Many RVers express concern about personal safety when boondocking, especially when choosing a spot beyond sight or sound of another rig. First, remember that thieves do not hang out in the boonies, though you should consider the following safety tips to thwart the “thief through convenience” if you make it too easy.
Boondocking Safety Tips- Never open your door to anyone you don’t know after dark. For instance, once a couple knocked about 8:00 on a winter night in the desert and said their car ran out of gas. I told them (through the window) that I couldn’t help them (I had no sympathy for them if they actually let that happen).
- Don’t tell strangers that you meet in town, even those that seem perfectly harmless, where you are camped. If you want to socialize, do it in town until you get to know them better.
- Lock your door when you leave (I admit that I don’t always do this). You don’t want to come back and find a homeless person inside your rig.
- Boondock with friends or with club members. Many solo RVers belong to solos clubs (such as Loners On Wheels) and often camp together.
- Bury some land mines around your rig to protect yourself from intruders. (Wait! Don’t call Homeland Security, that’s a joke.)
Theft Prevention
- Don’t leave stuff lying around outside your rig when you leave. Camp chair, table, rug—OK. Portable generator—put in a locked compartment, or make sure you chain it up with a heavy duty chain, not one a simple bolt cutter could cut through .
- Close your blinds and drapes so the curious can’t see what you have inside.
- Lock all your outside locker doors.
- Re-key your lockers. Most RVs have the same key to open lockers, which is easy for a would-be thief to acquire.
- If you still feel uncomfortable, buy a simple red LED light and mount it near your entry door, operated by a switch on the inside. When you go out, flip the switch. The red light looks like you have a burglar alarm that is set.
In all my years of RV boondocking I have never had a problem or felt in danger (even from the couple who ran out of gas), and the only theft was out of a campground.
7 comments:
If you have a dog, it's a great deterrent, many would be invaders and theives won't bother with a home or rv that has a dog barking loudly. I always travel with at least one Belgian Tervuren, sometimes more, am female and often travel in my RV alone and boondock alone when enroute to dog shows and have never had a moment's problem or discomfort. Most people see my dogs as imposing and I don't deter that idea.
I will not open the door after bark to anyone, unless I know who they are.
Emergencies can occur for fellow campers after dark. I like to think that someone would help me if something out of the ordinary happened and I needed some kind of assistance. Therefore I would speak to a camper through a window to assess their emergency and find out what their needs maybe, however I would be in possession of a firearm and inform the people at the onset of the conversation. I am retired law enforcement and suspect that any criminal who wishes to do harm would encounter many campers that pack. Most criminals are cowards and fear for their lives and know that approaching a boondocked camper is taking a risk, but then again, desperate people to desperate things. Just have a plan on what procedurally you would do to avoid or fen off a perpetrator.
We traveled the east coast and into indiana BMXing for several years and never had a problem at any rest area or town park. But, my wife walked the Doberman each night. If I'm outside I'm always "READY" for any company but we never answer the door day or night. We use the kitchen window to communicate.
DON'T PUT YOUR NAME ON YOUR RIG OR A CUTE LITTLE SIGN BY YOUR RV. IF SOMEONE CALLS YOU BY NAME YOU WILL PROBABLY OPEN YOUR DOOR TO SEE WHO IT IS.
The only time I ever had anything stolen was while I was boondocking in a National Forest area. Someone stole an ice-chest one night. The next night, I heard someone stop on the road nearby. I slipped out of the camper and waited behind a tree. A moment later, a young man came slipping up the road, headed to a motor-home parked further up the road. As the young man passed the tree I was hiding behind, I grabbed him by the front of his shirt, jerked him off the ground, and had a short chat with him. As I am a big man, (260 pounds) and very strong, it did not take long for him to see the error of his ways. When I turned him loose, he was more than glad to leave the area. I never saw him again. Cherokee Brave
A concealed carry permit, suitable firearms training (if you do not have experience), and a handgun will give you piece of mind. My wife & I both have a law enforcement background (and concealed carry permits), but we will pass on parks or areas that look bad.
Post a Comment