Date: Fri, 15 Nov 96 23:58:26 EST
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: jag@cs.rochester.edu
Subject: Yes, move into the bus and travel the world! Was: Ever live in your bus?
At 01:10 PM 11/11/96 -0500, BUDWIL@AOL.COM wrote:
>In the next year or so I'll need to do some extensive travelling and I'm
>curious to hear from list members if anyone has spent an extended time living
>out of their bus. I would imagine this is easier to do in a Westy but I'd
>like to know of your experiences in any bus. How long did you live out of
>your bus? What camping equipment did you use? What about showers and calls
>of nature? Anyone aware of any books published on this type of living
>situation? It may seem crazy to some but I'll bet there are some people out
>there who have pulled this arrangement for longer than what most of us
>expect.
This year I spent five months on the road. Two months were in my VW bus,
the other in less luxurious rented cars (cheapest sub-compacts) and on trains.
Some things I have learned over the years: Pack like a backpacker. The
cavernous interior of a VW bus can easily lure you into over packing.
I pack like if I was going on a 1 week bushwalk, and then top off with
a few extra pieces of underwear to extend the period between laundry chores.
Get a good sleeping bag. Regular blankets (regardless of how many) take time
to warm up when you first tuck in. A lightweight (down, or top quality
synthetic) sleeping bag is warm and comfortable from the start.
Kitchen gear: I mostly use a backpackers set (MSR alpine), supplemented
with a real frying pan.
Other gear: In most places I go the truly extraordinary scenery (and
experiences) starts where the road ends. I use the bus as a base camp
for week long hikes, canoe and sail trips (sailing a small hobie cat).
Even if there is a road, exploring it by bike puts you in closer
contact with the surroundings than looking through the windshield of the bus.
Also many national parks have maintenance roads closed to auto traffic,
but open to bicycles. Fully expedition equipped the bus has the canoe
on top, bikes on a bike rack, and sometimes the hobie cat in tow.
Tools and parts: I try to be self sufficient in tools, but rely
on buying parts locally for unexpected problems. I do my preventive
maintenance and check ups. On the road repairs could probably be the
subject of a long thread of its own. Luckily I've only been disabled
and needed a tow two times in my life.
Misc. experiences I has this year. Listed by region:
Eastern USA: The tolerance for any behaviour deviating from normal
(suburban or rural) living is extremely low here. I normally try to
camp on public land and in parks, but occasionally I misjudge my
capacity for a long drive, and I have to stop for a nap somewhere else.
Often a rude awakening, blinded by a police searchlight follows.
"What seems to be the problem here?" or "Get outside, hands up against
the car". Yes, I've experienced this personally from US police officers,
not having provoked them in any way imaginable to me. I've had my
worst experiences in New York State and Florida (but don't let this deter
you. Backcountry camping in Everglades NP, Big Cypress swamp and
Biscayne NP have been some of my most rewarding experiences. (For some
photos and stories see my web pages:
http://www.cs.rochester.edu/u/jag/adventures/adventures.html
). Adirondacks in NY is also nice.
Western USA: Much better than the east. I've never had a problem
here. Of course it is much less crowded here than in the east, so
the likelihood of stepping on someones toes is much lower. However,
I do think John and Jane Doe here have a slightly better attitude than
in the east.
Ontario and Quebec (Canada): National parks tend to be over regulated,
just as in the US (e.g. "trail closed", "public barred from river bed").
Ontario has stupid and unfair "foreigner tax" for use of crown land. (Why
selectively charge nonresidents for use of unimproved public land (stolen
from the natives), while allowing free use of expensive improvements (roads,
public facilities etc.). However the awkwardness of government rules
is made up by the friendliness of the locals.
Europe: Attitude to "nomadic living" varies from tolerant in Scandinavia,
where the concept of private land does not include barring the public from
treading on it and (temporarily) camping on it, to somewhat less tolerant
(Germany worst) on the continent. I've never seen European property owners
littering their property with disgusting "POSTED" or "No Trespassing"
signs.
Australia: Has no trespassing laws, but the people are much more friendly
than in the USA. During some 3000km of driving this summer I only saw
one "No Trespassing" sign. Small towns take pride in welcoming visitors,
sometimes to the extent that they provide free hot showers and bathrooms!
(Also: a big thanks to the list members who helped me plan my Australia
trip this summer!)
Martin and '82 diesel Westy
--
Martin Jagersand email: jag@cs.rochester.edu
Computer Science Department jag@cs.chalmers.se
University of Rochester Fax: (716) 461-2018
Rochester, NY 14627-0226 WWW: http://www.cs.rochester.edu/u/jag/
