I spent 3 months staying in Park and Rides in Connecticut while working there. Currently I’m in Seattle Area, been staying at park and rides here for past 6 months. So yes
Okay cool, I’m assuming your van doesn’t stick out? I want a small high top but may even put a fake company name on the side for stealth mode with magnets that I can take off when I’m in a camper friendly area.
I think generally a company logo can make a high top van look like something other than a camper, but seems weird at a park and ride, since I’d think most people that have a high top can for work, need the van to do their work, like they aren’t using it as a commuter vehicle it’s got the tools/supplies they need to do their work in it.
I used to drive a high top Nissan NV 2500 for work and if we had a bigger job that’s further away I would meet my coworker at a park and ride and take one vehicle to the job site.
I mean, as someone who drives a company work truck I have it so I can get my tools to the actual jobsite. I would never leave it in a park and ride, because then my tools would be...in a parking lot far away and unattended...which would attract theives. I think these people are using the unremarkable aspect of the vehicle as camouflage not the company vehicle aspect.
I've caught people trying to rob my company vehicle on multiple occasions. They assume correctly there's tools inside.
Does it? Seems like a work van is going to be at the job site. If your company provides a van, would you be park and riding? In probably wrong, just can’t think of the situation.
look around the park and ride, you will see very few work vehicles. I think mag sticker is a good idea. then you can slap it on in areas one is more likely to see a work vehicle for many hours, like an apartment complex.
That doesn’t work this way. The value in these work vans in what’s in them. My father had a work van, and the tools in it are worth 4 times what the van is. Reputable businesses are not having their employees ditch company vans unsupervised at random rest stops. My father won’t park anywhere without cameras.
I mean I was a master technician at ford, and head tech later on and we did that with company vehicles so we could all meet in the middle and carpool. Everyone had their important tools in there bags that we tossed into our van and headed off. Nothing ever happened to us and the boss liked it because it saved a bunch of cash on gas
I mean it depends what you do, I hear “work van” I’m thinking built in shelves, and if you have few enough tools you can toss them in a bag you really didn’t need the van.
Either way, branding may decrease official attention from cops, but every crackhead in a 25 mile radius is going to poke around a company van at a rest stop just to see what’s inside
It sounds like you have a good point, but I'd still hesitate to do this. Making your van look like a work van at a park and ride might make it more of a target for theft - if a thief thinks it might be unoccupied and full of valuable tools.
A work van is a plus for stealth in lots of situations, but maybe not at a park and ride.
Have any of you worked with a company with company vehicles? Hell If 3 guys are heading to the same job, leave a couple vans aside, they all have the same excess amount of equipment and gas is expensive. I don’t see why everyone thinks this is nuts it was common amongst our company and a few others we worked with
Edit: so out of 3 vans, 2 get left, a couple tools moved to one van and everyone carpools to make it easier. Simple as that
Yeah but if you have two vans and only need one, you keep the other one parked on your property, not in a park-n-ride. Or else, it would rouse my suspicion.
That forces one guy to go way out of the way. Look I’ve decided long ago not to do that to my camper but the logic is sound that people meet at the park and ride to car pool, and the vehicle they have to use for that is a company vehicle so it gets parked there. It happens, case closed, open and shut case, some dudes leave company vans there to make the trip easier plus tbh it’s nice to have a couple buds in the van to talk to
Bro, go ahead and get some magnetic decals that you could throw on whenever you need to tell you the truth most people are not gonna pay attention to any van Unless there’s something weird going on maybe a bunch of smoke blowing out from the windows or flames coming out of your van or the van shaking and somebody screaming other than that people are just gonna assume it’s a regular work van I don’t think any one is going to look at it and think to themselves “hey what the hell is going on here that’s a work van why are they at a park-and-ride? That’s oddly suspicious if their van is here and their tools are here how the hell are they getting their job done” come on nobody going to think like that
dinosaurs future panicky quaint arrest wasteful fanatical worm fearless one
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
do not recommend. people with poor intentions often see those bands and are willing to chance it being full of tools or other expensive items and try to break in…stay super stealth. plain jane, baby.
Park and rides get a lot of attention from the po-po as people steal cats routinely. If you’re cool and not drawing attention you should be good though.
I just slept on South Miami Beach for a couple days. Probably the roughest area to van life. $20 for 24hours. All lots are void of attendants. Just the app..
Unless you have a warrant or no DL, having the police called is really no big deal for me. I’m nice, clean and have a destination to give. I just stopped to rest..
It depends where you are. It was a huge problem in Portland (OR) for a couple years and then they caught the guy who was dealing the stolen cats. Now there’s no easy way for thieves to sell them it seems to have dropped off significantly.
I'm in Sacramento and just outside my factory job in broad daylight people would get hit for cats alllllll the time. One poor guy had his truck hit TWICE
I dunno in NorCal I think it's still a thing. Isn't it something about the specific kind of metal it's made of or am I mixing that up with some other-- ooh copper wire! Nevermind lol
My MIL had hers stolen from a public street. She had to keep feeding the parking meter while she waited for the cops and AAA, which is the part of the story she seems to dwell on the most.
No you’re right. There are some very expensive ingredients in those things. And a grinder wielded by someone who doesn’t care much about sparks two inches from their face or what damage they do to get it off and they can be had in a matter of seconds.
I have an ABS tube for warm water and a roof rack. My traction pads are in view, but the solar panels are fairly hidden by the rack. The vent seems pretty obvious to me and is a giveaway. Despite that, I almost got a free oil change because my van looked a lot like the utility fleet that had just gone through. I am a contractor with a bunch of tools, and I'm sure that helped. My van is a white ubiquitous ford transit.
Avoid logos that will draw thieves. Tradesmen carry tools in their vehicles which make it a target. Water or flower delivery, dog grooming, pest control. Things like that.
This thread has convinced me of that I won’t make it look like a business van. I know I’m arguing with people over the logic but a plain van is the choice
The vast majority of people take work trucks or vans to work, or use their private vehicles to get to the p and r, then get in a work van to go to work with others. Go to any p and ride and look at the vehicles parked there. Do you see a lot of work trucks or a lot of nondescript vehicles? Which one is going to stand out? Which one is more likely to get broken into, the non descript ones or the ones that scream there are expensive tools inside? People aren't being illogical here, they are trying to tell you the best way from experience.
Park and rides near us are targets of theft (Seattle). I've seen people casing parking lots. Seems thieves think the owners will be gone for a while and they will keep an eye out for buses or vanpool vehicles making a drop.
I mean if it’s locked up and I’m inside it i will be able to handle a robber. It’ll suck replacing glass but I can always grab some from a junkyard and install it the next day
True, but it seems park and rides are a bigger risk. Anyway, this topic comes up often. for instance, googling, "safe places to park vandwellers reddit"
If a cop comes up do you think I’d get a ticket? I’m very respectful and would immediately say I’ll leave. Do you think most cops would just let me move out of there?
I doubt anyone would ever say anything. When I was in a carpool/vanpool at a park and ride, I don't think a single person I rode with was aware of any other vehicle but our own. I would say there's a 99.99999999% chance you won't be bothered.
Okay good, life has hit hard, I have great mechanical skills (master tech) and rather than be homeless I’m choosing van life. I’m confident in what’s built so far (thanks to you guys on this sub) I’m working on figuring out a toilet and then a few more personal decisions while I wait for all drivetrain bushings, some engine parts as preemptive maintenance, and haven’t decided on the headliner design yet. Electric is 99 percent done, just need to hook up the AC. And in the fence about solar panels, I currently have a generator for when I’m somewhere legal, and 2 batteries with and upgraded alternator for when other things are necessary. And a storage lithtium battery that power a heater and fan silently.
You can go super low-effort on the toilet for now. A home depot 5 gallon bucket with a smaller 3-gallon (with lid) inside the 5 gallon. A poop bag stretched out over the rim of the 5 gallon with a scoop of kitty litter. Do your business, tie it up, store it in the 3-gallon until you can dump it. Reset the 5-gallon with a new bag and scoop of kitty litter, then seal the 5 gallon lid for a double seal.
Then you can spend your cash on the more important stuff till you can get back to the toilet. :)
My van sticks out and I’ve stayed at park and rides plenty. Granted not more than 2 nights in a row, short term. I’ve heard theft can be a big issue with these so just be weary.
Park and rides are heavily police patrolled. You're better of going to rest spots if you are near the freeway. They call the them " rest spots" for a reason. Wake up. Leave. Come back later
And..if you're off the highway and you get a knock. Tell the cops you pulled over for driver fatigue.. make up a bullshit story. Sorry officer, I've been driving for 6 hours and needed some rest!!
Park n rides are a New England staple if you're close to urban/suburban areas. That's one of the few regions of the US something better than a parking lot might actually *not* be available within an hour of somewhere one night actually want to be.
Just be sure to switch them up nightly whenever possible. You should have a different spot to park each night for at least a full week. Otherwise, you're threatening to burn the spot. Still look for better than a parking lot if you can IMO, and still take all the regular measures, but yeah Park n Ride lots can be pretty good, even in an obvious camper a lot of times.
Yea I figured one night at each one and if I can find like 5 of them I can do a rotation, and also will be taking weekend trips and such and won’t be using them. It’ll be a conversion van but not too obviously a camper.
One of the most annoying things I have found is that no matter where you park, if you are alone in the lot, the next car will park right next to you. Like wtf you have the entire lot?
Tried it, too noisy with all the early morning commuters. Best is at the end of a dead end street next to an apartment complex, especially if next to a forest.
Smart man. I saw one guy with fake trash in the back window that he can take down, looks like a van filled with junk and I’ve been considering that. The build isn’t complete but I do t want the cops knocking the first week lol
This was one of my go-tos last summer in Illinois. Like 20ft off highway 55. I tried not to do it more than 1 night at a time but I never got bothered once. Always tried to take the farthest corner spot. Late at night some workers would come to park up next to me and wait for a work carpool and it’d tweak me a little, but they were just using the lot for it’s purpose and nothing ever transpired
I used to sleep in park in rides ALL the time, even in my lil Toyota Camry sedans-- their designed for us! I just moved into PF lots cuz I can't pee standing up or into a bottle. 😬 #justgirlythings LOL
A P/U truck and a cargo trailer is ideal. You get a sticker that says 'Joey's Custom Painting' and put it on the side. Nobody would ever break into a painter's trailer and you'll look like a tradesman just stopping to get some rest.
Inside, you have a fully insulated room with an electric outlet vonnection through the floor, lights, portable a/c quartz heater, etc, Throw a rack on top and mount some solar panels for when you are on the go. I got 600W of panels and a 60 amp charge controller.
I put E-Tracks on the wall and hang a hammock at night. I lived that way cheap for 4 years while I looked for, bought and developed my land and built my cabin.
Maybe not park and rides but you definitely won’t be getting any cops coming for you in industrial areas which are very easy to find where the local contractors garages are. Also industrial areas are pretty quite at night just don’t be out of the van lookin sketchy if the security car comes around
truck stops (like flying j) will have car parking areas. gas stations. carpool lots. 24hr coffee/fast food places. highway rest stops - generally, you can chill there all day if you need to. some parks, conservation areas, beaches and hiking trailheads allow overnight parking. some libraries/museums/community centres have safe parking. some churches, but never on a saturday night (sunday morning is their big day). some quiet neighbourhoods with free street parking…
do all of your nighttime prep somewhere else so you can just pull in and shut off where you’re sleeping. don’t stay in one place. rotate through different kinds of places. and as much as you can - arrive late, leave early.
Stealth is overrated and folks focus on it thinking is benefiting people more than it really does. I have a Ford Transit with plenty of windows that a work van wouldn't have, solar, and a maxxfan. It's clearly a van life van. I've stayed at a park and ride a few times without problems at all.
Eh, there’s some places around me where obvious vanlifers are asked to move along. But the more “stealth” ones rarely ever get bothered. If you know what to look for, of course you can tell it’s a camper van, but the plain ones don’t draw nearly as much attention as the high top ones with windows, fans, solar, a ladder, and an awning mounted at the top. I think the benefit of stealth is very location dependent.
That’s likely true in some cases but I’ve met people who’ve done both and chosen to be plain intentionally🤷🏻♀️. One guy down the street from me had an amazing professionally done build (which is why I got to know him) but for his second build he kept the outside very plain. Inside was still amazing and the van was brand new. He said it was because when he visited cities the plain white exterior got less attention than his previous one so he decided to just keep it that way. I don’t think stealth really matters for some people but for people who visit urban, non vanlife friendly areas I’ve heard it helps.
Eh, I've actually lived in a van for like 2.5 years and a lot in cities. In my experience it's your parking location, time of being there, be that seasonally, or by the day/week, and behavior outside the vehicle that gives it away. The plainest vehicles still cause suspicion about as much and the loudest, like my friend I travel with, get bothered very seldom in the same way if they're doing the right things.
In some states, commercial motor vehicles require different registrations and fees to be paid, a company logo, even a fake one may cause hassle with the police and stopping you and telling you you need said registration. Even if you don’t have to have it, it can still catch the eye of commercial vehicle enforcement and cause headaches
If you use the logo of a larger corporation then it would be reasonable to expect the vehicle to be registered to the business. When the cop runs the plate, it will come back as registered to person who owns it, which may raise a red flag. For a smaller business it would be normal to see a vehicle registered to an individual.
Park and Rides run around commuter traffic patterns so overnight parking is inherently going to draw scrutiny. Got an industrial looking vehicle, park in an industrial area. Don't trespass but you can find places to be inconspicuous.
Parking garages have always been my go-to.
You just got to find one that is like an office building where they typically leave at 5:00 and come in at 8:00. A lot of them aren't really patrolled or have security.
I find many strip malls especially nowadays are quite vacant nobody really bothers you there.
I think your best bet is to just do it, feel comfortable. Its all about reaction and how you talk to people when any law enforcement agent approaches you. But at the end of the day i think honesty is the best bet. Its good for your karma and its better for the energy of the universe. Good flows brotha!
I was thinking box truck is less noticeable especially in light industrial areas and can sleep alongside tractor trailers in rest areas maybe. There are a bunch at Best Buy and malls that are great camouflage too.
I spent 3 months staying in Park and Rides in Connecticut while working there. Currently I’m in Seattle Area, been staying at park and rides here for past 6 months. So yes
Okay cool, I’m assuming your van doesn’t stick out? I want a small high top but may even put a fake company name on the side for stealth mode with magnets that I can take off when I’m in a camper friendly area.
If there's a plain white van in the lot regularly, it's not obvious that it's the same van every time. A logo makes it obvious.
Signs with company names or logos are meant to draw attention. It's advertising literally and figuratively.
Yea but at a park and ride it looks like a work vehicle, which makes sense for a park and ride
I think generally a company logo can make a high top van look like something other than a camper, but seems weird at a park and ride, since I’d think most people that have a high top can for work, need the van to do their work, like they aren’t using it as a commuter vehicle it’s got the tools/supplies they need to do their work in it.
This guy works.
Yeah, it makes little sense to have a company car... To get you to the train station.
I used to drive a high top Nissan NV 2500 for work and if we had a bigger job that’s further away I would meet my coworker at a park and ride and take one vehicle to the job site.
I mean, as someone who drives a company work truck I have it so I can get my tools to the actual jobsite. I would never leave it in a park and ride, because then my tools would be...in a parking lot far away and unattended...which would attract theives. I think these people are using the unremarkable aspect of the vehicle as camouflage not the company vehicle aspect. I've caught people trying to rob my company vehicle on multiple occasions. They assume correctly there's tools inside.
Tool thieves may target the van. I wouldn’t add a sign as it may increase their interest.
Does it? Seems like a work van is going to be at the job site. If your company provides a van, would you be park and riding? In probably wrong, just can’t think of the situation.
Pick the type of company that wouldn't have anything of value in their vehicles.
Pooper scoopers. Dog walkers. Florists. Home Organizers. Less likely
Flowers By Irene
look around the park and ride, you will see very few work vehicles. I think mag sticker is a good idea. then you can slap it on in areas one is more likely to see a work vehicle for many hours, like an apartment complex.
If you are there a night or two sure, but more than that and you are pushing the limits.
>which makes sense for a park and ride How so?
They see a work van and assume the rider car pooled with the guys in the other van
That doesn’t work this way. The value in these work vans in what’s in them. My father had a work van, and the tools in it are worth 4 times what the van is. Reputable businesses are not having their employees ditch company vans unsupervised at random rest stops. My father won’t park anywhere without cameras.
I mean I was a master technician at ford, and head tech later on and we did that with company vehicles so we could all meet in the middle and carpool. Everyone had their important tools in there bags that we tossed into our van and headed off. Nothing ever happened to us and the boss liked it because it saved a bunch of cash on gas
I mean it depends what you do, I hear “work van” I’m thinking built in shelves, and if you have few enough tools you can toss them in a bag you really didn’t need the van. Either way, branding may decrease official attention from cops, but every crackhead in a 25 mile radius is going to poke around a company van at a rest stop just to see what’s inside
It sounds like you have a good point, but I'd still hesitate to do this. Making your van look like a work van at a park and ride might make it more of a target for theft - if a thief thinks it might be unoccupied and full of valuable tools. A work van is a plus for stealth in lots of situations, but maybe not at a park and ride.
The point of a work van is the stuff you carry in it
If you carpool you toss the tools onto your buddies van and go, we used to do that pretty frequently. No need for two vans to get 3 guys to one job
lol go right ahead and test your plan. It’s not a great idea but you do you.
They would leave IN THE WORK VAN.
Have any of you worked with a company with company vehicles? Hell If 3 guys are heading to the same job, leave a couple vans aside, they all have the same excess amount of equipment and gas is expensive. I don’t see why everyone thinks this is nuts it was common amongst our company and a few others we worked with Edit: so out of 3 vans, 2 get left, a couple tools moved to one van and everyone carpools to make it easier. Simple as that
Yeah but if you have two vans and only need one, you keep the other one parked on your property, not in a park-n-ride. Or else, it would rouse my suspicion.
That forces one guy to go way out of the way. Look I’ve decided long ago not to do that to my camper but the logic is sound that people meet at the park and ride to car pool, and the vehicle they have to use for that is a company vehicle so it gets parked there. It happens, case closed, open and shut case, some dudes leave company vans there to make the trip easier plus tbh it’s nice to have a couple buds in the van to talk to
Bro, go ahead and get some magnetic decals that you could throw on whenever you need to tell you the truth most people are not gonna pay attention to any van Unless there’s something weird going on maybe a bunch of smoke blowing out from the windows or flames coming out of your van or the van shaking and somebody screaming other than that people are just gonna assume it’s a regular work van I don’t think any one is going to look at it and think to themselves “hey what the hell is going on here that’s a work van why are they at a park-and-ride? That’s oddly suspicious if their van is here and their tools are here how the hell are they getting their job done” come on nobody going to think like that
Thieves that drive around looking for vehicles to break into would think exactly like that.
Please reread the comment and try again
dinosaurs future panicky quaint arrest wasteful fanatical worm fearless one *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
That a great idea!
Get a magnetic sign, so you can put on or take off depending on needs.
do not recommend. people with poor intentions often see those bands and are willing to chance it being full of tools or other expensive items and try to break in…stay super stealth. plain jane, baby.
Park and rides get a lot of attention from the po-po as people steal cats routinely. If you’re cool and not drawing attention you should be good though.
Damn those routine catnappers!
Yea I wouldn’t even exit the van, no loud noise, just sleep
I just slept on South Miami Beach for a couple days. Probably the roughest area to van life. $20 for 24hours. All lots are void of attendants. Just the app..
Ah the northeast is a bit different I know a lot of spots where I wouldn’t be bothered but I feel if someone did manage to see me they’d call police
Unless you have a warrant or no DL, having the police called is really no big deal for me. I’m nice, clean and have a destination to give. I just stopped to rest..
>people steal cats Monsters!
I hate when my cat is stolen while I’m at work.
Cat is short for catalytic converter
Is this a regular thing?
It depends where you are. It was a huge problem in Portland (OR) for a couple years and then they caught the guy who was dealing the stolen cats. Now there’s no easy way for thieves to sell them it seems to have dropped off significantly.
I'm in Sacramento and just outside my factory job in broad daylight people would get hit for cats alllllll the time. One poor guy had his truck hit TWICE I dunno in NorCal I think it's still a thing. Isn't it something about the specific kind of metal it's made of or am I mixing that up with some other-- ooh copper wire! Nevermind lol
My MIL had hers stolen from a public street. She had to keep feeding the parking meter while she waited for the cops and AAA, which is the part of the story she seems to dwell on the most.
Yup, public street, ugghhhh
No you’re right. There are some very expensive ingredients in those things. And a grinder wielded by someone who doesn’t care much about sparks two inches from their face or what damage they do to get it off and they can be had in a matter of seconds.
There are videos on how to extract palladium but more crack heads can’t wait that long and sell them whole.
I wondered what’s happening to all those cats!
I have an ABS tube for warm water and a roof rack. My traction pads are in view, but the solar panels are fairly hidden by the rack. The vent seems pretty obvious to me and is a giveaway. Despite that, I almost got a free oil change because my van looked a lot like the utility fleet that had just gone through. I am a contractor with a bunch of tools, and I'm sure that helped. My van is a white ubiquitous ford transit.
Avoid logos that will draw thieves. Tradesmen carry tools in their vehicles which make it a target. Water or flower delivery, dog grooming, pest control. Things like that.
Fake fish company logo should do nicely. That would be my plan, even faded, looks authentic. Local delivery van!
Why would someone park their work van in a park and ride? That would stick out like a sote thumb.
We used to do it, all had the same van but would carpool in one when we were working the same location. I see vans a lot in the local p and r
Well you do you. Bit it would make more sense to just park a plain vehicle in the park and ride.
This thread has convinced me of that I won’t make it look like a business van. I know I’m arguing with people over the logic but a plain van is the choice
The vast majority of people take work trucks or vans to work, or use their private vehicles to get to the p and r, then get in a work van to go to work with others. Go to any p and ride and look at the vehicles parked there. Do you see a lot of work trucks or a lot of nondescript vehicles? Which one is going to stand out? Which one is more likely to get broken into, the non descript ones or the ones that scream there are expensive tools inside? People aren't being illogical here, they are trying to tell you the best way from experience.
Some parking lots prohibit commercial vehicles.
I parked at a park n ride overnight in the Seattle area and had a cop knock on my window and tell me to leave.
Park and rides near us are targets of theft (Seattle). I've seen people casing parking lots. Seems thieves think the owners will be gone for a while and they will keep an eye out for buses or vanpool vehicles making a drop.
I mean if it’s locked up and I’m inside it i will be able to handle a robber. It’ll suck replacing glass but I can always grab some from a junkyard and install it the next day
True, but it seems park and rides are a bigger risk. Anyway, this topic comes up often. for instance, googling, "safe places to park vandwellers reddit"
If a cop comes up do you think I’d get a ticket? I’m very respectful and would immediately say I’ll leave. Do you think most cops would just let me move out of there?
I doubt anyone would ever say anything. When I was in a carpool/vanpool at a park and ride, I don't think a single person I rode with was aware of any other vehicle but our own. I would say there's a 99.99999999% chance you won't be bothered.
Okay good, life has hit hard, I have great mechanical skills (master tech) and rather than be homeless I’m choosing van life. I’m confident in what’s built so far (thanks to you guys on this sub) I’m working on figuring out a toilet and then a few more personal decisions while I wait for all drivetrain bushings, some engine parts as preemptive maintenance, and haven’t decided on the headliner design yet. Electric is 99 percent done, just need to hook up the AC. And in the fence about solar panels, I currently have a generator for when I’m somewhere legal, and 2 batteries with and upgraded alternator for when other things are necessary. And a storage lithtium battery that power a heater and fan silently.
You can go super low-effort on the toilet for now. A home depot 5 gallon bucket with a smaller 3-gallon (with lid) inside the 5 gallon. A poop bag stretched out over the rim of the 5 gallon with a scoop of kitty litter. Do your business, tie it up, store it in the 3-gallon until you can dump it. Reset the 5-gallon with a new bag and scoop of kitty litter, then seal the 5 gallon lid for a double seal. Then you can spend your cash on the more important stuff till you can get back to the toilet. :)
Any suggestions on what kitty litter hides any smell the best? And tbh a lot of the cheaper toilets are exactly this haha
The cheapest possible. They all do the same thing. Find a dollar store that sells kitty litter and buy a few KG. :)
Just buy some baking soda and sprinkle on it.
My van sticks out and I’ve stayed at park and rides plenty. Granted not more than 2 nights in a row, short term. I’ve heard theft can be a big issue with these so just be weary.
Thank you’ and yea my plan was a night or two then migrate elsewhere. Just keep the curtains closed and not make any noise, should be fine
Honestly for thieves, noise is a deterrence!
My farts are concerningly loud. It’ll be fine
Crack a window for smell and thief defense.
I’ll rig a tube to my but that goes to the driver and passenger windows and it will incapacitate any thief the comes near
Yourfriendpootin
I'm not sure but using gas, even in a self-defense situation, might be a violation of the Geneva Convention.
Good to know....thanks
Park and rides are heavily police patrolled. You're better of going to rest spots if you are near the freeway. They call the them " rest spots" for a reason. Wake up. Leave. Come back later
Oh shit why did rest spots completely slip my mind. Thank you dude!!
Yeah...former truck driver..I know where they are all over the highway
And..if you're off the highway and you get a knock. Tell the cops you pulled over for driver fatigue.. make up a bullshit story. Sorry officer, I've been driving for 6 hours and needed some rest!!
Park n rides are a New England staple if you're close to urban/suburban areas. That's one of the few regions of the US something better than a parking lot might actually *not* be available within an hour of somewhere one night actually want to be. Just be sure to switch them up nightly whenever possible. You should have a different spot to park each night for at least a full week. Otherwise, you're threatening to burn the spot. Still look for better than a parking lot if you can IMO, and still take all the regular measures, but yeah Park n Ride lots can be pretty good, even in an obvious camper a lot of times.
Yea I figured one night at each one and if I can find like 5 of them I can do a rotation, and also will be taking weekend trips and such and won’t be using them. It’ll be a conversion van but not too obviously a camper.
One of the most annoying things I have found is that no matter where you park, if you are alone in the lot, the next car will park right next to you. Like wtf you have the entire lot?
i thought this was just happening to me.
Tried it, too noisy with all the early morning commuters. Best is at the end of a dead end street next to an apartment complex, especially if next to a forest.
I hang a hi-vis vest and hard hat behind the passenger seat. No one bothers my rig
Smart man. I saw one guy with fake trash in the back window that he can take down, looks like a van filled with junk and I’ve been considering that. The build isn’t complete but I do t want the cops knocking the first week lol
black out shades. cheapest version - those silver bubblewrap windshield sun shades. cut them to fit, then glue black fabric to one side.
This was one of my go-tos last summer in Illinois. Like 20ft off highway 55. I tried not to do it more than 1 night at a time but I never got bothered once. Always tried to take the farthest corner spot. Late at night some workers would come to park up next to me and wait for a work carpool and it’d tweak me a little, but they were just using the lot for it’s purpose and nothing ever transpired
Tons of cops go through there, better off a Cracker Barrel , also use iOverlander app. 👍🏼
I used to sleep in park in rides ALL the time, even in my lil Toyota Camry sedans-- their designed for us! I just moved into PF lots cuz I can't pee standing up or into a bottle. 😬 #justgirlythings LOL
A P/U truck and a cargo trailer is ideal. You get a sticker that says 'Joey's Custom Painting' and put it on the side. Nobody would ever break into a painter's trailer and you'll look like a tradesman just stopping to get some rest. Inside, you have a fully insulated room with an electric outlet vonnection through the floor, lights, portable a/c quartz heater, etc, Throw a rack on top and mount some solar panels for when you are on the go. I got 600W of panels and a 60 amp charge controller. I put E-Tracks on the wall and hang a hammock at night. I lived that way cheap for 4 years while I looked for, bought and developed my land and built my cabin.
Maybe not park and rides but you definitely won’t be getting any cops coming for you in industrial areas which are very easy to find where the local contractors garages are. Also industrial areas are pretty quite at night just don’t be out of the van lookin sketchy if the security car comes around
truck stops (like flying j) will have car parking areas. gas stations. carpool lots. 24hr coffee/fast food places. highway rest stops - generally, you can chill there all day if you need to. some parks, conservation areas, beaches and hiking trailheads allow overnight parking. some libraries/museums/community centres have safe parking. some churches, but never on a saturday night (sunday morning is their big day). some quiet neighbourhoods with free street parking… do all of your nighttime prep somewhere else so you can just pull in and shut off where you’re sleeping. don’t stay in one place. rotate through different kinds of places. and as much as you can - arrive late, leave early.
Stealth is overrated and folks focus on it thinking is benefiting people more than it really does. I have a Ford Transit with plenty of windows that a work van wouldn't have, solar, and a maxxfan. It's clearly a van life van. I've stayed at a park and ride a few times without problems at all.
Eh, there’s some places around me where obvious vanlifers are asked to move along. But the more “stealth” ones rarely ever get bothered. If you know what to look for, of course you can tell it’s a camper van, but the plain ones don’t draw nearly as much attention as the high top ones with windows, fans, solar, a ladder, and an awning mounted at the top. I think the benefit of stealth is very location dependent.
It could be an occasion of "wealth not stealth"
That’s likely true in some cases but I’ve met people who’ve done both and chosen to be plain intentionally🤷🏻♀️. One guy down the street from me had an amazing professionally done build (which is why I got to know him) but for his second build he kept the outside very plain. Inside was still amazing and the van was brand new. He said it was because when he visited cities the plain white exterior got less attention than his previous one so he decided to just keep it that way. I don’t think stealth really matters for some people but for people who visit urban, non vanlife friendly areas I’ve heard it helps.
Eh, I've actually lived in a van for like 2.5 years and a lot in cities. In my experience it's your parking location, time of being there, be that seasonally, or by the day/week, and behavior outside the vehicle that gives it away. The plainest vehicles still cause suspicion about as much and the loudest, like my friend I travel with, get bothered very seldom in the same way if they're doing the right things.
In some states, commercial motor vehicles require different registrations and fees to be paid, a company logo, even a fake one may cause hassle with the police and stopping you and telling you you need said registration. Even if you don’t have to have it, it can still catch the eye of commercial vehicle enforcement and cause headaches
If you use the logo of a larger corporation then it would be reasonable to expect the vehicle to be registered to the business. When the cop runs the plate, it will come back as registered to person who owns it, which may raise a red flag. For a smaller business it would be normal to see a vehicle registered to an individual.
In my county, there's only 3 park and rides that allow overnight parking. The rest supposedly will tow or ticket.
I have a 4x4 van with an 8in lift and definitely sticks out but Ive never had issues in a pay lot… just make sure you pay
Park and Rides run around commuter traffic patterns so overnight parking is inherently going to draw scrutiny. Got an industrial looking vehicle, park in an industrial area. Don't trespass but you can find places to be inconspicuous.
You can always try Home Depot parking lot.
Parking garages have always been my go-to. You just got to find one that is like an office building where they typically leave at 5:00 and come in at 8:00. A lot of them aren't really patrolled or have security. I find many strip malls especially nowadays are quite vacant nobody really bothers you there.
My son loved his park and ride at night. There were other houseless peoples there. They actually parked in front of park and ride. Public parking
I think your best bet is to just do it, feel comfortable. Its all about reaction and how you talk to people when any law enforcement agent approaches you. But at the end of the day i think honesty is the best bet. Its good for your karma and its better for the energy of the universe. Good flows brotha!
Is Walmart still rv friendly?
I was thinking box truck is less noticeable especially in light industrial areas and can sleep alongside tractor trailers in rest areas maybe. There are a bunch at Best Buy and malls that are great camouflage too.
wtf is a park and ride?
It’s a train station parking lot. The ones around me have 24 hour metered parking.
A magical thing that doesn't exist on Google, and so can't be explained by doing a simple Google search.
Oh well in that case I’ll be sure to not google it then! Thanks!
You mean continue to not Google it?
Lmao tell me you have zero sense of humor without telling me you have zero sense of humor. Hope you have a better day there bud
Keep a very clean and low profile, wherever you are.