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Hopping Freight Trains in America
by Duffy LittlejohnISBN 0-944627-34-X
Not only is this 354 page book the best introduction to "catching out" in print, it's also great hilarious reading with many entertaining stories (see excerpt below)! It definitely belongs in your travel sack the first few times out.
We SLO Boes are honored not only to have met Duffy in person, but to have him here in SLO as a local resident! Duffy has ridden through every state & province in North America as well as a few foreign countries...
Here's the review straight from the back cover:
- The complete how-to-manual on riding the rails
- First-ever presentation of its kind
- The last red-blooded adventure in North America
- How to beat the system in every way
- See the continent from the inside
- Learn how to travel safely on a shoestring
- Both men and women enjoy this sport
- Enhance self esteem by using your wits
- All the background information you need
- How, when and where to catch a train
More information contained in the book:
- Addresses common misconceptions related to catching out such as "Only bums ride trains", "Riding the rails is just for guys", and "Won't I get mugged or die from heat or cold?"
- Lists towns in all 50 states and in Canada where you can catch out.
- Includes a 45 page glossary of railroad terms to get you up to speed. Here's a sample: "Midnight creeps: Familiar term for a freightcar rolling silently through a freightyard (day or night) which can sneak up on an unsuspecting person too close to its track and cause serious injury or death."
- Duffy also provides a list of almost 50 books and periodicals for the serious rail fan.
"Check out the mystery panel of hidden things located against the long hood wall of the cab. Inside the metal doors are the electrical components of the apparatus - the brains of the beast. Don't open these doors or mess with what's inside. You could get yourself electrocuted.
"Notice however, the funny clicking sounds inside. I don't know what's going on in there. It's obviously circuitry - switches, relays and fuses. Be content to know everything in there is doing what it's designed to do and don't fiddle with it. The door panels usually say something like 'Caution! 5 zillion volts!' Respect this. Railroads are not kidding. …
"Railroads are dangerous to begin with. If they had to put a danger sign everywhere danger is encountered they'd have wall-to-wall signs (thank god lawyers haven't looked into this). So when they do say 'Danger' take their word for it."
…by the way, Duffy is an attorney himself and has served as Assistant D.A. in San Francisco and Deputy D.A. in Almeda County! So don't think that you are too responsible to ride!
Get "Hopping Freight Trains in America" or one of his other great books from Zephyr Rhoades Press.
