I've been re-reading Kerouac lately (LOA has a nice collection of novels in a single volume). His prose is jumps from bebop riffs (On the Road) to elegiac praise of hiking in the woods/mountains (Dharma Bums). The characters (like them or not) are well drawn and always interesting. My hitchhiking days are long gone and I don't suppose this mode of transportation obtains much in the US anymore, which I think is unfortunate as it is (or was) a great way to see the country and meet a lot of people.
Biking across the country is a thing though. You'll meet people in the small towns along the way. I've only done a few well-established routes (Katy trail, for example) but I have, and full of vicarity, watched many YouTubers crossing the U.S. by bicyle.
Too much empty space. I spent six weeks doing a solo ride in France -- Versailles, Chartres, Loire Valley rivers and castles, eastern Brittany, St. Malo, Cherbourg, St. Mont Michel, Honfleur, D-Day beaches, Bayoux, Chantilly, Paris (where I caught the Tour de France finishing at the Champs-Elysées) ... amazing experience.
