I Confess, I was a Stalker
Since we’ve been sitting stationary for longer than I hoped for, I thought I’d come clean. You see, I have a problem………..I’m a stalker. What can I say. I have a fetish for all things RV. Before Perl came into my life, I would see them gleaming from afar as I approached Wal-Mart. They hung out there on the black top taunting me. They were saying, “Oh, you know you want to start your journey but we’re already on the road so nanny, nanny boo boo.” So I would drive by and stalk them. I’d check out the makes and models, how old they were and dream of the chance to take one out in search of all the glorious things out there to see.
Yep folks, I used to stalk Wal-Mart parking lots and drool over what could be. Some of you might have wondered what in the world are RV’s doing hanging out in the parking lot? Some Wal-Marts, well, most of them, allow RV’s to stay overnight in their parking lots for free. This is typically called ‘boondocking’ or ‘dry camping’ do to the lack of hook-ups. The freebie is only for one night and then you must move on to another destination. And of course there are rules to abide by. Verify with the manager that it’s okay first, never leave trash behind, keep your jacks up and slides in, don’t run your generator and do a little shopping to say thanks. The last one is optional but I usually use the opportunity to stock up on some things.
There is even an app that you can download that allows you to check and see which Wal-Marts allow you to overnight in their parking lots. It’s really handy and worth checking out if you’re an RV owner. It’s put out by the Allstays, LLC folks. It’s updated regularly and will even map you to your chosen Wal-Mart. They include Wal-Marts in the U.S. and Canada. The company also has a lot of other neat apps on their website for RVers or travelers in general. They’re worth taking a peek at.
But if you’re looking for free places to park overnight, Wal-Mart isn’t the only place that welcomes RV’s. There is Bureau of Land Management (BLM) sites, casino’s, Costco’s, vineyards, retail stores, truck stops, restaurants, rest areas, city and county parks and more. And where can you find out about such gems? There is a website called Overnight RV Parking that lists all the places one can stay overnight for free or very low-cost. You can even search by state.
Now that I own an RV, I must admit that whenever I go shopping at Wal-Mart and see a fellow RV’er hanging out at Wal-Mart for the night, I still like to drive by and check out their rig. But I’m probably the stalked now rather than the stalker! And that’s okay. If you ever see me hanging out at Wal-Mart for the night, please stop and say ‘hi’.
{HUGS} from the Crew!
Hello there! It’s me :-). If you’re ordering anything from AMAZON in the near future, please think of me over here. You can help me out by clicking on the link above or using the Amazon display. Thank you SO much. It means a lot to me!
