Of course there a forum for this! 😊

[Tar3636]

I am SO excited I stumbled onto this forum. I have had this idea in my head for years and now I find its really ‘a thing’!
So so sooo many questions! Is there a sticky thread that answers all the basics? But I do have one very fundamental question where do you park these vehicles when traveling? Do they have places for them and that’s a thing too?
I’m so fascinated by this, I’ve said this to my husband so many times - I think it’s time to formulate a plan to see if this is really feasible for us as a means of traveling during retirement!
Any direction and guidance appreciated!
~T

 

[ol trunt]

Watch out! Once you've caught the bug it is incurable!
Jack

 

[HazMatt-SKO]

That is one of the easiest questions yet!
It's completely impossible to park these beasties while traveling.
If you're traveling, you're in motion, if you're in motion, you can't be parked.
Ergo, you must be in perpetual motion.
I'd patent that before going to bed, if I were you...
Welcome to the asylum!

 

[Tar3636]

Touche’ HazzMat! Let me rephrase, when you’re done traveling for the day, where would you park your bus so that you can sleep?
How’s that?
@Jack....I’m part of a team and only one of us is on board at this point....I’ve still got some convincing to do....I’ve still got to gather my research and buy a bus b4 I present this awesome idea
~T

 

[cadillackid]

That is one of the easiest questions yet!
It's completely impossible to park these beasties while traveling.
If you're traveling, you're in motion, if you're in motion, you can't be parked.
Ergo, you must be in perpetual motion.
I'd patent that before going to bed, if I were you...
Welcome to the asylum!

if you install LIDAR perhaps you could go to bed while still in motion? oh wait some of the TESLA drivers have tried that and Crashed.. bad idea..


-Christopher

 

[bigskypc50]

You can park them anywhere it does not say "No Overnight Parking" and you feel safe. I for one like truck stops and Walmarts. But many like national forest land BLM land etc. RV parks can be problems, but some of the tastefully done bus's seem to be able to get in ok.

But I do have one very fundamental question where do you park these vehicles when traveling? Do they have places for them and that’s a thing too?

 

[Drew Bru]

I’m so fascinated by this, I’ve said this to my husband so many times - I think it’s time to formulate a plan to see if this is really feasible for us as a means of traveling during retirement!
~T

Its feasible for us, we retired and started full time 3 months ago. There's TONS of public land out west where you can park for FREE for a couple weeks at a clip. Of course there's state, county and private campgrounds as well and they usually have water and/or electric. We've not needed hookups since we left, we can go 10-12 days before we need to get water or dump our grey tank. It's been pretty fun, challenging, and it's keeping us engaged in life. So, yes, they do have places to park these things! Here's a few of the places we've parked.

 

[HazMatt-SKO]

I'd be a bald-faced lidar if I said that was a GOOD idea! [emoji6]
Anyway, Tesla's are over-rated, IMO...

if you install LIDAR perhaps you could go to bed while still in motion? oh wait some of the TESLA drivers have tried that and Crashed.. bad idea..


-Christopher

Apologies for the relativistically existential answer. Knowing full well it wouldn't help, my geeky mentality frequently fancies flights of the foolishly fantastical.
Alliteration aside, I reckon it really depends on your intended use. Will you be amblers or road warriors? Shore power or off-grid?
Consensus has it that KOAs aren't Skoolie friendly, and occasionally other RV parks. BLM, NFS, NPS are usually good options for either roughing it or "civilized" camping. There may be length restrictions, so best to call ahead instead of wandering up only to be turned away...
Which brings up the type of bus you decide to get. If you plan to stay in the flatlands you'll have more options to choose from than if mountain climbing, given that many busses are geared for town travel, and while barely capable of staying out of harm's way on the hiways, are painfully slow going up grades.
Transit style busses draft little water, so they'd inhibit taking nearly any road less travelled, given the increased likelihood of bottoming out on a dirt road's high crown.
For short-terming it, many Y'allMarts and Cracker Barrels permit overnight camping.
Truck stops are another option, tho noisy what with hundreds of diesels idling the night away. It's considered good form to park in a less accessible area, given those other drivers can get downright pissy if you park in a prime location nearer to the facilities. Who can blame 'em? They're working for a living, while we're living a loafing lifestyle!
Some hiway rest areas post restrictions forbidding overnighting, but the majority aren't so draconian. Worst case is a 3 AM rap at the door from Officer Friendly asking you to move along.
I'm sure there's more, but I'm burning daylight here in TX, the kind that hasn't started really burning, yet.
Good luck bringing the hubby 'round!

Touche’ HazzMat! Let me rephrase, when you’re done traveling for the day, where would you park your bus so that you can sleep?
How’s that?
@Jack....I’m part of a team and only one of us is on board at this point....I’ve still got some convincing to do....I’ve still got to gather my research and buy a bus b4 I present this awesome idea
~T

 

[Sehnsucht-SKO]

One thing I was schooled about was the interstate rest areas which often have no overnight parking signs. Of course as a truck driver this is at odds with federal regulations which dictate how long a truck driver can drive and once that time is up he\she must stop at the closest reasonable safe haven which a rest area is. Having found myself in that situation on occasion (especially in TN which I'll address later) I made it a point to speak to the 24-hour staffed attendant in the welcome center who informed me that they only put up those signs so that if they need to evict someone from the premises they have the weight of law and appropriate signage to enforce it. They are not trying to penalize truckers or probably anyone else for that matter but they get fidgety when a bus or van or something sets up camp long term in the parking lot or starts a roadside sale or drinking/drugs etc. I suspect a bus or RV arriving doesn't raise any red flags but if it sits longer than overnight or tents and awnings and lawn chairs start deploying that's a red flag. So the staff can speak up or call local law enforcement to remove the offenders and they can point to the signs as justification.

Now, pertaining to Tennessee specifically, I noticed they put up these signs and also closed a number of rest areas which a lot of states did for budgetary reasons. This seemed to correspond to the same period when Pilot and Flying J truck stops started annexing ever larger portions of their parking lots into this reserved paid parking scheme in which truckers are expected to pay to park overnight yet few fleets will reimburse for this. The coincidence became less coincidental upon realizing then TN governor Haslam is the brother of the CEO of Pilot/Flying J. This was simply a scheme to deprive truckers of free parking options in order to drive them towards paid parking options which directly enriched the same family as was making the laws. Nothing shady going on there, right?! LOL

Anyways, HazMatt touched on a point I always like to make which is that while not the most ideal option for RVs/skoolies, truck stops are an option as long as you're respectful of the reality the those big rigs are working for a living and doing so under very stressful conditions with ever-increasing restrictions and regulations being forced down their throats so don't go out of your way to antagonize them or they might remind you that you don't really belong.

 

[Tall Grass]

rest areas CAN BE very dangerous.

 

[HazMatt-SKO]

They can be.
Slinging your legs over the bed's edge can be hazardous, too.
Two advises: carry an aerosol of capsaicin loaded dog spray,
Eschew wearing the t-shirt broadly emblazoned,
VICTIM
You'll be fine... [emoji106]

 

[HappyInTN]

I am SO excited I stumbled onto this forum. I have had this idea in my head for years and now I find its really ‘a thing’!
So so sooo many questions! Is there a sticky thread that answers all the basics? But I do have one very fundamental question where do you park these vehicles when traveling? Do they have places for them and that’s a thing too?
I’m so fascinated by this, I’ve said this to my husband so many times - I think it’s time to formulate a plan to see if this is really feasible for us as a means of traveling during retirement!
Any direction and guidance appreciated!
~T

You are in the right place.. There are answers for everything here. Check out the search bard in the top center of the page.. Good luck shaking the bug. You'll be converting your own in no time.

 

[Tall Grass]

They can be.
Slinging your legs over the bed's edge can be hazardous, too.
Two advises: carry an aerosol of capsaicin loaded dog spray,
Eschew wearing the t-shirt broadly emblazoned,
VICTIM
You'll be fine... [emoji106]

You are a caution!

 

[HazMatt-SKO]

Huh!
And I always thought I was more of a, "Reduced Speed Zone Ahead," kinda guy...