Thinking about packing up and going. any advice?

Lately i've been thinking about just packing some stuff, selling everything else and just going, i dont know where and i dont know how. sadly with my lack of planning and knowledge i'd end up in jail or dead somewhere along the way. This is something i've wanted to do for years now and its getting to the point where i know its something i have to do. i dont really know why but something deep inside tells me i have to do this, so if theres anyone who could give me advice on the best way to go about doing this i would appreciate it.

 

thats something i've felt the need to do, too. unfortunatly, i'm stuck in the city with an awful job to pay off school loans and debt. my advice is get out on the road while you can and while your responsibilites are minimal. pick a place a head out. just take your time, stop along the way and eventulauly work your way to a destination. i hope you do it.

 

I know i will be doing it. its the whole issue of when and where that i havent worked out just yet, not to mention how i'll get anywhere since i dont have a car so i'll either be walking or trying to find a ride

 

Hey bro. I've spent probably 10 years on the road all together. I've traveled via just but any mode you could name--hitch hike, hopping trains, motorcycle, traveled (and still do) with a travelling carnival....--so if you need any advise feel free to ask.

First bit of advise I can give you is to check out digihitch.com. It's a forum devoted to road people. all kinds of advise in there.

Personally my favorite mode of travel is by bicycle. Seeing that hitch hiking is getting harder (my opinion) and frieght hopping is less viable these days thanks to the patriot act and overall public paronoia, and seeing that you don't have a destination and therefore don't have any reason to be in a hurry I'd strongly urge you to consider two-wheeling it.

The way I do it is I hit the flea markets, thrift stores, and garage sales and find a cheap but decent bike (usually $25-$60) give it a tune up and hit the road.

Since my investment is small if I get tired of riding I can just give the bike to another thrift store and stick out my thumb or get on a bus, travel that way for awhile, then buy another bike somewhere along the way.

anyway, like I said feel free to ask if you need any tips. I don't have alot of time for the internet today or I'd go into more detail about preparation etc.

 

I think about that every day. I am thinking about getting a used camper or a good tent and just traveling around the country. I hear camp sites and stuff are cheap.

You should not let that stop you. If taking to the road is what you really want to do then just do it. For your creditors to do anything to you they have to sue you first (that’s assuming they would even bother to do so) but, to do that they would have to find you first. Since you would be moving around that would be hard to do. The worst that would happen is your credit would be ruined. So, if you are intent on living on the open road you won’t need credit anymore.

 

I disagree. Doing that is stealing, you used their money for your education, it is your duty to pay it back. I'm in the same situation, and I know it will be a load off when it's all paid off, but not a second sooner. Besides, things may change and you may want or need your credit. Say you meet a woman and want to settle down and raise a family, but because of laziness and selfishness as a youth, you didn't pay your loans and now you can't get a mortgage.

 

Maybe some kind of astral force is causing an urge inside of people that makes them want to leave Babylon...knda like a mass exodus. Don't know, but it seems to me that many many people are coming to the realization that being a mindlessly lead automoton sheep..BLOWS GOATS!!!

 

i would say go for hitchhiking. get a nice pack, like the one im about to sell, a nice sleeping bag, and a cheap tent a couple of ponchos to keep you and your pack dry. quit doing drugs, quit owning pot or pipes, keep your karma on the plus side. dont do anything that can put you in jail, well not quite that far, but be careful. ive had tremendous luck hitching. keep that backpack light though, ive found a direct correlation between the weight of a backpack and youre overall happiness. dont worry about food or money and dont beg and the world will take care of you.

 

i have also thought of leaving structured life and grabbing a backpack, tent,camping stove and just living and breathing the adventure and unknowns of being on your own in the world... by reading your post it has relit that desire....my advise would be to do some internet searching on survival camping,whatever method you want to get up and go with or go to the library and get books on the subject,listen and read others experinces.. i think selling most of your stuff 2 make $$$ would be a good idea ( i'm now thinking of that idea)............so..
i hope the information you need comes to you....................

 

do it. i've been on the road 15 years, with stops here and there for a year or so... get a tent, raingear, a cook stove and go. cheers!

 

When I was hitching, I made a pack out of a gas can. With the outside covered, it's just a bag, but when hard times hit (like standing in the rain or in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night) it can get you a ride to the next town fast.

 

I wonder how many people just "walk the Earth"

 

i've been thinking of going again too.
i did that, just walking the earth. but you need a group, or just someone else, to be with you. so that's what i'm looking for now.

 

You could get a quality bike with some puncture-free tires. It would beat walking, and you could attack saddle bags and such to it.

 

1 think most of you fail to consider things like food.
Who's gonna feed you?
And buy you new shoes when you need them, and pot, and fuel for your campstove?
And take it from someone who's been there, being stuck in a tent during wind/rain/sleet & snow is no bueno amigo. And when it's snowing, where are you going to bathe?
Living on the road is no picnic. You will get robbed, beaten, harrassed, and worse. You will be jailed and you will have few friends since there is no way anyone can get in touch with you.
And keep this is mind--people are social animals.
How long is the longest time you have ever spent totally cut off from everyone else on earth?
No phone, no computer, no radio/tv, no one else.
If you're like most people, it's less than 24 hrs.
15 or so years ago I had 2 patches of pot way way out in the woods. 1 day I found my early-maturing strain had been ripped off, a week or so from harvest. I knew that the donkey cocksuckers would be back and prob. eventually find/steal my other patch, which wouldn't be ready for another month.
I had a month's vacation coming, so I decieded to camp out to guard my other patch.
Not guard like shooting at people or anything, but camped out close enough so no one could steal it without me seeing them. And most thieves are sniveling cowards.
It took me 3 trips to get everything I'd need--tent, lantern, chair, sleeping bag and other supplies. I had someone drop me off, then come back at a pre-arranged time a week later at night to pick me up and take me into town long enough for me to take a hot shower, get more food (& beer) and sleep in a real bed, then drop me back off at dawn the next morning.
I was camped deep deep in the woods, In the entire month I was out there I only saw people once (fishermen who may have also stole the first patch).
The thing that bothered me most was sheer crushing boredom. There is nothing to do. I could read and listen to tapes (had a walkman) but that's it.
I never realized until then how much I missed other people. After like about 10 days I found myself having long conversations with my dog.
If you've never done it you might think it idyllic; I did. You will find out different if you ever try it.

I agree with Trippin re: school loans.
When you borrow money you give your word to re-pay the people who are nice enough to help you out.
What is your word worth?

 

i think it depends on the person as to whether they can handle it or not. First you should study... edible plants, survival techniques, and ways of protecting yourself from being beaten and robbed. self defense, not with guns, I am not preaching killing, but i would suggest you know how to use a knife, or the machete your going to need to get yourself around in the woods. a fearful person with a machete is a lot more dangerous than an idiot with a gun. Also before you go, think of a question that you have always wanted answered, but one in which asking will not answer. And use your journey to find the answer or solution. Push yourself beyond your limits... find out what is out there. civil disobedience is the only true protest.

 

like pulp fiction says: isnt "walk the earth" code for choosing to be a bum?
I'm all for walking the earth but just passing it along

 

i'm going to walk the earth once i get out of the army, and believe me i know i can handle it. I handled 14 months in iraq, so don't tell me i can't handle america and its challenges. So yeah, i'm going to travel and be a wandering pilgrim for as long as it suits me, and then I'm going to see what else i can find to do. It's not hard to get back on your feet when your a kid. Just remember that, you can't do this when your older, it has no use then. Experience life when your young, why old?