I was curious about chances for hitchhiking in Texas. Digihitch.com has info on “hitchhiking, rail & road travel”. Apparently this makes it the “site of subcultural movement“.

Hitchhiking in Texas can be very different, depending on what region you are in.
* West Texas is practically a world all its own, with long, open highways (I-10, I-20) and small towns. It is possible to get long rides all the way through if on the major interstate highways. Most hitchhikers have no problem standing on the main shoulder of the highway. It’s dry, hot land in the summer, and windy in most areas.
* South Texas (South of San Antonio and Corpus Christi) is also wide open. Getting rides will take longer, and will probably come from Spanish-speaking locals or ranchers in the area.

Or according to someone called Lightfoot:

Never had much problem with cops but had serious problems getting out of El Paso on multiple occasions. The other observation about Texas is that if you’re hitching off the interstate, there aren’t many places to camp because private property rights extend to the side of the road and there are high, unclimbable fences everywhere. It was difficult finding a hidden spot to crash. In the southern parts, there is a noticable Border Patrol and deputy sheriff presence, and they will stop and check you out. They’re not very laid back about it either. Texas people are very humorous and good-hearted but for me it was always a very arduous state to hitch through.

There’s also a google maplet showing truck stops in the various regions. Useful stuff.

update: After watching No Country For Old Men, I am now extra worried about hitchhiking in Texas. Like the man says, “not even a young man like yourself”. On the other hand, I now really want to believe that you can do stealth camping in some of those places. And if I find a bag of money while doing so, I will not take it.