We have built our bus so we can travel self contained for fairly long periods of time (5 to 7 days) so as we drive sometimes it starts to get dark and not wanting to miss out on the scenery in new and different parts of the country we like to stop and get moving when the sun is shining. In Colorado it says you can't park overnight BUT we have and not been bothered --- they are closing more and more "rest" areas so we keep notes on where there are "safe" places to park to catch forty winks before getting back on the road.
What are your experiences parking overnite in rest areas and have you seen signs at new Walmarts prohibiting overnite parking??? I "have been told" that this is the policy at "new" Walmarts. Just wanting to see what experiences other people have had.
Melbo
Here in Pearland Texas the Walmart has signs saying no truck or bus parking. Nobody has ever said anything to me when I pull up and park on our way out somewhere.
We stop overnight in rest areas and Walmarts and all kinds of other places, including on side streets if it looks ok. We try to get a feel for the place re: getting a knock on the door at 3AM by security or the police telling us to move. We stay also at casinos, Cabelas, truck stops some times (they can be noisy with trucks or their APUs idling, same with rest areas). Or in restaurant parking lots after asking the staff during supper. That is the beauty of a motor-home: sleep in it pretty well anywhere we end up that night. Speaking of WMs, we have stayed a few times at the one in Kennewick, Wa, where there are signs: "no overnight parking, by city bylaw...". I've asked the manager there who told me that was OK, we are welcome to stay. I am always a little concerned about our safety, but so far so good. The bad guys would have to break in through the front door or a window first. We keep 3 cans of wasp spray, one at the front, one in the kitchen, and one in the bedroom. You know us Canadians aren't allowed hand guns... You might be more vulnerable at lunch time with the door open. This local couple from our town got murdered about 15 years ago like that at lunch time at a rest area in Mexico by 2 American fugitives for the spare change in their wallet... We prefer WMs open 24 hours and park under a street light if possible.
JC
Where do you make the split from taking a rest and overnighting?
Art
Art
If I sleep on the couch is that rest and if I sleep in the bed is that staying overnight???
I guess that is my question -- particularly in Colorado at STATE rest stops
Melbo
Quote from: ArtGill on September 14, 2010, 06:03:23 PM
Where do you make the split from taking a rest and overnighting?
Art
if I leave my pants on, I'm taking a rest. If I get into bed in my drawers, I'm overnighting...
I have so far overnighted in truck stops and Walmarts, but if I can I find a campground. I like to be able to have the power on the pole, dump, and get some fresh water, but I can overnight dry for a week if I have to.
Brian
I have been staying in rest areas for as long as they've had them. No trouble. My feeling is that if you get up in the morning and leave then all is well. So far so good.
Jerry
We spend a lot of nights at walmarts. About half the time we ask, but not always. The only time we got rejected was in Weslaco Tx. We drove a few miles west to the next walmart, and they had a section of the parking lot reserved for motorhomes and trucks, even had a welcoming sign! Go figure. But i sure cant see spending 35.00 or more to grab a handful of hours sleep.
We stop at rest areas for a rest or nap. But we often spend the night at Walmarts. We check this site
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/walmartrving/ (http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/walmartrving/)
before we stop. Although not always correct, it usually is so we haven't been asked to leave yet. I also check in with them when we arrive. That way they know we're there and we know they don't care...Cable
We use WM parking as much as possible because of the good 24 hour security, lighted parking and the convenience of shopping.
Truckstops are our second choice for the same reasons as WM but it is sometimes hard to find decent surfaces for parking, too many of them are dusty gravel full of huge holes. If you park between semis be sure to place the front of the bus even with the front of the truck tractors so it doesn't appear that the space is empty. It would sure ruin your sleep at 2AM to have a trailer back into the front of your bus!
We don't mind the trucks, the steady drone of their engines and refer units drown out all the other noise. WM parking lots are not quiet!! Don't park next to the WM driveways or gas stations if possible, they have a lot of traffic.
Parking is not the same as camping. I've seen people get out their grills and chairs, let their kids play ball and romp with their pets and generally make nuisances of themselves. These people just cause more store managers to restrict parking for the rest of us.
Parking is parking, not camping. A lot of people don't seem to understand this.
Rest area parking is too isolated late at night and there have been some really brutal attacks on people parked late at night at rest stops. We never use them.
Cracker Barrel is supposed to be good but we've never used them. Their parking lots are really hard to access sometimes. We prefer a place that is well lighted, open 24 hrs and not isolated.
Hey Mel, We found it tough in the "Rest Area Overnite Parking" due to all the trucks running alllllll night long. I know, we got to have trucks but can't they turn them off ???
M&C Hargis
We've used rest areas ,walmarts,Sam's with no problems ever. The only issue we ever had was when we were getting the early jump on hurricane Wilma and had to sleep at a rest area. With all the prior rushed packing and cane proofing I just ran out of steam and stopped at " Coconut Creek"on the fl. tnpk when we got to the tollbooth the next morn they charged us an extra $15 for our 7 hour "rest" stop.
i've never stayed at a walmart that put up a no parking sign. i have stayed at walmart's who have a sign prohibiting overnite parking by trucks and and RV's. most of those are due to a city council, not walmart, so it's up to the locals who don't usually want that duty.
we've stayed in lowe's, home depot, cracker barrel, flying j, pilot, deserted shop centers and other places we feel safe due to lights and traffic. rest stops don't usually feel safe enough. Sometimes we ask unless it's obvious someone else already has. Rest stops are just too full of people in and out for us, but if i were asked to move, i'd want to remind them i'm too tired to drive and i'd like a badge number if they insist, so i can explain why i fell asleep while driving. they will probably leave you alone. how do they know how long you've been there?
No W/M store owned by W/M will prohibit overnight parking if the local ordinances allow it, just stay out of the truck lane some of the leased stores the owners do but those are easy to spot they will be in a shopping center, with the company stores all other businesses are located on out lots never next to the store.
One great thing about NV they don't allow trucks in the rest area and trucks are prohibited from idling all night,but that doesn't stop the stupid refer engine
good luck
We just stayed in a Casino parking lot in Nice, CA. ate dinner and breakfast there and donated a few bucks to the machines. :) The next nite we were going to stay at one of the Walmarts in Fresno, but they told us that even though some people do it and get away with it, the local PD can and will give a ticket if they come by and see you. They did say that at one of the other stores it was ok to stay. We ended up parked on the street in front of RJ Long's place and went out for a great dinner with them. RJ and i talked buses until 1 am and then again for several hours in the morning before we left. Thanks again RJ!!!! ;D
Yup, as Ed said. . . and here's proof:
Ed,
Sweet coach guy, You went right by us if you took 5 down from Nice. Maybe 101?
We are just8 minutes east of Sacramento off 80.
Dave
We stop and stay overnight at rest area's all the time.
I have never even had the first sign of an issue ever.
I always go for the farthest parking spot from the rest area restrooms, and with the most lighting.
I leave the close spots for the working truckers. This also keeps most of the in and out traffic, and the noise away from us. So far so good.
Many rest area's have separate RV only and RV/Truck parking spots. I find it annoying and a discourtesy when I see RV's using the truck side, which is full, when they could use the RV section.
Funny enough, as compared to some others statements, I would feel safer at the rest area than a Walmart. I work quite a few overnights, and am all over the place, I see and run into more strange individuals in the wee hours of the morning "In Town" than on the road at the "rest area's". Just an observation......
Cliff
The following link will give you all the information on available WalMart parking. We have only stayed at one and no one gave us the boot, even the security guy waved at us!
http://www.allstays.com/c/wal-mart-locations.htm (http://www.allstays.com/c/wal-mart-locations.htm)
Quote from: FloridaCliff on September 14, 2010, 11:09:27 PM
Funny enough, as compared to some others statements, I would feel safer at the rest area than a Walmart. I work quite a few overnights, and am all over the place, I see and run into more strange individuals in the wee hours of the morning "In Town" than on the road at the "rest area's". Just an observation......
Cliff
Cliff,
I know what you mean. If you do not beleive Aliens have landed on earth, go to a WalMart late at night! Jack
Trailer trash are lucky, they get a park, being bus trash I gotta stay at truck stops. ;D
With Arkansas plates on your rig, if you park at any WM outside of NW Arkansas the store management and employees really freak out, lol.
We still had Yankee plates on last year. We stayed at a WM in Cameron MO., and then pulled right back out about an hour and a half later. The locals seem to not know what mufflers are, and thought the parking lot made a nice drag strip, mostly past our rig, and where we parked seemed a good place to hang out and loiter. If they were'nt drag racing, they were laughing and yelling. I believe they knew we pulled in to crash and tried to be as obnoxious as possible and it worked. The cops would drive through ever 10 minutes or so and do nothing. Guess they dont need outside income, we will bypass the area from here on out.
Dave, we came down 5 and even at the last few seconds i was debating about taking 80 and going to Reno. :) Maybe next time when we come down this way. ;D
Maybe it's just me but I took a shower in a walmart parking lot once and felt really strange about it as I could hear people walking by (it was the middle of the day). Of course all the blinds were closed and everything...... it just felt weird lol
Blinds? You must have been in your coach lol.
Quote from: gus on September 14, 2010, 07:04:58 PM
We use WM parking as much as possible because of the good 24 hour security, lighted parking and the convenience of shopping.
Parking is not the same as camping. I've seen people get out their grills and chairs, let their kids play ball and romp with their pets and generally make nuisances of themselves. These people just cause more store managers to restrict parking for the rest of us.
Parking is parking, not camping. A lot of people don't seem to understand this.
You are right on Gus. I spent the night at Walmart in Canon City CO once and a guy across the lot was there. Being friendly, I went over to visit and he said he stays there about 4-5 days then moves to a town nearby for 4-5 days then returns. He does this all summer with awning out, BBQ pit, etc. I made the comment, "You're going to ruin it for guys like me to stop in and just rest for a few hours." He looked at my bus and said, "I don't have the money you have. I've got to watch my dollars." He was insulted to put it mildly.
"Walmart parking etiquette" gets brought up regularly on the Escappees board and the majority consensus is to be discrete and courteous, so we won't lose the privilege across the country. Not too many questions asked about rest areas, though.
When I park at Wal Mart I try to be as stealthy as I can in a 40' coach, and my wife nearly always buys something in the store. We always try to be out as soon as the sun rises. This is a very nice privilege that Wal Mart gives us, and I have always appreciated it.
Back to the original rest area question. I've never overnighted in one, but would if I needed to.
David
Hmm, I guess it is much more polite to just take a shower in the parking lot with blinds pulled then to put out an awning and BBQ with shoppers and carts and people going by lol ;D
theres always the outside shower and you can gain a huge following.....just sayin
Teresa, If you're gonna take a shower in the parking lot, why close the blinds in the bus?...Cable
Quote from: happycamperbrat on September 15, 2010, 11:23:58 AM
Hmm, I guess it is much more polite to just take a shower in the parking lot with blinds pulled then to put out an awning and BBQ with shoppers and carts and people going by lol ;D
Unless you shower with the blinds UP, AND have out lawn chairs and a grill. If anyone asks what your cookin, tell em its Possum or Woodchuck. For added effect, it helps if your gnawing on a tough hunk of jerky while you ask if they wanna try some. Mmmmm, mmmmm. Soon youll have the whole place to yourself.
Hey Ed, Nice looking coach! Glad you got to stop by RJ, something that is on my bucket list!
Paul
The only WM I've been refused parking was in Redding, CA and they are very adamant about it.
I wrote the city a nasty email and they came right back justifying their policy which they attribute to "complaining nearby houses", which I don't believe. I told them I think it is because of local RV parks and they were very indignant about this. We actually over-nighted there once and had one of the managers banging on the door at 7am. We missed seeing the signs when we drove in. He was very nice and gave his well practiced speech and then told us to come back again. We haven't.
City ordinances really don't apply to WM because it is private property but some WM managers don't understand this. I got this cleared up via some emails to the mayor, city council and police dept in Missoula, MT a few years ago and we now park there all the time. The officials couldn't have been nicer about it and the whole sign bit was because of a misunderstanding by the WM manager.
Small town WM lots are magnets for local kids to hang out and some are really noisy. Once in IL I invited some teenagers to a tour of the inside of my bus when they showed interest in it. I often get asked the age of the bus which never fails to impress younger folks.
Actually, most WM lots, especially in small towns, are better than TV "reality" shows. We've seen more than one meeting between the opposite sexes at far corners of those lots!! Never a dull moment!!
We have stayed in a few rest areas and have never felt uncomfortable. In fact the only place that bothered me was when we stayed in a wide spot right off of the junction of Hiway 58 and the road going to California CIty. Lots of traffic from people going or coming to work at Edwards Air Force Base, but i just had a feeling about it. Nothing happened but i learned a long time ago to listen to my feelings. That is the only place where i made sure that i had something right at hand in case it was needed. :)
One strange place we stayed at was in eastern kentucky back in 2002, we were heading to Summersville west virginia for a bluegrass fest and at about 3am I was tired so we pulled into a strip mall for a couple hours sleep, I just reclined and slept in the drivers seat, one thing I noticed were an unusually high number of police cars cruising by, my thoughts were that they sure do patrol this area and then I went to sleep, as daylight hit I woke up and looked out, we had pulled in beside a police station, in their parking lot lol. I went in and thanked the desk sargent for the nights parking, he laughed and said it was a first for them and at lineup the captain had told the guys to not rev their engines, let the yankees sleep he said lol.
Good story Cody! ;D
The only bad experience I ever had was at a golf course. I spent the night and awoke to the sound of smashing glass at about 3am. I got up and turned on a light and heard a male voice say "someone's in there" and he jumped into a truck and sped off!! It was my bathroom window in my prior s&s. These two kids had been running around that night for about a 5 mile stretch bashing in any parked car or motorhome's window they saw!
I didn't used to worry about rest areas, until the last maybe 10 years, when I started reading more and more about states closing their rest areas because of all the drug dealing that was going on in them. THAT got my attention, and I realized that seldom were rest areas in a populated area, and that it would not be hard to park in front and behind an RV and possibly block it in. . sure, I guess you COULD ram your way out, but how long would it be before someone got to that "rural" location.
We decided that for safety's sake, we just feel a little more comfortable where are are more people and businesses close by. . nothing is guaranteed of course, but we try to avoid putting ourselves in a situation where we "have" to defend ourselves. . not that we don't carry the means to do so, but it seems prudent to avoid the situation up front. The same with paying attention to your surroundings. . . often, you can tell whether you are in a, oh, "seedy" area of town if you just take a look at the streets and sidewalks. . . older and less affluent areas often have numerous road patches, cracked sidewalks, weeds growing up in the parking lots, bars on the store windows, all indicative of the type of neigborhood. Since we travel to cities where we may not know anyone, we pay attention to these things to, again, avoid putting ourselves in a "situation".
Anyway, my rambling point is that unless you really know the area well, you likely will not know if the rest area is truly a peaceful place to stop, or if it's know in the underground as a "money-maker" for the wrong type of people. Christy Hicks
Ed,
Glad you had a good time with RJ, Someday Hopefully we will get down there to meet and see him also. We will be here probably until December and then we will be full time also but probably in a RV park or at a friends 40 acres in Cool.
Dave
I do suppose a place where everything has bars on the windows wouldnt be a good sign, but there are some parts of the country where thats just the area culture. I think you can find trouble anywhere, even in areas that we would normally think are safe, and maybe even more so. Drug dealing is everywhere, I dont think any area is immune, regardless of the "class" of neighborhood. Wealthy people are doing drugs just as much as poor people, they just buy better drugs and more of it.
I dont generally like desolate rest areas. I think there is safety in numbers. same with anywhere else.
Depending on the location, I leave the clearance lights on, or otherwise present the coach as definitely occupied.
A TV on up front, sound off, blinds pulled, leaves those outside with the impression someone is present and awake.
If there is some lighting, and there are long haul trucks parked, it's good enough for me.
happy coaching!
buswarrior
Quote from: buswarrior on September 16, 2010, 11:21:46 PM
Depending on the location, I leave the clearance lights on, or otherwise present the coach as definitely occupied.
buswarrior
Thats one I hadnt really given much thought. You see trucks parked with clearance lights, never thought of doing it myself.
Whats the opinion leaving a bus idling while parked? Sounds like a 2 stroke dont really like it all that much.
Quote from: artvonne on September 17, 2010, 08:42:36 AM
Thats one I hadnt really given much thought. You see trucks parked with clearance lights, never thought of doing it myself.
The clearance lights might also help keep a truck from backing into you when you are parked at a truckstop.
go read the archives about idling.
No need to stir that up here.
happy coaching!
buswarrior
Folks, it's 95 plus degrees, I am sleeping in my truck, why would I shut it off!
Clifford, I look where I am parking, I too stay away from trucks with reefers...and I used to drive one!
Christy, the rest areas are closing because the states are running out of money. Rest areas that are patrolled have very little problems.
And as states are enacting no idle laws for trucks you will see experienced drivers leaving the ranks in droves...which leaves a new crop of rookie drivers that will be killing themselves and others in numbers that will astound you!
Read the laws, most say you can't idle unless the temperature is below freezing or above 90 something. Now picture yourself trying to get the rest you need to be safe at let's say 90 degrees...or 35 degrees. But now get this...if you have a pet you can idle at any temperature! Now that's putting pets over humans! I for one am fed up with it and pretty close to hanging it up because of the BS!
Jack, it probably didn't come outright from me but the idle deal in NV applies to RV generators also we are not allowed to run the generators overnight in a rest area in NV either, that why you drive like like hell to get north of Vegas cools down in a hurry 100 miles north of Vegas.
I do understand the refer but those things do make racket I can live with a truck idling the refer drive me nuts and I do respect the truck driver when running the generator I try to find a spot not close to a truck when running it and 95% of the drivers will return the same courtesy and then you have the other 5% that park in your bedroom windows
I see were El Paso and Phoenix have passed a no idle law they have those things with the air coming in from tube at the truck stops in Phoenix now and heard it cost 20 bucks a night, probably a little lobbying come from that outfit and the ones that make the self contained unit some trucks have who knows
good luck
Clifford, please don't get me started about 'IdleAir' as it was/is called!
They came into being by getting cities, counties and big govment to give them money to build the giant gantries to provide heat, air conditioning and entertainment to those that would give up about $20.00 a day/night to use the service! It did not go over well to say the least! In fact straight into bankrupcy! And left behind a lot of no idling laws fresh on the books that they talked cities and counties to enact. Now some clowns have bought the carcass and hope to make it work.
The EPA is helping to ruin this country folks!
I parked at Sears Town in Key West, which up until a couple years ago didn't care if an RV stayed a few night. At 3am, I was woke by a tow truck guy telling me I had to move. I laughed, told him I had been drinking for 4 hours and not about to start the engine. He said he would have to tow me. Looking over his shoulder, I laughed, and ask, WE THAT! ??? He had a small, move a VW tow truck. Told him I would be gone before Sears open the next day and wished him a good night. ;)
Bill
Kwajalein, RMI
Quote from: jackhartjr on September 17, 2010, 06:33:44 PM
Clifford, please don't get me started about 'IdleAir' as it was/is called!
They came into being by getting cities, counties and big govment to give them money to build the giant gantries to provide heat, air conditioning and entertainment to those that would give up about $20.00 a day/night to use the service! It did not go over well to say the least! In fact straight into bankrupcy! And left behind a lot of no idling laws fresh on the books that they talked cities and counties to enact. Now some clowns have bought the carcass and hope to make it work.
The EPA is helping to ruin this country folks!
They were also being sued for the death of a trucker and the outright CO poisoning of his wife. Never did hear the outcome of the lawsuit, but they both were hooked up to a Idle Aire which malfunctioned and spread CO throughout the cab of their truck. It also really screwed up the parking where it was installed.
BCO
Another problem with the IdleAir system is that if the previous user was a heavy smoker, you would pay $ 20.00 for privledge to know that...
Other problems listed here have killed this system. I personnally thought this was a great idea so as to offset or save the truckers fuel costs, but nada.
Gary