Innehållsförteckning för Summer 2023 från Overland Journal

STRAIGHT TALK My wife gave me a Christmas subscription. She was so impressed when she contacted your office last minute and you got me the first issue in time for the holiday. [It’s] sad that even autos have become political, so thank you for your honest and non-biased review of off-road EVs. They are sure exciting to drive and have great tech, but many of us can’t spend $100,000 on one. I picked up a gently used 2008 Lexus GX 470 and turned it into a great off-roader with lift, new rims, tires, sliders, and all in I spent just $23,000. The old-school Toyota V8 is terrible on gas but so reliable—I love it. Keep up the great articles. Erich Meyer DOUBLE TAKE I really enjoy your magazine, I just…

Prepping for a trip to Iceland, I hemmed and hawed over footwear. The country has a reputation for extreme and unpredictable weather, and I knew most of my time would be spent outdoors. Something waterproof, rugged, comfortable, and warm was crucial. Made from waterproof full-grain leather, featuring a Vibram SPE midsole, Fuga outsole, and designed for the damp Pacific Northwest, Danner’s Mountain 600 boot was a solid contender. When the box arrived, my boot-buying difficulties from earlier in the year lingered fresh in my mind. I have small, narrow feet that can be hard to fit. Fortunately, Danner offers a 365-day warranty across their footwear line. To my surprise, the size 5.5 boot in rich brown slid on like Cinderella’s slipper—but the true test awaited. I wore these boots every…

When you announce your intention to travel by vehicle, an audience of loved ones and acquaintances will immediately become very curious. Not necessarily about border crossings or why you’ve decided to venture beyond a comfortable, predictable, and stable day-to-day life. No, they want to know how you will respond to the ever-present call of nature without constant access to a water closet. Where will you see a man about a horse? Wring out a kidney? These are fair questions—indoor plumbing, sewer systems, and waste management infrastructure are a feat of modern engineering that, if we have access to 24-7, we often take for granted. Once we hit the road, it is necessary to adjust. The quality and cleanliness of “the facilities” range from great to not worth it. This means…

BUMFUZZLE PAT, ALI, OUEST, AND LOWE SHULTE “Neither of us had ever sailed or had a boat. We were just Midwestern kids from Minnesota,” Pat Shulte says of the moment he and his wife, Ali, decided to set sail across the Pacific. They met for a few beers one evening at Lou Malnati’s, their favorite pizza place in the Windy City. Pat worked at the Chicago Board of Trade; Ali was an administrative assistant at the Sears Tower. “We were young and had some money,” Pat says. “We thought, we should cut out of here and go do something crazy for a while.” After visiting a few blogs and websites, the decision was made—they would sail around the world. Now, over 20 years later, the Shultes have transitioned from land…

“You can actually use bulrush pollen as flour to make bread—there’s a wonderfully kooky American woman with a You-Tube channel about it. They call them cattails there, though,” said Lizzie, rubbing the vibrant yellow pollen off the male flower and collecting it in the palm of her hand. “We probably won’t have enough for bread, but Bill can add it to the stir fry.” My sister Lizzie and I were wading and walking along the shore of Lake Phobane, a large dam bordering hundreds of square miles of wild scrub bush in Zululand, South Africa. The heat and humidity, combined with the sweet signature smell of the vegetation, brought back a smorgasbord of childhood memories. We had grown up on 4x4 excursions here, rattling around in the back of my…

KIRA AND BRENDON HAK Kira’s passion has always been travel and photography. For her, capturing an image to share with the “inside” world has the power to change mindsets. Kira is certain she will travel to every corner of this beautiful planet and spark an interest in others to do the same. Brendon has been behind the wheel his entire life, his first solo expedition being at just six years old. No matter the season, you can find him outside, twisting a throttle or stomping a pedal. So the wanderer met the horse, and Adventure Haks was born—a platform to share their photography and tales of their journeys, with the goal to simply enjoy life and inspire others to get outside and explore. @adventurehaks LUCIE HANES Lucie is a sport…

Eight years ago, I overstuffed the biggest suitcase I owned and lugged way too much clothing, shoes, and gear to Vienna. I’d landed a journalism fellowship and a portal to Europe and spent much of the coming year exploring, hunting for stories. After the six-week Austrian program ended, I hopped on a short flight to Spain and shipped my suitcase separately to avoid an exorbitant bag fee the airline wanted. It was a cheapskate move, and it cost me. The shipper “lost” my bag and most of what I thought I cared about, including a buttery leather jacket and a pair of Frye boots that, while wildly uncomfortable, were a prized possession. I was crushed. The loss turned out to be a boon. It changed everything about the way I…

Martin and Osa Johnson with the Chief of the Kipsigis, his wife, and the tribe’s warriors before filming a traditional lion hunt. Left: An Orpheum Circuit vaudeville poster for Martin Johnson’s “Voyage of the Snark with Jack London” lecture show, circa 1911. | Opposite: In 1921, women’s sporting clothes were nonexistent, so Osa shopped boys’ wear to find togs that were “field ready.” | Osa and Martin Johnson eloped in 1910 and spent their honeymoon with authors Jack and Charmian London in California. | Ernest Darling, aka The Nature Man, in Tahiti, 1907. Jack London devoted a chapter of his Snark voyage book to health guru Darling, recording a history that would otherwise be forgotten. | Opening page: Osa and Martin Johnson on the Serengeti Plains, scouting wildlife film locations…

Of all the portable commodes on the market today, the InstaPrivy is the only one you wear on your head. From outside the privacy shelter, the user looks like an olive-drab ghost on Halloween or perhaps a tiny mobile grain silo, but the design is genius in its simplicity. The real focus is on portability. All of the components you need for your walk to the woods are conveniently organized in a 16 x 16 x 4-inch water-resistant backpack that weighs in at just a smidge under 7 pounds. The exterior features compression straps and buckles and two rows of MOLLE webbing. The pack’s padded and adjustable shoulder straps come with their own storage compartment to convert the bag to hand carry. Inside are thoughtful touches like custom pockets and…

Perched on the edge of the Lion Rock escarpment in Washington’s central Cascades, I leaned back in my chair and watched the molten sun drip behind Mount Stuart’s jagged sil-houette. Behind me, a clicking camera pierced the warm breeze as my friend Kris caught the day’s final rays filtering through the haze. Before me, layers of green softened and brightened as rows of forested foothills spilled toward the glowing horizon. From the tranquility of our airy campsite at 6,300 feet, it was hard to believe that 80 miles to the west lived 4.3 million people in the central Puget Sound. Among the empty alpine reaches, I was content to relax among a small group of companions. Joining us on this late July foray were Rob Vowles and Steve Biggs, who…

If you think about it, food should always come first (after water). It’s the fire behind everything we do, from everyday human functioning to scaling cliffsides and hiking through high mountain passes. Living necessitates eating. Living adventurously? So much more so. Dream big, eat big, do big. For many busy travelers, though, food is left as a second thought. Of course, we’d all probably rather think about getting to the next exciting destination than what we’re having for dinner on the way. But our bodies have different priorities. You can only ignore biology for so long until it interrupts all your best-laid plans—or throws them out the window entirely if you don’t have enough energy to keep up. Instead of letting the hanger win, channel your inner Boy Scout: Be…

“Hey, I know you. You’re famous. I’ve seen you on TV.” I stood at the entrance to a convenience store in northern Nevada, about to buy food for a week-long motorcycle adventure in the backcountry. As she spoke, the woman looked past me at my riding partner, whom I have dubbed, the Effervescent Eva Rupert. Standing at a commanding five feet ten inches, she has a smile that would light a city and the personality of Zig Ziglar. Eva broke onto the set in 2013 by filming some 70 days on the popular Discovery Channel reality show, Naked and Afraid. Her debut sent her traipsing sans skivvies across Colombia and Madagascar, struggling to survive against nature with virtually nothing but a knife and an appointed partner who, in one episode,…

Shooting water is a tonne of fun, whether in the form of white-fringed waves crashing on the shoreline, a lake as still as a millpond, or the sheer power raining down in a waterfall. It’s easy to create results that will float your boat, so long as you know the basics and go with the flow. EQUIPMENT AND SETTINGS • Neutral density (ND) filters are colour-accurate sunglasses for your DSLR; they control exposure time for the water effect you want. Consider 3-, 6-, 8-, and 10-stop filters, which can be stacked to enable a longer exposure time during bright daylight hours. Each shot will create varying patterns of water motion. Before sunrise and after sunset may need no filters.• A polariser will remove unwanted reflections and glare, bringing the colour…