Last Update: 7/25/2017

Streaming GoT Over 3G in the Van

Holy fuckin' shit! Game of Thrones. I'm addicted! Thank gawd HBO and Amazon Channels team up to let me stream GoT over a slowish connection! It's a van life natural!

?? #Vanlife question? Contact Vanholio! direct !!

3G Connection Works Great for Vanholio


Vanholio's got an unlimited 3G Verizon MiFi (for now). For most a what he does in van life, that's decent enough. I ain't producin' video or nothin', after all. Mostly I just work with text and low-res photos.

But what about the Good Life? What about streamin' movies and TV shows on occassion? Is 3G fast enough? It is with a few services.

Streaming Services for Low Bandwidth Compared


I found that YouTube is good, especially on low quality settins. Even with crap connection, ya can be real patient and load up the video bit by bit.

The other one that works decent is Amazon movies, includin' their HBO service.

Don't know 'bout Netflix. But last time I tried Hulu, it SUCKED!

Google Play lets ya download movies ya rent, so that might be good. Don't know. Ain't tried.

Game of Thrones Got Me by the Balls!


Yeah, so a week ago last Sunday, I realized that GoT Season 7 was havin' its premiere. Was at a place where my 3G had plenty a bars.

So to scratch my itch, I signed up for a 7-day free trial of Amazon Channel HBO. Now I'm hooked in for the season at $14.99 a month. Ya can quit any time, but a course, I ain't quittin till GoT Season 7 is over.

Had I been usin' my brain, I woulda waited till the season was over, then signed up for my free week trial'n watched the whole thing in an orgy of GoT boobage'n slaughter. But no. Knowin' it's there now is like knowin' there's chocolate in the fridge.

At least Vanholio can also go back now and watch all first six seasons ta look for clues'n such. And I got to watch Episode 2 last Sunday, so there's that. Plus off Prime, I watched Iron Man.

What's Your Experience With Movie Streaming in the Van?


Help out your fellow vanners and rubbertramps. What streamin movie services been workin' out well for ya? Which'n have sucked donkey balls and turned your van life leisure to shit? Inquirin' minds GoTta know.


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Last Update: 7/21/2017

Free 'Dispersed' Camping – Key to Cheap Vanlife

dispersed campsite

In case ya ain't heard, here's a tip for ya about dispersed campin'. It's what makes vanlife so cheap. And it's good to know about if ya like campin' and ya like FREE, even if you're a housebound.

See, a good chunk of USA land is owned by the state and federal governments. On a bunch a that land run by the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and other entities, ya can camp for free just about anywhere ya want along a dirt road. For free!

?? #Vanlife question? Contact Vanholio! direct !!

Catch is that ya have to bring your own water and usually have to shit in the woods like a bear.
The usual rules are:
  • 14 days max
  • Bury your shit
  • Haul out your trash
  • Don't go more than 300 ft. off a marked road
  • Preferably use a site already used before

If you're in Canada, 'bout the same rules work on Crown Land.

Lots a vanlife folks an' other nomads just go from dispersed site to dispersed site, never payin' a dollar! No rent, no mortgage, no hassles.

I could go on, but all this's been well covered by others. Check out this article on Gear Junkie, "Camp For Free On Public Land: ‘Dispersed Camping’ 101". Or watch the video below by Bob Wells of Cheap RV Living.


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This article was originally posted at Steemit.com.
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Last Update: 7/18/2017

Casino Camping for Cheap Rollers

Did ya know that many casinos will let ya stay overnight in your RV or camper? Many of them for free! Whole listins at Casinocamper.com.

Last night, Vanholio was headin' north toward Colorado and started gettin' tired around Santa Fe. Was plannin' to stop over at a spot I know by Taos.

?? #Vanlife question? Contact Vanholio! direct !!

But then I pulled in to get gas by the Camel Rock Casino in Tesuque Pueblo. The pump was workin' away, and I headed toward the store to hit the head. And why did I see? A sign sayin' "RV/Camper Parking"!

plastic bag of trash with trasher picker-upper gadget
Payin' the rent!
Well, I asked the cashier girl what needin' doin' the spend the night there.

"Anythin' special I need to do?" I said.

"Nope. Just pull in and park."

So that's what I did! Slept like a baby.

Now, the Camel Rock Casino RV lot ain't all that fancy. Just a dirt lot with safety lights.

But some a the casino RV lots are real, real nice, like the "Las Vegas Circus Circus KOA campground," shown at top. (Photo by Mark Metzler, CC-BY-2.0.) They got hookups and all!

Vanholio done showed his gratitude to Tesuque Pueblo by pickin' up about 20 gallons of trash this mornin' before he left with his Grappler "Extended Reach & Pickup Tool". Didn't clean up all the trash other assholes left behind, but it's a dent. Sorta makes up for not gamblin' at the casino.

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This article was originally posted on Steemit.com
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Last Update: 7/14/2017

5 Reasons NOT to Camp by Water

Class B van camper is by lake, has big red X over it
It's a damn iconic scene: a tent or camper by a creek or lake, campfire smolderin' away. Or maybe the same on a beach. It's probably your dream van life scene. Well, let Vanholio tell you why that's bullshit!

?? #Vanlife question? Contact Vanholio! direct !!

1. Crowds


Traveling Mailbox ad
You think it'd be great to park your van by the lakeside? So does every other dumbass! Especially on warm holiday weekends, the lakeside gets fuckin' crowded. Same with the creeks. Same with the seaside.

Wanna hear some other asshole's blastin' music? Wanna smell rottin' fish guts that got thrown on the shore? Wanna hear screamin' kids? Wanna smell fryin' bacon ya won't get ta eat? Well, go for it. Better you than me.

2. Parasites


Guess what else loves water? Mosquitoes! That goes for lakes, ponds, marshes, creeks, rivers, seashore, bays, and the rest. Water equals mosquitoes. It's a simple goddamn formula.

Oh, and if there's the least foliage around? Ticks! I fuckin' hate ticks! Nasty little fuckers. I guaran-damn-tee you that shady, wooded spot by the river with all the pretty flowers is fulla goddman ticks awaitin' to suck your blood and give you lyme disease. Blech!

3. Scavengers


Humans and the only critters that love to go by the water. So do rats, raccoons, skunks, coyotes, stray dogs and cats, an' every other kinda scavenger ya can think on. Why? Where else they gonna get a heapin' of human-type food and a good drink, too? Yeah, that's right.

Skunks are the goddamn worse of the bunch, in Vanholio's considered opinion. First, they don't give a fuck about people and'll just come in near anytime at their leisure. They ain't hardly coy about it. Second, they stink, even when they don't spray. Ya can always tell when Peppie le Pew is about!

4. Humidity


I done talked before 'bout how humidity makes the cold colder and the hot hotter. Well, air is more humid by bodies a water for some reason. Ain't that a shock! Better to be further away in dryer air.

'Course, sometimes that nature works ta your advantage. Say, when you're on the leeward side of a lake on a hot day. Then the lake water cools the breeze before it hits ya. Or sometimes, too, it's nice to get by a cold, shady creek on a hot, sunny day. But camp by them places? You'll wake up wet and cold in the mornin'.

5. Flooding


This is sometimes a risk. It's less guaranteed, sure, an' ya can watch the weather. But gettin' flooded out stinks. And, no, I don't just mean if you and your get washed away. That's rare. What's more common is findin' yourself peelin' out tires in marsh-wet mud. How 'bout them apples!?

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