17 Tunnels to Fresh Air: Adventures of the Boxcar Tourist

This book is based on the real-life experiences of Gaylord as he grows up on a small rural farm in the West during the period 1900 to the Great Depression years; having spent his first nineteen years on the farm, involved in the predictable but dangerous work of farm life from the age of nine. Realizing that he has little to show for his labors, except aching muscles, cuts and bruises, little or no money, and having been only a few miles from home, this young man embarks on a true adventure that involves hopping onto a moving train and riding the rails as the Boxcar Tourist. Through it all, he finds himself on guard against unsavory characters as well as enduring the nagging hunger he feels while searching for his next meal and a place to lay his head at night. He experiences the challenges of living day-to-day and hand-to-mouth, all with extremely limited funds and little in his backpack