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Featured Anything you wanna know about living on the road in England?

Stinkyyy

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OK so after a little nudge from Matt I've decided to stop being lazy and get some content up about living and travelling the streets in England. I might do a big Q&A thing wit a couple of friends in a video if we have enough interest sooooo is there anything you wanna know? Hit me with your questions and I'll try and get a decent response of this bunch of wasters wit me!
 

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I see you have two pibbles in your profile pic and I'll be rubber tramping with my lab x pitbull for the first time. How do you coordinate working and taking care of them? That's still my biggest unanswered question when it comes to travelling with pooch. How friendly and trustworthy are they? Do you ever leave them in care with someone else to work, or visit a museum or anything else? Are you mainly rubber or leather tramping?

Thanks!
 

Matt Derrick

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i've heard you call dumpsters in the uk 'skips' and dumpster diving 'skipping'? is dumpster diving good out there, or is it rare to find good stuff/food in a dumpster? in the few times i've been to western europe, it doesn't seem like people throw out nearly as much food as we do in the states.

also, what's your perferred method for getting around? how do most travelers/punks/anarchos get around the uk? driving? living in cars? riding bikes?

someone on stp mentioned that they've train hopped across the uk, but that's the only time ive ever heard of it. is this a common way for travelers to get around for free?

are buses expensive? is it hard to get into scotland, or ireland from there?

oh what about squatting? is there still squats in camden (london)? what squats have you stayed/lived in and what were they like?

also curious about parties/raves/punk shows, if there is any? do you go to any big festivals or gatherings out there?

i can probably think of some more, but i'll leave it at that for now. thank you for taking the time to answer some of these!
 

bushhippie

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How do you deal with the constant rain?
yea good god i hated the rain.
when i was out in it, my partner had one tarp that we would wrap under us, and we used mine above us. the way we had them wrapped, they overlapped so the rain would stay out.
now storms are what scare me. i hated being stuck sided out on a train in a major lightning storm. that was terrifying.
 

bushhippie

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do you ever stay out in the woods and forage for wild food?
do you ever have to face threatening people/animals?
whats your favorite way to make money?
what kind of shelter do you normally use?
how do you choose your next destination?
whos your favorite travel companion?
whats the one tool you use more than anyhting?
when is your favorite time of year to travel?
where is a save kind of place to sleep?
where is a good place to go to the bathroom when your not exactly allowed inide a place (maby its dark and everythings closed and its raining)
whats a good way to guard your stuff when you have to go in a place without it?
how often do you go home to see family?
do you still have bills you have to pay?



i think these questions are things anyone would find interesting. some of it i have my own answers to. i figured id just fill you up with some good questions.
 
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Stinkyyy

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How do you deal with the constant rain?
I hide in a doorway / squat / trailer and cry!

Seriously though, obviously there's not a lot you can do with it. At the moment I live in a trailer so obviously that's pretty great but I still have to beg / busk every night so you just gotta find a deep doorway and gopoe for the best.
 
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Odin

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What's the choice of drink for the average Chav?

::drinkingbuddy::

::cigar::
 

Stinkyyy

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I see you have two pibbles in your profile pic and I'll be rubber tramping with my lab x pitbull for the first time. How do you coordinate working and taking care of them? That's still my biggest unanswered question when it comes to travelling with pooch. How friendly and trustworthy are they? Do you ever leave them in care with someone else to work, or visit a museum or anything else? Are you mainly rubber or leather tramping?

Thanks!

My work is busking, so my dog is always with me. Pig has severe behaviour problems so it can make things difficult. I tend to have to find an empty doorway or a bridge which has bars to tie her leash to as literally every few minutes she jumps up and kicks off at passing dogs, skaters and bin men. Tyskie was chilled as fuck and just lay when when begging or busking. Regardless of Pigs attitude its still an enjoyable experience spending every day with her. I don't even leave her alone in my caravan for more than an hour so things require serious planning - having my boyfriend around to help watch her sometimes is a huge help
I think if you travel and do WOOFING (spelling?) Work theres alotnof farms that will help house your dog too. Having a van would really help, if your dog is chill they can just stay in there. I'd be a lot more comfortable leaving my dog in a van (which I could park near a job) than my poorly secured trailer at the side of the road.

I don't do a lot of things that involve me being away from my dog. On the rare occasion I go to a club or to hospital or whatever I buy a mate a bottle of drink and have them sit in my trailer with the dog.
 

Stinkyyy

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i've heard you call dumpsters in the uk 'skips' and dumpster diving 'skipping'? ....../QUOTE]

i've heard you call dumpsters in the uk 'skips' and dumpster diving 'skipping'? is dumpster diving good out there, or is it rare to find good stuff/food in a dumpster? in the few times i've been to western europe, it doesn't seem like people throw out nearly as much food as we do in the states.

Yeah we tend to call it skips / skipping although occasionally I still say dumpster diving because I read about it long before I did it. Obviously it depends where you are. I find city centres are actually worse. Skips tend to be locked up and totally inaccessible and any time you do find one with stuff in its been deliberately destroyed. An example was a camping store skip, found loads of high quality leather books, waterproof trousers and coats etc, all had been slashed to pieces totally beyond repair. Other large stores throw bleach or paint on produce. Small towns are better as they don't see a lot of dumpster divers so do t feel the need to protect their bins. Saying that city garages seem to be good! The budgens garage by us is full every day, we get pizzas, expensive deserts, loads off fruit and veg and oven meals which is handy now I live somewhere with an oven. It's rare to find alcohol in skips now. If one can from a 4 pack is burst, instead of binning it like they used to, they sell it on for lkike 20 pence less. Wankers.

also, what's your perferred method for getting around? how do most travelers/punks/anarchos get around the uk? driving? living in cars? riding bikes?
We jump the trains. Obviously not in the way you guys in the US do. There's basically no scene for freight hopping here.there are a few freight lines but they are hard to access and jump and if you do so its more for entertainment / an adrenaline rush than to actually cover ground. I have no experience with this but I have a friend who does if you want me to question him.
Our magic words are 'fare evasion'. Some train lines are easier / more chilled than others although in recent years they're all cracking down hard on train hoppers (we still call it that). They're beggining to close the disabled gates so you can't just slip through behind a paying customer, building more gates in between platforms and having stricter ticket checks on route. Its a standard occurrence on this profession to be kicked off trains at several stops and it can take days to travel across a fairlyt small! country if you keep getting kicked off and can't sneak onto another train or avoid the conductor and ends up belong thrown off in all sorts of rural places. Saying that I've also had a great luck and have travelled from right down south to almost the very north of Scotland in a day. A lot of it is just being a cheeky little shit, blagging a lot of employees and having the people skills to twist many peoples arms into letting you get away with it.

someone on stp mentioned that they've train hopped across the uk, but that's the only time ive ever heard of it. is this a common way for travelers to get around for free?
See the above answer!

are buses expensive? is it hard to get into scotland, or ireland from there?
Oh yeah. A lot of cities are also bringing in this stupid travel card shit, like London's osyter card... So you get on a bus with cash and they won't let you on. You have to buy this card (£5) then top it up and tap to travel or use a contactless bank card.
You can travel for free in London busses if you wait for a 3 door bus. Just jump on the back and quickly run upstairs. If the driver does notice he gets on the tannoy and asks you to come pay or he won't leave the stop. Just sit there, Ignore him and eventually the passengers get pissed off and yell at him to move so they generally do. Just like the trains its just a bit of cockiness and confidence.

oh what about squatting? is there still squats in camden (london)? what squats have you stayed/lived in and what were they like?
There's squats everywhere, although its getting harder. In a nutshell, its now illegal to squat residential buildings but you can still squat warehouses, shops, clubs etc. Its not so widespread now and if you want a squat you gotta get off your ass, get a crew and open one. There's not many places you can just show up and find a squat to stay in.
The people living in them vary. Some are just full of rich mummy's boys, squatting because its cool and as soon as there's an eviction they just go home. These are the people that will never resist an eviction, these are also the people who are elitist with their entry policy. To me, a squat should be a free space and if a stranger were to arrive in need of a place to stay, so long as they are respectful and OK to live with they should be given a space if its possible but these kids are judgemental and elitist.

also curious about parties/raves/punk shows, if there is any? do you go to any big festivals or gatherings out there?

I don't go to 'proper' festivals but yes, we have a shit ton of free parties! Bristol is a great place for it we recently had a rig under an old rail bridge!
 

Stinkyyy

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@Matt Derrick

i've heard you call dumpsters in the uk 'skips' and dumpster diving 'skipping'? is dumpster diving good out there, or is it rare to find good stuff/food in a dumpster? in the few times i've been to western europe, it doesn't seem like people throw out nearly as much food as we do in the states.

Yeah we tend to call it skips / skipping although occasionally I still say dumpster diving because I read about it long before I did it. Obviously it depends where you are. I find city centres are actually worse. Skips tend to be locked up and totally inaccessible and any time you do find one with stuff in its been deliberately destroyed. An example was a camping store skip, found loads of high quality leather books, waterproof trousers and coats etc, all had been slashed to pieces totally beyond repair. Other large stores throw bleach or paint on produce. Small towns are better as they don't see a lot of dumpster divers so do t feel the need to protect their bins. Saying that city garages seem to be good! The budgens garage by us is full every day, we get pizzas, expensive deserts, loads off fruit and veg and oven meals which is handy now I live somewhere with an oven. It's rare to find alcohol in skips now. If one can from a 4 pack is burst, instead of binning it like they used to, they sell it on for lkike 20 pence less. Wankers.

also, what's your perferred method for getting around? how do most travelers/punks/anarchos get around the uk? driving? living in cars? riding bikes?

We jump the trains. Obviously not in the way you guys in the US do. There's basically no scene for freight hopping here.there are a few freight lines but they are hard to access and jump and if you do so its more for entertainment / an adrenaline rush than to actually cover ground. I have no experience with this but I have a friend who does if you want me to question him.

Our magic words are 'fare evasion'. Some train lines are easier / more chilled than others although in recent years they're all cracking down hard on train hoppers (we still call it that). They're beggining to close the disabled gates so you can't just slip through behind a paying customer, building more gates in between platforms and having stricter ticket checks on route. Its a standard occurrence on this profession to be kicked off trains at several stops and it can take days to travel across a fairlyt small! country if you keep getting kicked off and can't sneak onto another train or avoid the conductor and ends up belong thrown off in all sorts of rural places. Saying that I've also had a great luck and have travelled from right down south to almost the very north of Scotland in a day. A lot of it is just being a cheeky little shit, blagging a lot of employees and having the people skills to twist many peoples arms into letting you get away with it.

someone on stp mentioned that they've train hopped across the uk, but that's the only time ive ever heard of it. is this a common way for travelers to get around for free?

See the above answer!

are buses expensive? is it hard to get into scotland, or ireland from there?

Oh yeah. A lot of cities are also bringing in this stupid travel card shit, like London's osyter card... So you get on a bus with cash and they won't let you on. You have to buy this card (£5) then top it up and tap to travel or use a contactless bank card.

You can travel for free in London buses if you wait for a 3 door bus. Just jump on the back and quickly run upstairs. If the driver does notice he gets on the tannoy and asks you to come pay or he won't leave the stop. Just sit there, Ignore him and eventually the passengers get pissed off and yell at him to move so they generally do. Just like the trains its just a bit of cockiness and confidence.

oh what about squatting? is there still squats in camden (london)? what squats have you stayed/lived in and what were they like?

There's squats everywhere, although its getting harder. In a nutshell, its now illegal to squat residential buildings but you can still squat warehouses, shops, clubs etc. Its not so widespread now and if you want a squat you gotta get off your ass, get a crew and open one. There's not many places you can just show up and find a squat to stay in.

The people living in them vary. Some are just full of rich mummy's boys, squatting because its cool and as soon as there's an eviction they just go home. These are the people that will never resist an eviction, these are also the people who are elitist with their entry policy. To me, a squat should be a free space and if a stranger were to arrive in need of a place to stay, so long as they are respectful and OK to live with they should be given a space if its possible but these kids are judgemental and elitist.

also curious about parties/raves/punk shows, if there is any? do you go to any big festivals or gatherings out there?

I don't go to 'proper' festivals but yes, we have a shit ton of free parties! Bristol is a great place for it we recently had a rig under an old rail bridge!
 
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Stinkyyy

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OK sorry guys my net and also text pad when I type are freaking out again I'll come back to this. Just an update on life in ye olde england - someone set fire to one of the trailers parked up with us, mate in a coma in hospital from burns, I'm currently in a squat in London trying to get back to Bristol asap to sort stuff out. Apparently cops have locked up my trailer and I have to see them to gain access. Bullshit.
 

Stinkyyy

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do you ever stay out in the woods and forage for wild food?

Not really. I'm usually around cities so closest to that I'll do is sleeping in a tent in a secluded park, but rarely. I prefer to be city centre. There is a great wild camping scene here though.

do you ever have to face threatening people/animals?

Not animals so much apart from random dickheads who have aggressive dogs off lead. People probably similar shit - idiots who think they own ur pitch and aggressive business types who want ya to get a job n shit.

whats your favorite way to make money?

I play banjo. I used to shoplift a lot of high quality stuff to sell but not anymore... Just booze n food now.

what kind of shelter do you normally use?

Trailer, squat or doorway.

how do you choose your next destination?

Either by friends wanting to meet or wanting to visit somewhere new. We get kicked off the trains a lot so you see tons of places on the way to a final destination.

whos your favorite travel companion?

My dog!!

whats the one tool you use more than anyhting?

I had a disabled toilet key that was fucking handy but it got nicked.

where is a good place to go to the bathroom when your not exactly allowed inside a place (maybe its dark and everything's closed and its raining)

The disabled toilet key was so handy but if not just shit in the park lol

do you still have bills you have to pay?

None. I have my backpack and that's it. I tend to get free healthcare for my dog but sometimes some vet fees
 

Matt Derrick

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Just an update on life in ye olde england - someone set fire to one of the trailers parked up with us, mate in a coma in hospital from burns, I'm currently in a squat in London trying to get back to Bristol asap to sort stuff out. Apparently cops have locked up my trailer and I have to see them to gain access. Bullshit.

fuck that sucks! who owns the land the trailers are parked on?
 

Matt Derrick

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The council, were parked in a lay by on a council estate.

i take it 'the council' is like the local city government? they can't kick you off the property?
 

Anagor

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are buses expensive? is it hard to get into scotland, or ireland from there?

Long distance busses (coaches) are pretty cheap in UK. You want to use megabus, they offer the lowest prices. National Express is in general a few pounds more expensive, sometimes much more expensive.

The prices for a ticket vary throughout the day and it's always a good idea to regularly check the prices and look for special offers.

Normally you can get a one-way ticket London -> Bristol (118 miles) for about 7 pounds, London -> Edinburgh (Scotland, 415 miles) for about 18 pounds. Just as an example.

You can't bring dogs on the coach, though. So if you travel with a dog, the coach is not an option, unfortunately.

It's not hard to get into Scotland or Ireland. Scotland is part of the United Kingdom. The Republic of Ireland is not, so you would have to go over border control and show your passport and so on. (Northern Ireland is part of UK, though.) Don't know about the regulations for US citizens, I had no problem with my German ID, since the Repulic of Ireland is part of the EU.
 

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