Charlie Mgee: The Perth man who hitchhikes around the world

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This was published 8 years ago

Charlie Mgee: The Perth man who hitchhikes around the world

By Heather McNeill
Updated

The art of hitchhiking seems all but lost in Australia, but one Perth man is bucking the trend, travelling thousands of kilometres across the country and the world thanks to the kindness of strangers.

On Thursday, Charlie Mgee returned to WA in "record-breaking time" after taking less than 24 hours to hitch a ride from Adelaide.

And it didn't cost him a thing.

So why is this cheap form of travel that was so popular for Australian baby boomers in the 70s no longer considered an option for most young travellers?

Charlie has hitchhiked across Australia and the world for 11 years.

Charlie has hitchhiked across Australia and the world for 11 years.

Maybe it's a generational change, maybe it's the fear of encountering another serial killer like Ivan Milat, or maybe we've all watched Wolf Creek one too many times.

Whatever it is, Mr Mgee admits most people who offer him a ride always comment "you don't see many hitchhikers anymore".

The Fremantle-based musician has been using the unorthodox travel style since he began travelling through Europe at 21 years old.

Now 32, he has 'hitched' through countless countries and said striking up conversations with the people who stop to give him a lift has helped reinstate his faith in humanity.

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Charlie hopping on to a truck in Port Augusta to take him back to Perth.

Charlie hopping on to a truck in Port Augusta to take him back to Perth.

"Everywhere I go I just meet really friendly and different people and that's one of the main reasons I [hitchhike]," he said.

"When you really put yourself out there and you don't know what to expect – you're literally relying on the kindness of strangers to get where you're going.

"It's a great feeling when someone stops."

But Mr Mgee, who usually travels with just his swag and ukulele, admits that at times he has been forced to wait a long time between pick-ups.

"A few years ago my girlfriend and I hitched a ride from Perth to Kununurra in the middle of summer," he said.

"It was the hottest time ever, we were stuck there for two days with no lift in 48 degree heat – that was not such a pleasant hitch."

The long-time traveller said the best rides are when he finds a driver who is in it for the long haul.

He recently travelled from Perth to Queensland for a gig with his band, the Formidable Vegetable Sound System, catching a lift with one man from Albany to Dubbo, and then finding his way up the rest of the eastern coast with campers and truck drivers.

Mr Mgee said his tactics for picking up a ride included the typical thumbs-up method, holding a sign to where he wants to go and "dressing well".

If the mood strikes him, he will also start playing his ukulele on the side of the road.

"It's not for everyone, I get a lot of scared and confused looks [from drivers] depending on where you are, a lot of people will drive past," he said.

"A lot of people have said my ukulele is why they stopped because who could possibly be harmful if they have a ukulele?"

While drivers may be judging him, Mr Mgee said he had become "pretty good" at reading people before he decides whether or not to grab a lift too.

"You learn to gauge people really quickly when you're hitchhiking," he said.

"You've got to make a mental assessment when you're about to get in the car and I find making eye contact is really good for you to get a sense of whether they're giving you the crazy eye or have something dodgy in mind."

Unfortunately, Mr Mgee's skills on how to pick a good lift had not quite flourished when he accepted his first ever hitchhike in Spain and found himself in an awkward situation with a man who didn't speak English.

"About an hour into the trip he pulled off to the side of the road into an olive grove and I asked where we were going and he said 'sleep time', 'bed' which was strange because the sun was still up," he said.

"I got out and thought, I'll grab my stuff out the back of his caravan and the walls of it were just plastered in pornography and then he had this seductive look in his eyes and said 'you sleep with me?'.

"I communicated to him the best I could that I was not interested and he got the message and thankfully didn't pursue it any further."

Despite getting off to a rough start, Mr Mgee said his trips had only improved since then and recommended the travel method to others.

"Unfortunately, you have to be a bit more careful if you're a girl because, let's face it, there are some dodgy people out there," he said.

"Hitching solo is always a risk for anyone, I would say hitching in pairs is always a fun thing to do and you've got someone looking out for you.

"If you keep checking in to let people know where you are and where you're going, it's pretty safe most of the time."

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