Joined 2 online boondocking sites. CT sucks.

[Cheryl_B]

There are plenty of cool websites for folks looking to hook up with other people who have places for you to dry camp for a night or two, unless you live in my area of CT.

How do you find folks who might be willing to let you park for a few nights a week when you're in a certain area? A power hookup would be nice but I don't even care about that. Just a safe, quiet place to park where I won't get thrown out in the middle of the night by some police person.

Thank you all. 🙂

[Cheryl_B]

No, I won't be anywhere Hartford and avoiding any town that even FEELS city-like.

I decided to book one week at a very local campground so I can settle into my new space, get it organized and tightly packed to cut down on the clanging noises, and flush out all the holding tanks well. I hope they have good wifi. After that, I'll be boondocking.

[KristinU]

The problem with Connecticut (at least in the Hartford area) is that we just don't have any space. Heck, we can hardly park in our own driveway...not because of ordinances or anything like that, but because of the congested neighborhood and narrow streets. I think you'd have better luck with a class B - I see a Pleasure Way around town a lot. Sometimes along the river front park in Hartford, sometimes at the Walmart or Sam's parking lot in Manchester, but I'm not sure where they're spending the night. I think Cabela's in East Hartford allows overnights, they at least have a dump station there (but no fresh water for refilling and it is $5 to dump now). Walmart in Manchester doesn't look to allow RVs, but that class B seems to go stealthy. I have seen a couple of larger RV's at the back corner of the Sam's parking lot in Manchester every now and again.

My parents were hosts at the COE Campground out in West Thompson for the last two years (they're off to other adventures this year), it is a nice clean and quiet little park and reasonable site fee for electric and water hookups, but not free. Also, you do need to reserve the hookup sites since it is small to begin with and only half of the sites have them. Not sure where in CT you need to be close to, though...that could be way out of your way.

[Cheryl_B]

That's the other one I joined. LOL! Just doesn't help much when you're stationary in one area of a state. Sounds like it won't be long before my mom moves to live with family in Indiana anyway. I'll only be here through September, if that.

[mda]

If you travel a lot and our looking for a free place to spend the night, this website is very accurate and continually updated. You have to pay $25/year, but it is well worth one nights camping charge.

http://www.overnightrvparking.com

[Cheryl_B]

Mom lives in an elderly place with rigid rules and regs. I don't know people with land. I'm not someone who is very social and so knowing people, while it's the best way to locate what you need, isn't my strong suit. I did do a CL search for parking places and nothing came up.

[Naio]

Can you affard to pay a small amount?

If so you could post an ad on Craigslist, and look at ads already there, to rent a 'parking spot' in someone's driveway or a apartment parking lot, etc. $50-100 for the month, maybe. You would probably have to go elsewhere to dump.

Why can't you park at your mom's?

[GordonThree]

Cheryl_B wrote:
Well, that's a relief about the street sweeper. I was surprised to read that in someone else's review of Walmart boondocking. You'd think that the kid problem wouldn't be a nightly thing, cause of security driving through every so often. They do that, don't they?

Not much security can do, it's kids, driving around the parking lot. Some of them are paying customers... their cars are just really loud.

I've never lived at a Walmart, can't speak to it being nightly or not.

[Cheryl_B]

Well, that's a relief about the street sweeper. I was surprised to read that in someone else's review of Walmart boondocking. You'd think that the kid problem wouldn't be a nightly thing, cause of security driving through every so often. They do that, don't they?

[GordonThree]

Cheryl_B wrote:
I hear Walmart has a parking lot sweeping truck that goes through every night around 2 am. Is that really true? That would really be annoying!

I've never seen/heard a sweeping truck. The only negative Walmart experiences I've encountered overnighting tend to be youthful crowds putting on performance with their exhaust and stereos midnight through 3-4am. If they're particularly exuberant, I crank up the generator and run my AC fan. It's SO LOUD I can't hear anything happening outside.

[Cheryl_B]

Yeah, I'll be learning through experience very soon. Checking local ordinances is very important. I'll try to do that whenever I have access to the internet. I think maybe places like Lowes and Home Depot might also be willing to allow an overnight now and again. I'll always talk to the manager in charge before I get cozy in a level spot. I'll ask where I should try to park, etc.

What I'm hoping to find are some dirt pull-off areas on longer, country roads where the houses are spread out and none of the houses will even see me from where I'm parked. That would be my ideal boondocking spot. I hear Walmart has a parking lot sweeping truck that goes through every night around 2 am. Is that really true? That would really be annoying!

[wbwood]

Off Pavement wrote:
We don't belong to any paid boondocking or camping groups, but our website received a link request from this outfit recently that lists some Connecticut possibilities. Not a recommendation, just another possible resource...

Boondockers Welcome

Do their affiliate thing...we did and I believe we got paid for at least one sign up....

[mgirardo]

A handful of years ago, we had a guy with an old Dodge based Class C ,a little on he rough side, but not an eyesore. We called him the lonely camper since he was by himself. He full timed in his camper. Spent late spring, summer and early fall here, then headed somewhere else (I guess further south/southwest) for the winter. He never stayed in the same place 2 nights in a row. He rotated between 4 or 5 different places to spend the night. He would often times spend the night in public places, like Boat ramps. We have about a half dozen within a few miles radius of our house.

As far as I know, there are no ordinances against parking overnight in open public places in our county. I would imagine CT is a little more uptight, especially in more urban areas. Spend some time online researching the ordinances of the parts of the state you are interesting in spending the night. Make sure you know what the rules are in case you run into a conflict. Education is your best defense.

I would have no qualms staying at the same Walmart night after night, as long as I'm not there during the day. Walmart isn't going to care. Just don't setup camp there. Our lonely camper would spend his days in different places than he spent the night. Often times, he'd spend the day at Flying J in a RV parking spot.

-Michael

[Cheryl_B]

That's a bad situation, Bordercollie. I'm obviously behind any ordinances that keep that from happening. If people can see that you've been there, you're doing it all wrong.

[Cheryl_B]

That's one of the ones I joined. I'm in the western portion of CT. I'm looking for places in and around Bristol and west of Bristol. Litchfield County. Harwinton, and places north and west of those places.

I saw a lot of State Park info on that other website that was recommended here yesterday but they charge a fee so that won't work for the usual boondocking night.