How to Make a Hitchhiker

Letterboxing is growing in popularity across the United States and, like the name implies, hitchhikers are coming along for the ride. Known as cuckoos in the United Kingdom, hitchhikers move from letterbox to letterbox with no permanent home. The maker will drop it into a random letterbox and record it in the host’s logbook. Then, the hitchhiker will wait for the next letterboxer to come along. The letterboxer who picks up the hitchhiker will ensure that it was correctly recorded in the letterbox’s logbook, review any special instructions, exchange stamps and move it to the next letterbox. It will wait there for its next ride.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• 1-quart freezer bag, zipper style
• Stamp or stamp making materials
• Small notepad or journal with unlined pages
• Ink pad
• Pen or pencil

1. Buy or make a small logbook for the hitchhiker. The pages should be unlined and the logbook should be small enough to comfortably fit inside a 1-quart zipper bag. Include contact information on the back cover of the logbook. Make sure to include an email address.
2. Make or purchase the hitchhiker’s stamp. If making the stamp, supplies can easily be found at hobby or craft stores. The stamp should be reasonably sized and able to fit inside a 1-quart zipper bag. Choose an inkpad large enough for the stamp and small enough to fit in the zipper bag along with the logbook and stamp.
3. Purchase a small click pen or mechanical pencil. Novelty sized writing utensils are readily available at drug and discount stores. This is optional.
4. Fill the zipper bag with the logbook, stamp, inkpad and pen or pencil. Seal well. It is okay to write “HITCHHIKER” on the outside of the bag in permanent marker to prevent confusion. Many hitchhikers contain only the logbook and stamp to conserve space.
5. Take the hitchhiker and find a letterbox to host. Make sure to use your personal stamp on the hitchhiker and host box’s logbooks. Use the hitchhiker’s stamp on your personal logbook and the host’s. Reciprocate with the host box’s stamp in your logbook and the hitchhiker’s.

Tips & Warnings

• Hitchhikers may have periods with little or no movement. Be patient rather than discouraged.
• Use the strongest possible zipper bag for the hitchhiker. Their movement makes them prone to damage.
• Adding special instructions to a hitchhiker is probably not a good idea for the novice letterboxer. Become more familiar with the activity before creating special instructions.