After I took the video on the Wilsonville ramp I decided to walk the interstate for awhile. I wasn’t flying any signs for a ride I was just walking for the hell of it. It turned out to be a good choice as the interstate is full of blackberry bushes to munch on. I think that day I probably ate 10 cups of blackberries. Yup you may have guessed my stomach was tore up after all that fruity stuff.
That walk was a fairly short walk of maybe 2 miles or so to the next ramp. When I walked up the off ramp I noticed a older guy holding his sign “Out of work bank robber, Need money for bullets”. He quickly got up when he noticed me sitting over by Burger King(sucking up some BK wifi). We bull shitted for 30 minutes or so. He was on his way to Albany, OR. He was about to start hitching out of there on the ramp but decided he would let me go first so he could go drink a couple tall boys with the money he had made with his sign. Once again I stood on that on ramp for a very short time before I got antsy and decided to start walking. I walked about 10 minutes before I noticed all the traffic had pretty much stopped. Come to find out there was a 3 car accident about 5 miles up the road. Feels good to walk past all the people that didn’t give me a ride while they sit in their cars in the heat. muuahaha I didn’t make it very far though before this mid aged woman pulled up in a mint condition classic Mercedes. She offered me a ride just south of Albany.
When she dropped me off I continued my walk down the interstate till I arrived at the 34 I-5 junction. By the time I got to the junction is was about 11pm so I found a good spot in the weeds to crash out for the night. The next morning I met yet another guy that was hitching. He is a member of the FTRA(freight train riders of america). He was heading to Kansas but needed to get to Eugene to get back on the trains. A very quiet man, but seemed fairly harmless for the reputation that the FTRA has. He hitched a ride out before me then I ended up getting a ride 15 minutes after standing on the ramp.
The guy that picked me up from the junction gave me a ride to Cottage Grove, OR. It was about a 50 or so mile ride. I hopped on the internet there and started walking again down the interstate to check things out. I walked to a small town called Curtin before getting another ride. This ride was a short one to Sutherlin. The 2 women that gave me a ride to Sutherlin did so because I helped them change a flat tire. From Sutherlin I got a ride to Canyonville.
The ride to Canyonville was a short ride but I learned from the driver that I-5 is full of hitchhikers. People are so use to seeing it. I spent the night in Canyonville and started hitchig on the ramp early the next morning. That morning was the first time I had a driver turn me down for a ride because of Manny. I walked up to this brand new 2008 BMW and when I opened the door the guy said he didn’t see the dog. Manny loses one point on the getting rides scorecard. Shortly after that a guy stopped and offered us a ride in the back of his truck to Grants Pass. I took that ride quickly.
I arrived in Grants Pass before noon. This town gave me a bad vibe right off the bat. People seemed cold and unfriendly from the start. So I walked directly to the on ramp and sat there for 4 hours before getting to hot. I noticed the grassy area between the on ramp and the interstate had its sprinkler system running so I decided to take a quick shower and give Manny a quick bath. It felt great! I got back on the ramp after drying out for a hour or so and sat there for another 4 hours. Not one person stop or wave or anything. I looked at Manny and his ears perked up before I even said anything and he looked up the ramp towards the interstate. Grabbed the bag and Manny’s leash and we started walking yet again. This time I held a sign out for cars coming from behind me to see. The sign read “Berkeley or Bust”. We had walked about 10 minutes before I looked up and noticed this car backing up on the side of the road. SCORE!!! Got my ride. The driver was a 20 year old girl from southern Washington state. She happened to be heading to the Los Angeles area! She agreed to help me get down the road. I road with her for about 4 and half hours when I had her drop me off south of Sacramento. It was already 2 or so in the morning so I quickly found a spot to crash.
When I woke the next morning we started walking inland off the interstate. It was many hours later and a very tired dog and myself before I got a ride. Guy and his daughter gave me a ride about 10 miles up the road. When he dropped me off it was only 5 minutes before I got another ride. This guy was awesome. He was heading very close to my dads town of Walnut Creek. So he dropped me off right at the entrance gate to my dad’s apartment complex. So here I am! Taking a much needed break but heading back on the road around the 19th–25th. I’m getting a tattoo while I’m here!
Stay tuned for that video! Peace
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