RV park, thing if you can find one, and pay for it. 5)  finding a business that would pay you to watch their property?  How does one do this?  Having trouble understand how.  maybe check out some building sites for new construction developments.  Possible you could get free parking in a development being created, but ask. 6)  Find the border of the county limits, and park just across the boarder.  and move every night.  good map should show you this. 7)  Find a hunting-fishing club and ask about lands where you can camp and hunt and fish. Find what is the limit.  Beaches often have athe right to night fish, which requires a pole and a license. 8)  Stay at walmart or at other business for a single night, with permission. 9)  Contact HABITAT FOR HUMANITY (there are five in my county) and go talk to them about volunteering an hour at night cleaning organizing the work site, if you can park their overnight.  They might let you (just an idea). Always do this is person, as a phone call means easy rejection. Bottom line its not easy.

caseyc · May 23, 2013

Parking overnight is the #1 biggest challenge in my opinion. Obviously, you are now discovering this yourself. When I previously owned my RV, I had such a hard time parking the darn thing in city streets that I finally had it stored in an RV lot for $75 monthly.  The major problem was that it was 45 minutes drive away to get to the RV. Then it was such a hassle to drive to the RV storage lot, that I rarely did so, so having an RV was a waste.  I finally sold the RV since I wasn't using it, and didn't want to keep paying the $75 monthly fee which was also a waste.  There is no easy solution assuming if you want to park overnight on city streets.  For the meantime, until you can find a better solution, you pretty much need to constantly move and park at a different spot every couple days.  Just find 3 or 4 favorite safe spots and rotate among them every couple/few days to keep the neighbors off your back.

peacetara · May 23, 2013

I agree with Offroad.  I lived in Santa Cruz (SCZ) for a few years, I've had friends get tickets for living out of there van in SCZ. Try Watsonville, it's about 30min south of SCZ and way friendlier, when you are driving down hwy1, to Watsonville from SCZ if you look to the left just before town, you will see a road on a hill with some SEMI trucks, that might be a good place to start for a night or two.  (it's near the Fedex station). SCZ is very non-friendly to the homeless population.  Offroad has some great suggestions.  Also, the Quaker church in SCZ is usually pretty accepting and friendly to people in vans/RV's if you are of the friendly, accepting sort. There are RV parks, they will be in the > $500/month category.  bonus, you usually get wifi, tv, power and sewer, so you don't have to deal with all those hassles. I do the van thing myself.  It's doable in SCZ, but get it out of your head that you are going to park next to the beach and have an amazing place to spend a while.  it wont' happen.  There is some open parking north of SCZ on HWY 1, but you can't stay there for more than a night or so before the highway patrol gets upset. With Love, Tara

Guest · Jun 7, 2013

We recently stayed at Mt. Madonna County Park which is east of Watsonville on Hecker Pass Hwy. Southeast of Santa Cruz a bit, but a nice place, quiet and about $20 per night if you need water and electric. Much less if you want to dry camp. They have clean bathrooms and showers. Get on the internet and look for RV camping in Santa Cruz county. There are a lot of county campgrounds in that area that might work for you. You might also try the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds. Good luck!

Guest · Jul 18, 2013

RE: the claim that the road to Big Basin State park is a nightmare , that's a falsehood and a rather dramatic one at that.      Go up Hwy 9 to Boulder Creek , take a left on 236 and drive into the park , if you're coming from Saratoga go into Boulder Creek and take a right on 236 , the individual who posted this must have used the north end of 236 and even then it's not as bad as he attempted to make it out to be.     9 is two lanes all the way so is 236 coming from the Boulder Creek side.        To the person whose message I'm citing , don't bother argueing with me about it , I commuted the north end of 236 to 9 and down into The Pit for years and I know the area intimately. If you were speaking of China Grade or certain other roads in the area you *might* have a point. As regards Big Basin you don't.      To the O.P. , staying up 'round Felton , Ben Lomond , Boulder Creek will be a bit of a commute if you're working in S.C. , AND  a word of warning , don't even think of  running out the end of Summit and staying out towards Mt. Madonna.wwwwwwwwwaaaayyyyyyyy too many dope growers etc at this time of year for comfort.

steamjam · Jul 20, 2013

On The 9 side of River street in Harvey West. Also Highway 9 short of Felton. Those are the places I frequent. right in front of Roaring Camp on the side of the tracks away from the entrance. Scotts valley in the industrial section near the Valero gas station on Scotts Valley drive. Stay Away from the West Side, unless you in a standard cargo van. (they look for RV's)  Aptos, and Watsonville. Capitola sux unless you find a place in the village. I got harassed on Graham Hill rd near Henry Cowell, but did the same on Highway 9 near the entrance of Henry Cowell and no one cared.

Crystal831 · May 11, 2017

Guest said:
It's getting down to the wire. I got a job in Santa Cruz and really need to find a place to park a class C Dodge Tioga RV. I believe it's 19' but I'd have to double-check. Look for a place preferably in the country/off-grid. Any help would be greatly appreciated.  Since I've got an automatic Corolla, I can't flat-tow it, and I can't afford a tow dolly to get the two front wheels up. So I think I've come up with a solution. Either I drive the RV down first, then take the Amtrak back home and then drive the Corolla down, or vice versa. Driving the Corolla down first might give me the advantage of being able to scope for a place easier, or park in the Amtrak parking lot over night or someplace else, and then going back home on the train to take the RV. Ticket will only cost $44!  Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm jumping in the deep end, and man it's nerve-racking and exciting. I don't think I would have ever done this if it weren't for Bob and his website and his book. Wish me luck.

I live in Santa Cruz in my Airstream and it is tough but there are some unknown options. First, up the coast towards davenport, there is an area off highway 1 where you can stay. Also in Marina which is bout 30 miles south between Santa Cruz and Monterey, there's a stretch of road called Reservation Rd. that is free rv parking (it is visible from Highway 1). Both of these have certain restrictions which I can't recall exactly but similar to BLM restrictions. Checkout free boondocking sites for more details and Good Luck, if you see an old Airstream and a White Ford truck, that's me, stop by and say hello.

steamjam1 · May 12, 2017

Crystal831 said:
I live in Santa Cruz in my Airstream and it is tough but there are some unknown options. First, up the coast towards davenport, there is an area off highway 1 where you can stay. Also in Marina which is bout 30 miles south between Santa Cruz and Monterey, there's a stretch of road called Reservation Rd. that is free rv parking (it is visible from Highway 1). Both of these have certain restrictions which I can't recall exactly but similar to BLM restrictions. Checkout free boondocking sites for more details and Good Luck, if you see an old Airstream and a White Ford truck, that's me, stop by and say hello.

Hey Hey! If you see a sky-blue Ford hightop rolling around, say Hi cause thats me.. :

Ive been to Reservation Road in Monterey Co, and spent many a night out on Highway 1 towards Davenport.

Santa Cruz?

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