This was my first ever solo journey; all my past adventures have been with a friend, usually @vexel. The journey covered around 200km and lasted 5/6 hours.

You can find the full video here.

Preperation

Planning the Route

Before setting out, I spent few days planning the route. This step was crucial to ensure a smooth journey and to avoid any unexpected issues along the way.

Especially when solo hopping as it can often be dangeours and is recommend to go with a friend.

Equipment

Packing for a trainhopping trip requires careful consideration. Especially when solo hopping, here is what I brought:

  • Backpack: A basic school backpack, as I didn’t have anything better.
  • Sleeping Bag: A basic temu sleeping bag, rated for -5c.
  • Clothing: Sneakers, Jacket (Just a normal windbreaker), Work Pants (Work Pants that you can find in any thrift store), Shirt, 2 pairs of socks and 2 pairs of underwear.
  • Tent: A basic 2 person tent off temu.
  • Camera: I recorded the whole journey with my Xiaomi Redmi A1.
  • Other Equipment: Flashlight, Charger for my phone and the flaslight, Toilet paper, 2 towels.

Note: This is my old equipment everything is being upgraded as we speek. See My Equipment for the new equipment.

The Journey Begins

Setting Off

The journey began in the late night. I arrived at the trainyard just as a train was leaving but it was unridible so I had to wait. There were a lot of mosquitos so it made everything much harder and not to mention it was 27c.

Hopping On

When I arrived there were 2 trains one with empty bed cars and other with mixed cars (Tankers, Containers, Wooden Pallets and some unridable cars). The empty one left as I arrived, so I went around the station and found a spot bettween some pallets on the second train.

Waiting Game

Now it was the waiting game until the train started moving. We had to wait for the first train to pass a certian distance then wait for a passanger train to pass and finally for another freight to pass. So in total we had to wait for 3 trains. The total time I waited on the train was around 2 and half hours.

On The Tracks

The Scenery

As the train rumbled along the tracks, I was treated to breathtaking views of the countryside. Small towns passing by in a blur.

Challenges

Trainhopping isn’t without its challenges. There are moments when you have to quickly adapt to unexpected changes, like sudden stops or passing through populated areas.

That’s what happened to me, when the train had 2 stops. First 15 minutes into the journey where it stopped and waited for around 10 minutes beforing moving again.

And the second stop a bit longer where we waited for 20 minutes for another oncoming train to pass.

Obstacles

I hopped off once when the train had to turn around and switch the sides, there I ecountered another train heading to the place where I came from.

I assume that it came from Croatia since it came from the border side but it could have turned around just like mine did.

I was also spotted a few times by workers while moving but they didn’t stop the train so everything was fine.

Conclusion

Arriving at the Destination

After 5/6 hours, I finally reached my destination. I had successfully completed my first solo trainhopping journey, and it was an experience I’ll never forget.

Looking Forward

This journey was just the beginning. I’m already planning my next adventure, with more confidence and experience under my belt. Solo trainhopping has opened up a whole new world of self-discovery.