Innehållsförteckning för Fall 2020 från Overland Journal

ROTEL MOTEL I would love to see you do a feature on Rotel Tours, that crazy German tour bus company that has those custom busses with onboard accommodations. They really do meet the overlanding definition and take those busses to some exotic locations. It might be a way for folks to get their overland vibe on, without making the investment in their own vehicle. I saw one here in the US about 10 years ago and was captivated. If I only spoke German, I might be more inclined to go. Keep up the great work. Pat Hambly 2014 Land Cruiser 1995 Suzuki Samurai BUILD IT, AND THEY WILL OVERLAND We recently returned to our home in Belmont (Ontario, Canada) from a two-month trip with our two children to Baja. This…

Motorcycle travel requires compromises, but innovation continues to close the gap. This is particularly evident with the new SealSkinz waterproof socks. For getting around when off of a motorcycle, I have started to wear White’s boots, which serve adequately on the bike (admittedly with less leg protection), but also serve as comfortable walking and city shoes. However, leather boots have limited weatherproofing, so when the rain starts to fall, I pull out my Sealskinz. Their three-layer bonded technology combines a hydrophilic interior membrane with merino wool and a nylon-blend exterior. During my recent trip to Swaziland, the socks proved to be 100 percent true to purpose, keeping my feet dry during the torrential rains, and warm on the high mountain passes. There are a few considerations worth noting. For a…

It wasn’t all that long ago that rooftop tents were rather new in North America. There was only a handful on the market, and nearly all of them were soft-shell canvas models made in Australia or South Africa. So few people had even heard of a roof tent that deploying one in public would inevitably lead to 15 conversations, several handshakes, and at least two wedding invitations. I’m exaggerating, of course—it was only one wedding invitation. The point is that we all thought these bits of canvas and wood were the pinnacle of outdoor luxury when, in reality, they left a lot to be desired. They were heavy, about as aerodynamic as a brick house, and the precarious ballet of fabric tucking and bumper balancing needed to fold them away…

The first time I slept in my Jeep, I was cold, scared, and stuck. I raced the sunset as I finished up a short ski tour among the cacti in the Alabama Hills. In the midst of the snowiest winter in Sierra Nevada history, the snow crept down from the mountains and piled up a few feet, even in the high desert. When I went to open the back hatch of my yellow Wrangler, it would not budge. With my food and cooking gear stashed beneath the wooden storage platform that replaced my back seat, it would be impossible to get my supplies. Then the storm rolled in. As wet lashes of sleet hit my cheeks, I looked down at my two pups, Matty and Roam, shivering beneath their thin…

You need to look up to notice it, a small white shrine perched on the corner of a wall. Since it is a mere 2 feet high and its tiled roof blends in with the similarly colored wall, it is easily overlooked. The shrine once served as a point for travelers to stop for prayer as well as being a waymarker. Inside stands a little figurine pointing to the right, indicating the way to go. While travel oratories, as these types of shrines are called, were put on street corners for travelers, bandits would position the statues in such a way that their cronies could deduce the direction of an upcoming gold transport. Once the government became savvy, many were taken down, and only a handful of them remain today.…

Let’s accept that adventure motorcycling means long, unsupported journeys across the world’s developing nations, lately redefined as the Global South. Overlanding is another word for it, as distinct from regular touring vacations or even gnarly domestic adventures that aren’t hard to have in North America. Get over the border, and things can get challenging just finding a new tire, let alone temporarily importing or servicing a modern motorcycle. Some forward planning and resourcefulness are required. Stepping outside your cultural comfort zone makes you feel vulnerable and stressed, normally what we seek to avoid. For years, adventurers have tackled this tension—anxiety versus wanderlust—with planning and preparation. Getting your ducks in a row helps build confidence towards a positive outcome. Gearing up over the months, both literally and psychologically, is also a…

LYN WOODWARD Lyn Woodward is an award-winning Los Angeles-based writer whose automotive and adventure work has appeared in such publications as Automobile Magazine, The Drive, Truck Trend, and Autoweek, among others. Currently, Woodward writes and hosts automotive video reviews for Kelley Blue Book. A car enthusiast, she owns two classic vehicles: a 1966 Datsun 1600 Roadster, and a 1987 Mitsubishi Montero that she’s currently restoring. Woodward spends her spare time traveling and wheeling off the grid, but of all her off- and on-road accomplishments, competing in the Rebelle Rally—a 10-day, off-road, map and compass navigation competition—remains one of her most proud. In addition to her automotive work, Woodward answered Hollywood’s call and has had several television projects produced. MORGAN SJOGREN Morgan Sjogren is a writer, adventurer, and former elite track…

While many of us travel with dehydrated meals, a shelf-stable meal can be a good alternative. What they give up in shelf life, they make up for in ease of heating and convenience. Notably, they also require no additional water, as the fluids used to heat the bags can be poured back into your storage. In the case of Camp Fare, the meals come in a retort pouch constructed from layers of metal foils and plastic, and can easily survive flameless contact to high heat, such as to an engine intake. These meals were designed and crafted by Andrew Sarda, a world traveler, and executive chef. CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA In our experience testing camping meals, tikka masala has proven to be a perfect baseline, and the Camp Fare version did…

Equipt Expedition Outfitters imports the K9 roof rack system made by the South African firm Eezi-Awn. Typical accessories for this rack include spare tire holders, water tank brackets, and jerry can mounts. One of the more unique items is a bolt-on mounting tray to secure the increasingly popular, Danish-made Alu-Box. I use these lightweight, weather-resistant Alu-Box cases for various purposes. The usual challenge is how to secure the boxes properly to survive the rigors of overland travel—and theft. Although not advertised as such, the powder-coated steel Eezi Awn K9 Alu-Box mount doesn’t necessarily need to be affixed to a K9 roof rack. I fastened a pair to an Aluminess roof rack on a Ford E350 4WD. They are rattle-free, unobtrusive, and other gear such as duffel bags can rest on…

On day two of the Rebelle Rally, my teammate and I found ourselves unexpectedly running in eighth place, ratcheting up both pressure and expectation. With five more days of navigating our way through the desert, could we hold on? Was I bad enough at this to eventually shatter my teammate’s faith? Would there be screaming? N37° 21.227, W117° 21.929 DAY 1 - START LINE GOLD POINT, NEVADA The Rebelle Rally isn’t a race. Rather, it’s a seven-day endurance event where teams of two attempt to chisel their way over 1,500 miles of off-road terrain using nothing but a paper map and compass. And unlike most of these kinds of endeavors, the four-year-old Rebelle is strictly for women. On day one, my navigator and four-time Rebelle, Sedona Blinson, and I got…

People love razor-sharp pictures. A solidly supported camera reduces camera shake, and that, in turn, produces sharp imagery. This is not to say that the intentional use of subject blur isn’t an important creative photographic tool—it is—but unwanted camera movement can spoil an otherwise wonderful capture. Sure, traditional lens-based image stabilization and the newer sensor-based stabilization technologies allow photographers to do handheld photography at increasingly longer shutter speeds, but when it comes to consistently capturing really long exposures, nothing beats a well-designed camera platform. Tripods are the choice for capturing multiple perfectly aligned exposures for HDR composite, strikingly beautiful star trails, eerily moonlit landscapes, smoky cascades of rushing water, or any style of thoughtful, long-duration exposure. Monopods are not as stable as tripods but are a great choice for supporting…

Living off the land can add to the sense of freedom you get from overland travel. Sourcing your drinking water along your route is a great way to extend the amount of time you can spend between major resupply points. There are a lot of products out there that help travelers make water safe to drink, and there is a lot of marketing hype that goes along with those products. Fortunately, the Wilderness Medical Society recently released the “Wilderness Medical Society Clinical Practice Guidelines for Water Disinfection for Wilderness, International Travel, and Austere Situations.” The 21-page article is a textbook-style report that I recommend checking out because it slices through the marketing hype to explain the basics of water filtration and purification. Here are the highlights. BE MILDLY SUSPICIOUS OF…

When we travel remotely or in the developing world, it is critical to prepare for accidents, spoiled supplies, and survival scenarios. I started carrying a water filter in every vehicle after a leak in my primary supply tank emptied all of my stores. This required cutting my trip short and nursing the few bottles and drinks in the fridge until I could resupply. The same applies to adventure motorcycles, where weight is the enemy, and only so much water can be carried. Recently, my expectations and needs for a water filter have changed, and now include the ability to store water to support day hikes and other activities. Having owned a few brands, I wanted to try the new Geopress, which is one of the easiest filters on the market…

At some point in your life, you need a hat. It’s unavoidable, yet it’s one of the hardest things to find and like. They look suave on Indiana Jones, but when you try on the exact style, you’re harnessing Papa Smurf or Uncle Sam, which is why we owe kudos to the geniuses that developed universally flattering noggin attire. Enter the Brixton Tiller III, a wide-brim pinched round-top hat, i.e., the only hat I’ve bothered to wear day in and day out on the rivers while fly fishing. I’m most thankful for the full face (and some shoulder) coverage and the raw leather hat band that doubles as a comfortable chin strap; it also works to catch wind’s attempts to steal it or when you need a secure place to…

There are times when nature trumps current technology, which is never more evident than with insulating materials. Down remains unrivaled, as does merino wool, and even possum fur. Pearly’s manufactures their much-loved socks, as well as the packaging, on the North Island of New Zealand. They use 45 percent merino wool for its wet-weather warmth and anti-itch properties, and incorporate 40 percent possum fur for its light weight and incredible softness. Possum is the third warmest fur in the world after the polar bear and Arctic fox and is unique in its anti-bacterial properties, which increases the time between washings. I wore the socks on a recent trip to Namibia and found them to be exceptionally comfortable and genuinely warm—too warm for the deserts. In addition, I tested the socks…

Sweaty palms. Blood flowing quickly through our veins. Butterflies blooming in our bellies. We were Yosemite bound. The thought of being suspended thousands of feet over the valley floor, balancing on webbing no thicker than a thumb, began to consume our minds with each passing mile. Since departing sea level, we’d been eastbound for the high desert, redwood forests, and everything in between. We’d set out to put the new rig, our Toyota Tacoma Xtra Cab Limited Edition Four Wheel Camper, to the test on a classic California overlanding expedition. After each of us spent four years living full-time on the road (Travis in his 1994 Dodge Ram van and me in my 1983 VW Westfalia), we paused our travel-centric lifestyles to explore new avenues of opportunity—city life. They say…

Each year, hundreds of thousands of RVs are sold throughout the United States. The materials they’re built from are often cheap, and their entry prices are as low as their ground clearance; for the average buyer looking to hit the road for a few weeks a year, they’re just good enough. However, a growing number of consumers want something more, something better. They want higher-quality materials, improved space efficiency, room for their outdoor gear, and a little off-road capability to take them farther than other RVs can go. That typically meant pursuing solutions from a variety of small custom shops. But more recently, some big manufacturers have stepped up to the plate—such as Storyteller Overland with the Mode 4x4. WHAT MAKES THE MODE 4X4 DIFFERENT? Walking up to the Mode…

On an evening in July 1985, Fat Paul Wonsok met Bros at Stan’s Bar at the Babanango Hotel in distant Zululand. Wonsok, so named because a goat once ate his other sock, had a proposal. Over brandy, he spoke of the Kgalagadi, the great semidesert of Botswana, which was reputed to harbour a lost city. Fat Paul had read books on the subject, including, Through the Kalahari Desert, by Gilarmi A. Farini, who reported discovering the ruins in 1885. The Lost City of the Kalahari has since figured in the imaginings of many who have wandered about the wastes of the Kalahari, or Kgalagadi as it is now known, searching for the stone walls, courtyards, and terraces first reported by Farini. Lost cities, tombs, and treasures were usually discovered by…

Wildlife watching is a travel highlight possibly only trumped by engaging directly with animals. Who can forget the touch of an orphaned baboon’s fuzzy arms clinging on while bottle feeding? Or the joy of seeing a traffic-injured tapir scurry off on healed legs? Volunteering at a wildlife sanctuary can be exceedingly rewarding. As humans encroach upon more and more wildlife habitat, the number of animals in need of help has increased exponentially. Wildlife organizations offering volunteer opportunities have popped up like mushrooms across Africa, Latin America, and Asia, but many don’t benefit wildlife conservation at all. Some even sell animals to the illegal pet trade or capture them from the wild, then present them as orphaned or rescued. Travelers should beware of any outfitter that makes animals act contrary to…

My wife took a photo of me standing next to our rental car—a sub-compact Chevy Spark—shortly before we contorted ourselves and our gear into its modest confines and began a journey around Ecuador that ended up totaling 1,500 miles. It wasn’t like I had long fantasized about upping my foreign adventure quotient by skirting the edge of the Amazon Basin and traversing the lofty spine of the Andes in a vehicle the size of a roller skate. But the difference in price between the Spark and the least-expensive high-clearance, four-wheel-drive option was significant. I swallowed my pride and sent my credit card number to Avis in hopes that, serendipitously, I would receive a last-minute, face-saving upgrade to, say, a vintage FJ40, which are fairly common in Ecuador. No such luck.…