Hitchhike

oh i want to be free to go around world meeting new people.
this takes courage, but i’ll do it!

After reading “On the Road” by Jack Kerouac this became a goal of mine. Thanks to a lot of similar literature I’ve begun to think of America as this large, romantic country that can only be properly explored by interacting intimately with its people.

Ok, so my plan is to hitchhike to vancouver this summer. I currently live just outside toronto and have never been out west at all. I want to spemd as little money as possible if any. The point is to be compelety free.
I’m a 23 year old female , so i’m a little nervous cause i’m starting out alone!
I have hitchhiked all over ontario by myself, but if anyone has any thought or ideas on the subject i would love to hear…

When I was in my early 20’s through Northern England and Wales, which seemed to be much safer than in the US, but maybe I was fooling myself.

i’m 14 and i’m thinking that for my gap year, i’d love to hitch hike across europe
my parents are really unhappy about the plan and wont let me go but i think i’d love it because it’s so unreliable and exciting!
i would probably go with one friend though

Obviously mainly as an asset to my other goals.

My best friend and I hitchhiked out of our shitty, central California town. We made it to Petaluma (I LOOOOVED Petaluma), Tomales, Dillon Beach, Valley Ford, San Rafael, San Francisco, Colma, Pacifica, Half Moon Bay, San Gregorio Beach, and Santa Cruz.
It wasn’t hard to get rides. I guess what I heard about a male-female hitchhiking duo was right, people seem more likely to pick us up. We never had any scary encounters, they were all positive.
A common thread that connected the majority of our rides was feathers hanging in the car! Sortof odd.
Definitely one of the best experiences of my life, I will definitely continue to do this.

Okay, I thought I’d say why it wasn’t worth it. First what I liked about it. Back when I did it I used to feel so free, and like the road was in front of me, and I met some pretty interesting people, and had some pretty interesting conversations.

On the bad side, I got myself into some pretty sticky, scary situations. Later I realized how lucky I was that nothing serious ever happened when I was hitchhiking. And this was around 25 years ago when it seemed there were fewer really bazaar crimes being reported.

But, if you are determined to do this, I would recommend definitely going with another person. It will be harder to catch a ride, but safer. And if you’re a woman and want to do this, better to do it with a guy going with you. Again, probably will get picked up quicker with two girls, but as you can guess, the motivation of those picking you up might be “less than honorable” (to use an euphemism).

Another hint for doing this is to do it in a country that has a lower violent crime rate. In China for instance, it’s much safer than here in the States, though I’d still prefer to have a guy with me, since sometimes Chinese men have weird ideas about foreign women (like we all can’t wait to jump into bed with anything that moves).

So, in all I’d say with risks (which have increased in more recnet years), it’s not worth it, though I will admit it was often fun at the time.

Growing up I was always afraid of isolation-of being lost and stranded. Hitchhiking for me was a comming of age experience which in many ways truly liberated me. It is a wonderful feeling knowing that know matter what happens you’re okay-you’re never really lost. There is always some solution.

Planning on doing this a bit next fall. I’m going with a friend! I don’t think I would ever, ever do it alone.