Is it Safe to Live in a Van?
First Leg: Seattle to Portland to Milo McIver - with a side trip off-grid
I planned every overnight stop for the first three weeks of my trip, but I told myself I’d be open to changes in case my intuition and opportunity opened up something new…but wasn’t sure I believed I really would.
The first few days went as intended, staying one night with family in Portland, OR, the “City of Roses.” I cherished the vulnerable sharing I experienced that night, and getting to take what I irrationally feared was the last bath of my life in their deep soaking bathtub. It was decadent, especially compared to a van with only cold water! But I did get an electric tea kettle, which heats up water nicely for washing my face.
On my way out of town the next morning, after the best raspberry danish of my life, I beelined for books. I should have gotten a picture of that danish, but it was gone so fast…
Major travel flexibility is not like me…the old me? Perhaps the me I’m trying to outgrow, leaving behind my Seattle life with its very high structure, stability and routine. Sure I’ve had wildcards in my life, especially the last three years, but my foundations were set and basically unchanging. I gained great comfort in my sameness of schedule - as a licensed psychotherapist for almost two decades in clinics and private practice, I felt I needed to be reliable for others. I’d never taken more than 12 days in a row off my entire adult life, other than when I fell into a major depression and burnout at age 31, after 9/11/01, when I couldn’t work for months, and ultimately went through a bankruptcy.
That’s what propelled me into 12-Step financial recovery, beginning the long crawl back to solvency and out of credit card debt. I think the traumatic chaos of that time drove me to seek constancy, and I appreciate the many blessings I’ve experienced over the last 23 years. But…too much of a good thing gets out of balance, in any direction, and lately my spirit has been longing for more novelty and adventure. AdVANture!
My second stop after Portland was Milo McIver State Park, also in Oregon. Ahhh, so sweet. Not too wild…a nice way to ease in to van life.
My biggest challenge was making the satellite Internet work from my campsite in time for work on Monday (I couldn’t), so I had to drive to work in a horse field with fewer trees. Sparky loved this place, as did I!
The ability to offer video coaching while on the road is an unexpected gift from the lockdown era. Prior to 2020 I offered video therapy only rarely, but after everyone got used to video, more clients preferred the convenience, so it was surprisingly easy to let go of my office and transition to all video work.
Everything seemed peaceful, awash with a sweet woodland scent, just as I’d envisioned. I noticed I was sleeping better than I had in a long time. It was so quiet!
Then a text arrived from an old friend - a woman I first met over a decade ago - asking if I might be free for a visit. It meant backtracking a bit, but I’m not complaining. I love driving Goldie, and I love this friend! So I headed back across the state and met up with someone who has been living off-grid in her vehicle for over five years!
Stay Safe!
I heard this statement a fair amount as I told people about my plan to take four months to live and travel in my van. Where would I stay? How would I keep myself safe? I chose a campground first because it seemed secure and beautiful, yet here I was leaving to go off-grid in the Oregon mountains. Would this be safe?
What a gift this night was! I was taught by a field expert how to stay no-cost in the most gorgeous location, teeming with life, roaring waterfalls all around, completely free from wi-fi/electronics. I felt cradled in raw natural splendor and deeply relaxed. I won’t share pictures, because this friend is fiercely private, other than two: this one celebrating the joy of my contribution to our potluck lunch: chicken-n-mustard…and peanut butter-n- pickle! Yummmm. She didn’t eat the PBnP for some unknown reason…
And this one, showing a present from my friend. She was gifted two and has never used any in five years of full-time life in the wild. I took it, but I don’t think I will use it either.
When researching #vanlife, the issue of homelessness, houselessness, and choosing a roadtrip emerges. There’s a good discussion about this on reddit in r/vandwellers. If you haven’t seen Nomadland (2020, 3 Oscars), it’s a must see.
In my friend’s case, she is a fellow survivor of Organized Extreme Abuse (OEA), and she did not plan her mobile life, it was her only choice for survival. I met her at a S.M.A.R.T. conference - Stop Mind Control and Ritual Abuse Today, where I’d gone to seek support from overwhelming memories of horror. We went on to volunteer together to create an international coalition of survivors and allies, with a mission to tell the world that organized abuse is real and must be stopped.
Our efforts ended abruptly about a year later when the organization imploded from within, and she was hit by an invisible, devastating weapon that rendered her completely intolerant of electromagnetic frequencies ever after. She’d had the courage to publicly call out a high-profile perpetrator, and she was harassed and gang stalked for two solid years whenever she entered the city, with helicopters buzzing overhead, people following her, and her family being threatened. I saw this with my own eyes, it was real and awful. She was brave enough to tell the truth, and has suffered ever since. If you ever wonder why more survivors don’t name their perps, this is one devastating reason.
Yet she is alive, well and teaching me the ropes of off-grid life! Her resiliency astounds me! She is a true “supersolider” and has miraculously held onto a compassionate heart and humble outlook. When I compare my old life with hers, I am struck by how healthy her mostly outdoor lifestyle is. But her loneliness for human company gets very heavy at times, I know.
Your paid donations will be shared with this friend, and others like her. This buys her gas so she can visit loved ones and still get back to a safe place in time for her to sleep.
Thank you so much for helping!
So, are Sparky and I safe in Goldie the glampervan? Yes, so far, so good: we're safe, sound and incredibly blessed. For more, check out this article: Solo Female Van Life Safety Tips - and be sure to read the comments.
