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In the seventies I hitch hiked the six miles home from school. My parents dropped me off at school 8am on their way to work. School kicked out at 3-45pm but Rank Xerox kicked out at 5pm. So rather than wait hour and a quarter for my parents to pick me up I hitch hiked
Back then hitch hiking was at it's peak. When I left school I hitch hiked across the UK with no particular place to go. Wherever I lay my hat from the song Wherever I Lay My Hat by Paul somebody (I forget his surname)
Nowadays you see very few hitch hikers; just blokes carrying trade plates going home after delivering vehicles to dealerships
There are some memorable motorists who picked me up and those hitch hikers I picked up
One of which I was coming of the M74 south of Scotland onto the M6 south I picked up a girl at the on ramp at a nearby service area. She asked if I was going to London. I was not; I was going to Gloucestershire but as she looked young I thought I should take her to her destination for her own safety
She told me she was hitch hiking to London as she had been offered a job. I thought "What job?" She was pretty naïve & gullible hence my decision to drive via London as it is quite a distance from Gloucestershire. If the coach company were concerned about excess fuel purchased on their fuel agency card then I would pay it
So anyway we had two hourly stops for tacho purposes. The last services we stopped at was Corley last services southbound M6 south before it hits the M1
A lot of what she was telling me was not adding up and she was contradicting herself. When she went to toilet she left her handbag
Now was my chance. I rummaged through her handbag & found a birthday card with the message "Happy birthday Stephanie on your thirteenth birthday
She had obviously run away from home
When she came back I showed her the birthday card. She picked up her bag to leave. I asked her how will she get to London. She sat down & told me the truth; or at least most of it
Anyway I had to go back northbound back up to Scotland using more diesel. I actually went over my tacho time limit but I thought we can worry about that later
Many hours later we reached her house. I took her in. Her parents phoned the police to report she had returned home so she was no longer a mis-per
I left after they insisted I stay for dinner.
I had brought Stephanie home safely. She may very well have run away again but at least my consciousness was now clear
I eventually arrived back at Cottrell's Coaches and told them what happened & paid them for the excess fuel
That is one memorable occasion amongst many others either as a hitch hiker or a motorist picking up a hitch hiker
Back then hitch hiking was at it's peak. When I left school I hitch hiked across the UK with no particular place to go. Wherever I lay my hat from the song Wherever I Lay My Hat by Paul somebody (I forget his surname)
Nowadays you see very few hitch hikers; just blokes carrying trade plates going home after delivering vehicles to dealerships
There are some memorable motorists who picked me up and those hitch hikers I picked up
One of which I was coming of the M74 south of Scotland onto the M6 south I picked up a girl at the on ramp at a nearby service area. She asked if I was going to London. I was not; I was going to Gloucestershire but as she looked young I thought I should take her to her destination for her own safety
She told me she was hitch hiking to London as she had been offered a job. I thought "What job?" She was pretty naïve & gullible hence my decision to drive via London as it is quite a distance from Gloucestershire. If the coach company were concerned about excess fuel purchased on their fuel agency card then I would pay it
So anyway we had two hourly stops for tacho purposes. The last services we stopped at was Corley last services southbound M6 south before it hits the M1
A lot of what she was telling me was not adding up and she was contradicting herself. When she went to toilet she left her handbag
Now was my chance. I rummaged through her handbag & found a birthday card with the message "Happy birthday Stephanie on your thirteenth birthday
She had obviously run away from home
When she came back I showed her the birthday card. She picked up her bag to leave. I asked her how will she get to London. She sat down & told me the truth; or at least most of it
Anyway I had to go back northbound back up to Scotland using more diesel. I actually went over my tacho time limit but I thought we can worry about that later
Many hours later we reached her house. I took her in. Her parents phoned the police to report she had returned home so she was no longer a mis-per
I left after they insisted I stay for dinner.
I had brought Stephanie home safely. She may very well have run away again but at least my consciousness was now clear
I eventually arrived back at Cottrell's Coaches and told them what happened & paid them for the excess fuel
That is one memorable occasion amongst many others either as a hitch hiker or a motorist picking up a hitch hiker