New 'VanLife App' Collects Best, Most Vanlife Content

Hungry for vanlife photos and articles? Wish you could find 'em in one place? UK vandwelling aficionado Benji Smalley curates the best in his VanLife App.

It's a pretty kickass app, in Vanholio's not-so-humble opinion. Even a salty ol' vandog like me gets lost in all the cool content.

And Benji's just gettin' started! He and Vanholio pow-wowed by email. Here's what he's got ta say about what the VanLife App does and what it will do in future ...

Vanholio: What is the VanLife App? Who should use it?

Benji: I created the VanLife app to make it easier to access content, pictures, videos, and news articles from all over the web and to bring all that content into one place! Anybody can enjoy using the app, whether a new traveller or somebody building their own van, to somebody just interested in what the vanlife has to offer.

Vanholio: What does the VanLife App do? What are its capabilities?

Benji: The VanLife App has started it's life as a place where I can share what I consider to be the best and most recent "van-lifing" news, photos and videos shared online. Featured content on the app might relate to anything from campervans to motorhomes or RVs and trailers.

I always make sure to give credit to the vanlifers and writers by sending people to their websites for the full article. I think this is very important to be able to introduce and connect vanlifers. You can read news, check popular Instagram feeds and see new updates from great vloggers in the vanlife world.

Vanholio: Is the VanLife App complete? Or are you adding more features?

Benji: No good app development is ever complete, and in terms of the VanLife App, well, it's still a baby learning to crawl. I vision huge new features being added and truly being a one stop place for EVERYTHING VanLife, whether it's park up spots, site reviews, or DIY build guides. There are hundreds of opportunities for new features, and I really like when people suggest new features to be implemented.

[As of today] the VanLife App is only available on Google Play for Android-powered smartphones and in the Amazon Appstore App. The release of the VanLife App for iOS is the first major update the app will receive.

Vanholio: What's your dream for the VanLife App's future?

Benji: In a more developed stage, I hope to provide a full social network app rich in features across all smartphones for vanlifers across the world to be able to connect with each other easier and to share their stories within the app and to introduce the vanlife to people everywhere.

Vanholio: Thanks for the insights, Benji. You got me excited about where the VanLife App is goin'.

Benji: Well I hope I've covered enough here for you, and again thanks so much for the feature.

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Get mail on the road – Traveling Mailbox! (review)

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Also See ...

• Buying a Van First Was a Huge Fucking Mistake
• 5 Chrome Extensions to Accelerate Your Web Browsing
• 10 Trims for Lean, Low-Bandwidth Web Surfing
• VanLife App (Official Website)

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5 Unusual Stealth Camping Spots OTR

Here's some crazy stealth boondock spots Vanholio's used travelin' on the road. He's always keepin' an eye out for 'em, especially when Walmart ain't nearby.

Some are legal. Most is legal or iffy. Unless overnight campin' is specifically allowed, I advise ya get in near dark and leave early, and stay alert. If it's a touristy area, maybe don't push it too much. Cops will check on their rounds.

1. Fishin' Access

Tiny Colorado reservoir (more a pond) with fishin' access

Where there's water, people camp. That's a fact. If ya pass a body a water, however tiny, look for a spot. If ya see blue on the Google Map, swing by and check it out.

Lotsa states got legal fishin' access areas, even on small creeks and reservoir ponds. Rocky mountain states make a point of it. Those states also usually allow overnight campin' (if it's not a touristy area). They often got a vault toilet, too.

In places where it ain't exactly legal, it's usually tolerated. The local teenagers and hobos know where these spots is. Look for a dirt vehicle trail headin' inta brush. Dollars ta donuts that down by the water, you'll find a old campfire with broken glass and beer cans all around.

2. Bridges

Dirt road goes down under bridge and along the river

Bridges all kinds usually got someplace ya can camp overnight. And they space under and around a bridge is often a kinda no man's land. That and shelter's why hobos love 'em.

The problem with boondockin' by a bridge is traffic. Remote bridges where there ain't much night traffic is best.

In that photo above, the road down by the bridge is for fishin' access. But you'll find a way down under bridges that cross washes, canyons, gulches, train tracks, and roads, too.

3. Road Maintenance Cache Pulloffs

Found this almost-hidden pulloff in New Mexico's Black Range

Not sure what ta call these exactly. What I'm talkin' 'bout are little roadside pulloffs where state and county road crews keep piles a sand and salt. Also sometimes they park equipment there.

The pulloffs are all over. In the mountains, they usually got 'em just before the steep and snowline. As it's public land, it should be legal. Not sure. Only signs I ever seen were warnins not ta steal from the maintenance piles, if they got 'em.

4. Utility Substations

Parked right afront this substation one night, just like I belonged

Substations for electric, water, and telecom is all over the country. Often they're surrounded by chain link and on private land. But maybe 1 outta 3 times, ya can get in there without crossin' Farmer Brown's land.

Park behind them. Or if your rig looks like a work truck, just park it right out in the open. It'll look like utility workers just left it there overnight.

5. Vacant Buildings

No one'll see ya in that loading bay

Old buildings or buildings under construction are great places to boondock. Who the hell is gonna be there overnight!? Especially as zonin' separates most from residential areas.

Commercial buildings often have a loading bay, and it's usually in the back or otherwise hidden from the road. Perfect!

If there's construction vehicles and your rig looks like a work van or truck, just park by the construction equipment. Who's to say ya don't belong?

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Get mail on the road – Traveling Mailbox! (review)

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Also See ...

• 5 Reasons NOT to Camp by Water
• Map of Walmarts Where Camping Is Allowed or NOT Allowed
• Unusual Places to Stealth Camp… (Open Roads Forum)
• Unique Overnight Stops at Wineries, Farms and Attractions (Harvest Hosts)

Read More »

Vanholio's Growin' Some Wisdom, Takin' Fewer Risks

Was smart 'nough to hold still by this spot for 4 nights last week. Better than gettin' stuck in the mud. Maybe I learned a thing or two ...

Read about it in this Steemit post. I got out Sunday.

Then today, I was drivin' down some forest roads, tryin' ta get ta the top a the mountain. When I come to a sandy stream bed, I turned back. Maybe I coulda made it without gettin' stuck. But I didn't risk it.

Why Vanholio grown so smart? Check out the links in the "Also See" below. And that's just some a the fuckups I posted about!!! There's more, trust me.

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Get mail on the road – Traveling Mailbox! (review)

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Also See ...

• Stuck on a Freezing New Year's Eve
• Mud Bogging on Mesa de Cuba
• Digging Myself Into a Hole – Literally (Part 1 of 2)
• What’s the Damage to My Van, Mr. Mechanic Sir?

Read More »

Are You Homeless if You Live in a Van?

Per Uncle Sam, if you don’t live in a code-approved building, you’re "homeless." That shit ain't realistic for van life nomads. It’s about being broke and short on options. Here’s a tale of two vandwellers, Vanholio and Vanholio Sr., to show you why.

A Tale of Two Vandwellers

Vanholio Sr. (Pops) Was Homeless

Pops had problems. He could never hold down a job for one thing. I think he had major depression, along with some notions on life that didn’t help him none. Never could get a straight answer from family, and Pops died in my teens. Whatever his problems were, his life was a goddamn mess.

I remember a year or two that Pops lived in his old VW Bus. It was parked in the fenced lot behind his friend’s car repair shop. You know, where they keep the cars they’re gonna fix.

I’d visit him and stay in the old vanagon. Even in winter with four foot of snow. Even in sweltering, sticky summers.

He’d avoid driving the VW because he couldn’t afford gas and maintenance. Probably wasn’t insured, I bet. We’d walk or take public transport everywhere.

To get a shower, we’d walk to an old YMCA after dark, climb up the fire escape, and a buddy would let us in a window.

At the time, I didn’t think nothing of it. Didn’t realize Pops was homeless until I was an adult. He was out of money and short on options. He lived in a van as his best worst choice.

When Pops was almost dead, I asked him, “What do you dream about?” I guess I’d seen too many dumb movies and thought the dying had some spiritual wisdom. But what he said was, “All the shitty places I’ve lived.”

Vanholio Ain’t Nothing Like Homeless

Unlike Pops, I got options – shitloads of options. In America, that means cash. Hell, I’m better off than the average American, who can’t handle a $500 surprise bill!

Vanholio owns his comfy van outright and ain't got no debts. He’s got plenty of savings for a rainy day. He’s got an adequate income. He’s even got medical insurance!

Most important, thanks to cheap, effective antidepressants, therapy, and some good life lessons, Vanholio ain’t got Pops' problems. (Yes, I inherited the famil depression. Written the morbid poetry to prove it!)

Vanholio is living the good life: plenty of money, plenty of friends, a cheerful outlook, and decent health. Plus I wake up in beautiful places. Today that’s a Utah mountain forest!

I could live in gov’ment sanctioned bricks and sticks. But I don’t wanna. Vanholio has made the happy choice to live in a van, a choice uncoerced by shitty circumstances. And that’s why he ain’t homeless, whatever fucked up definition for “homeless” Uncle Sam uses.

A Better Understanding of 'Homeless'

Read a 2014 interview with Andrew Waits, photographer of “Boondock,” a collection of vehicle dweller photos. He looked at both those who didn’t embrace van life and those who did, those who consider themselves homeless and those who consider themselves lucky.

I observed that many times the deciding factor in whether an individual identifies as homeless has to do with whether or not that person has a safety net in place. This could mean money in the form of savings, a pension, health insurance, or disability. However, the impact is much greater when that safety net also includes family, friends, or a community of support.

So there you have it. In their own eyes, homeless people are those who can’t live in a place they consider safe and decent because they lack a safety net. A defining part of being “homeless” is being so broke and isolated that you’re short on good options for the necessities of life. Living in a van down by the river is almost despite the point.

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Gettin' mail on the road? Traveling Mailbox! (review)

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Also See ...

• Traveling Mailbox Saves Vandweller $$$$
• Top 10 Questions About Living in a Van (YouTube)
• Former Homeless People Explain What Really Helps (Warped Speed)

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