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adventuring

Photo by Alex Krause

Glad you could drop in. There is information here about adventuring that you won't find anywhere else. Specifically, information and stories about train hopping, riding freight trains for fun and travel. And about urban adventuring, the kind of thing you do when you have an hour or so and want to challange yourself and get your adrenals pumping.

In the US, in the post-Sept 11th universe, people are much more suspicious, more questioning, and more likely to arrest first and ask questions later. Terrorist used the general sense of trust in the US against its citizens, and people are unwilling to play the fool again too soon.

For you, that means you need to exercise a little common sense, a little more caution, and be perhaps quicker to admit that you are just some dumbshit looking for thrills. As always, don't run from authority, don't make things worse, play respectful, have your ID, and be ready and willing to bear the consequence of your mischief. Other than those heavy words, have a blast!

river rafting

Punk Rafting Adventure -- Punk rafting info, including a 'zine we made based on our river rafting adventure of the past few years.

train hopping

Trainspotting -- It's raining. It shouldn't be raining. It isn't supposed to be raining. I'm trying to catch a train and I don't want to sit out in the wet. I'm in a cafe. An article from BC Magazine.

Rail Rogues -- You ask "Should I try to hop a freight?" No, of course not. It's dangerous. Everyone has a friend of a friend whose uncle got his leg cut off by a train. And as you know from Emperor of the North, the bulls and the bums are brutal and relentless. No one rides freight these days. An article from the Metro Newspapers.

The Secret Life of Trains -- Outside everything is stillness. But inside our boxcar, it is pandemonium. The steady rhythm of this percussion orchestra is punctuated by the other-worldly screaming of passing trains. They sound like demons torn away by the wind as they try to enter our new traveling home. This freight is hauling ass. An article from Might magazine, including a comprehensive how-to hop freight trains.

Seven Questions -- Train hopping is the closest thing to meditation that I do. Train hopping is time out of time. An interview about train-hopping and drive-in movies.

An Interview with Emily -- Emily is a kid I met through the Net with an intense interest in trainhopping and hobo culture. She was working on a project she called the Petticoast Rambler. Here is the interview.

Trainhopping Resources -- Collection of links, books, how-to, and shit that will help you get it all together. .

Feedback -- I get a lot of mail about these pages, much of it from other hoppers grateful for the information. But most of my mail comes from irate rail fans and railroad security people newly set loose on the net, berating me for my irresponsibility. All of it is pretty amusing. How much of my hate mail comes from the jealous anger of people trapped in their jobs and their families and the structured, unvarying lives they've built for themselves?

Songs -- Train I ride, sixteen coaches long / That big black train, took my baby and gone. Sing those railroad blues.

urban adventure

How To Sneak Around -- For some of us, just the thrill of peeking behind the scenes of life is enough. Add to that the challenge of evading the law and pushing personal and societal boundaries. Toss in the opportunity to indulge a childish urge to run around like Indiana Jones. And it's too much to resist.

Urban Urges -- We have everything we think we need, which isn't much. It isn't like we are going to do it on the outside. We're going to do it on the inside. All the way. We are going all the way with Susan. And she's going to show us how. We're headed for the top. We'll be the highest people in the city at the tippy top of the tallest building in town. An article from the Metro Newspapers.

Urban Adventure on the Web -- A growing list of 'net-connected urban adventurers, clubs, and organizations.