East coast, or more generally, east of the Mississippi, is definitely much harder than the west. Here in New Mexico, you can sleep overnight pretty much anywhere you want ... nobody will care unless you stay for more than 3-4 nights. Water can still be challenging out here, although when we've been in our van for a long time out east, we generally abandon our in-vehicle tanks and just buy those 2.5 or 5 gallon jugs from a store. I hope you're using iOverlander to help locate both of the things you've mentioned.