Lately I’ve been seeing more and more bikes being used by Portland’s homeless population. I’ve started to get to know a few of them and hear their stories and experiences about their nomadic, rolling existence.
Sometimes I won’t meet the owner of the bike, I’ll just observe its load and marvel at the bungee cording skills that it takes to carry everything they own, everywhere they go.
The photo on the right is of Buster and Bill. Bill is always on the move and once he got too tired of walking all day, he got some wheels.
He pulls a trailer and his huge (yet sweet) bulldog named Buster stands atop a mound of bedding and tarps. Hanging from his handlebars are huge bags of recycled cans.
It’s ironic that in the shadow of a bike community that loves to move-by-bike, these guys are on a bike move that never ends.