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As a counterpoint to this, which I find almost offensively fixated on the parts of it that post well on social media, you really can have a good time doing this

As a counterpoint to this, which I find almost offensively fixated on the parts of it that post well on social media, you really can have a good time doing this without spending months and 10's of thousands of dollars getting ready. (OK, so there are certain forces involved if you want to support a blog, as this person is doing...) - Buy an older van (or in my case a crew cab pickup with a camper shell). - Add some storage space and a bed. This can be as simple as a few plastic storage containers and a foam mattress. - Add an inverter, a marine battery, and if you really want to get fancy a relay to disconnect it from the main system when the vehicle isn't running. No solar panels needed, just let the alternator charge it. That's it. Spend the rest of the time figuring out how to live with your self without social media. There are a lot of things you can do to simplify your life, if you don't have to bring your first world standards with you: - Don't use any electronics that need constant power. Don't buy stuff that needs to be refrigerated, but do get fresh fruit and vegetables if you can eat them within a few days of buying. - Piss in a bottle and figure out how to be near enough to either a bathroom or real wilderness for other situations. It's not that hard with a little planning. - Shower less often, mostly in campgrounds. You will stink more, but get over yourself. - Bring a lot of books/ebooks or something interesting to study. - Walmart parking lots are great places to park and sleep if you are en-route somewhere and just need some rest. They usually allow overnight parking and won't bother you (local ordinances can sometimes cause exceptions). - Learn how to brush your teeth and wash dishes without using lots of soap and water. You can actually clean and rinse a dirty pan with about a cup of water and a tiny drop of soap. The western US is great for this since huge areas of the desert states are easy to move around in without much planning or permits. Don't spend lots of time driving. Get somewhere and actually experience it. Don't plan too hard. Find some stuff you think would be interesting, get to good areas, then relax and explore. Schedules are only opportunities for disappointment and stress. Try spending a whole week without even taking pictures. Learn what is fun for you, not what you think makes your life look interesting.

newnewpdro 8y ago
+1 I'd add considering getting a chain gym membership for regular showers. AllPowers makes an 85W portable folding solar panel that can power a laptop and smartphone directly. I strongly prefer using solar when available instead of having to idle a noisy stinky gas engine at an extended stay site. Some of the most obnoxious campers are the ones who endlessly run generators, don't be that person.
- catherd 8y ago
  I looked into a gym membership, but the gym chains usually only cover a limited geographic area and additionally are usually only inside cities, not out where nature is. A decent marine battery is reliable and can carry enough power to run a laptop all day. No need to idle an engine... you can charge it while you're driving. I agree on the generator people. No better way to take the suburbs out to nature.
  - clort 8y ago
    If you don't drive every day, then if you ran a laptop all day on your battery you are stuck the next day. Of course, the answer is don't run a laptop all day.. but that just changes the variables a bit because if you want to stop somewhere a bit longer is there enough power now? Also, running engines is not great for charging batteries which need to float a while to get full. A solar panel can make a huge difference..
    - catherd 8y ago
      Yes, agree, the answer is don't go live in a car and use the laptop all day every day. That wouldn't be very fun. :) Get outside if you run out of battery. Having access to all the comforts all the time is for the part of your life spent in civilization.
  - newnewpdro 8y ago
    When you're out in nature you don't give a damn about looking and smelling like a homeless person. Being able to bathe and groom whenever you want to be around civilization, where the gyms are, is the point. A marine battery and portable solar panel are not mutually exclusive. When you've found a sweet spot and have no intention of driving for at least a week, it's less than ideal to repeatedly idle an automobile engine just for charging your battery. Most of the energy is being lost to waste heat, it's a horribly inefficient method and annoying to boot. But sure, charge your batteries off the alternator while you're driving places as well. Everything should get topped up whenever you drive somewhere. Most state parks I've stayed at around california permit 14-day continuous stays. Enforcement hasn't been especially strict in my experience either unless it's a busy time of year or there's an associated nuisance.
deleted 8y ago
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bloomca 8y ago
Thanks for writing it! I think it is a great way for long-time "car camping". I don't think it is a good idea to live like that (but everybody is different, of course), but it is definitely interesting. I have an old truck with a camper shell, and two people actually can fit into it sleeping. I am thinking about going camping in it for 1–2 nights in the summer, without renting cabins and stuff.
- catherd 8y ago
  I did it for about 8 months. Wouldn't want to live that way permanently. Everything in moderation. :) A few more things to add: - Get used to constantly keeping your stuff in order. It takes about 5 minutes to turn your tiny little living area into a mess. And the day after that you are living in a dumpster. - Don't leave anything visible from outside the vehicle. I mean absolutely nothing can be seen if you look in a window. I have no proof on this one, but nobody stole anything from me or messed with the vehicle while I was away (sometimes for a few days in the backcountry), and I attribute it to not looking like somebody was living in the vehicle and nothing valuable might be inside. - Make sure your head is pointed uphill when you park and make sure your mattress is comfortable. No sense in getting long term bad sleep.
ganeshkrishnan 8y ago
>Don't spend lots of time driving. Get somewhere and actually experience it. Don't plan too hard. Find some stuff you think would be interesting, get to good areas, then relax and explore. Absolutely agree to this. I had the liberty to enjoy in Australia and Hawaii and I spent my time creating www.wikinomad.com to help other people find closest bathroom, toilets, van resting spots etc. Noticed that Australia is really well built for this on the east coast.
scarecrowbob 8y ago
I agree with you. I got a tacoma with a tall camper shell. I tossed a piece of foam in the back, tacked some fabric for decoration, added a hanging lamp, and that's it. I have a pelican case I keep my laptop and some stuff in, but the rest of my crap stays in plastic tubs. I don't really want to spend time tricking it out, because the point is that I want to be out doing stuff, not fabricating a home. I've camped out about 10 days so far this year and plan to increase that to 100% by the end of the year. I just do it because all I want to do at this stage in life is play music and rock climb. I couldn't see doing that if I was trying to go into an upswing on my profession or build a relationship. The point is to have a place to crash so I can stay on the road with less hassle... it's much nicer to not have to drive home after a gig or to wake up and go climb without a commute or a campsite to worry about. I also know a lot of folks living in RVs, and I don't think that the sprinter van looks like an improvement over a commercially produced motorhome/ 5th wheel/ trailer.
- errantspark 8y ago
  I think the advantage of the van over an RV is that it can be nondescript enough that you can get away with parking in a much wider variety of places.
  - scarecrowbob 8y ago
    True, and furthermore they are easier to drive and park. I guess I should say that my issue is mroe about the DIY-ness of the van-life thing. I've know a lot of folks in schoolies over the years, and while they can look all instagram fabulous, mostly they are never as nice, light-weight, or well-insulated as even the cheaper commercially available alternatives. It might be just a bad perception on my part, and I think it is possible to do... I just don't see it happening for most of the folks I know who.
    - deleted 8y ago
      [deleted]
- bungie4 8y ago
njarboe 8y ago
Not just in deserts. Unless the rules have changed recently, one can camp for 14 days in National Forest or Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land for free before you are required to move. Exceptions are in very crowded areas (like a lot of California's National Forest near paved roads). These areas make up the majority of land many western states and some really beautiful areas. More and more locked gates are being put up to prevent access, but lots of old logging roads are still open. Grab a good atlas for a state you want to travel in that has all the roads on it (like Benchmark) and just start looking at it. Find a place that looks interesting and go there. You can find amazing spots that way. Going to places found on "Ten Best" lists or camping magazines are the way to find a beautiful place with way too many people around.
- rbritton 8y ago
  The definition of “move” is usually pretty loose too. In any case I’ve ever heard of, a different position on the same plot of land was satisfactory.
- bmj 8y ago
  We found a really ideal location in the land around Flagstaff AZ. Free camping in the pines, but also really close to amenities and downtown Flagstaff.
starpilot 8y ago
I did this for almost two years. I got really lonely and ended up glued to social media because I was too shy to talk to people in the random mountain towns I was staying. I also found living around cars all the time somewhat maddening. Imagine your background noise everyday being shopping carts and car door lock chirps. Usually the intent of #vanlife is spending more time in nature, oddly living in a car embeds you far more in car culture, streets, gas stations. There was always some latent anxiety about being somewhere you're not quite supposed to be, since living in your car is basically illegal. Novelty wore off after a few months, today I'm glad to live in an apartment. I get to hike/ski/climb almost every weekend, and come home to a warm, well-lit place with a couch and shower.
- tfmatt 8y ago
  Well stated. My journey only last 6 months because of the constant anxiety that comes from not having a stable parking situation. You think it's going to give you freedom but it ends up being your prison
  - wjjdjw 8y ago
    To me half a year is a long time, and for an experiment it certainly is. You should cross the word "only" from your mind, it's no competition. Freedom can also mean to have stable home, relationship, work.
- vanderZwan 8y ago
  Honestly, if you want to solo-travel and socialize, go hitchhike. It's a crash-course in making contact with strangers, dealing with rejection, knowing how to let go and enjoy the moment and maintaining a positive attitude (especially when you wait for a ride for hours in shitty weather), how to ask for help without being obnoxious, and having faith in the goodness of humanity as a whole. It's not for everyone, but it definitely was both therapeutic and educational for me, and I still love it as a guy in his thirties. I never thought of this before, but it kind of makes sense that the van thing isolates whereas the hitchhiking makes friends. One is fundamentally based on independence and solving things on your own. The other is fundamentally based on people acknowledging each other and helping each other out.
bortulga 8y ago
This is true. It's not expensive to experiment, but it does increase other ongoing costs. Food costs for me increased, due to less cooking. If you're in an urban area, finding a place to use a portable stove or fire is very difficult. If you're outside of an urban area, gas/breakdowns are a constant concern. Parking can be precarious, depending on where you are. Heat can be a problem depending on where you are. It's much easier to heat passively with blankets in the cold than to cool yourself when it's too hot to sleep. Other notes: - Vans are often very poorly insulated, both from sound and weather. - The social impact can be crushing. All in all embracing a mobile hermit lifestyle with the added burden of a giant lumbering structure can be daunting. I think in general ultralite camping is a better option. More flexibility where you stay, and the benefits of having a mobile power source are overstated. Portable gas canisters/solar cells have a better value for the few times when you need mobile electricity.
telesilla 8y ago
>Piss in a bottle works for 50% of the population? I read a fascinating article recently (can't find it again I'm afraid) where a female UPS driver said her delivery targets were always lower than her male colleagues because she had to go and find a bathroom.
- catherd 8y ago
  Either gender can manage to pee into a container in a vehicle if they really want to. There are adapters you can buy if needed. Some people may not really want to, which is fine. They are probably the same ones who would find the lack of showers a deal breaker.
- Implicated 8y ago
  This message is intended with no snark or sarcasm - it's _very_ popular for women in the outdoor/vanlife communities to use specially designed funnels. An amazon search will be enlightening.
  - sokoloff 8y ago
    “Lady J” is one popular one if you need a search term to start.
  - npalmer 8y ago
    yeah, my partner has sang her praises for the excellently named SheeWee (https://www.shewee.com https://www.shewee.com)
  - jpindar 8y ago
    I find the Freshette to be by far the best type, and it has the advantage of being flat & pocket size.
- hayyyyydos 8y ago
  You might be thinking of the female cable tech: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cable-tech-dick-cheney-sex-dungeon_us_5c0ea571e4b06484c9fd4c21 https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cable-tech-dick-cheney-...
taude 8y ago
Great advice. Especially for people who might not know the realities of living a nomad lifestyle who might just be enamored with the marketing of it. I toured around for 6 weeks in a van, all down the West Coast, visiting national parks, hiking, sleeping on the beaches, and reading a lot. It was a great time, and required very little equipment, and monetary investment (my buddy had a van already.) And what we did was glorified camping, though the day-to-day I don't see how it'd be much different than a fully custom luxury van. People should start with a long month-long road trip like this to really get a feel, to understand how you'll provision food, where you'll eat, etc. I love me a good long road trip, but I'd never move into one as a substitute for a home.
- timmaah 8y ago
  > I love me a good long road trip, but I'd never move into one as a substitute for a home. My road trip has been going on 2429 days. Couldn't do it in a van, but a 25 foot Airstream is surprisingly comfortable. http://live.watsonswander.com/ http://live.watsonswander.com/
  - notJim 8y ago
    Kinda hilarious to watch the graphic on your website studiously circling around everywhere in the West, except Nevada. Did the same thing on my 1 year trip, though.
    - taude 8y ago
      There's actually some decent enough places to stop in Nevada, like the Ruby mountains (especially if you're traveling from Utah to Tahoe and need to go by them anyway).
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
a3n 8y ago
> Shower less often, mostly in campgrounds. You will stink more, but get over yourself. Carry baby wipes to hit the "hot spots" when you can't shower.
kpennell 8y ago
love this comment...

newnewpdro 8y ago

+1 I'd add considering getting a chain gym membership for regular showers. AllPowers makes an 85W portable folding solar panel that can power a laptop and smartphone directly. I strongly prefer using solar when available instead of having to idle a noisy stinky gas engine at an extended stay site. Some of the most obnoxious campers are the ones who endlessly run generators, don't be that person.

catherd 8y ago
I looked into a gym membership, but the gym chains usually only cover a limited geographic area and additionally are usually only inside cities, not out where nature is. A decent marine battery is reliable and can carry enough power to run a laptop all day. No need to idle an engine... you can charge it while you're driving. I agree on the generator people. No better way to take the suburbs out to nature.
- clort 8y ago
  If you don't drive every day, then if you ran a laptop all day on your battery you are stuck the next day. Of course, the answer is don't run a laptop all day.. but that just changes the variables a bit because if you want to stop somewhere a bit longer is there enough power now? Also, running engines is not great for charging batteries which need to float a while to get full. A solar panel can make a huge difference..
  - catherd 8y ago
    Yes, agree, the answer is don't go live in a car and use the laptop all day every day. That wouldn't be very fun. :) Get outside if you run out of battery. Having access to all the comforts all the time is for the part of your life spent in civilization.
- newnewpdro 8y ago
  When you're out in nature you don't give a damn about looking and smelling like a homeless person. Being able to bathe and groom whenever you want to be around civilization, where the gyms are, is the point. A marine battery and portable solar panel are not mutually exclusive. When you've found a sweet spot and have no intention of driving for at least a week, it's less than ideal to repeatedly idle an automobile engine just for charging your battery. Most of the energy is being lost to waste heat, it's a horribly inefficient method and annoying to boot. But sure, charge your batteries off the alternator while you're driving places as well. Everything should get topped up whenever you drive somewhere. Most state parks I've stayed at around california permit 14-day continuous stays. Enforcement hasn't been especially strict in my experience either unless it's a busy time of year or there's an associated nuisance.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

bloomca 8y ago

Thanks for writing it! I think it is a great way for long-time "car camping". I don't think it is a good idea to live like that (but everybody is different, of course), but it is definitely interesting. I have an old truck with a camper shell, and two people actually can fit into it sleeping. I am thinking about going camping in it for 1–2 nights in the summer, without renting cabins and stuff.

catherd 8y ago
I did it for about 8 months. Wouldn't want to live that way permanently. Everything in moderation. :) A few more things to add: - Get used to constantly keeping your stuff in order. It takes about 5 minutes to turn your tiny little living area into a mess. And the day after that you are living in a dumpster. - Don't leave anything visible from outside the vehicle. I mean absolutely nothing can be seen if you look in a window. I have no proof on this one, but nobody stole anything from me or messed with the vehicle while I was away (sometimes for a few days in the backcountry), and I attribute it to not looking like somebody was living in the vehicle and nothing valuable might be inside. - Make sure your head is pointed uphill when you park and make sure your mattress is comfortable. No sense in getting long term bad sleep.

ganeshkrishnan 8y ago

>Don't spend lots of time driving. Get somewhere and actually experience it. Don't plan too hard. Find some stuff you think would be interesting, get to good areas, then relax and explore. Absolutely agree to this. I had the liberty to enjoy in Australia and Hawaii and I spent my time creating www.wikinomad.com to help other people find closest bathroom, toilets, van resting spots etc. Noticed that Australia is really well built for this on the east coast.

scarecrowbob 8y ago

I agree with you. I got a tacoma with a tall camper shell. I tossed a piece of foam in the back, tacked some fabric for decoration, added a hanging lamp, and that's it. I have a pelican case I keep my laptop and some stuff in, but the rest of my crap stays in plastic tubs. I don't really want to spend time tricking it out, because the point is that I want to be out doing stuff, not fabricating a home. I've camped out about 10 days so far this year and plan to increase that to 100% by the end of the year. I just do it because all I want to do at this stage in life is play music and rock climb. I couldn't see doing that if I was trying to go into an upswing on my profession or build a relationship. The point is to have a place to crash so I can stay on the road with less hassle... it's much nicer to not have to drive home after a gig or to wake up and go climb without a commute or a campsite to worry about. I also know a lot of folks living in RVs, and I don't think that the sprinter van looks like an improvement over a commercially produced motorhome/ 5th wheel/ trailer.

errantspark 8y ago
I think the advantage of the van over an RV is that it can be nondescript enough that you can get away with parking in a much wider variety of places.
- scarecrowbob 8y ago
  True, and furthermore they are easier to drive and park. I guess I should say that my issue is mroe about the DIY-ness of the van-life thing. I've know a lot of folks in schoolies over the years, and while they can look all instagram fabulous, mostly they are never as nice, light-weight, or well-insulated as even the cheaper commercially available alternatives. It might be just a bad perception on my part, and I think it is possible to do... I just don't see it happening for most of the folks I know who.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
bungie4 8y ago

njarboe 8y ago

Not just in deserts. Unless the rules have changed recently, one can camp for 14 days in National Forest or Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land for free before you are required to move. Exceptions are in very crowded areas (like a lot of California's National Forest near paved roads). These areas make up the majority of land many western states and some really beautiful areas. More and more locked gates are being put up to prevent access, but lots of old logging roads are still open. Grab a good atlas for a state you want to travel in that has all the roads on it (like Benchmark) and just start looking at it. Find a place that looks interesting and go there. You can find amazing spots that way. Going to places found on "Ten Best" lists or camping magazines are the way to find a beautiful place with way too many people around.

rbritton 8y ago
The definition of “move” is usually pretty loose too. In any case I’ve ever heard of, a different position on the same plot of land was satisfactory.
bmj 8y ago
We found a really ideal location in the land around Flagstaff AZ. Free camping in the pines, but also really close to amenities and downtown Flagstaff.

starpilot 8y ago

I did this for almost two years. I got really lonely and ended up glued to social media because I was too shy to talk to people in the random mountain towns I was staying. I also found living around cars all the time somewhat maddening. Imagine your background noise everyday being shopping carts and car door lock chirps. Usually the intent of #vanlife is spending more time in nature, oddly living in a car embeds you far more in car culture, streets, gas stations. There was always some latent anxiety about being somewhere you're not quite supposed to be, since living in your car is basically illegal. Novelty wore off after a few months, today I'm glad to live in an apartment. I get to hike/ski/climb almost every weekend, and come home to a warm, well-lit place with a couch and shower.

tfmatt 8y ago
Well stated. My journey only last 6 months because of the constant anxiety that comes from not having a stable parking situation. You think it's going to give you freedom but it ends up being your prison
- wjjdjw 8y ago
  To me half a year is a long time, and for an experiment it certainly is. You should cross the word "only" from your mind, it's no competition. Freedom can also mean to have stable home, relationship, work.
vanderZwan 8y ago
Honestly, if you want to solo-travel and socialize, go hitchhike. It's a crash-course in making contact with strangers, dealing with rejection, knowing how to let go and enjoy the moment and maintaining a positive attitude (especially when you wait for a ride for hours in shitty weather), how to ask for help without being obnoxious, and having faith in the goodness of humanity as a whole. It's not for everyone, but it definitely was both therapeutic and educational for me, and I still love it as a guy in his thirties. I never thought of this before, but it kind of makes sense that the van thing isolates whereas the hitchhiking makes friends. One is fundamentally based on independence and solving things on your own. The other is fundamentally based on people acknowledging each other and helping each other out.

bortulga 8y ago

This is true. It's not expensive to experiment, but it does increase other ongoing costs. Food costs for me increased, due to less cooking. If you're in an urban area, finding a place to use a portable stove or fire is very difficult. If you're outside of an urban area, gas/breakdowns are a constant concern. Parking can be precarious, depending on where you are. Heat can be a problem depending on where you are. It's much easier to heat passively with blankets in the cold than to cool yourself when it's too hot to sleep. Other notes: - Vans are often very poorly insulated, both from sound and weather. - The social impact can be crushing. All in all embracing a mobile hermit lifestyle with the added burden of a giant lumbering structure can be daunting. I think in general ultralite camping is a better option. More flexibility where you stay, and the benefits of having a mobile power source are overstated. Portable gas canisters/solar cells have a better value for the few times when you need mobile electricity.

telesilla 8y ago

>Piss in a bottle works for 50% of the population? I read a fascinating article recently (can't find it again I'm afraid) where a female UPS driver said her delivery targets were always lower than her male colleagues because she had to go and find a bathroom.

catherd 8y ago
Either gender can manage to pee into a container in a vehicle if they really want to. There are adapters you can buy if needed. Some people may not really want to, which is fine. They are probably the same ones who would find the lack of showers a deal breaker.
Implicated 8y ago
This message is intended with no snark or sarcasm - it's _very_ popular for women in the outdoor/vanlife communities to use specially designed funnels. An amazon search will be enlightening.
- sokoloff 8y ago
  “Lady J” is one popular one if you need a search term to start.
- npalmer 8y ago
  yeah, my partner has sang her praises for the excellently named SheeWee (https://www.shewee.com https://www.shewee.com)
- jpindar 8y ago
  I find the Freshette to be by far the best type, and it has the advantage of being flat & pocket size.
hayyyyydos 8y ago
You might be thinking of the female cable tech: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cable-tech-dick-cheney-sex-dungeon_us_5c0ea571e4b06484c9fd4c21 https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cable-tech-dick-cheney-...

taude 8y ago

Great advice. Especially for people who might not know the realities of living a nomad lifestyle who might just be enamored with the marketing of it. I toured around for 6 weeks in a van, all down the West Coast, visiting national parks, hiking, sleeping on the beaches, and reading a lot. It was a great time, and required very little equipment, and monetary investment (my buddy had a van already.) And what we did was glorified camping, though the day-to-day I don't see how it'd be much different than a fully custom luxury van. People should start with a long month-long road trip like this to really get a feel, to understand how you'll provision food, where you'll eat, etc. I love me a good long road trip, but I'd never move into one as a substitute for a home.

timmaah 8y ago
> I love me a good long road trip, but I'd never move into one as a substitute for a home. My road trip has been going on 2429 days. Couldn't do it in a van, but a 25 foot Airstream is surprisingly comfortable. http://live.watsonswander.com/ http://live.watsonswander.com/
- notJim 8y ago
  Kinda hilarious to watch the graphic on your website studiously circling around everywhere in the West, except Nevada. Did the same thing on my 1 year trip, though.
  - taude 8y ago
    There's actually some decent enough places to stop in Nevada, like the Ruby mountains (especially if you're traveling from Utah to Tahoe and need to go by them anyway).

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

a3n 8y ago

> Shower less often, mostly in campgrounds. You will stink more, but get over yourself. Carry baby wipes to hit the "hot spots" when you can't shower.

kpennell 8y ago

love this comment...