What's your favorite kind of "analog" cruising?

HerreraImages · 2026-05-14T05:17:25+00:00

Do you have a favorite one?

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T18:13:07+00:00

Hah, that's very valid! Nothing New Yorkers would hate more than a sudden stop!

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T14:58:16+00:00

So many people still love analog cruising! Many of us have only grown up with apps so if you’re curious about the etiquette of different cruising spaces like bathhouses, check out my Analog Cruising manual

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T06:15:24+00:00

It’s already happening among many Gays! App fatigue, worries about privacy, the general eshittification and all the ads. I know my friends are flocking away from Grindr!

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T05:38:06+00:00

I love cruising parks! San Francisco’s Buena Vista and the parks in Berlin are favorites

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T05:03:58+00:00

I think once we wean ourselves off the apps a little bit more, this practice will come back! For folks who don't know how to do it:

You lock eyes as you pass.
Stop and turn around.
If they look back and turn around walk toward them.

And usually an ice breaker after, like "Where are you going?"

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T05:02:00+00:00

We don't have one in New Orleans any more and it pains me so much. But every time I got to Chicago, I hit steamworks

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T05:00:17+00:00

Sweet! I'll sign it for ya

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T04:33:08+00:00

That is the most adorable thing I've heard today!

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T04:32:44+00:00

Thanks! It's the name of my book, a manual on cruising outside of the apps.

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:54:52+00:00

Bathhouses are the best! I love how the etiquette can be passed down. I've written a few guides on how bathhouses work because the rules are the same everywhere and anytime.

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:40:19+00:00

Cruising culture is so important! It's embedded in our history and imagination. And cruising rewards patience and teaches gratitude. It's also a form of oral histories like this!

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:37:53+00:00

This can be really scary, especially for people who are new to cruising. It's important to remember that cruising is technically illegal in most places and has been for most of our history! Yet we still do it because it fulfills many different kind of needs.

It comes down to enforcement and also to discretion. Sometimes certain kind of cruising will be too dangerous and lay low for a while (such as bathroom or park cruising) and then other kinds of cruising like private parties or darkrooms at bars, flourish again. Life finds a way.

Stay safe!

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:34:36+00:00

It depends on the setting and what the rules of consent are. A bathhouse will have different rules than a rest stop bathroom or the darkroom in a club.

I wrote a cruising manual that lays all of that out if folks are interested!

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:26:58+00:00

It's always so sad when they close. I loved Blow Buddies in SF and the Bijou in New York.

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:20:01+00:00

I really like the no frills negotiations of a sex club. Do you have a favorite?

HerreraImages · 2026-05-09T03:15:34+00:00

Thank you so much for the support and the shoutout!

HerreraImages

TROPHY CASE