Stealth camping

[garyhaupt]

This link was posted in TC and yes, I ripped it right off.....to share here.

http://www.truckcampermagazine.com/camper-lifestyle/stealth-camping-with-a-truck-camper

If you are into the stealth side of boondocking, you may find some helpful hints.



Gary Haupt

[Mello_Mike]

Guys, sadly, it's time to close this thread.

[Desert_Captain]

pnichols wrote:
Matt,

I see that you're from Michigan?

I was raised in a small town about 12 miles from Kalamazoo. We finally went back to visit in our motorhome about 3 years ago and camped at a favorite boyhood spot of mine - Gun Lake.

Have you ever camped with your GMC at Gun Lake? 🙂

Phil, Once again we share something in common. My dad's family are all from the Plainwell/Kalamazoo area. We spent a couple weeks there last June in our 24' C. Visited Gun lake several times, did most of our grocery shopping at the store there.

My Cousin and uncle still have homes on Pine Lake where we spent a lot of time in the "Friends and Family" RV park. It was gorgeous in early June before the mosquito's got bad. Here is a shot of Pine lake taken from her house:



:B

[garyhaupt]

jefe 4x4...I am recalling your original post on this thread..something about.."I just spent 10 minutes reading this drivel"...and now you have added to that same. ahem..drivel.

A nice account tho, of your 'not stealth camping' run to Seattle and all the pubs.



Gary Haupt

[jefe_4x4]

Layovering update:
My son Matt and I traveled from the West slope, Northern Sierra Nevada to Seattle for a two day fete of my musical mentor. We were on the road for 5 days (and nights).This is a description of our travels. Notice i did not say camping experiences because we never really camped.We traveled and layovered.
The plan was to leisurely motate north, stopping whenever we felt like it to take in the local flavor. We only had breakfast provisions along planning to eat and pub crawl our way no. for lunch and dinner. We left the W. Slope in the fueled/watered/refrigerated TC about 8 a.m. We stopped for lunch at an ale house in Weed, CA before continuing. We had an early supper at another ale house in Eugene with home brew ale and excellent designer hamburgers. Mine was called the 'Love Burger'. First layover was in the hills to the north east of Eugene. It was easy to follow some logging roads to the heights. This is "Axemen" territory. Some 4 wheel drive needed. Matt rode his cross bike around the trails returning at dusk. We were on a log striped hilltop with a nearby 360 deg. view of the area.We used our No. CA., OR, and WA Gazetteer's to good avail. Half the time we had no cell phone service for pulling up maps. Next AM we've had a hearty breakfast in the TC trying out our new fold away toaster that goes on a burner. Best toast I've had in a while. We then hit the road again going up Hwy 5 through Portland. I don't what it is about Portland, but it's always a traffic nightmare, at least every time I've been there.Eventually we got to St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle and parked for the night. Yes, I've asked permission as all the events of my mentor were to be held in the church. We went to a wide ranging concert in the church. After the festivities, we went to a recommended pub for more pub crawling. It's a good thing we had to walk the mile back to bed down for the night in the parking lot. I mentioned using a small step ladder on this trip for decreased visibility. It never made it out of the driveway as Matt almost broke his leg getting out of the TC while using it. So, scratch using that device. I bolted the Glow Steps back before we left. A lot of succesful travel is by trial and error.
After a quiet night with occasional rain, we arose and had breakfast. We went to church to check out their style. Great. We went down to the same pub as the day before and had a nice lunch. Matt took a 45 mile bike tour of the city while I went to an all femme Vespers. Then a dinner at the church celebrating my late mentor. Then the leader of Compline Choir asked Matt and I to sing Compline with them (it's at 9:30 p.m.) as it was alumni night and we did. After Compline we retired to the TC. Having tried to leave Seattle on a Monday morning before, I remembered the traffic was horrible, so we decided to leave right now (about 10:30p.m.) and pull over down state somewhere after clearing the greater Seattle Area. I doesn't take much to pack up. Turn the fridge on 12v, put the steps up and leave. We were to meet a couple of Matt's old friends the next day near Olympia, so we settled on laying over in the Black Hills State Forest west of town. Rained most of the night. We had breakfast again and moved to Olympia to meet friend #1. Then we moved south to meet friend #2 near Gresham OR. luckily missing Portland altogether. After a lunch with #2 we headed south again to find another layover. Matt suggested we go up to Crater Lake via Hwy. 58 from Eugene over to Hwy 97 and down and around to Crater Lake. I'd never been over this particular route. It rained all day and the road was under construction from a big landsllde that took out about a half mile of road. The north entrance was closed so we followed around and down the Rogue river and found a delightful layover spot along the Rogue down a dirt road for the night trying to stay at lower elevation as the temp had dropped. After breakfast the next day we hustled up to Crater Lk. It was 27 deg. when we got there with a new blanket of snow. The visibility was very good that day as the clouds were receding. Almost mystical. After a while we motored on south again on Hwy 97 past Klamath Lake (where they harvest all that green algae) eventually getting back to Weed. There was terrible destruction by a forest fire last fall in the area and many crews were salvaging trees and burning slash. After a chicken salad in Weed we headed on south on Hwy 5 and home. On the trip south there were several downbursts of rain in an area that has seen little rain this year.
Five days. 1600 miles. All layovers. No one bothered us. Great time.
I did take some pix, but I'm in the middle of a computer upgrade and everything is not working as it should, or did before. Only BKA will appreciate the small, picless download.
So, no stealth camping here. "Nothing to see here, Johnnie; move along, nothing to see."
jefe

[pnichols]

We've never seen the need to be "stealthy" at all when on RV trips and merely one-time 10-hour overnighting on the outskirts of urban areas.

We just boldly - with the permission of the owners/managers if possible - overnight in a K-Mart parking lot, a church parking lot, a Walmart parking lot, etc. in our 24 foot Class C ... and it's pretty obvious what we're doing (we don't "spread-out", however). Even in the area we live just outside of (Silicon Valley, CA), we quite often see small and big (both "clean" and "junky") motorhomes and truck campers parked here and there along the sides of streets that sure look like they're not being stored in that spot. We automatically assume folks are in them single-overnighting or maybe even multi-overnighting a bit ... whether they have permission to be there or not we don't know.

I really don't see the big deal in this kind of "non-stealth" overnighting in an RV. Long term squatting in an RV in areas not designated, or designed, for that is a whole different issue.

P.S Jeff, if I ever see you trying to stealth camp in your rig I sure hope that I recognize you ... cuz I may come over and bother you with a whole lot of questions and conversation about your fantastic non-stealth camping adventures! 😉

[jefe_4x4]

I have just wasted 10 minutes reading this drivel. I'm surprised that the moderator has not expunged this thread. ANY political discussions are taboo. But, I digress.
I must make full disclosure that I am a huge fan of both BKA and Tioga George.
There is a thread on the TC forum re: stealth camping right now that goes into even more (if that's possible) detail than BKA's fine article contains. How can that be?
The definition of the term. "Stealth Camping" has high negative and even misleading connotations. Maybe it does have political element. I don't like the term at all. We used to stealth camp. Now we either,
overnight or
layover
even in urban situations. This has been done for a long time in this country and Europeans do it in droves. We follow the euro concept which is: don't draw attention to yourself and do blend in to the surroundings, whatever they may be. My buddies on the TC forum convinced me that having a white TC will blend right in with all those white vans, trailers, MoHo's, and C's parked on city streets. With Jeanie and I it's kind of a game. We do nothing illegal or immoral. We simply take advantage of the local parking laws, usually 72 hrs. in one place before a citation. We are never in a layover more than one time in one place. However, we usually get up early and move to a park or suitable location for breakfast before the daily hum of the city begins. We do not layover because that's all we can afford. Au contrare, we mix up the whole traveling motif with N.F. camping, NP's, COE, Wildlife, Fisheries, State, County and local campgrounds and once a week on the road we get a high bucks hotel. They say mixing up your traveling style makes the trip seem longer. I concur. Matt Colie above is right on the mark talking about traveling style vs. camping style. Some other success we've had doing this has to do with the TC itself. It does not change shape (like you are assuming the position); it's the smallest hardside we could find for a 6-1/2 foot pickup bed that had everything we wanted. It does not look brand new (and it isn't) and pretty beat up from all that XTC-ing. We now use a small aluminum step ladder that hooks on the rear TC ladder once you are in for the night, so no scissor steps down at night and subsequently no perceivable change from the traveling mode. This adds a little physical danger to ingress and egress but I think it's worth it. In the end your personal perspective in layovering will tell you whether it's right for you or not.
regards, as always, jefe

[Matt_Colie]

Pnichols,

We really are not campers and seldom spend more than one day anywhere that is not an event. We find a lot of events and rallies to go to.

Matt

[Dtank]

garyhaupt wrote:


I am not going to get on my rant box...no point in it.


Gary Haupt

Not on your rant box? C'mon...:R

No point in it.

True.

But self-aggrandizement usually wins..:B

.

[pnichols]

Matt,

I see that you're from Michigan?

I was raised in a small town about 12 miles from Kalamazoo. We finally went back to visit in our motorhome about 3 years ago and camped at a favorite boyhood spot of mine - Gun Lake.

Have you ever camped with your GMC at Gun Lake? 🙂

[Matt_Colie]

One might think we stealth camp all the time. I don't even call it camping. We don't have slides and find little advantage to sitting outside. We can close drapes and turn off lights so it appears that there is nobody there, but that is just how we regularly shut down.

We aren't really campers anymore. We used to be, but these days we are travelers. Even if we stop for three days in a special setting, we are still on the way to somewhere even if we aren't just sure where that will be. But, if we aren't someplace we want to be when we decide to end the day, then we overnight. I refuse to call spending the night in a structure with electric lights and indoor plumbing "Camping".

As far as where we overnight, that is up to us, isn't it?? All we need is a flat place. So, should I pay for a shower hose, a pool and a playground too? TO me that comes under the same heading as buying a lunch and leaving it on the counter.

Early in our RVing, we made reservations at campgrounds, only to have them be closed when we got there. We even paid for a reservation on a few occasions to have them be closed when we arrived. Now we have a coach that can run completely self contained and comfortable for four or five days before we have to find a dump and more potable water.

Even if the administration had not "redistributed" a big portion of years retirement savings, I still would not be in the mood to buy something I don't need or want.

Matt

[Mello_Mike]

Folks, let's stay on topic, stealth camping.

Thanks, Bryan, for getting this thread back on track.

[bka0721]

pnichols wrote:
B ..... with that setup of yours you need not stealth camp at all. You can camp - well exposed, if there were anyone around to see - way out in the middle of nowhere for days on end. If I remember correctly, you have gobs of solar and water onboard. :h and 😉

Actually it is weeks and weeks on end as I travel from the Mexican Border to the Canadian border every year. By that virtue I travel through 1 or 2 towns along the way. Just the hazard of being a fulltimer that does not stay in one location for very long.

You are correct, my rig is set up is to do just that, but just like Jerimiah Johnsone or Gil Favors and Rowdy Yates, there are times when "a fella just got to get into town to get the grub stake filled up and meet a few girls and get a warm bath."

Just like the article shared, I have family and with that, grandkids. So on occasion my boondocking just brings me into a city full of telephone poles and sidewalks. What is a person to do? Just to visit my son for two weeks in a Pacific Northwest metropolis and stay within walking distance of his home, in a neighborhood that harkens back to the 1920s? I guess you will need to read the article to learn the; "rest of the story."

Just like anyone you might know, even I like to come into town once in a while. Maybe some might like to learn how I do it? While doing it, never in all the hundreds of nights stealth camping, I have never been asked to move or been contacted by the police? The quick answer is not to stealth camp in a way or in a place that would cause me to be contacted or asked to move. Doing it legally and safely.

b

Naio wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:

So..the people

:S

I think most homeless people have that, too.

Geez, Naio.

Let it go.

b

[Naio]

Old-Biscuit wrote:

So..the people that act as Hosts in the various parks..the ones that full-time...they gotta leave too? Coo..I want to see that.

FTrs HAVE residential addresses..........legitimate 'physical' addresses recognized by FED/State entities via legitimate 'mail forwarding services'.

:S

I think most homeless people have that, too.

[Naio]

garyhaupt wrote:

Am I correct, that in the posters view, as long as person has 'other options' they are superior to anyone else and they can live on the street, but not if they don't have "other options".


There are so many people that have lost everything. Some due to the monetary/banking collapse. Some due to the closing of plants. Some due to other circumstances. How utterly arrogant to condemn those less fortunate. Do you look down your nose at them as you drive by? Do you speak poorly of them? Those of us that are 'ok'..we are SO fortunate. It is important to remember that.


Gary Haupt

Good lord, are you talking about me?!?

No, I do not look down my nose at people who can't afford stuff. What I feel towards them is empathy!

Maybe you did not read the whole post, or my other posts...