There have been many discussions on the internet and I have been asked many times about Wal*Mart camping versus staying in campgrounds. First, we do not camp at Wal*Mart, but we often overnight in one of their parking lots and it is for both convenience and to save money. We have also stayed at Target, Cabela's, shopping centers, truck stops, rest areas, churches, visitor centers, family and friends houses and other free places.

Our motorhome is designed for camping without hookups. It has 105 gallons of fresh water, holding tanks for 65 gallons of gray water and 45 gallons of black water, 320 watts of solar panels, a 2000 watt inverter and a 7.5 KW generator. So when we stop for one night why should we pay for a campsite with hookups when we don't need any. During our recent trip from Louisville, Kentucky to the Black Hills in western South Dakota we spent two nights in Wal*Marts and one night at Cabela's. Each was less than a mile off the interstate with easy parking. Cabela's had long paved sites for 31 RVs in a "campground" behind their store with a sign welcoming RVers to spend the night.

Parking in a store's parking lot is never free because we always shop and spend money in their store, a win-win situation for both of us. We are good campers and never get out the lawn chairs and grills or put out the awnings. We quietly spend the night and leave the next morning. The big-box stores are usually near major highways so it is an easy off to the store and back on to the highway. If we drove 8-10 miles to a campground and back to the major highway it would cost about $10 in diesel fuel and that for a campground we don't need.

It is often said we (and others) who stay at Wal*Mart are taking money away from campground owners and that is a lot of boloney. Just because we live in a RV doesn't mean we owe anything to campground owners. When we cook meals in our motorhome are we taking money away from restaurants? When Linda cuts my hair are we taking money away from barbers? If campgrounds want our business they should have an area with no hookups, no restroom or showers and charge $5 a night.

Recently we stayed at Cabela's in Mitchell, South Dakota and about dark a newspaper photographer arrived, asked some questions and made our picture. The next day a newspaper reporter called while we were traveling and interviewed Linda. The article hit the paper and it was about Wal*Mart and Cabela's taking away money from campground owners. Linda was mis-quoted several times in the article and campground owners cried they can not compete with Wal*Mart and Cabela's. The day we left Mitchell a caravan of 24 rigs stopped at Cabela's and spent the night and why did they chose Cabela's? Months in advance of their caravan they contacted every campground within 50 miles of Mitchell and not one campground would take their caravan. So those 24 rigs overnighted at Cabela's and the campground owners complained to the newspaper.

That newspaper article, complete with mis-information and mis-quotes from Linda, was picked up by other publications and spread around the country. We have been interviewed several times by newspapers and magazines and this was the first time we have been mis-quoted. Of course, the purpose of the article was to prove RVers who overnight for free are stealing money from campground owners. As a side note, the Mitchell newspaper ran a poll of their readers and they voted 2 to 1 to allow overnighting at their Wal*Mart and Cabela's stores because it brings money to their city.

As I type this article we are boondocking in a parking area east of Stewart, British Columbia. Behind us is a mountain with a glacier peeping over the top and as it melts streams of waterfalls flow down the mountain and into a river. Our fresh water tank registers about 80 gallons and the solar panels are producing enough electric to run the motorhome. It is very quiet and we are hoping to see a bear emerge from the forest. Yes, we could drive to town and park in a campground, smothered by trees, smell campfire smoke, and pay $30 a night for hookups we don't want or need.