Woman who lives in a van and travels the country by herself opens up about the terrifying moment she was ‘afraid for her life’ while ‘deep’ in the South Carolina woods after hearing gunshots

While vanlifeing on Instagram has a somewhat idyllic appeal, one avid traveler has revealed that it can sometimes be scary on the road.

Katya Vorokhobova, 27, from Florida, has built a growing social media following with her travels around the world in her converted van and motorbike.

But one of hers most watched clips on TikTok — where she uses the handle @tropicalrussian — capture the terrifying moment she heard gunshots while relaxing in her van at a South Carolina campsite one evening.

In the video, which has been viewed more than nine million times to date, Katya can be seen playing the guitar before a shot in the dark causes her to stop mid-song.

In the overlapping captions, she explains, “The only time I ever feared for my life was in my van. I was minding my business, learning songs on guitar… deep in the woods of South Carolina.

“I was so happy to find a secluded spot next to a lake, but there was no cell service.”

While playing the guitar, Katya said she “started to sense that people were around,” so she lowered her singing voice.

That’s when she heard the sound of a gunshot as she gasped, “What the f**k.”

At first she said she didn’t know what to do, so she decided to stay calm and “evaluate the situation.”

The overlapping captions go on to describe Katya’s internal thoughts: ‘There are hunters out there, that’s kind of scary.

“I’m going to close the doors of my van.”

Katya was about to put her guitar away when two more gunshots rang out.

Katya works as a project manager for an environmental consultancy and is also a content creator

Katya, who works as a project manager for an environmental consultancy and is also a content creator, then reveals that she ended up shouting at the strangers to “go hunt somewhere else and they left.”

Hunting in South Carolina is allowed, but only after obtaining the proper permit and obtaining the required permits.

After Katya posted the video of her nerve-wracking incident, it quickly received thousands of comments from concerned viewers.

One commenter wrote: ‘That’s not a hunt, those were warning shots for YOU… you need to leave the area, southern people are territorial.’

Another concerned viewer mused: ‘Parking a van next to a remote lake with the doors open and no mobile connection is WILD!! This sounds like a slasher movie waiting to happen.”

In response to the outpouring of concerns, Katya posted follow-up videos defending the way she acted.

Katya has built a growing social media following with her travels around the world in her converted van and motorbike

In one excerpt, she explains, “So often it’s enough to just stand your ground and say, look, I know my rights, and I know I’m allowed to be here.”

“Most people aren’t murderers. I know the media likes to scare people.

“(But) I just try to stay away from all that stuff because I live here.

‘Of all the crazy things I’ve done, all the crazy places I’ve been alone.

‘As a blonde girl, I crossed the border on foot, and I’m doing fine. So always listen to your intuition, but don’t let fear and paranoia stop you from living your best life.’

Katya is currently in Costa Rica, riding her motorcycle across the country.

Unlike South Carolina, she says, she hasn’t had any problems so far and is having “the best time ever.”

‘I never felt unsafe for a moment. I have never heard gunshots in the middle of the night,” she concludes.