Van Life | Overnight Parking

Excellent info Christian! Let me add my 2 cents worth: 1.) Christian has already mentioned this, but it bears repeating. Residental areas whether city, town or very rural -Always prepare your vehicle at another location before going to your parking spot. Just because you have your blackout window coverings up does not mean people know your inside. Your body movements shaking the vehicle will give you away to anyone walking not by you, but anywhere within eyesight or hearing which means looking out there house windows wondering what the strange vehicle is on their street that seems to be bouncing on it's shock absorbers ( if your a couple-that's understandable! 😇). 2.) When you stop for the night - Put your keys in the same location everytime and not left in a pants pocket. When you lay them down place them where they can be picked up as you are moving into the drivers seat. Arrange the keys so that the ignition key is sticking out separate from the others keys so picking them up and getting into the drivers seat is one fast easy motion without fumbling to get the vehicle started. 3.) Park with the vehicle aimed to move quickly without having to reverse to turn out of a parking spot be it campsite or street. 4.) When at a questionable campsite if you choose to stay the night leave nothing outside that you cannot drive off and leave it if you have intruders around the vehicle. 5.) Blackout window coverings using "Reflectex" Nothing says "stealth camping" in a residential area faster then seeing the silver Reflectex in the windows. No matter how dark your window tint is at night an experienced security guard or cop is going to see it through the window tint when their headlights hit your windows! 6.) Leaving windows cracked to prevent the condensation buildup- you can find the plastic "rain shields" that are inserted into the window channels to keep the rain out. These are a godsend not only for the rain, but the average passerby will not see your windows open at the top as they are hidden by the rain shield. Having a skylight air vent is better, but if you haven't got one this idea helps. 7.) Interior lighting - it's going to leak out if it is bright. What I have for stealth camping is dimmable lighting below the window frames mainly just to see things on the deck in my "living room" or read a book in my bed. 8.) I have the idea of installing bright white LEDS lights at or near the doors at eye level that can be flipped on from my bed. The idea is to momentarily blind a curbsucking lowlife scum trying to break open a door. The surprise effect can give precious seconds to get the engine started to drive away. If any of this helps anyone on the road then it was worth the time to write it.

Thanks for this segment! It's heartbreaking and ironic that people go to pristine nature spots only to leave their trash behind and destroy the very thing they came to appreciate.

As a person who sleeps in their vehicle on road trips very often, I have realized Planet Fitness parking lots are great if your a member. They are open 24 hours so no one cares if your parked there. Also you can shower and use the bathroom at any point. Never had an issue and they are safer than Walmart parking lots.

As someone who is slowly planning vanlife, I greatly appreciated this video. Where and not to park is a concern, which I realize I will have to discover as you said things can change year to year. I will find some spaces to park, show others I am respectful of nature and others around me and ask for good advice.

In almost two years of stealth camping, I got one ticket (fought it and won) and one knock. I’m still kinda shocked at how many park for the night without preparing at a different location first. They blow it for us careful types. Lots of good solid information here. Thank you.

We camped as kids growing up, my Dad stressed the importance of cleanup in an area we arrived at saying "Always leave a campsite or fishing spot cleaner than when you arrive....' as he helped us pick up trash to haul out. This left a life long lesson we should all strive to do. I was shocked to camp in Kansas, trash was everywhere. I filled a large trash can with garbage that I found all around the edge of a small lake, some aluminum cans had pull top style lids, so they had been there for over thirty years! such a shame. My kids helped me that evening, so they will follow my example. Love your candid videos Christian.

I completely understand how you can get spooked by the sorts of late night encounters you described. I'm a guy, and I'm big enough and confident enough that nobody has ever tried to start trouble with me. But I've been tent camping a few times when people in trucks will pull up near my tent in the middle of the night and just sit there with their headlights shining on my tent. That freaks me out and there is no way to go back to sleep after that.

A safety tip: always keep a hidden spare ignition key or fob in the front seat area (e.g., cup holder) so if in the night you need to quickly escape and drive away, you don't waste valuable time searching for your set of keys you misplaced in a pants pocket, or buried in a purse, etc.

Thank you for opening up so much in these past two videos. 💚 I completely agree with you and so respect why you wouldn't want to share camp site locations. You give enough information for us to do the rest of the research on our own 😊

I love your take on keeping our land beautiful. It's simple but so many people don't take it seriously. It really angers me sometimes, but keep the positivity going. Christian you are a gem. Love your videos.

Good advise on a number of topics. The end advise to be mindful and respectful can not be overstated. It's way to easy to be inconsiderate. When possible leave the camp spot cleaner than you found it. If most of us did that, there would be nothing left to clean up. Thanks for posting this!

Dear Christian, this video is a class for someone that is looking to start this journey. I had similar experiences in my previous job when I pickup and delivery motorcycles around the country. Some deliveries was on the Colorado mountains and in my case I wasn’t allowed to park my truck and enclosed trailer, permits only for RV’s and camper trailers. Thank you again for share your experience in this beautiful and challenging journey! Keep safe, positive and good energies and bear hug from your fan here.

I lived in a van before google maps and camping apps. Of course we used a road atlas, but also certain hard to find books like the Guide to Free Campgrounds, Hot Springs and Pools, and we had to obtain and read topography maps too. We also sometimes had to go into forest service stations and talk with the rangers. All of your nature footage makes me super nostalgic for my time on the road.

I think Christian' connects well here, because she is so on-point with her minimal lifestyle. it means she has clear answers to her own questions - a lesson learned.

Hey Christian - I liked this episode. I am an old lady (about to be 69 in August) and am about a year out from selling most of what I own, including the house, and hitting the road. There is so, so much planning to do to enter this lifestyle, but I've dreamed of going on the road for years, and I refuse to die while staring at the same four walls. I currently have a Honda CRV, and have been scoping out some of the BLM and Forest Service sites in my area. I live in mid-western Oregon, and it's so beautiful that I'll likely hang out here most of the time and then take random trips to visit friends, attend events, etc. My sister lives about 20 minutes away from me on five acres, and I can park there occasionally and use her address as my home base (so lucky). I may dabble in YouTube videos, thinking that there may be other old ladies who would find them useful. I'm looking at having a Ford Transit High Roof Extended base with AWD built out by Drifter. It will be expensive, but will have everything my dog, my cat, and I will need. I plan on 5-10 years on the road, or until I'm ready for the old folks' home. I appreciate your willingness to share your experiences, remind us to care for the planet, and to pay attention to our women's intuition. Thanks a bunch, and maybe I'll see you on the trail some day!

As a person that has been van dwelling for the last 10 years I applaud your efforts to break down what van life is all about and all of the Do's and don'ts of van life Etiquette! Sadly people are ruining it for us by not being respectful and just being trashy human beings! I see it all to often.

thanks Christian. I only lived in my car for about 6 months and it was in between many house/pet sitting gigs, but I got two knocks on my car during that time. one was on the blue ridge parkway in NC, which I knew was technically not allowed, but so many people were doing it and I was told by someone at an outdoors store that it was fine and not a big issue. but the cop came around late in the morning and told me there was no camping on the parkway. the other time was at a trailhead in new mexico, and it was because my car was parked in the wrong direction. i turned it around and the cop wished me a goodnight and moved on. it is definitely easier to find places to park overnight out west.

Great job. Site selection has definitely changed for me over the last two years. Sadly, Walmart is rapidly becoming a hard no for overnighting. This is especially true in the popular states out west. I used to be able to use Costco but not anymore. iOverlander is NOT an option anymore. My rule of thumb - the closer you are to a larger / popular city the more likely I will not be able to stay there. It’s craZy, but some of the folks on this similar journey suck at being human beings. Many people have told me why they do not like van lifers. The stories justify the actions taken. For me, I find a site far away from anything. Arrive later in the evening ready to sleep. I make sure there is zero light projected from my van. To date, I have yet gotten the knock in the city or proximity to a city. Sadly, I was staying at a Walmart one night and a real RV pulled in for the evening. Before the night was over the generator was running, the sides were out and people had their chairs out watching TV. It seems the better stewards we are the less impact we have on communities.

Great job. You're the first I've seen who mentions cracking the window to avoid compensation in the night. I find things much warmer at 4 am if I've cracked the window, no matter how cold at night.

I love the part about preparing to sleep in one place then driving to park for the night. I did the same back packing so I wouldn’t cook and sleep in the same spot; it kept animals away!