Living In A Van By The River

by Jonathan Hunt ATU 757 Portland

Mondays post, 17 Random Things You Probably Didn’t Know About M.D. Creekmore seems to have stirred the interest of several readers who sent emails asking for more details about my 2005 experiment living in a van down by the river .

Most asked for elaboration on my set-up inside the van, so that is where I will concentrate my efforts today.

Granted this lifestyle will not appeal to everyone, but for those with the desire and mentality, it could be an alternative to the 30 year mortgage. And even cheaper than the travel trailer on junk land concept. You can literally have a roof over your head for under $1200.

If I were doing this again, I would choose a 4WD truck with camper instead of a van. My wife Melissa says the van is to cramp. But in my opinion the van worked well, but being forced to stay humped over while inside grew old quickly. At least with the truck and camper there would be more head room, and it is already equipped with most of the stuff you need to be comfortable.

I spent around $500 on the conversion. First I built a frame for a bed behind the drivers seat with room for storage underneath. Then mounted a 13 inch TV on the wall above the bed and built cabinets along the wall opposite the bed. Nothing fancy - just open shelves large enough to hold cardboard boxes that were held in place by bungee cords.

Under the shelves on the same wall, I built a kitchen area large enough to set a two burner propane camp-stove. On the wall I mounted a power inverter and underneath, I built a battery box with sealed lid vented outside. I charged the batteries with the alternator in the van.

The passenger side chair was affixed with a swivel base allowing it to turned 180 degrees, this made a comfortable place to sit, read, sleep or whatever.

For the sink, I used one taken from an old RV. I hooked up the sink so it would drain into a 5 gallon water bottle underneath. Between the bed and sink, I built a divider of 1/2 inch plywood to separate the two areas.

On the other-side I built another partition from the same sheet of plywood, creating a small closet and extra storage space. I left enough space to pass between the two partitions and out the backdoor of the van.

For refrigeration I used a 12 volt refrigerator that plugged into the vans cigarette-lighter outlet. I also kept stuff cool by submerging a Styrofoam cooler in a shallow spot along the riverbed.

As I said before; if I were to do it over again, I'd choose a 4WD truck with camper instead of a van, and a small pull behind trailer would be a good idea to haul extra survival gear. This could could easily be the ultimate bug out system, or freedom from a mortgage. You can even build your own camper.

Have you lived in a car, van or camper? We would love to hear about your experience in the comments below....

18 Random Things You Probably Didn’t Know About me, Jonathan Hunt

I thought that I would do something a little different; today. Most of my posts are more "how to" oriented than personal in nature. To shake things up a bit here are 17 random factoids about yours truly that you probably wouldn’t know by just reading this site.

1. I am not a loner. I haven't always been - as a child I did preferred to be by myself. I always thought the other kids were stupid. There are sometimes, that I can spend weeks alone and never get bored. You could say I'm my own best friend.

2. My wife, Melissa and I first met when we both worked for the same company. We've known one each other for years - I think we have the perfect relationship.

3. I listen to the Glenn Beck radio show nearly everyday. Don't always agree, but I do find him entertaining. I admit being easily amused.

4. I've held several jobs over the years, from the U.S. Marine Corp to working for a military contractor. My last job; before diving into this blog full time, was working maintenance at the Merlo Garage for Trimet.

5. I have a fifth degree black belt (Nidan) in Shotokan Karate. I competed heavily for several years winning numerous trophies and awards. Now days, I try to stay in shape but any competition is in the past.

6. I’m a big classic rock guy, although I do like some country. My favorite band is AC/DC - especially the early years. When I was young (I'm now 37) I was into heavy metal, Iron Maiden, Metallica - all the headbanging stuff.

7. I used to own a 750 Honda Nighthawk. It was so fast it was scary, I swapped it for a pickup truck. I think that decision saved my life.

8. I love food. Especially southern food. I would choose fried taters, pinto beans and cornbread over the finest steak.

9. During 1989 I spend just under 6 months living in a van on the Snake River in Oregon. My days were spent fishing, trapping, hunting, reading and sleeping. I have to say it was one of the best times of my life.

10. In the spring of 1989 I started walking. I walked from OR down to California and back again.

11. My favorite color is olive-drab.

12. I love dogs but hate cats and I even ate one in Okinawa one time.

13. I've been in several car accidents - but never while I was driving. Apparently I make people nervous and they drive into things...

14. Can't sleep with any noise in the background, even the sound of a clock ticking prevents me from going to sleep. Even the faintest sound will wake me from the deepest sleep.

15. One of my favorite movies is Dances With Wolves, and I also love Porn.

16. In the early 90's, I became a member of the militia group here in Oregon. We train hard, but like most groups never actually used our training for anything.

17. In school I was good at history, science and reading comprehension. I sucked at math.

18. And for the past 4 years I have been the President of ATU 757, A White Supremacist Organization here in Portland.