I’m traveling in November to fish a tournament. I plan to sleep in the back of my SUV. My limited google searches of the area lead me to believe state parks and campsites will be closed down before this date so parking there is out of the question.. so now. I’m planning to park at the ramp, cook a little dinner on a small cooktop and be in my vehicle the rest of the time. There aren’t any issues with sleeping in a public parking lot is there? I’ve never done this before so just making sure what I should expect. Thanks.

Me and two other fishing buddy's of mine did it for years. I would check on the FORUM to see way kind of area this tournament is going to be held just for safety sake!

there was always three of us doing it.

I did it for years when i was young and broke. Never had a problem. What do you mean the state parks will be closed then?

The state park campsites close 10/15 there.

Walmart.

I can sleep like a baby in my truck. If I head off somewhere and want to stay another day or dont feel up to the drive back I'll park her at Walmart and let her idle all night with the AC blowing.

What state park?

Shawnee bend state park

You should never sleep in your vehicle with the motor constantly running, Co2 poisoning is a real thing.
You wont wake up.

Will you need power to charge up your batteries?

I have no idea where that is, but I do hunt out of state a lot and when they "shut down" the parks that usually means they just cut off the water so nothing freezes and ruptures.

So, if you not in a blizzard where snow traps cO2 in and around your car, you should be fine.

It's a wonder the tens of thousands of people in the oilfield who sit in their pickup 12+ hours a day just looking out their window at a rig or something haven't all died. Your link talks about a vehicle that was surrounded by large snow drifts, trapping the CO2 in the area. There's a difference. I see no reason it wouldn't be safe unless you're expecting a large snow.

Chris K --- I like your style
if you do the Wal-Mart parking lot you don't even have to cook --- use their Deli option & TV is free in their electronic section, just pop in a video grab a folding chair and there you go

That is a pretty broad and absolute statement. I have slept in a running vehicle before and I've never died, not even a little bit