Monk's Community Forest

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

USA | Friday, October 15, 2010 | flickr photos

I spent several years living out of a pack on my back, hitch hiking and hopping freight trains across America with my camera in hand.
With little money or resources I was able to keep the dream alive of a nomadic culture of young, freight hopping hobos. While these photographs do not depict ONE physical place, I believe a "home" is really just a state of mind. We have made ourselves at home with the sights and sounds that only a freight engineer would see or hear, and giving ourselves up to the elements of rain, wind, lightening and the sound of grinding steel.
The photos submitted were chosen with the idea that one could almost live vicariously through them, whether it was shot in Montana or Maryland, 8 years ago or 8 months ago. You can feel the grit, smell the cold steel and watch the country slip by.
Often considered as a "taboo" culture, we are adventure seekers filled with wanderlust, with a minimalist attitude.
I live for photographing my direct experiences rather then being a voyeur to the world through a lens.
Simply put, I am a girl who just likes to leave town a lot.