Walmart camping

[GerryS]

I did it. Pure desperation, but I slept at a Walmart. I'm not proud of it...but it wasn't that bad.

I was about an hour later than I thought I would be, and I knew I wouldn't make it to the check-in on time at my state park destination. I also didn't want to roll into a campground and start banging around at 11. So, I stopped at the next place i had a reasonable experience with...not the Walmart, but the city. I had an idea what to expect. I grew up 20 miles from there.

Security is critical, so I knew my windows would be closed and my doors. Since the temp were high 40s, keeping the windows closed wouldn't be a problem, I wouldn't need heat or AC. There's no way I would, or could have done this in the summer or winter.

As I expected, the highway sounds and trucks idling bothered me a little but t was tolerable. I can't say never again...it's a checkbox on my list of adventures. But I would never do it again voluntarily. Next time, I plan better and find another option. I definitely don't see the appeal.

I slept like a baby with the windows open, and the heated mattress pad on high. I also was twice blessed seeing old friends and family I hadn't seen in years.

[Socal Tom]

I've done it a few times. I've never had a problem the times I stayed there, but my concern kept me awake . I found it handy when driving cross country in an RV, but in a TD it was uncomfortable . The last time I did it was New Year's Eve. It was very quiet.
Tom

[GerryS]

I think a class X RV would be different....but a TD is a step up from a tent...I'll stick to campgrounds. It was a different kind of experience...

[Lgboro]

I spent over two months during a cross country trip and only stayed in a campground two nights (federal park at Grand Canyon with near 0 services) and had one of the best trip I ever had. Stayed mostly at large chain truckstops and local restaurants and bars parking lots. I still use them occasionally especially if I only going to be overnight and moving on in the morning.

[GerryS]

I don't see how it would be possible with lizards and the noise. But mostly heat. The airflow is the one major drawback in TD camping. Having to closed doors and windows is stuffy. I really missed having my windows open.

I know I am focused on the bad guys...but campgrounds filled with families are completely different than truck stops and Walmart parking lots. Not being able to open a door for fresh air would be tough. How do you handle that? Light too...I can see how you could get used to noise, once you get accustomed to reefer and APUs it's no different than crickets. But light is harder to sleep in and with..

As I said, it wasn't that bad...but there were definitely a few shortcomings over a quiet campground. And I can't see how to get past those....

[KennethW]

Gerry look up when in a Walmart parking lot. Their are tons of cameras. Why would you keep your windows shut. If someone wanted to get in, that glass would not slow him down any more then just a screen. I have never had a problem at a walmart. I am not going to drop $30+ to park for 8 hours when going across the country. Plus the time it take to find the camp ground and check in and park. With a Walmart I will be sleeping for a hour before you would be ready to hit the hay.
And on the road just as fast . I can also pick up stuff I need at the same time. I do stop as a campground when i need to shower or close to a place to see.

[darrellbeck]

Gerry look up when in a Walmart parking lot. Their are tons of cameras. Why would you keep your windows shut. If someone wanted to get in, that glass would not slow him down any more then just a screen. I have never had a problem at a walmart. I am not going to drop $30+ to park for 8 hours when going across the country. Plus the time it take to find the camp ground and check in and park. With a Walmart I will be sleeping for a hour before you would be ready to hit the hay.
And on the road just as fast . I can also pick up stuff I need at the same time. I do stop as a campground when i need to shower or close to a place to see.

I agree. There is only enough stopping power in a window, whether in a TD or at home, to keep an honest person honest. Also, many Walmart's have a security car that prowls the area all night. If they don't, it is usually because they have so little problem that one is not warranted. I have "camped" at Walmart many, many times in a motor-home, and several times in a TD. The only problem I have ever had was not with safety, but with not having an easily available rest-room when in the TD. I am handicapped and this creates some difficulty. That is why I sold the TD that both my wife and I loved, and am now getting to the end of converting a cargo trailer. If you are ever in the right place at the right time, there is no doubt in my mind that you will have many opportunities to see it at a Walmart.

[gudmund]

did it on Sunday nite coming home from the Dam Gathering - was surprised how busy they were just before midnite yet how quiet it was at 7am when I left. Had a good sleep and visit before I left. Would I do it again? You bet!!!!

[wincrasher]

I have no idea why you'd be afraid to sleep at a Walmart with a window or the roof vent open. Don't go thru life being afraid of everything. It's not healthy.

[ae6black]

On my TD, I'd be a little more fearful of a bear paw coming through my open vent or side window than I would a person. I think a bear's paw would fit better. Aren't too many bear paws in Walmart parking lots. Besides I think the guy on the outside trying to get in might be a little fearful of lead poisoning or getting a hunk of steel in his hand. I think the most uncomfortable thing for me in a walmart parking lot would be the necessity of probably sleeping in clothes in case a security guard or police asked me to move on out in the middle of the night.

Art

[GerryS]

I have no idea why you'd be afraid to sleep at a Walmart with a window or the roof vent open. Don't go thru life being afraid of everything. It's not healthy.

Roof vent is fine. It's side windows and open doors. Just running a roof vent with no openings is like living in a compressor tank or a vacuum chamber. You need windows on the sides open as well, and that is asking for trouble. Easy vs difficult., Thugs are lazy. Not to mention just stupid pranksters....as a yout, (did I say yout?) I would easily see water being introduced through the screen....or just messing with people. Inside, in a reduced state of consciousness or completely unconscious.

If you want to...go ahead. I just don't see the appeal....when for around $20 you can be in a quiet place, perhaps with a shower and a fire ring....TD is about the journey., slowing down, and seeing the world.

In an emergency (or when there simply isn't a place) Incan see Walmart being an option...that's where I was Friday... But I don't understand those who would use it almost as a destination stop. I'm fascinated by the idea of full time mobile living. People like nomadic fanatic...even though he's embroiled in controversy now....especially. Stealth camping just isn't my bag.. The cost factor is right. But for casual travel....hmmm.....I want a shower, and a toilet. It's my experience that vault toilets are sometimes less gross than a Walmart bathroom....like the one I was in this weekend.

[gudmund]

BEAR spray works for BEAR's and ........... And yes I have used it before (no bears yet, but I have used it and felt it in return)

[Vedette]

Gerry look up when in a Walmart parking lot. Their are tons of cameras. Why would you keep your windows shut. If someone wanted to get in, that glass would not slow him down any more then just a screen. I have never had a problem at a walmart. I am not going to drop $30+ to park for 8 hours when going across the country. Plus the time it take to find the camp ground and check in and park. With a Walmart I will be sleeping for a hour before you would be ready to hit the hay.
And on the road just as fast . I can also pick up stuff I need at the same time. I do stop as a campground when i need to shower or close to a place to see.

Exactly what I would have said + what darrellbeck said!!!
Walmarts are the Greatest for ones travelling needs!
Remember it is always nice to leave a few bucks in their store, as that is why you can camp and use their washroom facilities for free!!!!
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi
PS
We have our regulars on routes we take often.

[KennethW]

Gerry has a point it that Walmarting is not camping. It is more a rest and stretch stop.Or a sleepover. Not camping.I do not plan my sleepovers I drive until I am tired stop at a Wallmart or 24 hour grocery store and leave when I am rested. Walmart makes me a safer driver, in that I don't have to drive when tired to find and get to a campground. Many RVers use Walmart's, but you don't see them because they pull in at 10:00-10:30 or later and leave at 6:00-6:30 or when the sun comes up. Sometimes,One want to get across part of the country that is rather boring (sorry the middle of Nebraska and the middle of Montana is only scenic for a hour or so).
Plus, You can pick up Shampoo to replace the bottle you that in in the shower of your last campground . Or pickup a can opener or cutting board you forgot at home and the food to cut up and the cans to open.

[Backroads4me]

Remember it is always nice to leave a few bucks in their store, as that is why you can camp and use their washroom facilities for free!!!!

And please, don't defecate in the landscaping bunkers and leave used toilet paper all over the lot. YES, last summer some goof was long-term "camping" in the lot, along the outer edges near a landscape bunker of assorted shrubs and trees. Was there for three weeks, leaving his unhitched boat, and also occasionally his truck (he would bike somewhere). Though there are "No overnight RV or semi parking" signs at the entrance/exits, my local Walmart doesn't enforce it unless you become a pest, i.e, panhandling, or crapping in the landscaping.

First time he was caught he was told to hit the road, was gone a few weeks and then thought nobody would notice he was back. Second time a customer reported seeing him doing his business in the bushes, the cops were called and he was "invited" to do his business downtown. I pulled into the WM parking lot just as two wreckers were hauling his boat trailer and his truck out of there. He thought he was a smart guy by removing one of the wheels on the trailer, but the wrecker guys got the thing up on the hauler anyway.

While we've only gone on two to three day state park or forest camping trips, I'd plan my itinerary to avoid Walmart camping if we went on longer excursions. Bob knows there is no way in hell I want to awaken with the sun coming up over a Walmart sign. I've been working there for 24 years and I get enough Walmart when on duty.