Help: Hitchhikers
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- How do hitchhikers work?
- What is a hitchhiker hostel?
- Where can I find hitchhikers that are not on Atlas Quest?
- What if a hitchhiker's logbook has pages too small to fit your stamp?
- How do I log a hitchhiker that is not listed on Atlas Quest?
- How can I list a detailed list of my hitchhiker's traveling?
- What do the icons on a hitchhiker represent?
- Should I contact the owner of a hitchhiker directly?
How do hitchhikers work?
Hitchhikers are letterboxes that travel from box to box with no permanent home of their own. They're also known as parasites in some circles, though in the United States the term hitchhiker is the standard.
Silent Doug has created a couple of great articles about hitchhikers, and suggests these are the ultimate source of everything you could possibly want to know about letterboxes but didn't: What is a hitchhiker? and Hitchhiker Tips and Etiquette.
Added 12/2007: Hitchhikers have now started to travel in postals. As with all HHs, if you question if it is only to travel in one type of box, contact the owner prior to changing box types. Many postal HHs stay with the ring they start in (And sometimes do not have their own logbook), while others jump from postal box to postal box (These have seperate logbooks). They may also jump from postals into traditional letterboxes if the owner allows this. A good rule of thumb, "When in doubt, ask the box owner." mff
If you're considering launching a hitchhiker, you may want to consider making it a flea instead. A flea is much like a hitchhiker except there are more possible ways to move it, including just slipping it into some other letterboxer's pocket while he's not looking.
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What is a hitchhiker hostel?
Hitchhiker hostels (sometimes called hitchhiker hotels or variations on the theme) are letterboxes with a stamp and logbook of their own, yet you can also expect to find a hitchhiker. If you don't have a hitchhiker to drop off, you can still visit the box.
General guidelines (these may vary between HHHs):
- Most hostels require that you leave at least one hitchhiker in the box.
- Stamp your sig stamp, write your trail name, date visited, and any comments into the the HHH's logbook.
- Swap any hitchhikers you wish. Stamp your personal stamp into any hitchhikers you are leaving and taking. Usually you are asked to leave an hitchhiker for every hitchhiker you take but these "rules" may be differ some boxes allow you to take as many as you want as long as you leave one. Read the HHH instructions.
- Stamp hitchhiker images into the HHH's logbook for any hitchhikers you are leaving.
- Stamp the HHH's image into the logbook of any hitchhikers you are leaving.
- If you wish, take images of any hitchhikers that are currently in the hostel; however, don't stamp in with your sig-stamp if you aren’t taking it.
- Do not stamp any hitchhiker images into other hitchhikers.
- Move the hitchhiker(s) that you pick up in a timely fashion
- If contact information is available, let the owner know where you found their hitchhiker.
- If the hitchhiker is listed on AQ, log your find. Logging a find not only lets the owner watch its travels but those who have found it can also join in the fun of tracking its adventures.
Exceptions:
- Some hitchhikers specifically state that a finder can pick it up even if it is the last hitchhiker in the box.
- Read the hitchhiker logbook for information regarding hostels/hotels, some owners prefer that their hitchhiker not visit HHHs for fear that they will get stuck in the hostel.
- If you take the last hitchhiker based on the instructions of the hitchhiker owner, you might want to send a courtesy note to the hostel owner to let them know that you removed the last hitchhiker and why.
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Where can I find hitchhikers that are not on Atlas Quest?
Back in the early days of letterboxing in the United States, Pete and Wanda maintained a webpage to track hitchhikers, also known as travelers before personal travelers came along). Consequently they have the most comprehensive listings of old hitchhikers, generally those dating before 2005. They are listed alphabetically by name at http://alum.wpi.edu/~p_miner/travelers.html.
You can also check the LBNA site's traveller section.
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What if a hitchhiker's logbook has pages too small to fit your stamp?
See: What if a logbook is smaller than the stamp?
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How do I log a hitchhiker that is not listed on Atlas Quest?
The process of logging hitchhikers works just like any other type of letterbox, so refer to Can I record finds for boxes that are not listed on AQ? for a thorough discussion of this topic.
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How can I list a detailed list of my hitchhiker's traveling?
Use the free space available in the clue section to add as much information you want or have about the hitchhiker's travels.
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What do the icons on a hitchhiker represent?
Stamp Types
| Attribute | Description |
 | The creator promises you'll find a genuine, 100% hand-carved stamp in the letterbox and not a store-bought or custom-made stamp. |
 | The letterbox contains a unique, custom-made stamp. |
 | The letterbox contains a store-bought stamp rather than a hand-carved or custom-made stamp. |
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Should I contact the owner of a hitchhiker directly?
Some letterboxers find hitchhikers frustrating because you launch one and never hear from it again. Unlike a traditional letterbox, you can't just revisit the box and check on it. Once it starts moving, the owner has no more idea where it is than anyone else. Because finders don't get a "find" credit for a hitchhiker, they have little motivation to log such finds. And it's often difficult to find where a hitchhiker is listed -- if at all -- leading many finders to just give up and not even bother to try any more. As a result, owners often hear about their hitchhikers only rarely if at all.
If you enjoyed finding a hitchhiker and want to encourage more of them being launched, by all means contact the owner by any means possible. Just drop them a line telling them where you found it.
If you're willing to do more, offer to scan (or digitally photograph) the log book and e-mail the scans/files to the owner. They will usually be most appreciative of such an offer, since they can see for themselves where their hitchhiker has been and see the sig stamps therein -- which are often different than the sig stamps they see in the letterboxes in their vicinity. Remember, though, that you cannot send such scans via AQ-mail since it will not transmit attachments. The owner will have to provide a non-AQ e-mail address for sending the scans/files.
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