its too bad all these things happen south of the border, i'd really enjoy meeting up with some of y'all and learning and just listening to what ya'll have to say... haha, assuming you'd all be okay with a young rookie like myself being around... are you aware of much of this happening up in Canada? my part of the country is fairly rail-deprived (not THAT much train traffic, and even less of the interesting stuff like writers and riders)...
just on the topic of personal belongings... in a sitation in which you absolutely need somehwere to store your goods for a day (or 6 hours, or whatever) and it can't be guarded, would wrapping it in a bag and burying it work alrite, or hiding it in a tree? (assuming weather permits of course)