Beautiful views, great food, and even better friends, made this year’s open house run a smashing success
Casner Mountain Trail: A Changing View
While no one likes a closed trail, a trip over Casner mountain gives me some perspective on the issue
A First Timer’s Impression of Overland Expo
Inspiration at Overland Expo is drawn from vehicles, classes, and foods, but most of all from the amazing people who congregate there each year
Southern Africa’s Toughest Trail in a Stock Discovery
via West County Explorers Club: South African off-roader, Andrew St. Pierre White, takes a stock Land Rover Discovery on what he states is Southern Africa’s most difficult road, Baboons Pass in Lesotho. He does the trip with friends in two well-prepared Defender 110s. By the looks of it, it’s not for the faint of heart….
Happy Birthday Land Rover: Thanks for the Inspiration
Land Rover understands the emotional connection we can have with a mechanical thing, what that mechanical device not only says about us as individuals, but where we might be driving too.
Photo Essay: Four Corners Wanderings
About the Author Chazz Layne is an adventurer, designer, and photographer based in Prescott, Arizona. Since early childhood he’s had a passion for travel and exploration, a passion which continues to fuel both his creativity and modern nomadic lifestyle. In addition to his work in design and photography, Chazz is a regular contributor to Expedition…
Camel Trophy Sulawesi
This is one of my favorite Camel Trophy videos. It takes place in 1988 on the Indonesian Island of Sulawesi. It also shows a bit of the driver training in England. Great footage.
See the rest of the videos after the jump.
Scratch-Off Wall Map
(Not a scratch and sniff)
Dirt: The Off-Road Movie
via West County Explorers Club: If you’re in the mood for a smorgasbord of vintage, off-road action, check out this 70s-era documentary called Dirt. It covers just about everything from swam buggies to desert racing, and features a RV-ing grampa for a narrator.
Crooks Canyon, Arizona
via West County Explorers Club: As part of our Southwest Trip this summer, we drove through the Prescott National Forest. We shot video of the most remote part of that drive, Forest Road 82A through Crooks Canyon.
Here’s the post about that part of the trip: Southwest Trip, Part 4: Prescott, AZ.
VOTD: Toyota Hilux, Deep Water Crossing
It’s times like this that you really need to trust your snorkel install and waterproofing job. This video is from New South Wales, Australia via YouTube. Once your windshield wipers are under water, you know you’re in deep.
WCXC Southwest Trip: Canyon de Chelly Video
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via West County Explorers Club: I cut together this quick video from our trip to Canyon de Chelly in northeastern Arizona. Apologies for the wind noise.
Dust Therapy: Stretching The Legs of My 4Runner (and Dog.)
A good friend of mine (who works too much) was back in town yesterday, so we decided that it was about time I took my truck out.
VOTD: Jeep, Mighty FC
On the trail as a comparison, they bring along a 1964 Jeep Forward Control crew cab. It’s funny to see the two together. The Mighty FC looks like a bulldog. The old Forward Control looks like a loaf of bread. It’s great to see footage of both of these truck on the road!
Copper Canyon: Stories from the Vault
Cerocahui to El Fuerte on the Old Road
Introducing Stories from the Vault
Spotted: Nicely Modded Mitsubishi Montero
I’m really impressed with the thought and detail Greg put into his truck. It’s a capable off-roader that I’ve enjoyed seeing in action.
Andorra – Europe’s Mountain Kingdom
Driving a Suzuki Jimny on an Old Smuggler’s Route Through the Pyrenees.
VOTD: In Asia
Via West County Explorers Club: My friend Greg just sent me a link to this outstanding travel video by Munich-based freelance filmmaker, Vincent Urban and Clemens Krüger. Part 1 of a five-part series, it shows three friends traveling through southeast Asia in a Land Rover Defender 110. There is hardly any narration, hardly any dialogue. Moments of the trip are just strung together like memories. It’s beautifully shot and edited and gets to the heart of why we all travel.
The first three in the series are already on Vimeo. See Part 2 here and Part 3 here.
Thanks for the tip, Greg!
Video of the Day: Off-road Ukraine
via West County Explorers Club: Here’s a recent Vimeo find documenting what appears to be a group of Czechs on a 2008 off-road expedition in the Ukraine. It looks like they had a great trip. And I like the video.
Just be careful about driving over those winch cables guys. Oh, and Smokey the Bear says to clear a five-foot-radius ring around that campfire but other than that, nice one…
Arizona to Guatemala: Driving a Defender 110 OUT of the U.S., part 3
Phase 3: Guatemala
When we finally crossed into Guatemala, we had to pay a few bucks for some sort of mandatory agricultural spray on the underside of the vehicle.