VAN LIFE SAFETY: How we stay safe in our van at campsites, dispersed camping areas and parking lots!

[@jazziered142]

Thank you for educating on caution over fear. Too many people let fear stop them from doing the things they love. I truly appreciate your perspective.

[@lottie2525]

You're so, so, so lucky with all these options. In the UK it's basically pay loads for an official campsite, usually not open year-round, or stealth camping and most places have signs saying 'no overnight', including supermarkets, shops, car parks etc.

[@mikeandheather]

You are right, we are very fortunate to have so many options! We would still love to do a van trip through the UK one day though. It sounds like we have to do some research before then to make sure we know our options. Thank you for the heads up and for watching, we really do appreciate it!

[@snickelporp]

All kinds of great information and thanks for presenting! For my window coverings I painted cardboard black and glued it to my Reflectix and use the black side out. It looks like I have very dark tinted windows. I tried gluing black fabric but that didn’t work well. I use the Reflectix side when in the sun all day. 😊

[@mikeandheather]

That is so smart! Too funny- we actually tried to glue black fabric on our original reflectix window coverings too. They turned out so bad we threw them out haha We then purchased two front windshield covers from Amazon that already had black on one side. We kept one as is for our front windshield cover, and the other, we cut up for the side windows haha Thank you so much for watching, we really do appreciate it!

[@karjurassic8364]

Have you ever considered Harvest Hosts? I was hiking around a chimpanzee rescue and there were spots in the parking designated for Harvest Hosts members. I noticed power and a porta potty, but not water. I think if you’re a member you’re not charged, but suggest a donation or purchase. Anyway, this was very well done, thorough and informative. Thank you! ✌🏻💕

[@mikeandheather]

You are right! Harvest Hosts is a great option for van lifers to spend the night! We did look into a membership and would have absolutely gotten one but in order to be a member, your van/rig has to meet certain requirements. One of the requirements is needing to have a stationary self contained bathroom, since we do not have one in our van we were unable to purchase the membership. Maybe one day if/when we upgrade our van we will look into it again 😊 Thank you for watching! Also, hiking around chimpanzee rescue sounds like an awesome time! Too cool!

[@u076216]

Many Tips for future Travellers in the States (for me for example), thanks !

[@mikeandheather]

Glad it was helpful! Thank you so much for watching, we really do appreciate it!

[@MICHELLE-gu2qc]

Great seeing you both. Very informative and helpful tips on safety. I want to go solo abit scared to be solo boondocking so any information is very welcomed. Once I done a few solo trips I will be fine. I look forward to seeing your future travels.

[@mikeandheather]

You are too kind, glad you enjoyed the information! Not sure if you checked out Lady Bugout yet here on KZbin, but that may be a channel you want to visit. She is a solo van lifer also traveling out of a Ford Transit Connect. We watched a lot of her van build videos for inspiration when we were building out our own van, but she also has a lot of great tips and information about traveling as a solo female you may find useful/reassuring 😊 But, you are so right! You will be fine and more confident after you do it a few times! If you are interested, here is Lady Bugout's channel: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jafImoBmgNuYa6csi=WTflNSkKqmjgU5QS Hope that helps! Thanks for watching!

[@calypsoflowers]

Excellent video!

[@mikeandheather]

Thank you for the kind words and for watching, we really do appreciate it!

[@skpjoecoursegold366]

thanks guys.

[@mikeandheather]

Thank you so much for watching!

[@RealProVanR]

Great advice.

[@mikeandheather]

Happy to help! Thank you for watching 😊

[@llorylloyd]

Great tips

[@mikeandheather]

Thank you for watching!

[@jameshart6529]

I dont see any videos of your ceiling installation. Did you two have outside help or did you do the install yourselves?

[@mikeandheather]

To be honest, we didn't do a great job of filming our ceiling installation 😅 BUT we did do it ourselves! Basically we sandwiched wood (1 in. x 2 in. boards) around the metal beams in the ceiling to have a surface to attach the decorative ceiling boards to. We used metal screws to attach the wood to the metal beams. We then used a nail gun to attach the ceiling boards to that wood. You can kind of see how we did it here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pGSaYmSKqMiVnqcsi=JbyNYe1-sw6w7yha&t=137 Hope that helps! Thank you for watching, we really do appreciate it!

[@jameshart6529]

@mikeandheather ...Thank you for your response. 😊

[@GreenJeepAdventures]

Sooo, those white clips above your head wasn't a makeshift gun rack? I was expecting Heather to be a pistol packin mamma. Just teasing. While I don't do long distance overlanding, I frequently do car camping away from civilization. The farther out you go, the more your mind starts playing with you. One envisions the hills have eyes, or drug crazed hooligans harassing people. Without practicing my 2nd Amendment right, I don't think I could comfortably make a go at it. Was that something you ever entertained as a need? There is something to be said for safety in numbers, but its not always achievable.

[@mikeandheather]

Sorry to disappoint you, those hooks are just where we hang everything and anything that has a hook in our van haha No, we personally did not feel that it was necessary. Thank you for watching, we really do appreciate it!