A kind older gentleman named Mike dropped me off. We chatted about desert monsoons and Utah's astounding geology.

Capitol Reef National Park → Torrey

A woman on a road trip from California picked us up. She worked as a doctor and had just competed in an Ultimate Frisbee competition

Torrey → Singletree Campground

A mother and her daughter were going camping. The mother told her daughter “See? Look at the interesting and nice people you can pick up who are hitchhiking?”

Singletree Campground → Boulder

A middle-aged couple from Oklahoma picked us up. We hopped in the back of their pick-up (Emily's first time riding in the back of a truck!). They were super friendly- offered us sandwiches and checked in to make sure we were doing all right during the ride.

Ride to a better spot

A man named David Holiday and his 10 year old son picked us up. He told us he had just hitchhiked from central Mexico a few months before and thought we were brave.

Boulder → Escalante

Amber, the owner of a local cafe, and her daughter picked us up. A really cool woman!

Mesa Farmer Market, Caineville → Capitol Reef National Park

I waited an hour and a half in the desert sun, watching a storm slowly roll in, before a Mormon family stopped for me. While I was waiting, the cafe owner periodically would come outside and shout across the road "You're still waiting?! Screw 'em!" as cars zipped by. The family who stopped was really nice. The parents rearranged their car to fit me between the various kids. I… (read on in Trip)

Capitol Reef National Park → Mesa Farmer Market, Caineville

Two locals picked me up. They had been picking apricots and I hopped in the back of their truck between boxes of fruit.

Boulder, UT → Capitol Reef Resort

Bo picked me up. He's a local running the llama pack animal program at a nearby resort. We chatted about life, favorite hikes, and the history of the area. He invited me to come meet the llamas and to pick some greens from the garden they have going there. A cool guy!

Capitol Reef Resort → Capitol Reef Visitor Center

Russ is from Hanksville, born and raised in Southern Utah.

Capitol Reef National Park → Boulder, UT

I waited about 10 minutes before a single woman named Sam picked me up. She's a backpacking guide with cool stories and interesting perspectives. Used to do wildland fire. Originally was just going to drive me to Torrey but ended up taking me all the way to Boulder. A really rad woman who might end up hitchhiking herself someday soon!

Hitchhiked from a trailhead home after a beautiful 10 mile hike. A Mormon woman named Cindy picked me up in a minivan, I sat between three of her kids. She has family history in the area and shared anecdotes about her recent ancestors' lives.

Tucson → Tempe

Nice guy offered us a ride to the valley. Occupational massage therapist, lives in a tiny house. The conversation was easy.

Chandler → Coolidge

A kind Akimel O'odham family picked us up on the edge of the Gila River reservation. Mother, father, and one year old daughter. They went out of their way to drive us to a good spot.

Florence → Catalina

Interesting character feom Oracle picked us up in Florence and drove us to Catalina, out of his way. We discussed prison abolition.

Coolidge → Florence

A middle aged white man in a yellow jeep picked us up. He had hiked 700 miles of the PCT years prior and remembered what it was like to wait for rides.

Catalina → Tucson

A single woman picked us up and drove us into Tucson. She had never picked up anyone before, and had never encounteres female hitchhikers.

An old man who lives in Siena stopped for us. He was intending to take the freeway and passed us in the opposite direction, turned around and drove us the scenic route. He of course warned us of the dangers of hitchhiking.

Dresden -> Dresdener Tor Rest Stop

A homeopathic doctor heading to Leipzig. Really nice!

Ingolstadt -> Munich

A family – a father with two adorable children who have developmental disabilities- picked me up on their way to visit Grandma.

Dresdener Tor Rest Stop -> Hermsdorfer Kreuz Rest Stop

A German man who lives and works in Thailand.

Hermsdorfer Kreuz Rest Stop -> Beyreuth

A small youth football team from Leipzig, comprised mainly or refugees. I sat next to an 18 year old kid from Afghanistan; we chatted about life in Germany, our experiences and frustrations with learning German, his family and experience as a refugee… a really interesting conversation, and a super positive experience.

Beyreuth -> Ingolstadt

A Latvian tour bus driver picked me up in his tour bus! Really fascinating guy. He was a hot balloon pilot in his youth, and now homesteads back in Latvia. We discussed permaculture, diy, the importance of top soil, etc. Great conversations!

Back of a pickup

Really nice guy drove us back home. We chatted about his job repairing/installing cell phone towers and our mutual love for nature.

Frank, a member of the Apache tribe and a car mechanic, gave us a ride to the Fort McDowell gas station.

A couple driving a suburu plastered in Bernie Sanders stickers picked UA up and dropped us off on the Bush Highway.

Two men from Alpine who had delivered furniture they had made and were heading home. Turned around to pick us up. The older man had really fascinating stories to tell- of his hitchhiking days of glory, many past job experiences, and family life.

Payson → Winslow

Got a ride in the back of a pickup between two mountain bikes. The scenery was stunning and the temperature outside was perfect.

Mesa → Payson

A kind bowling alley repair man picked us up; we chatted about his job, his hobby of collecting and repairing vintage cars, and the current state of affairs.

WInslow → Flagstaff

After a long wait, a local Native American couple told us to hop into the back of their truck. Perfect end to the day!

A kind woman who was on her way to work cleaning houses. She shared about her time hiking the AT during her youth, and lamented about having no energy for herself anymore.

A yoga teacher picked me up on the way to a bridal shop to help her daughter choose a wedding dress.

A man offered to drive me out of town to the AT trailhead.

This man and his dog Katie picked me up. They drove me straight to my WWOOF host's doorstep.

White Mountains

Two female hikers dropped me off near their trailhead.

St. Johnsbury → Danville

This woman and her dog Frodo drove me into town. She stopped despite the "Do not stop for hitchhikers" signs that unfortunately dotted the highway.

White Mountains, NH → St. Johnsbury, VT

A man named Patrick turned around to pick me up. He even changed his route so he could leave me in an advantageous spot. A really nice guy, we talked about cycling cross country, living in Germany, and building community with others.

Danville → Burlington

After an hour + wait I was starting to feel discouraged and a rain storm was rolling in. Three women driving home from vacation in Maine came to my rescue! They were old friends. We drove through a killer storm and they dropped me exactly where I needed to be.