Last edition we asked how you feel about hitch-hiking; it is, after all, a sustainable mode of transport. But did you think there’s cause for safety concerns? Thanks to all those responded, where’s what came in:
I have suggested it – tentatively…
I pick up hitch-hikers when I see them because I hitch-hiked when I was young. It was a bit dangerous then in the 1970’s – and knowing human nature I am sure it still is a bit dangerous, for both hitch-hiker and picker-upper – so is WWOOFing, and being a WWOOF host. Living dangerously then?!
I do not full heartedly recommend it here in Fife as it is not currently “A Thing”. Only people who missed the bus or have no money hitch-hike here.
We too had a great experience hitch-hiking in Shropshire, but a little bit by accident! We’d missed out on taxis in this rural town and were walking back up a hill in the dark. A man in a range rover picked us up and drove about 10 minutes out of his way to make sure we got home OK. We weren’t expecting that at all. We’d like to go back and leave a bottle of South African wine outside his door! (South African WWOOFers)
Having hitch-hiked extensively in our youth and in later years too, we think hitch-hiking is a great method of transport!
We don’t officially encourage our WWOOFers to hitch-hike, but this year two separate (male) volunteers have arrived at the farm in this way. They usually come by bus and we collect them from the village 6 miles away. Hitch-hiking on motorways is difficult these days because of the road layouts, so that makes it harder to do long-distance travel.
Once volunteers are here we suggest hitch-hiking to get around locally because its very easy in this rural area and people do it.
Yes hitch-hiking should be encouraged, with the usual caveats about safety (which are often ignored anyway!)
