Hermes 3000 / Railroads / Travel

The rare gems of YouTube

L.T. Hanlon1 Comment

James Stobie explains it all to you in one of his earliest videos.

This photo of a typewritten document contains the following text. Tuesday, June 4, 2019 Chicago, USA. He caught the westbound. There's a lot of stuff on YouTube that feels more like masturbation than mass communication. Yet amid the flotsam of influencers, conspiracy nuts, and downright idiots are the gems that shine so brightly you anxiously await every new video. One such gem was James Stobie, AKA Stobe the Hobo, who hopped freights across North America and posted videos of his exploits on YouTube. Unlike other trainhopping videos that seemed devoted to the hipster thrill of riding the rails, Stobie’s work came off like something Charles Kuralt might have done. Each video adventure of Stobe the Hobo included commentary about the towns he visited, the nature of life on the rails, and a musical soundtrack featuring Stobie himself on piano. Stobie died in November 2017 under circumstances still not entirely clear. He seems to have either fallen from a bridge or been struck by a train. Much of Stobie’s travels can be viewed on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/eSpXhKdSQwk

Above, Stobe the Hobo appears in a visually stunning video by RanOutOnARail.

James Stobie Obituary

Secret Society of Internet Hobos — James Stobie Page

Stobe the Hobo YouTube Archive

One thought on “The rare gems of YouTube”

  1. I feel so lucky to have discovered Stobe, and so grateful for the brave and beautiful work he left behind. His films and videos continue to feed me with wonder and fascination after countless watches.

    Godspeed, brother Stobe.

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