Dirtbagging 102
- August 2008
- Hi Steph Simple Living Travel
Hey Steph,
I’m going to be doing a big roadtrip out west, finally to see some places I’ve always wanted to see, and hopefully there will be people around to climb with too! Anyways, I had a question about doing solo traveling. How did you end up picking places to stay overnight when you are doing a lot of driving and on the road? I don’t mind sleeping in my car, but did you usually do that at parks, or at rest stops, or did you try to find camp grounds along the way?
Any advice is really helpful! I’m in the process of trying to figure out these things. Thanks so much!
Stephanie
Dear Stephanie,
I wonder what kind of car you have? It is great to have a car that you can sleep in. If you have a hatchback or a sedan, you might want to consider pulling out the passenger seat and/or back seats and putting down a piece of plywood so you can have a bed inside. This is also super stealth!
Though I’ve always had a truck, I think a van or wagon is better. I actually really wish I had a small wagon right now, for the gas mileage, like a Pontiac Vibe or a Toyota Matrix or something. It seems the absolute safest for a solo camper to have a vehicle where you can immediately jump up from sleep and start driving–which is also a big advantage with the hatchback/sedan. With that setup, I don’t really think you can get into too much trouble. That being said, I have always been far too gripped to sleep in rest areas. I mean, how many movies and news stories have we seen where some college student gets hatcheted in a rest area?!
Though many people, and my parents, might find it poor judgment, I find a random non-urban type place when I am traveling and need to crash for the night. If I’m not around a climbing area, I tend to not want to be near people or highways, or visible at all, when I sleep. This is probably not the approved, solo-female-traveler policy, but it has always felt best to me. Nowadays, with cell phones, I also try to pick a place where I get service. If you’re by yourself that night, you’ll probably feel like texting your friends all evening anyway 🙂
Also, if you just can’t get away from places that feel sketchy, no one says you can’t break the budget for once and spend $40 on a cheap hotel room. I know, it’s awful to spend so much for a few hours to stay in a place that is not even all that nice….but if you really feel like it’s the best option, just go ahead and do it. At least you’ll get a shower and some web surfing out of it.
If you plan your travel around climbing areas, you can be totally secure all the way, and just schedule your drives so that you always are going to and from a climbing destination, where it’s simple and super safe to camp with the other climbers.
Other than that, I highly recommend bringing your/a dog! It is surprisingly easy to convince them to come on roadtrips with you, even if they are not yours.
Have fun, use your common sense and your intuition, and think good thoughts–I don’t see any point in being paranoid 🙂
xx Steph
Hi Steph!
Thanks so much for posting that, I actually am leaving tomorrow morning and that’s some great advice! Thanks again.
Maybe I’ll run into you somewhere out west sometime! 🙂
Stephanie
I had a small, late 70’s Toyota with a high-cap camper and it had an “extended” cab. The bed was dang near 7 feet long! It was perfect for car-living. I used the same 1/4 bed top shelf and also used a upper shelf between the window frames. I also cut in a roof vent from an RV parts store. That was a life saver, since living in the City of Rocks could get pretty warm.
We now have a VW Westfalia since we have two children (4 & 10). It feels like cheating to stay in it for a long time! I keep looking around for things to “make better”, but everything is set up great. Solar power is the next idea, although I don’t have much need outside a light to read by and to charge the laptop/ipod.
I would recommend the book, “Car Living Your Way” by A.J. Heim. Her book is basic for most seasoned car-livers, but still has some tidbits of use. I try to use the analogy of sailing when we are gone for a few weeks in the van. I have read a lot about the set-ups for sailing and they seem transferable with modification.
Wow! What a garrulous post (yes, I did use a Thesaurus for “long-winded”)!
Later,
Ralph
Boise, ID