Life changing travel experiences: Jumping freight trains in the Pacific NW

“He gave us five rules for jumping freight trains, and we broke every one of those rules once the adventure began.” –Brian H

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and his longtime friend Brian recall their old ambition to jump freight trains across the Pacific Northwest, and what factors inspired it (4:00); what kinds of research and preparation they did to make the train-jumping experience possible (16:30); the early hours of their attempt to reach Canada by catching a boxcar from the Vancouver, Washington rail yard, and the dangers of challenges that awaited them (28:30); their unanticipated detour through the Columbia Gorge to Pasco, and their experience of getting detained by railroad police in Spokane (35:00); making the decision to escape Spokane by retracing their route, and getting stuck in a “hobo jungle” in the town of Wishram (56:30); making sense of the adventure afterwards, and how train-jumping has (and has not) changed in the social-media age (1:15:30).

Notable links:

• Van Life before #VanLife (Deviate episode)
• Jack Kerouac (American novelist)
• “Travel,” by Edna St. Vincent Millay (poem)
• The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp, W. H. Davies (1908 memoir)
• Chris McCandless (traveler, subject of Into the Wild)
• Hero’s journey (narrative template)
• Dr. Giggles (1992 horror movie Rolf appeared in as an extra)
• Emperor of the North Pole (1973 movie)
• Wishram, Washington (freight-depot town)
• Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison (1952 novel)
• Rainbow Family (counterculture group)

Freight-jumping links:

• Freight jumping (train-travel method)
• Burlington Northern (railroad company)
• Freight Train Riders of America (criminal gang)
• Boxcar Killer (serial killer, a.k.a. Robert Joseph Silveria Jr.)
• Boxcar (type of freight car)
• Covered hopper (type of freight car)
• Flatcar (type of freight car)
• Gondola (type of freight car)
• Stobe the Hobo (YouTube playlist)
• Remembering Stobe the Hobo (Facebook group)

The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber. 

Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at [email protected].