Maybe this goes more in Half Baked, since it isn't well thought out. But it's also a pretty bad idea...

The other day, I was thinking about my life, and I came to a conclusion: I need an adventure! The problem is, adventures are hard to be had in our modern world... But then the idea came to me: An epic journey! Namely, one across America.

I don't have a car, but I do have two legs and some camping gear.

So, hypothetically, what are the practical and legal issues of an overland trip across America? Since I'd be walking (or MAYBE hitchhiking), what routes are best to take? Any general advice?


Don't waste your time telling me this would be a really stupid thing to do: I KNOW.

You're just gonna try to hitchhike and get robbed of all your money and all your shit. Then you'll be totally fucked. If you want a real roadtrip get a van, a bunch of friends, and a shitload of drugs.

It's not a stupid idea. I totally wanted to do this, until I realized how much the gas prices were NOT going to stop rising.

There are no legal risks involved in a road trip, except if you are seriously considering hitchhiking.
You know, just start from New York and walk your ass down to California? That's probably the coolest thing to do. I think you should get a car though. That would be the most practical (sort of) advice I can give.

Want to take me with?

I don't want to end up spending more on gas than I would on drugs. :P Besides, I'm more worried about getting robbed if I took a car... Either way, I plan on carrying something for defense (I think a crowbar in the backpack is plenty) and bringing friends.


romaniw: That depends, where are you? :P I'm in Kansas, myself.


Another question: What problems does being 17 pose for me? Any way I can get around my parents so they don't send the cops looking for me?

I'm in Atlanta. So you can swing by if you want to do a beeline around the coastals.

Being 17... you can maybe ask permission?

Or if not, one of my friends told his mother that he was going to a friend's house and ended up driving to South Carolina to buy some drugs or something. It worked. Of course, you can tell your mother that you are going to sign for a "college tour", milk some money out of her, and head off to "Harvard".
If your parents find out, then yes, you'll semi- be screwed, unless you communicate with them sporadically and assure that you're fine.

Bring a crowbar, and no guns. That is asking for trouble, definitely.

You're gonna get tired of having to carry around the extra weight of a crowbar. Just get a gun but dont load it?

thats what we call stomping my friend. just pack light and hit the road. make some easy cash here and there and just live like a total hippy.

i wanted to do that around europe after i graduate but then i realized i didnt have a job.

Not a good idea. Besides, crowbars don't weight much. :P Besides, carrying a gun is not a good idea when the cops search me (which they probably would... after all, isn't a teenage kid claiming to be hiking across america pretty suspicious in the first place? That's also why I don't plan on carrying any drugs or paraphanelia besides maybe a lighter and some cigarettes).

Romaniw: That's sort of the sort of route I'm planning to take... Go to one of the coasts, and circle around. Maybe I should MS paint some basic route plans and post them on here to see what you guys think...

just think in the weather, mostly though if youre going farther up north. Like not ending up there and it snows, if you even plan on going that way.

Actually, better weapons idea- mace. You can't ever go wrong with mace. But I guess that depends on if you're a guy, able to wield a good whack out of a crowbar, or a girl. But mace is still good anyway.

You're not planning to skip school and do a runaway deal, right?

Just let me know the details.