|
|
Post by milly on Jan 19, 2019 12:03:20 GMT -5
Intersting little video. I picked up some hitch hikers about 2 yrs ago who wanted dropping off at a goods yard about 50 miles on. They told me how they travel by jumping the goods train and travel across the UK and Europe. They can get times of most of the good trains across the world off thhe internet where people post the info. About 6 months later I found his or her contact email and emailed see how they done as was very intrigued how they did trains as never even entered my head when I lived on the road to do it. He got back and said they had been to the States and done it over there and he sent me some pic's. The video is not his though just one I saw on the internet.    This last pic is of them in the UK at Didcot sidings.  |
|
|
|
Post by lilpinny on Jan 19, 2019 12:19:48 GMT -5
That's cool. Hobo's and train hopping comes from way way back in the great depression. They had their own code where they would write symbols for other hobos that would tell them where they could get food when they got off the train and stuff like that. All pretty interesting. weburbanist.com/2010/06/03/hoboglyphs-secret-transient-symbols-modern-nomad-codes/There used to be a guide, I forget what it's called, that they'd share that had the times, tracks and where that train was going information for various train yards. Now that's all on the internet (they still try to keep it kinda amongst themselves, IIRC). It's dangerous stuff. Lots of stuff can go wrong when you are trying to jump on a super heavy, rolling piece of machinery. I personally saw a guy get both his feet sliced off when he tried to jump on a slow moving train and slipped under and it rolled over his ankles. I never did it, but I used to live near the tracks with a bunch of friends when I was in college. We'd be on the porch and people would jump on and off trains once in a while... we'd throw them a beer once in a while and they'd tell stories. Interesting bunch. |
|
|
|
Post by gsx600racer on Jan 19, 2019 13:03:02 GMT -5
Funny, I just watch that Vice documentary a few days ago. With homeland security and modern technology/security, this sorta thing is much harder to do without getting caught.
|
|
|
|
Post by lilpinny on Jan 19, 2019 13:30:23 GMT -5
Ha... I should have watched the doc before I posted. They said alot of the same things.  |
|
|
|
Post by milly on Jan 19, 2019 13:55:21 GMT -5
Ha... I should have watched the doc before I posted. They said alot of the same things. Good to hear your story though, I know tramps/hobbo's over here use to leave signs on gates and that of where they had been fed/ or treated kindy in some ways. One recent thing I found out that a lot of big estates would leave a thin belt of tree's available for intinerant workers to use for sleep in and firewood. All over the UK. My days on the road I never knew about the signs and codes.I did meet up one old Tramp Chris in a service station on the motorway I had not picked up for about 20yrs and at 71 he's still tramping and hitching around the country  |
|
|
|
Post by lilpinny on Jan 19, 2019 14:01:41 GMT -5
Ha... I should have watched the doc before I posted. They said alot of the same things. Good to hear your story though, I know tramps/hobbo's over here use to leave signs on gates and that of where they had been fed/ or treated kindy in some ways. One recent thing I found out that a lot of big estates would leave a thin belt of tree's available for intinerant workers to use for sleep in and firewood. All over the UK. My days on the road I never knew about the signs and codes.I did meet up one old Tramp Chris in a service station on the motorway I had not picked up for about 20yrs and at 71 he's still tramping and hitching around the country Where I lived in college, there was train tracks that came through where the campus was and where housing was... so the trains would come through there and slow way down because people were crossing the tracks, or students would put couches on the tracks, etc, etc. When they slowed down it was a good place to jump on or jump off... it was right in the middle of college town. It was easy to find people partying and they'd be good with giving out food. There was also legit work in the area where they didn't ask alot of questions. Anyway, along the backs of the fences in that area that faced the train, were the symbols that pretty much said get off here for a good time. I haven't thought about that stuff in a long time... |
|
