how to live in your car

feeling inspired by our travels? thinking about doing it yourself? well, you’re on the perfect page of this worldwide web of information to learn just how to do it 🤓 here we’re sharing what we’ve learned by living on the road so that you can do it too... for pretty cheap ☮️

what you’ll need (the essentials):

a reliable car:  a suv is great because it gives you more room for stuff & it’s comfier to sleep in, but a sedan could work as well if you’re traveling solo or are cool with finding designated campsites every night. super helpful to have your seats go down / be able to take them out to make more room. 4 wheel drive is superior for a lot of public land camping, but we’ve been trucking along in our all wheel drive subaru outback :) there are usually camping options that aren’t too sketchy for AWD.
overhead storage space: we have a large thule overhead storage box, which is super nice so we can bring with fun stuff, such as skis, extra clothes, rollerblades, climbing gear, and whatever else we may find on the road.

a build-out for the car: for more storage space, consider adding a raised platform to the back of your car if it’s large enough. we built (with the help of my rad uncle) a simple structure out of some plywood that serves as a bed as well as providing about 8 inches of extra storage space along the width of the car. here we store a bunch of camping / cooking gear!! there are tons of youtube videos and websites about building out a car based on specific models.

sleeping pads, bags, and liners: by the time we’re all situated in our car for the night, we are even cozier than when in our own beds in a house. we bought some $40 dollar sleeping pads as well as the cheapest ($80) 0 degree sleeping bags (that actually are only good down to 20 degrees) and some sleeping bag liners for $15 on amazon before we left on this journey. they’re super easy to find anywhere online, and are relatively inexpensive for how comfy of a sleep they provide. the sleeping bag liner keeps us a bit warmer on super cold night, and it keeps our sleeping bags a bit cleaner. the sleeping pads are inflatable, so they take up very little room during the day. the sleeping bags have kept us pretty warm even on the coldest nights when combined with the sleeping pads and sleeping bag liners.

cooking essentials: a coleman camping grill ($40 on amazon) and propane tanks (most stores or gas stations have these), pots, pans, dishes, silverware. basically anything will work for cooking gear (we use old pots and pans from home and thrift stores, and some reusable plastic bowls and plates), but a camping grill is essential for warm meals. super easy to use, and pretty cheap options :)

camping gear: a small tent, hammocks, and bug nets are obvious camping essentials for when you are in places where you can sleep outside of the car. camping chairs and a foldable camping table come in handy for cooking or just chilling at the campsite, and also make for good desks for school work ;)

miscellaneous: lights, lanterns, extra batteries, collapsible sinks, washcloths, string, curtains, an inverter to charge laptops and cameras, pillows and blankets, pepper spray, pocket knife

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where/how we sleep:

we spend most of the day outside of the car, so the subie is really is most important during the night.

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- we find many free places to sleep using apps and websites: iOverlander, campendium, FreeRoam, freecampsites.com are all good options and I’m sure there are many more out there. iOverlander has great stealth camping options for when you are in cities and need to find legal places to park for the night.

- public land: BLM and national forest lands are abundant out west. these options are great because they are free, you usually can camp anywhere within their boundaries, and they are in super beautiful areas near national or state parks. they usually don’t have amenities, but some more official sites do. usually can find pretty sick spots with fire rings :)

- basically any parking lot or street that does not have a no parking sign should be fair game for camping. get comfortable with spots using the apps or websites, but once you start to notice the qualities of a campground, the world is yours. we have spent many nights on random pull-offs on scenic highways or trailhead parking lots (just make sure they don't day no overnight parking)

-if you want more security or amenities (bathrooms/showers), look into paid campgrounds at state or national parks.

- we keep most of our stuff on our bed in the back during the day, but we just move it to the front when we go to sleep to make room for ourselves and our sleeping stuff.

- we hung up some lights and prayer flags in the back to give it a more cozy vibe for the night. the lights also double as a place to hang curtains when were in cities or towns.

- a sunshade could be nice for your front window. keeps the sun out in the morning and gives some privacy.

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what we eat:

it’s always something different out on the road, but here is a glimpse into how we nourish ourselves on the daily.

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we usually shop in bulk at stores like costco and look for farmer's markets or food drives for cheap food that peeps don’t want. many grocery stores have discounted produce that isn't "perfect," but it is really just ripe. vendors at farmers markets or local farm stands are often likely to give you free or cheap produce that is about to go bad because they would throw it away anyways, you just have to reach out and research the areas you are in. there are tons of farmer's markets in cali even in the winter, and in the summer most places have them.

we eat a mostly plant-based diet, which makes traveling a bit easier. most of our food isn't perishable, but we have a cooler bag for our veggies and salads.

breakfast:

- overnight oats made in old peanut butter jars: mix in cacao powder, chia seeds, nuts, nut butter, and some fruit for a delicious and nutritious breakfast

- granola/trail mix or nuts: a good substitute for cereal, lasts longer.

- pb&j or hummus and veggies on tortillas

- fruit and peanut butter: a classic

lunch:

- salad: we always have tons of fresh veggies to make killer salads in the car or wherever we are during the day. hot sauce and spices or hummus make for a great dressing. nuts or beans add some protein to the mix as well. any veggies (carrots, celery, cauliflower) can be thrown in.

- tortilla sandwiches: tortillas are great alternatives for bread in the road.. they don’t get squished and they last a bit longer than bread 

- cans of beans / soup: sounds a little nasty but even cold canned veggies, beans, or soups can make for some great meals if you add a few spices (and hot sauce of course)

dinner:

we usually try to get the stove out for dinner as long as the nighttime weather is bearable, here are some of the deluxe meals we end up making:

- soup: we have tons of rice noodles as well as veggie bouillon cubes that make a great base for soup. add in some beans, veggies, sauces and spices and you have a homemade soup :) super quick and easy, yet so delicious

- rice & beans: simple camping meal. we have precooked rice from costco that you just need to warm, so we usually cook this up with some beans and veggies and spices for a filling dinner 

- pastaaaaa: a favorite of ours. we cook up some pasta then concoct a sauce with anything we have at the time. peanut butter, almond milk, soy, and any other spices all can be additions to a great sauce.

-tacos: another great use for tortillas. warm up some beans and add anything- rice, veggies, spices.

- stir-fries: our coleman stove is basically as good as a normal stove. we can adjust the heat, making it easy to fry up some veggies. mix together anything you got, add some spices, and serve with rice/tortillas/beans.

snack foods:

- nut mixes are our go-to snack always

-carrots or celery with hummus or nut butter

-oranges, apples, bananas all last pretty well in the car & nature's candy is the best candy

- granola bars are essential always

other random tips:

organize your stuff! it can get hard to stay organized when everything that you need to live is in the car, but bags and totes make life a lot easier.

• we have a snack bag, clothing bags, school/computer bag, book bag, a cooler, a produce bag, and a few other random things (guitar, skateboard, yoga mats) that we keep on top of the bed and move to the front when we sleep

• tote bins to the rescue! we have some long, flat tote bins that slide right under our bed along with camping chairs and a table. in these bins we store food, cooking gear, and other random camping necessities. pretty easily accessible, but most of the stuff under the bed is only used when camping at night.

• overhead storage: this is where we keep anything that we don't need on the daily (skis, rollerblades, climbing gear, art stuff, etc). it can be a pain to open the thule, so we usually only go up there when we need our gear

• other random stuff is stored in the center console, behind the front seats, or any other little crevice in the car. stuff gets lost sometimes :,) but never to far

getting water

• we have an insulated water container as well as a few plastic gallon jugs that we refill at gas stations, visitor centers, welcome centers, co-ops, outdoors stores, campgrounds, or any where we find water for free

• don't buy tons of plastic water bottles: reusing saves the earth from more plastic and saves you moneyy

grow your brain while on the road

• you'll have some long drives if your traveling across the country, which are the perfect times to read books, listen to podcasts, or find new music

• try writing about your experiences rather than posting them. we keep a journal where we document our travels. much better descriptions of the days, and less cellular data and toxic serotonin rushes from social media :)

use your grocery bags / any plastic bags as garbage bags

• keeps the car clean and gives bags another use

bring toilet paper & make sure to pack everything out

• many dispersed camping sites don't have bathrooms, so be sure to bring your own goods

finding showers:

• most beaches have free showers if your on the coast

• outdoor stores, rec centers, park districts, hostels, and campgrounds all usually have showers you can pay for

• use nature as a shower whenever possible, just make sure to use eco-friendly soaps

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