vanlife intruder . scariest night in the van . solo female travel (Story 11)

I have a clown mask and a large knife- when people are creeping around my van I just stare at them through the window. Works like a charm

Sara, I'm a former Trucker. 44 years of trucking is a lot of hands on real world "street smart" experiences. Anyone out traveling & sleeping in their vehicles is a potential target for a cacophony of unsavory characters. You must always be aware of your surroundings. A good dog such as a Boxer, a Pit or a German Shepherd is always an excellent early warning asset. Your safest bet is to never communicate with any intruders and leave the area immediately.

Sara, DO NOT PLAY WITH THESE TYPES OF PEOPLE!!! I CANNOT STRESS STRONGLY ENOUGH. NO CONFRONTATIONS JUST LEAVE. LEAVE, LEAVE!!!

I'm sure you've taken more precautions now, and I don't know your situation, but I never EVER let people know I'm a solo female when I'm traveling, especially in parking lots or free campgrounds. I keep my windows covered, and I eat and take care of business other places and pull into where I'm staying after dark with a hood on, no lights, and go straight to bed. I recommend this for all solo female travelers.

Buy a 50,000 candle-power handheld spotlight that plugs into a 12V socket. Someone hit in the face at night with that light will be almost totally but temporarily blinded for quite a while.

That man was lying when he said he thought the girl he was looking for was in your van. A perp will make up all kinds of stories to make him seem like he has no ill intentions. Excellent for you to have the courage to share this incident, it will potentially thwart other attempted break ins.

In my first week of mobile dwelling I've had this happen to me 3 times... In the middle of the night. All 3 times, my dog (shepard mix) was on point ready, willing and trying to destroy the "visitors".... Meanwhile my other dog (pitmix) kept me all snuggly and and warm in bed.. Of coarse she too would "go to work" if need be but so far she just gives a lil grawl... First time was scarry waking up to fierce attack barking, snarling and digging at window to get em... For the record, I'm a 51yr old male and this is not my first "mobile dwelling" adventure... But it is my first time with dogs :) So far, I highly recommend k9 road companions...

Once in Hawaii I was camping with my g-friend. We were in a tent in the late afternoon in a sleeping bad silently when she says: Hay, wait. There's someone outside the tent sneaking around. So I said just loud enough for him to hear: `Quick get the gun.' We had no gun but we saw his back running away real fast. We stayed there for about a wk. longer undisturbed.

Another tip is to know your route away from your chosen night park-up, towards assistance (township, police, fire station, hospital etc). Park with clear sight of the exit and know which way to turn from the exit. At night, you may be disoriented and drive away from assistance without this pre-planning. Also, always park so you can drive away without reversing, and leave enough space behind you so that if someone tries to block your exit, you can reverse a little to gain a better angle to get round them. Pre-planning is the key.

That is a clear advantage of traveling in a van, RV or SUV, as opposed to a trailer; you can drive off and not have to get out thus exposing yourself to danger.

A traveling companion like a dog is not just amazing having a friend BUT also a protector when you're walking alone in the valleys and when you're walking and exploring.

You showed remarkable restraint... I was so hoping you'd just drive over him.

It’s so important that you shared this otherwise everyone has a warped view of just the glorious part of van life. Thank you so much as you’ll help others stay safe. Glad you listened to your intuition and left the situation. 💜

Next time if you don’t mind me giving advice. 😌I feel the best thing to do when anyone is approaching your vehicle /van besides the c(ops) shut all your lights off if they’re not already off and just grab your keys and safely drive away. Don’t say a word to them especially if they cannot see you just quietly pull off.

" Trust you're gut" right there, always trust you're instincts !!! I'm 55 yrs old and a Veteran and if I didn't always trust my gut, I would literally not be here now and I mean this. Thank you, stay safe out there y'all.

One thing I learned from my conceal carry weapons permit class was ….. “you are in a 2 ton steel box. stay calm and GO! That box you are in is the safest place . Good job 👏🏼 👏🏼👏🏼

Never camp in an empty parking lot. It takes seconds to break a window. Honey, please be more careful. Ashville has a big meth problem. As does most of the country. I traveled and camped for 19 years. Had like 2 bad experiences similar to this. Moving away is the best option.

I like the high-powered light option that others mentioned but also get a car alarm with a panic button and/or a CB with a loud PA speaker. If you start telling him to leave you alone over a loud PA it will get people's attention real quick especially at night.

Wow, the scenery the next morning was breathtaking! As far as the confrontation, you did everything right. No need to rethink your response…spot on!

U're very right about lower vibration that predators can sense. I noticed that a lot. Also, u might wanna have ready anytime to play an audio sample of a fierce dog breed barking. Those outside would think it's a dog inside and get scared.