If you read our previous post, it would sound like the first leg of our trip, which was spent traveling through California, consisted of being broken down or searching for repairs. Luckily, California did not disappoint, and was full of fun adventures too. Let’s talk about the adventure every Van-Lifer must endure; finding where to stay and sleep each night!

We are new to life on the road, but we learned pretty quick that it is challenging to find boondocking spots in California when you’re 31 feet long and towing a car. Due to the shaking and breaking the RV did the first couple of days on our journey, the first two nights on the road were spent sleeping in the most luxurious spots….a Walmart* and a Flying J. Okay, so maybe when I said luxurious I meant, it was a long day of driving, there were no campgrounds or boondocking options nearby, and we were struggling from exhaustion; therefore, we chose the closest, safest, free option. At least I can say after a month of traveling that was the first and last time to this point that we have slept in parking lots.

Eventually we found ourselves out of parking lots and into the forest. The first place we found to stay for multiple nights, and gave us a taste of the enjoyable side of living in an RV, was the Redwood Resort RV Park in Boulder Creek, CA. This was a quite small resort tucked between tall trees, so tall that we couldn’t even tell when it was morning in the RV because of how much the trees shaded our spot. The resort wasn’t full when we were there so we had some extra space and privacy with both sides beside us being vacant. It was more expensive ($46/night) than the free boondocking we were hoping to find, but I would definitely recommend this place to people who prefer to stay in RV parks and have some amenities.

Our journey to our next spot was nothing short of an adventure. As we were heading up the PCH our toad died as we were driving, setting us into a panic as we swayed down the windy road. Luckily, we hit a turnout and were able to pull over to assess the situation. This led us to searching for a place to sleep late in the evening, where we were on the edge of exhaustion and frustration from the break down. We ended up at Olema Campground just a couple miles up the road from Stinson Beach where we had been stranded for almost an hour, at least the sun was setting, so it wasn’t the worst place to stop. Olema was a big campground and overall had a nice layout. We picked a loop that didn’t have a lot of people in it, leading us to have a lot of space to ourselves. Downside was that we were by the bathrooms where an unforgiving smell would hit you as you walked out the front door, not ideal.

Next stop, Fort Bragg, CA-and our first non-parking lot boondocking spot! We stayed at a vista point that was right off the road, and boy was it beautiful! There was a short walk to the shoreline from the parking lot where we saw tons of crabs, mussels, and starfish. We were also just in time to catch a beautiful sunset and even see a whale pop up not too far from the coastline, truly an unforgettable spot.

Up next: Shelter Cove. We didn’t want to stay at the RV parks in Shelter Cove, so we opted for a campground that was $8/night and it was well worth it! Wailaki Campground has been one of our favorite spots on the trip so far. It was a smaller campground, but there was enough forest surrounding the sites that we weren’t on top of our neighbors and had a fairly large space. The only downside here was that we were being eaten alive by mosquitoes, potentially due to a small marsh that was a little arm extension off the creek that was flowing behind our site. With a little OFF! and some mosquito netting this place would be absolutely perfect. A potential con to those who need to stay connected to the world would be the lack of service in this spot. No cell service, which we didn’t mind, but could be a deal breaker for others.

In need of water, wifi, cell service, laundry, Costco, and a dump station; it was time to hit a bigger city with a place that had some amenities. We opted for the Redwood Coast Cabins and RV Resort where we had full-hookups for $46/night in Eureka, CA. It wasn’t the best RV park, but it wasn’t the worst either. We felt safe, had good service, and the facilities were nice…the locals that lived in the park were a little questionable, but they seemed to all be living on one side of the park; meanwhile, the other side was used for travelers just passing through. We were able to get our errands done and watch The Office on Netflix, so I would say this was a good recharge stop for us.

The last place that we stayed in California, before taking a brief detour into Oregon, happened to become one of our favorite boondocking spots. This spot was located right off Patrick’s Creek Rd. We stopped into the National Forest and Recreation Information Center where the woman working the front desk was extremely helpful in telling us about where the best dispersed camping spots were located. We landed a spot right next to the creek that gave us the perfect white noise for sleeping. No service, but the rushing water, quiet road, and big space made it worth the stay for four days and three nights. We even found a little forest road to explore where we not only found some service at the top of the peak, but some pretty amazing views. I am still slightly convinced Scott chose this spot because we saw a turkey and her chick walking through the site, but there were no complaints for me as it was a delightful stay.

After leaving Patrick’s Creek Road we had to head up to Oregon, just for a short detour to drive back into Redding, CA. Find out why on our next post!

*Be sure to always check ahead of time that the Walmart you are eyeing to sleep at allows RVs to stay overnight. Some locations do not allow overnight parking. If it does not say online or there are no signs posted in the lot, don’t be afraid to call the store and ask. Always better to be safe than sorry when looking for a place to sleep!