The trip is done already.

Which is?

I wanted to see Mesa Verde in Colorado, but it closed the day I arrived... >_>
Initially, I had planned to go to Boulder as well, but the cold pushed me further South instead.

Any protips for anyone who would want to do something like this?

I'm impressed that you were brave enough to do this. You could have been stranded in some random town in the middle of nowhere, or mugged, or kidnapped. But maybe that's just me being paranoid and not trusting others enough...

It's impossible to get stranded when you have unlimited time. Our good Lord gifted us with these feets so we could walk the streets.

Until you're injured. I don't know if you've tried walking 100+ miles but it tends to wear you out.

Of the travels I've been on so far, of the ones on foot, there were a few where I made sure to walk at least 120 miles every 5-day period, with the weekends free to hang out wherever I ended up. And I spent most of every day just exploring or relaxing, not traveling. Those were a lot easier than the biking ones where I cycled a minimum of 30 miles at a time between breaks, and a minimum of 60 miles every day, and those weren't difficult either. You'd be surprised what you're capable of if you give yourself a chance.

Post has been edited 2 time(s), last time on Dec 15 2013, 2:57 pm by Mini Moose 2707. Reason: Removing condescending/derailing implications to reopen topic.

Sacramento, California

Yep!
- Smile!
- Have a sign (you should write the name of the biggest city that is at most 4 hours from where you are, I would say, but that isn't always the best strategy... for example, if you are only going 10 km ahead to a small town, simply writing "Only 10 km ahead" might be a good one. 4 hours can also be a pretty big range, going for a 2-hours one can be more successful even if it isn't as big, though you just have to make sure people know what place you're talking about so that they feel more confident about you actually having a destination, which reinsures them that you are travelling rather than simply bumming around or being a hobo). Obviously, this means that having Markers with you is a pretty important tool as a hitch-hiker (but it's far from being required: for cardboard, find the 'cardboard' recycling dumpster behind any supermarket (or go ask for a piece inside if their dumpster is not outside; the bigger, the better, usually), and for the marker any gas station or supermarket or restaurant will usually lend you (or give you) one for free). I am one of those believers that how nice your cardboard looks affects the way people perceive you so... I'll advise you to cut it cleanly, have a clean cardboard, and do a nice block-lettering. I still haven't figured out if it's better to have a shitty sign, or no sign at all (I personally still go for a sign, since a lot of people will only stop for you if they feel like you are going somewhere... or they'll stop for you only if they are going exactly where your sign is saying you are going to). Some hitchers swear by the "no-sign" tactic, though.
- Have a backpack, and let it be visible: people associate it with travellers, obviously (you might however lose certain rides which might be too full). If you have extra-bags (I tend to have a separate food-bag, for example), it might be a good idea to hide it as best as you can behind your backpack so that people don't think you have too much shit to fit in their car.
- Do not cover your face (sunglasses, hats, etc.): the more you are exposed, the more people trust you.
- Walking is not the best strategy: finding the best spot and stopping there is the best one.
- Stand up. Face the traffic. Make eye-contact with the drivers passing by you.
- Look clean. Shave (though I don't think it matters too much).
- The best hypothetical spot would be a one-lane highway with a good shoulder (by "good" here I mean that people have to feel as safe as possible when they stop for you; for truckers, realize they need a lot of road to stop due to their inertia, and that they might not like the idea of stopping on a hill), and a not-too-fast speed limit (60 miles/h isn't too bad in itself, but if it's like 40, for example, people are more prompt to stop... however, a highway with that kind of speed limit is not necessarily one that would get you long-distance rides because then it's probably not a main highway... but hey, you never know!). If you can find a Stop light on a main highway, you're in business. More lanes than one might mean that some drivers on the lane the farthest from you will not stop for you because he is stuck in traffic and won't want to turn around. A U-Turn spot is also nice to have somewhere not too far after your spot: maybe 5% of my rides have U-turned for me. Some hitchers swear by the "on-ramps" due to their lower speeds, but I prefer going where the on-ramp merges with the main highway.
- When the driver asks you where you want to get dropped at, realize that your best bet is to be on the outskirt of the town, on the way out toward where you are going: that's where all the traffic converges.
- Big demographic concentrations means that people trust each other less, so don't be surprised to wait several hours when you are just leaving a big city (going IN a big city from fairly close is, however, usually fairly easy).
- Be open-minded. People don't want to harm you, but they'll get pissed if you judge them or think you're better than them (like any other human beings I guess).
- For free internet+computer access, use public libraries. Motels also have those in their Office, but they might kick you out. You can also try to sneak in for their free breakfast, if you feel like trying it out, haha.
- I try to not have much more than 30$ on me (though most of the time I actually don't carry much more than 5$). I prefer using the card. However, when I was in the US, since getting money out cost me money, I travelled with 200$ on me.
- If you're stuck right in the middle of a town, it is in your advantage to pay for a city bus to bring you as far as possible toward the end of the town.
- For stealth-camping (sleeping for free), you can do it pretty much anywhere. A dark spot with not much foot-traffic is always better, and so is one away from the road. Bush is always good: it is usually enough to hide you. Leave early in the morning unless you want to take a bet with being bothered by the cops (though the few times I decided to sleep in, I never ever got bothered... except for that one time I had pitched my tent right next to a primary school's playground without knowing it, haha). I rarely put up the tent because it is not very subtle (when you buy one, get dark, grey, or blue-grey colors... green/cammo can be good if you intend on spending lots of time in more remote areas).
- For pillow, use your extra-clothing.
- If there is dangerous wildlife around (bears), don't sleep with your food.
- Bring a headlamp.
- I would recommend having earplugs that have noise-reduction properties: standing on the side of some of the very trafficy highways can suck for the ears.

There's probably a whole bunch of other tricks I could give you, but that's a pretty damn solid base.
For hitching itself, just remember to have a sign, smile, and have a good shoulder behind you. Standing up, facing the traffic, not covering up your face, and making eye-contact as well.

A bit more info on my separate "food-bag":
- It makes my food easily accessible.
- It makes it very easy to hang up the food at night when I sleep in bear-country. (Remember tooth paste, deodorant, and whatever smells can attract bears.)
- If you hang that extra bag in front of you on your backpack, it counter-balances the weight of the backpack itself a bit and thus lets you walk slightly straighter.

Isn't so much about bravery now that I've done it, but I guess hitching your very first ride might take some courage. Once that's done, you should already realize that the people that'll pick you up are actually some of the nicest people you'll ever meet. Remember they are stopping to help you out.

Oh ya. I had a lift from Redding to Tahoe Lake. I didn't stop there.
But that's where I saw my very first Palm Tree if I remember properly.

Post has been edited 1 time(s), last time on Dec 16 2013, 9:25 am by payne.

So you didn't swim over to germany? Weak.

Na, actually that trip apparently was quite cool!
I guess I will never do something like that, I'm not that interested in seeing other places.

If I tried the same thing I would have a serious meltdown.

For me, seeing landscapes was definitely a motivator, but another big part of it is meeting new people, rather than seeing new places.
Hitch-hiking around exposes you to such an amazingly wide variety of different people... it just blows your mind open!

From what? Meeting a stranger, or doing nothing for long periods of time? Because those are the only skills you need to hitchhike.

Anyone can do it, you included. It isn't hard, I promise. Just go outside and you're basically done.

I think doing it in the style of Craigslist Joe would be a more interesting experience. Just hitchhiking with randoms is boring.

You're talking about four hours in a foreign car with someone I don't know. I can't do five minutes of small talk with someone I don't know well, let alone four hours. I get uncomfortable after about five seconds. Hell, saying hello to someone I know is hard enough for me. On the bright side, if I did try it, maybe the subsequent panic attack would give me a heart attack and I wouldn't have to deal with the rest of the way.

Pfft, you don't need to talk to them. Get in and stay completely silent. You could even do fake sign language to pretend you're mute.

Maybe the president will let me sign for him.

I think the US is just a tad more thorough in vetting the backgrounds of people that they allow on a public stage with their president...

I actually met a girl that could only speak with signs when I was hitch-hiking out from Yosemite National Park.

Sacrieur, you have to challenge yourself to learn.
You don't get 4-hours rides all that often, and if the driver understands you're bad at talking, (s)he'll probably just shut up and drive you anyways.

Tips as of talking with strangers:
- Ask them why they picked you up, and if they picked up a lot of hitch-hikers before
- Ask them what is their job or hobbies
- Ask them about their travels
- Find common interests, and talk about it
Another one is to be actually interested in learning a whole bunch of different knowledge, because then you'll be able to fuel up the conversation by simply asking others questions, rather than having to talk about yourself. This is pretty much how I proceed most of the time.

It's not about learning anything, it's about dealing with the anxiety response that shuts down speech.

Not that I am even a very good conversationalist without anxiety.

Perhaps this can be relevant here: Science of being homeless

Contains tips and tricks about Sleep, water, food, hygiene, and staying healthy.