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Often times the best way For this same reason, be prepared to hitchhike is turn down a ride with someone who's "just going to stay on high traffic ramps with large shoulders for people to pull over onthe next exit". Getting dropped off on a low-traffic exit is the gravest danger when hitching on interstates, especially where the police are unfriendly. It can easily lead to long, long delays. Identify the last truck stop, major intersection (with of a non-freeway), or rest area before your driver's destination, car every ten minutes and get off there rather than risking getting stucknone of them stopping. If Eventually you do get stuck may give up and stand on the highway or walk a low traffic ramp, you can try hitchhiking on few miles to the highway itself even if next exit. Since pedestrians are prohibited. There is a good chance not allowed along interstates in most states, you will get are likely to be picked up before police see youby a state trooper. In the best case, your ID will be check and if they do they are just going to give you a warning and ask you to go back to the ramp or even give you may will be given a ride lift to the next one just to get rid of youexit. See the section on police.
Asking When making '''signs''' in the states, it best to use the two-letter state abbreviations, which are universally understood, notable exceptions being OK, HI, and LA. The first two could be confused for rides at rest areaswords, particularly on toll roads such as I-90 between the last ([[BostonLouisiana]] and ) could be confused with ([[ChicagoLos Angeles]] is one of the quickest ways to get a very long distance ride, but soliciting and loitering is prohibited there and sometimes you will be kicked out before finding a ride. A good way to avoid being kicked out is to greet everyone entering the building with a friendly smile and give them a friendly nod, then ask them for a ride as they leave the building. This gives them time to become comfortable with your presence and prevents them from having the opportunity to complain about your solicitation to the employees). Additionally:
You can also look for rides at the truck stops or gas stations themselves*"Philly" = "[[Philadelphia]]"*"D.C." = "[[Washington, but be discreet about it as with rest areas, some customers will complain and staff will make you leave the propertyD.C]]"*"N.Y.C." = "[[New York City]]"*"S. As a rule Love's, Petro, and TA truck stops will be the quickest to kick you outF" = "[[San Fransisco]]"*"L. Pilot/Flying J truck stops and smaller locally owned truck stops are generally a lot more lenientA. You may even find signs that prohibit you from soliciting a ride" = "[[Los Angeles]]"*"NOLA" ="[[New Orleans]]" (not universally understood, so caution is necessary like asking instead of showing them a sign to your destination.but in the South at least)
== Car License Plate ==
Every state issues its own specific car plates. For example, a car from Alabama will have be specifically [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/License_plates_of_the_United_States Car license] tagged as such. In some States, the license plate will also show the county of residence. This can be helpful if you spot a car that might be going in the same direction as you. It might also be helpful to write down the license plate number in case of foul play.
''' Eat: '''
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[[File:Kasper-hitch-nh.jpg|thumb|250px|[[User:guaka|guaka]]<small><sup>[http://guaka.org/ site], [[User talk:guaka|wikitalk]]</sup></small> hitching in New England, taken by [[User:Amylin|amylin]], September 2007]]
'''The United States of America''' as , commonly called '''The U.S.A.''', or simply '''America'' is a country is divided up into consisting of 50 states; for . For the convenience of the common hitchhiker , these states are discussed in detail along with their capitals at the following in their individual pages (see below). The US is bordered by [[Canada]] to the North north and [[Mexico]] to the Southsouth.
Hitching, like everything else in America, varies greatly depending on what type of area and what part of the country you are passing through. In general you can get rides fairly easily if you hitchhike the right way; in fact, often you can find more than just rides, such as offers for free meals, invitations to homes and parties, etc.
__TOC__ == Culture == Many Americans have a limited worldview. (I can say this because I am one.) We think there are two places in the world: America and other places. Don't waste your time explaining that "American" is an incorrect demonym. And get used to our senseless system of measurement. In fact, enjoy it. It's a part of our culture. Relatively quite a few people in the United States are profoundly religious. People who pick you up might inquire about your religion. If you're not religious, try to deal with it in a positive way and accept the difference. More often you will be picked up by really cool people, and often dropped off exactly at the point of your destination, as hitchhiker [[User:Guaka|Guaka]]'s experience shows, for example. Detours === Cars ===:''Driving in the United States is similar to driving in Canada, but very different from driving in Europe. It is not uncommon for hitchhikers Americans to drive more than an hour each way to work, and 77 percent of Americans drive alone to their jobs, while an additional 11 percent carpool. Most states allow people to drive unaccompanied once they have reached the age of 16, and all states require that one obtain a driver's license before they may operate a motor vehicle.'' -[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driving_in_the_United_States Wikipedia: Driving in the United States] There are much more than 250 million cars in the USA, the most of any country. You may need to drastically change your technique to accomodate to unfamiliar infastructure. Although traffic is heavy, hitchhiking is hard because nobody trusts somebody with no car. (Why don't you have a car? There must be something wrong with you.) It would help to look like a foreigner, but don't go so far as to wave a foreign flag around. Hitchhiking is not as common here than as in Europe due and Latin America, so expect to have to explain yourself, possibly to the police. (See the section on police below). == Transportation system == === Interstates ===An 'interstate', also known as an '''expressway''', '''freeway''', or (confusingly) '''highway''', is a large, multilane road that covers vast distances, and passes through major cities. If you aren't planning on going to the countryside, you probably won't need to stray far from the interstate system. Interstates are designated on maps by "I-..." and have road signs [http://hitchwiki.org/en/File:InterstateSign.svg#file like this]. Even-numbered routes run from west to east and are numbered from south to north. For example, [[I-10]] runs across the south from [[L.A.]] to [[Jacksonville, FL]], and I-90 across the North from [[Seattle]] to [[Boston]]. Likewise, odd-numbered expressways start with [[I-5]] along the west coast (Seattle to L.A.) and I-95 along the east coast ([[Maine]] to [[Miami]]). The main interstates have two or three numbers, as in I-8 or I-76. Offshoots or ring roads will have a preceeding digit, for example, I-295, which runs along I-95. === License plates ===Every state issues its own specific car plates, and most states have several different styles. In some states, the license plate will also show the county of residence. This can be helpful if you spot a car that might be going in the same direction as you. It might also be helpful to cheaper gaswrite down the license plate number in case of foul play.
== Methods for catching rides ==
If you're going for speed over a long distance (3+ hours), then the best bet is to stay on the interstates. Highways are better for shorter or more senic trips.
=== Long Distance Interstates ===If you're going for speed over a long distance (3+ hours), then ''Thumbing it on on-ramps''' is sometimes the best bet is way to stay on hitchhike the interstates (designated on maps by "i-#": road signs appearing [http://hitchwiki.org/en/File:InterstateSign.svg#file like this]) instead of local highways Standing along the shoulder with a thumb or sign can take a few hours so bring something to read. Try to stick to on-ramps exits that have large towns, truck stops, [[rest area|rest stops]] or any other reason for drivers to stop there (restaurants, [[petrol station hitchhiking|gas stations]], hotels, etc.). State highways is also Ask a good way driver to catch rides especially when your destination is not very near to an interstate, Its easier to hitch a ride drop you off at on on interstates as drivers are more relaxed and not going very fast-ramp with plenty of traffic.
'''Asking for rides at rest areas or gas stations''', is often one of the quickest ways to get a very long distance ride, but soliciting and loitering is might be prohibited there and sometimes you will be kicked out before finding a ride. A good way to avoid being kicked out is to greet everyone entering the building with a friendly smile and give them a friendly nod, then ask them for a ride as they leave the building. This gives them time to become comfortable with your presence and prevents them from having the opportunity to complain about your solicitation to the employees. '''Asking for rides at truck stops''' is the same way. As a rule, Love's, Petro, and TA will be the quickest to kick you out. Pilot/Flying J truck stops and smaller locally owned truck stops are generally a lot more lenient. You may even find signs that prohibit you from soliciting a ride, so caution is necessary like asking instead of showing them a sign to your destination. === Short Distance US/State Highways ===If you are only going a hundred milesor less, you can often make better time on US highways, state highways , or even local roads. Even if you are going long distances, if you aren't concerned about making good time, getting off the interstates can be a very rewarding experience. Local highways will grant you a better picture of what local life is like in that area, and typically offer a greater variety of drivers and scenery. To hitchhike on these highways, it is best to stand at the edge of town right before the speed limit picks up, even walking on the highways also helps as shoulders most of the way are pretty wide. Standing at stop lights outside of towns along these highways is also a great way to catch a ride, even if the speed limit is quite high.
=== Urban and Suburban Short Distance ===
Frequently when confronted with your response, law enforcement officers will react unprofessionally and occasionally aggressively and even in a discriminatory way if you are not their race(its occasional but as long as you are prepared and confident you would be fine). They may call you names or threaten to arrest you if they see you hitchhiking again and then leave the scene. This is usually a bluff. They may even cuff you then give you a ride out of their jurisdiction. Occasionally they may admit to their mistake and leave you alone. If you are uncomfortable and feel threatened by the officer, you may request to speak to his/her supervisor. Supervisors will show up to talk with you about the law openly and professionally.
== Food ==
If you are friendly, people who pick you up will offer to buy you food quite a lot. Additionally, a lot of people will throw you some bucks to eat and even give you shelter if its late at night. From change up to $100. An anonymous hitchhiker has been given $100 dollars twice, and they have been given $60 dollars several times as has [[User:Zenit|Zenit]]... If you are looking for monetary gifts, the key is the right type of answer when they ask, concernedly, what you do to eat - "Naw, we're pretty much all right, we got *some* money." (emphasizing the "some" slightly)- if they've asked this question and you answer this way you'll basically always get a friendly handout - for which you should thank them profusely, of course. :)[[File:ChaelUSwalking.jpg|thumb|350px|[[User:Chael777|Chael]]<small><sup>[http://www.velabas.com/ site]</sup></small> crossing a bridge in Oregon, August 2009]]
