Summer is here and having been cooped up in libraries and lecture theatres for the last eight months many of us see the long vacation as a chance to indulge our wander lust and seek out countries new. But getting out of the bubble is not always easy; for students the rising cost of train, bus and plane tickets can seem extortionate. For the eco-conscious student traveller, it’s also difficult to ignore the fact that these gas guzzling modes of transport are incredibly damaging to the environment. Even if you’ve got cash and no conscience, the journey itself is often uncomfortable, smelly and boring. You can wind up being broke, guilty and disaffected, all before you have even reached your final destination. But there is another option: thumbing a lift, catching a ride, taking a free trip…
There are several things that spring into my mind when I think of hitchhiking. On the one hand there is the hazy, idyllic image of Simon and Garfunkel laughing by the roadside on their way to look for America; the happy, expectant faces of those trying to catch a lift from one end of the country to another clutching their destination boards at the side of the motorway. On the other hand I can’t shake the association of Simon Armitage’s poem ‘Hitcher’ in which the psychotic narrator describes how he picks up a free spirited wanderer, beats him to death and then watches his unfortunate victim bounce off the curb as he speeds away, telling him that he can ‘walk from there.’
Aside from poetry and dodgy B movies, there are some very real and terrifying examples that show how hitchhiking can turn into a nightmare.During the 1990’s Australian Ivan Milat murdered at least seven hitchers (five of whom were backpackers visiting the country) in unprovoked attacks which shocked the nation. We know these types of cases are rare, but when they’re catapulted into the media spotlight, they’re certainly unnerving.
If you want a clearer picture of the reality of hitchhiking, it’s always worthwhile talking to some people who actually do it. Sian, 20, studying at the University of Sheffield is a great advocate of thumbing a ride. “Hitchhiking,” she claims, “if done safely, is an incredible experience. You meet so many different kinds of people; it really restores your faith in humanity.” Andy, 20, at the University of Bradford agrees, saying that the hitching “makes the journey as important as the destination; it makes it into an adventure.” Andy first started hitching short distances whilst in Ireland on holiday with friends, more recently however, he has hitched to France and Italy. He found the idea of encountering all kinds of different people from all walks of life to be an exciting prospect rather than a scary one. As Andy points out, because “you don’t necessarily end up in a car with people who share your world view” the interactions hitchers have with those offering lifts can be very intense. You are walking into a complete stranger’s life and walking out again hours later having left your mark.
None of the individuals I spoke to had encountered any serious dangers whilst travelling, probably because they had all planned their trips carefully and adhered to some basic safety rules. Kirsty, 21, from London advises first time hitchers to observe the make and registration of the vehicle before getting into it, and “try to sit in the passenger seat if you can” she recommends. Andy continues, “get a good spot to stand where you can be seen, hitch with friends rather than alone and if you don’t feel safe getting into a car then don’t! You tend to get a sense of the people who stop.”
Despite the many positive reactions to hitchhiking, there are some definite downsides. Hitchhiking may save money but it doesn’t necessarily save time: whilst we may be frequently subjected to delays in airports and at train stations, the perfect ride is even less likely to turn up just when you need it. Kirsty agrees that her preferred method of transport can be quite time consuming. She spent her Christmas vacation hitching to Germany and back but ended up being stranded there; eventually arriving home almost a week after her university term had started. Andy concedes that there are downsides to hitchhiking but sticks firmly to the philosophy that “you have to take the rough with the smooth.” Recently whilst hitching Andy found himself in the freezing cold for hours trying to get a lift out of Verona, Italy. He finally managed to hitch a ride at 3am from a man who had driven past him earlier but decided to turn back and pick him up out of the kindness of his heart. Clearly this sort of experience is touching and it is easy to see why, with cases such as this, hitching can be truly said to reaffirm your faith in people.
Whilst it seems that most people hitching lifts do not encounter any serious dangers, it is definitely not a risk free mode of transport. It certainly shouldn’t be attempted by anyone who has not planned their trip very carefully, and preferably should have discussed it with someone who has experience of this way of getting from A to B. That said, it is environmentally friendly, cheap and can transform a journey. If, at the end of the road, you find that it is difficult to decide whether to give hitchhiking a thumbs up or a thumbs down perhaps it is worth trying it for yourself: in the words of Armitage’s free spirited hitcher ‘the truth… is blowin’ in the wind.’
