Need advice re. hammocking along I-20 from NC to NM

[WhollyHamaca]

There’s another state park just past Odessa in Monahans. I started looking and it became a game. Could I drive from Home to California and stay in parks or campgrounds the whole way? I think it can be done!

Charlotte

Yes, a fun game indeed! I say Go for it if you have the chance! I'll certainly put those places you've suggested on my list of possibilities. Thank you!

Years ago I drove & camped in state/fed parks all the way across the country and back again, also several times all around the Southwest. I was quite a lot younger then, more able, and more intrepid (some said foolish to go alone, but I enjoyed the solitude after a relationship gone bad and an ill-suited job). I had plenty of time to plan and be out there in between jobs, with very few responsibilities but not much money. Now it seems daunting in the current circumstances, but needs must, unless I can find a way to get there without driving 2K miles each way with 2 cats & stuff I'll require to "camp" in, fix up, & sell a suddenly empty house. Life is an adventure, and this is just another challenge along the way. With planning and reasonable caution, hammocking along even a scary long road trip can make it go better!

[WhollyHamaca]

Thanks, dkurfiss and old4hats, for the advice re. Walmart. It wouldn't surprise me if their policy has changed, for their own liability protection. It certainly is prudent to ask before staying on ANY private property, even if entirely in a car! I've done it at a couple of Love's truck stops for a much-needed mid-day kip with manager's OK, but only seen/heard about overnights at Walmart or similar. Could be an interesting urban experience if needed, but I think I'd only do WM or truck stops if I had permission, could sleep in my car with nothing outside it, and left at first light.
That said, I think I'm better off to look into state-run travel/rest areas along the way. The ones I've stayed at before in TN and NC were staffed 24/7, clean, security cameras, and separate areas for cars & trucks. Some had a few camp stops on a first-come basis. No permission or reservations needed, but I always went into the building and spoke with the guard on duty first thing. I was a ground-dweller with tent then, but with a stand I can set up my hammock without worries about trees, or sleep in the car in a pinch if I get nervous there or weather turns bad.
Thanks again for advice! Always welcome!

[WhollyHamaca]

No advice here but good luck on your journey

Thanks, TallPaul!! I can use all the good wishes I can get!

[OlTrailDog]

Gee, the WM in Bozeman and the two in Missoula look like RV parks during the summer months. Plus, the Home Depot in Missoula looks like a homeless shelter for folks living in RVs.

[WhollyHamaca]

Gee, the WM in Bozeman and the two in Missoula look like RV parks during the summer months. Plus, the Home Depot in Missoula looks like a homeless shelter for folks living in RVs.

Maybe it depends how "safe" they appear to the management, also whether they get customer complaints about "those" people freeloading & partying in the parking lot. Inner city stores with a large homeless population on foot or old beater cars (no RV to call home, not much cash to spend in the store): probably no overnights. Hiking/camping & tourist/snowbird travelers in RVs and average-or-better cars/trucks (look more respectable, likely to buy stuff in the store): overnights more likely allowed? Pure speculation on my part. I remember when Walmarts in Albuquerque were very inviting toward overnight travelers; the security guards in their little trucks would drive around the parking lot all night and just wave to anybody sitting outside their van or RV. Anyway, I'd be surprised if any of the big-boxes or malls etc allow tents & hammocks in the parking lot, except during emergency evacuations (floods, fires, zombie apocalypse).

I spend so much time & money in Home Depot, they should give me a nation-wide overnight permit and encourage me to live there.