The border crossing from Honduras into Nicaragua was an endless line of 18-wheelers at a standstill. Travelers who’d gone before instructed fellow overlanders to reach customs officials by passing the trucks on the right shoulder. This worked until it didn’t, at which point an agent appeared, waved, and conducted the movements of tractor trailers until…
Next Meridian Land Rover Defender Puma :: Feature Vehicle
The oldest-known wild bird is an albatross named Wisdom, now 71 years old. Given her age, biologists estimate this avian has flown more than three million miles in her lifetime. As extraordinary as this seems, it takes on greater significance once one understands the taxing nature of an albatross’ travel. An albatross can go years…
Overland Embassy Launches Flat Rack as RORO Alternative
Though safety issues are sometimes exaggerated, any vehicle owner is justifiably concerned about handing over the keys to their unlocked vehicle and sending it away on a ship—especially when that vehicle is their full-time home along the Pan-American Highway. For those with larger vehicles who would love an alternative to Roll-on, Roll-off (RORO) shipping, it’s…
Worldschooling and Overland Travel
Editor’s Note: This Worldschooling article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Spring 2023 Issue. Lead photo by Korey and Anna Hart Worldschooling is a style of education that recognizes the value of children traveling to international destinations where they can be immersed in other cultures, acquiring knowledge through a hands-on approach. Proponents believe engaging all five…
The Unstoppable Charline Ribotta :: Her Love for Africa and Moving Past Fear after Multiple Assaults on the Road
Charline Ribotta departed from her home country of France in a Toyota Hilux, equipped with a Front Runner rooftop tent and modifications of her design. She has been overlanding solo for more than a year now, with hopes of continuing full-time travel indefinitely. Her original itinerary was to traverse the Middle East and cross to…
Judged by Its Cover :: Coming to Terms With Passport Inequity
The centuries-old mansion on Puebla, Mexico’s central plaza had been converted into a restaurant on the bottom floor with new apartments above. We sit in the living room of one of those apartments on the second story. With its towering ceiling and decorative tile floors, it surely used to be the salon of high society….
Overland Embassy Guides Darién Gap Crossing for Travelers
Photo credits: Alejandro Huerta Franco The Darién Gap crossing between Panama and Colombia is many overlanders’ first exposure to the red tape of transcontinental vehicle shipping. Some travelers are so overwhelmed by the paperwork and costs involved they turn around and return the way they came. Others take a deep breath and plunge in, embracing…
Zapp Family Completes 22 Years of Worldwide Travel in 1928 Graham-Paige
Herman and Candelaria Zapp grew up together, dreaming of adventure since they were kids. Six years after marrying, they set a firm date for the backpacking trip they’d put off for so long. But at the last minute, they decided to drive instead. The vehicle was sitting in their garage and in need of refurbishment….
Overlander Mexico
When you face the unknown—whether people, places, or concepts—the talons of fear have a way of gripping down relentlessly. The year was 2018, and my husband and I were facing doubts before overlanding into an unfamiliar country for the first time. We would have experienced less of a mental rollercoaster were it not for our…
Marking the 10-Year Anniversary of Expeditions 7
“First is forever,” reverberated through the air on the night the Expeditions 7 team celebrated becoming the first to drive a 4×4 vehicle on all seven continents. The moment Expedition Leader Scott Brady congratulated his team, those in attendance simultaneously played a personal reel, mental images flashing in quick succession: narrowly avoiding jail in Russia;…
Avoidable Missteps Teach a Serious Lesson About Carelessness
As we look back at nearly eight years of full-time, vehicle-based travel, we consider ourselves fairly experienced travelers. So it’s embarrassing to admit we make rookie mistakes from time to time. We should know better. Over the past weekend, we completed a whirlwind but magical tour of La Huasteca Potosina, a tropical region in interior…
How to Sustain the Overlander’s Lifestyle
Not as a complete definition, but as an often-overlooked component, I’ve started describing overlanding as “intentional self-deprivation.” This is the part you rarely see on Instagram. Those who use the activity to escape the city and trials of work-life could probably care less. Even when the weather doesn’t cooperate, disappointing for sure, it’s all part…
Fear Is an Accessory You Can Take Off: An Interview With Vibes of Panama
The lowest point, figuratively speaking, between Panama and Alaska was the floor of a Land Rover shop, where Alejandro “Alex” Huerta Franco and Ana Victoria Viera spent a torturous night. It was mid-March on the West Coast of the United States, and the pandemic panic was closing in as campgrounds and even Airbnbs closed down….
Four Years Circumnavigating the Globe: An Interview with the Alveto Expedition
The Miami sun collided with the asphalt in the Walmart parking lot. Interpersonal conflict came to a boil, and litter was tossed by the breeze, as desperate people gathered to make an unlikely home. Their close proximity ran dangerously counter to the pandemic threat hanging in the humid Florida air. When Aldo Giaquinto and Vera…
What I’ve Learned About Full-time Travel From Shelter-in-Place
Lead image by Amber Baldwin Perspective through being forced off the road for the first time in over six years. Cliché as it may be, “You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone” certainly applies to this period of sheltering in place, the longest my husband, Eric, and I have stayed anywhere in more…