As I went began hitchhiking I learned what I needed to know to survive. At times it was by trial and error, other times by the hard way. I used to listen to the old timers of the road, hobos if you wish. Looking neat and tidy was a must. So was having regular showers and doing laundry at every chance. Traveling light was a good idea. Too much gear is a hindrance for most drivers and the hitchhiker. Having a cardboard sign with your destination on it made things so much easier to get a ride.Drivers knew where you going and it gave you credibility when the cops went by. It helped to be interested in the driver and their tales. Being interesting yourself kept the ride from getting boring.
Now that I’m 62, I found hitchhiking took a lot out of me. I took public transit as much as I could especially in Nelson, B.C. where out of town bus service was great. I started to work more often which put more cash in my wallet. Therefore I could afford reasonable priced motel rooms.I wanted to know where I was going to sleep that night and keep my personal hygiene up.
I haven’t hitchhiked in years. I got too tired of long distance thumbing. I did meet up with a lot of interesting people. It established too a sense of community. Every place I went had its good and bad points. Eventuality when I semi- retire I want to find myself in one of three places. One is Kamloops where there is a lot of freight train traffic. The second place is Cranbrook for the same reason, lots of freight trains going through and a mountain – Fisher Peak – grabbed my attention several years ago. It is a mountain that has fascinated me since 1990. The third is Kaslo in the West Kootenays on the shores of Kootenay Lake. It has incredible views of the mountains across the lake. Kaslo is a very laid back town and there is no such thing as a rush there. About a thousand people live there.
Ron Murdock has lived and worked in Western Canada all his life, and will continue to do so until his last day on Planet Earth. He has a good number of interests and hobbies which include dogs, freight trains, baseball and astronomy. Ron wants to know what the truth is, and nothing but the truth, and will do what research it takes to find it. The best compliment he can get is when a person says his writing, or what he says, gets them seeking.
