# How has life on the road been since Covid 19?



## rhummer92 (Apr 30, 2020)

Curious of how towns are treating people around the country, how is it? being in cities that have otherwise turned ghost town?


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## croc (May 1, 2020)

(mostly commenting to read other's shares) 

I've had the opportunity to be housed up for the last month, with just a couple short freight trips for the sake of riding/a bumcation. So I've limited say on what it's like out there buuuut my experience has been... 

-Free public transit has been nice. They don't want ya standing near the driver so busses (at least in both Memphis and PDX) have been free, even tho in PDX they're now trying to push the hop cards. 

-Re-upping on certain gear n supplies has sucked since so many stores are closed. Like I need new pants n try to buy clothing second hand bc fuck sweat shops, but no thrift stores are open. So I've been sewing the fuck outta my two pairs of pants. 

-Intermodal train traffic has slowed. I personally don't mind at all n love riding gm. It's nice to stop n smell the roses (or just get to shit at side outs instead of in bags on moving trains) rather than just high balling from location to location. 

-stealing from certain places seems sketchier rn in the stores that have lines and are counting how many people come in. 

-cops aren't arresting ppl as much to avoid contact w the public. 

-since shit is closed, there are more sleep spots n ur less likely to be asked to leave places like sitting infront of shopping centers. 

... Guess I had more to write than I thought. 
But if anyone has more info on what's changed with freight (first hand info preferred above "heard it thru the grapevine" info) I'm real curious about that bc I'm hitting the road again soon. Can't stand to sit still any longer...


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## ScatteredCrowBones (May 1, 2020)

Freight traffic has been pretty consistant in my exoerience lately. I just landed from riding from NY to PDX on the bnsf lowline/MRL. (Tho im waiting onmy sbd in pdx right now and its nowhere to be seen).

Free buses have been a real boone! I rode seattle to Tacoma for free then caught out from there. Tho PDX is getting serious about hop cards for sure, theyre issuing citations.

Most difficult thing has been not being able to sitdown anywhere to charge phones/radio scanners etc

Same with bathrooms, def bring your own roll! 

Where your friends are at with risk comfortability is big as far as getting housed up etcc. I miss hugging my homies!


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## scutellaria (May 2, 2020)

ScatteredCrowBones said:


> Freight traffic has been pretty consistant in my exoerience lately. I just landed from riding from NY to PDX on the bnsf lowline/MRL. (Tho im waiting onmy sbd in pdx right now and its nowhere to be seen).



no shit we prolly left new york around the same time.

ive noticed and heard some trains are kinda just getting mashed together. like two symbols into one, im traffic mixed with manifest. and i read an article that ns is gonna keep doing that. which also goes with psr: less trains for longer trains. also trains may be working more.

i cant rack from the nice stores cause you have to wait in line. but some places are so busy i can get anything i need. i miss cafes and bookstores and thrift stores and dennys. im really glad i carry a water key cuz otherwise gettin water would be a lot tougher. oh also finding a bathroom as not been super easy. dumpsters have been empty and theres no whitebox to be had :[[

its been a bit easier to sleep i think? a couple times recently my road dog and i thought for suuure we were about to get booted from our spots by cops, but they didnt even bat an eye. when it comes to a pair of or a singular bum, maybe cops are a bit more hands off right now?

anyways yeah, shits weird. places feel like facsimiles of themselves in a lot of ways: the buildings and the streets are all there but the people doing what make the place the place aint happening. also where are all the fuckin kids?? we havent seen anyone else in forever


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## Jerrell (May 2, 2020)

Rubbertramping up the 1 and 101 mostly this week.
It took all of 5 mins to drive thru downtown L.A. on the 101. Took the 1 up through SF and across the Golden Gate bridge. Barely any traffic. The 101 north of the Bay Area into Santa Rosa during "rush hour" was smooth sailing when it should have been all gridlock.
Most stores are still open, even some that have Closed signs up (think mom & pop, not corporate). I've walked into Safeways, liquor stores, Big 5, gas stations, Carl's Jr, mom and pop stores, etc. I've seen a few mom and pop thrift stores still open here and there too. 
My biggest issue has been finding USFS type roads to drive up to sleep since there's not much BLM where I was traveling. If there's a gate, it's closed. We got lucky and found an open gate last night, but I got a Parks and Recreation ticket the night before for parking in a turnout with no signs on a public highway. I had no clue I was on state park land. I'd never received a ticket for using a signless turnout before. Don't know if I was just lucky all these years or what.
As far as people, most seem more concerned with 6 feet and no eye contact. Like literal "social" distancing and that makes me a little sad for the sheeple. The convos with strangers I do find myself in seen to be sweeter, feel like they have more meaning, or something. It's not a desperation thing, but it's like they're just so relieved to be having a connection with someone they're not constantly housed up with maybe?


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## starpurple (May 12, 2020)

nows the time to drive long and far. gas is cheap. roads are empty. hard to take a dump anywhere in a public toilet. no drinking fountains on. parks are closed. showers on the beaches have the water turned off. should be changing soon though..free wifi and charging been a little difficult because you cant sit anywhere for a while. Just drove to utah from california and the differences are pretty crazy. CA is waaaay more locked down than UT. UT everyone seems more chill than CA buuut everyone in CA getting sick of putting up with all this extra stuff


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## Jerrell (May 12, 2020)

I can attest to what @starpurple said. Just going from SoCal to NorCal was a big change in how freely people move about, masks, etc. There were fewer masks in Portland and more people in parks. The further east I go, the less it's obvious there's a pandemic. 
Just drove from the Boise area to north of Ogden, UT yesterday and stopped 3 or 4 times along the way. Only remember seeing two people that weren't store employees wearing masks.


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## Lucky1313131313 (May 13, 2020)

Guys I've been hearing from a family friend and from other emergency room doctors that this is indeed serious shit. Don't take any chances.


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## Bungus666 (May 18, 2020)

ScatteredCrowBones said:


> I miss hugging my homies!


I miss hugging my homies too :’(


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## Ceed (Jun 5, 2020)

Stealing is harder since they count people. Here in canada you still need an authorization to drive to some remote places. Like going near first nations reserves... they wont let you pass


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## Sameer (Jun 20, 2020)

A distinct lack of Forest Rangers in Flagstaff, Arizona. Not so many people camping in the forest.


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## Sameer (Jun 20, 2020)

Sameer in the Forest with Charlie


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## Sameer (Jun 20, 2020)

Good Grief!


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## seasonchange (Jun 26, 2020)

ScatteredCrowBones said:


> Freight traffic has been pretty consistant in my exoerience lately. I just landed from riding from NY to PDX on the bnsf lowline/MRL. (Tho im waiting onmy sbd in pdx right now and its nowhere to be seen).



Curious about how long that trip took you? I'm trying to leave California in the next week or two heading for my friend's place in Maine, but maybe only trying to ride as far as Philly and catch a ride with them from there. Unsure if a week riding that far might be considered a little too hopeful these days. I think now protests are also a factor as well.


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## Sameer (Jun 26, 2020)

What a exciting life compared to Rubber Tramping...
Update here in Flagstaff... Masks are required everywhere in the city of Flagstaff. Arizona governor considering another stay-at-home order. 
Grateful to have this ponderosa pine Forest as my home. Living with the cows....


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