At home in the US, hitchhiking died along with the tie-dye days of the 60’s. It’s rare to see a person hitchhiking, and I don’t know anyone personally that’s tried it. The movies and horror stories of hitchhikers disappearing or getting mugged have rid society of this particular method of transportation.

We wanted to go back to the picturesque Salt River Lagoon that we had discovered a few days earlier. Volunteers at Wild Spirit Backpackers, where we’re staying, told us that hitch hiking in the area is safe, as long as you use common sense and stay out of dodgy situations. That’s how Friday morning found us walking down the 102 towards Nature’s Valley with our thumbs out waiting for a ride.

We had breakfast at the local farm stall, and on our way out, an Audi pulled in. Nick commented, “Wouldn’t it be nice if they saw us leaving the farm stall, and thought we were a nice couple and scooped us on their way to Nature’s Valley?”

The first car, an SUV, passed us without even slowing, but then here comes the grey Audi. Low and behold, the woman behind the wheel must have intuitively heard Nicholas because she put her blinker on and pulled over.

“There’s shopping in the front, so you’ll need to get in the back,” she told me as we walked up to the car. It was only after we were seated she asked where we were headed. We didn’t catch her name, but she was a very straightforward, matter of fact type of older woman and I instantly liked her. Born and raised in South Africa, she had the world pinned in black and white, do and don’t colors. Thankfully she did pick us up because we passed through a troupe of about fifteen baboons on the ride.

“If they see you’ve got a pack, they’ll think you’ve got food and try to take it from you,” she commented. When I asked what are you supposed to do if they do try to rob you she said, “Oh I don’t know, run like hell or something.” Comforting.

She dropped us at the trailhead a minute later, and we got out, thanked her and hiked down to the beach. We had survived our first hitchhiking experience!

We had a lovely day at the Salt River, watching the tide come in and doing a bit of snorkeling. About four thirty we decided we should head out. We reached the trailhead a bit before five thirty. We decided if we had to walk back, that would be fine. It’s only an additional six or seven kilometers, and we had given ourselves enough time to get back before sunset. However, I had stepped on a nasty thorn and my foot was hurting a bit, so if we could find a ride, that’d be better.

Once more we found ourselves walked along the 102, surveying the road for prospective rides. The first was a garbage truck, and it was moving. Pass. The second car, a Mini Cooper, was full, so it didn’t even slow. The third and fourth car came together. A shiny grey BMW SUV was being passed by an old beat up white Isuzu pickup truck with a guy in the back. Hoping for the SUV, we stuck out our thumbs. The Beemer rolled right by us, but the Isuzu slammed on its brakes and pulled over. Ah crap, this was exactly what we were trying to avoid. Do we really want to do this?

Deciding that we could always bail out of a pickup truck if we desperately needed to, we jumped in. The guy in the back was a local heading home from work in Nature’s Valley. He was very nice, though he looked a bit terrified being in the back of the truck. He was sitting with a death grip on a spare tire with his back to the cab. I didn’t really blame him, because the driver was really booking it. The sprayed on truck lining was rusted and flaking off in the high speed. It was cloudy, but I put my sunglasses back on.

We made it back to Wild Spirit safe and sound. Apparently this guy picked up backpackers often, but it was quite the adrenaline rush for us. I don’t think we’ll be hitchhiking anywhere else on the trip, but since Nature’s Valley is so small and safe, it was a really cool experience.