Located in the Italian Dolomites, Lago di Sorapis sits below the towering 10,515-foot Mount Sorapis (or Punta Sorapiss). The summit is reached via a 13.5-kilometer (8.4-mile) round-trip hike from designated parking at Passo Tre Croci. Considered medium to hard in difficulty, the hike features 2,378 feet of elevation, some narrow-exposed sections, and several small metal…
Destination: Cotopaxi National Park, Ecuador
Photography by Richard Giordano At 5,897 meters (19,347 feet), Cotopaxi is Ecuador’s second-highest peak and one of the highest active volcanoes on the planet. Located a mere 30 miles from the Ecuadorian capital city, Quito, the park is well-visited and offers enough to keep visitors entertained for several days, including camping, hiking, off-pavement driving, and…
The Pace of Change in Outback Queensland
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Spring 2022 Issue. Within the hour, paradise would fade into the distance. Every kilometre we put between us and the coast would melt into the afternoon sun. Once the rainforest canopy crumbled into open plains, a trail of dust would leave months of an unplanned pause…
Destination of the Week: Tamasopo – Waterfalls in a rainforest
Tamasopo is a Mexican town in the Huasteca region of San Luis Potosi, which is surrounded by green mountains and clear blue skies. The town is inhabited by a meager 4,326 people, half of whom still speak an indigenous language. One cannot help but imagine this region centuries ago before the European colonists arrived. There…
Destination :: Lovatnet Lake, Norway
Living on the road has provided me with many magical experiences, but a select few were genuinely life-changing. The opportunity to kayak on the iconic Lovatnet lake was one such moment. The lake is located in the municipality of Stryn (the closest village is Loen, 1.2 miles), 52 meters above sea level, and is close…
Destination: Juan de Fuca Provincial Park, British Columbia
Photography by Richard Giordano Located on the west coast of southern Vancouver Island, Juan de Fuca Provincial Park offers visitors the chance to bask in its rainforests, try out the surf, observe local flora and fauna, and hike the local trails. One of the park’s main features, the Juan De Fuca Marine Trail, winds 47…
Sierra de Organos National Park in Durango, Mexico
To stumble upon a hidden gem is one of the great rewards of overland travel. Mainland Mexico has some amazing sites to visit, and although not mentioned on any of the top websites for tourists, the beautiful Sierra de Organos National Park is well worth a visit. Just over an hour’s drive south of the…
Overlanding Norway’s Southern Fjordlands
For as long as I can remember, Scandinavia has held a particular magnetism for me. In my teenage days, I dreamed of the vast snow dunes of Lapland, fire crackling in the unforgiving cold, the northern lights showing the way through the endless night. The first time I traveled solo, I looked for the landscape…
Destination :: Capileira, Spain
Nestled in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, at an altitude of 4,711 feet (1,436m), is the quaint village of Capileira. The first time I set eyes on this idyllic settlement I was descending from 7,355 feet (2,242m) after spending a chilly night camped outside of the Refugio Del Punto (one of a series of mountain…
Destination: Uyuni, Bolivia
The salt flat in Uyuni, Bolivia, is a proper paradise for overlanders and landscape photographers. As I happen to fall into both of those categories, Uyuni is one of my favorite places on Earth. The stunning scenery comes with a cost: its extremely high elevation (3,700 meters, 12,139 feet above sea level) makes it largely…
Destination :: Geiranger, Norway
Located in Western Norway, Geiranger heads the truly magical UNESCO World Heritage Site Geirangerfjorden, one of the most iconic fjords in the world. This quaint Norwegian village has been awarded the best travel destination in Scandinavia by Lonely Planet and attracts over 500,000 tourists every year. As you approach Geiranger on Route 63, there are several…
Destination: Whitehorse, Yukon
Photos courtesy of the Government of Yukon Located a 15-minute drive from the fork of the Alaska and Klondike Highways, Whitehorse is a must-stop for those continuing north toward Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, or west to Alaska. While the city is a convenient place to stock up on fuel, groceries, or indulge in a hot shower,…
Destinations: The Faroe Islands
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Fall 2021 Issue. Photography by Jason Spafford At the tail end of Hurricane Dorian, a fierce wind battered our ferry as we pitched and rolled through the chop, blown into a white-capped frenzy. Two days of being tossed up and down in the North Atlantic,…
Overland Journal Presents: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a 3-part Video Series by Desk to Glory
I am thrilled to announce that Overland Journal has launched Episode One of a three-part original fly-and-drive video series titled Destinations: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Episodes two and three will be released later this week via the Expedition Portal YouTube channel on Wednesday, March 23, and Friday, March 25, 2022. This series follows the…
Destination: Parque Nacional de los Lençóis Maranhenses
This 380,000-acre national park situated in Maranhao State in Northern Brazil is considered a kitesurfers heaven, a dune buggy racer’s dream, and an adventurous vacationer’s perfect getaway, and we know why. With few restrictions and a laid-back vibe, the area is a natural draw to overland travelers. The park contains the largest sand dunes in…
Destinations:: Atlin, British Columbia
Known as “little Switzerland,” Atlin, B.C., is one of the most scenic places in Canada—a must-see side trip for overlanders heading to Alaska or the Yukon. The postcard-perfect town is encircled by Atlin Lake—the largest natural lake in B.C.—and majestic forested peaks. The name Atlin—Áa Tlein—comes from the Tlingit language and means “big body of…
Destination: Isle of Skye
I’ve been fortunate enough to visit many beautiful destinations around the world, but something always draws me back to Scotland, and more specifically, the magical Isle of Skye. At 639 square miles, this rugged island is the largest in the Inner Hebrides and showcases some of the country’s most dramatic landscapes. Moreover, it is of…
Destination :: Canmore, Alberta
Feature Image Courtesy of Tourism Alberta Enjoying a cup of coffee one morning, I gazed out the window of my ground-level apartment in Canmore, Alberta, when a herd of elk suddenly appeared, mere steps away. As they gracefully walked by, exhaling clouds of vapor in the brisk morning air, I was utterly dumbfounded by the…
Destination: El Mistico Ranch, Nogal, New Mexico
El Mistico Ranch is located at 7,300 feet above sea level on 30 acres of high desert mountain terrain, in Nogal, New Mexico. Part Air BnB and part glamping retreat, El Mistico delivers an escape from day to day life, with quick access to New Mexico’s Lincoln National Forest which is directly adjacent to the…
Destination: McCarthy, Alaska, and Kennecott Mine
In Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, there sits a village called McCarthy. If you search for this place on Google, you’ll find it says, population: 0. But people do live here. A 2020 census lists 107 residents, up from 28 in 2010. I rode my BMW G 650 GS to McCarthy in 2016. I sat…