Upside-down buildings, Titanic replicas, wax museums, Dollywood, and over 20,000 Jeeps scattered in between. Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion is back in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, for its 14th annual event! Just outside Great Smoky Mountains National Park, over 50,000 Jeep enthusiasts flocked to the LeConte Center for a three-day event packed with community meetups, vendor booths,…
Category Archives: 4WD
The UK Isn’t Coming to Defender Trophy. That Has Precedent.
The Defender Trophy is getting closer, with two-person teams selected from around the world to compete in Africa this October on a three-week adventure that hasn’t been paralleled since 2006’s G4 Challenge. Over 70 countries were invited to participate, from the USA and Canada to Brunei to Northern Cyprus. The one glaring exception: the United…
Classic Kit: The Pith Helmet
To honor the 20-year anniversary of Overland Journal, we are revisiting special heritage content in the upcoming 100th issue of the magazine. Originally published in Overland Journal’s Summer 2010 issue, this article is part of that celebration. Home, they say, is where you hang your hat. If that hat happened to be the legendary pith…
EP323 | Rugged Destinations: A Family’s Journey
Overland Journal Podcast host Scott Brady chats with Amanda and Patrick from Rugged Destinations. They share highlights from pre-running the Back 400 and skills course at XOverland Ranch in their newly built Mitsubishi Canter JDM firetruck, their passion for JDM imports, and what inspired their outdoor travel. The couple discusses transitioning from traditional careers—Patrick as…
10 Things to Know About Overlanding Mongolia
Photography by Richard Giordano Summer is an exciting time in Mongolia. City dwellers flock to the countryside to enjoy the annual Naadam Festival, a celebration centered around wrestling, horse racing, and archery competitions. Nomads move to their summer gers (yurts), where green grass and warmer temperatures are enjoyed by multi-generational families and their meandering livestock….
Inside Bronco Stampede 2026 in Pigeon Forge
Bronco Stampede 2026: Pigeon Forge Goes All-in on the Bronco You know pretty quickly when the Bronco Stampede arrives in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Broncos fill hotel parking lots, stack up along the Parkway, and keep cruising through town long after the show closes. The fourth annual Smoky Mountain Bronco Stampede returned to the LeConte Center…
Hyundai Confirms New Body-on-Frame Pickup
Hyundai recently announced its plan to go after the heart of the North American adventure truck market. At its 2026 CEO Investor Day, the company confirmed that a new body-on-frame mid-size pickup is part of its product plan, with the truck expected to arrive in North America before 2030. Hyundai says it will be designed…
Field Tested: Pelican ATX and Aegis Carry-On Luggage
Airline travel without checking bags is a cheat code that is well worth striving for. Free yourself from the worry of theft, damage, and lost luggage (and the wasted time associated) with either of these two premium carry-on options from Pelican. Both offer organized space for up to a week of travel between laundry cycles…
Field Tested: The Campspotter App
Michiel Pruijssers thought he had planned the perfect camping trip. The weather forecast looked good, the campspot ideal. But when a powerful storm rolled in and ruined the experience, Michiel, a longtime outdoorsperson and SAR volunteer, felt unprepared. Thus, he built Campspotter, an app with a simple mission: to make finding and planning your next…
Mitsubishi Launches Fifth-Generation Pajero
The fifth-generation Mitsubishi Pajero was just unveiled in Tokyo, marking the return of the highly respected nameplate that disappeared from the global market in 2021. After five years away, the Pajero is back as Mitsubishi’s flagship SUV, and this time the company is taking direct aim at vehicles like the Toyota Land Cruiser and Defender….
Overland News of the Week, September 11, 2026
KC Hilites Platform One Roof Rack for Full-Size and HD Trucks KC Hilites has expanded its Platform One roof-rack system to fit full-size and heavy-duty pickup trucks. The low-profile platform uses proprietary aluminum extrusions and precision-formed steel components, combining a broad cargo surface with multiple mounting points for overland equipment. Its modular design lets owners…
36 Hours Exploring Montana’s Gravelly Range
This article is presented by Montana. If there’s one sound in the off-road world that guarantees fun times ahead, it’s the hiss of tires dropping air pressure. This comforting realization hit me as I admired the rugged peaks surrounding us and listened to my all-terrain tires drop from 36 PSI to 20. My three friends…
2026 Jeep Recon Brings Trail Rated Capability to an All-Electric Platform
“Nobody wants this.” I read that comment from a respected voice on an Instagram post after a fellow journalist shared his time with the new Jeep Recon EV, which was revealed to select media in Healdsburg, California, in early September. That statement has been bugging me all week. Why would people not want a vehicle…
VW Announces Fully Electric California Campervan
Volkswagen has finally turned the fully electric ID Buzz into the camper van many people expected from the beginning. The new ID California Cruise is the first fully electric member of Volkswagen’s upcoming California family of adventure EVs, and it brings some genuinely clever ideas to the campsite. It also raises a much harder question…
Ep320 | Jack Langton on the Power of Sharing People’s Stories
Overland Journal Podcast host Ashley Giordano interviews Jack Langton, who cycled 8,000 miles from London to Singapore. Over 150 days, Langton trained on the road, braved solo camping, and navigated intense environments like India and Turkey. He emphasizes the overwhelming generosity he encountered, especially throughout Central Asia. After returning to his consulting career, Langton launched…
Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame Launches Future Legends Scholarship Program
The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame (ORMHOF) recently announced the launch of the Future Legends Scholarship Program, a new initiative designed to invest in the next generation of leaders who will shape the future of off-road motorsports. The program will award five scholarships totaling $25,000 to individuals and organizations demonstrating excellence in media, advocacy, and…
EXCLUSIVE :: Limited Edition Sitka x Scout Camper
There are truck campers designed to make camping comfortable and easy, and then there are campers designed with the mantra that the journey itself is the point. Taking that to heart, Scout Campers teamed up with Sitka Gear to design and build a limited edition camper that falls squarely into the second category. This premium…
Tight Loops | Two in the North driven by Mobil 1 | Season Finale LIVE
For months, Aimee and Chase Bartee have been steadily working their way north. What began on Vancouver Island has carried them through British Columbia, the Yukon, and deep into Alaska, following wild fish, unfamiliar roads, and a long-held curiosity about what they might find at the far edge of the map. In the fifth and…
Field Tested :: Alu-Cab ModCap Canopy Base
For years, I ran an RSI SmartCap on my Ford Ranger. It’s a canopy that’s hard to fault—stylish, sleek, and built with clean lines that give any vehicle a polished, factory-fresh look. I loved how refined it made my rig look; it had presence, and it turned heads. But as my trips became longer and…
Overland News of the Week, August 28, 2026
iKamper and Rivian Launch New Skycamp 4.0 DLX Rooftop Tent Suitable for the Rivian R2 and R1S, the new Skycamp introduces an HC Staircase and an electrical junction box that routes power from a compatible external 12-volt source. Additional campsite functionality includes independently dimmable interior and exterior lighting, dedicated HVAC and electrical passthroughs, and USB-A,…