Train-Hopping: Daredevil travels the country by hitching free rides on freight trains

A TRAIN surfer took an epic tour of Canada by sneaking on to freight trains and hitching free rides

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Adventurer McVast toured around Canada by hopping from train to train for more than 3,000 miles

The adventurer’s trip took him five days to complete as he stole away on the locomotives - travelling more than 3,000 miles.

Known by his alias McVast, the 25-year-old has been partaking in the practice of train hopping since he was a teenager, and routinely takes in views of his native Canada from the top of train carriages.

The DJ has been train hopping since he was a teenager and snuck onto his first freight train at the age of 19

Kicking off his journey in Sudbury, a former mining town north of Toronto, McVast, who is also a DJ, snuck on to the train with a close pal without being detected.

He said: “There is always a real risk of being caught, and for this reason I am always as careful as possible to not be seen by anyone while in a train yard or while riding through inhabited areas.”

The 25-year-old often takes in the stunning views of his native Canada from the roof of trains

The threat of being caught is a serious one for train hoppers as they can be fined up to $10,000 for illegally using the freight trains.

He said: “There is always a real risk of being caught, and for this reason I am always as careful as possible."

Averaging speeds of up to 60mph McVast filmed himself dancing on freights and walking on top of trains whilst they were moving.

Freight trains travel at average speeds of 60 mph and McVast often films himself dancing from the top of moving locomotives

“I have been riding freight trains around Canada since I was 19 years old and I am very accustomed to the feeling of standing on one while it is moving quickly. I was not scared about falling off,” he added.

McVast's years of experience has allowed him to know the best times to sneak onto trains and he usually uses the lack of visibility during the night to get into train yards undetected.

McVast has to be careful not to get caught as train hoppers can be fined up to $10,000

During his journey the DJ stopped off in some of Canada’s major cities such as Winnipeg and Calgary, and managed to finish his journey on the country’s western coast, Port Coquitlam, British Colombia.

Train hopping has been a dream for McVast since he was a child - and ironically was inspired by a poster warning of the dangers of train surfing.

The explorer usually uses the lack of visibility at night to sneak onto trains undetected

He said: “I remember being interested in doing this since I was seven years old when my friend's mother showed me a "smart risk vs. stupid risk" poster of people riding on top of a freight train.”

Since sneaking on to his first freight train at the age of 19, McVast has come to enjoy his regular train hopping adventures and posts his journeys on his social media.

McVast has come to enjoy his regular train hopping adventures and posts his journeys on his social media

To keep up to date with McVast’s latest train hopping adventures make sure to follow him on Instagram www.instagram.com/mcvast/ or visit his website www.hoptrains.com/