Editor’s note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Winter 2020 Issue. As travelers, we embrace the serendipity and randomness of travel, the paper map unfurled on a dusty hood, each direction yielding a wonder. There are also times when we get two flats in one day and just really, really want to find…
Category Archives: Overland Journal
Celebrating the Iconic BMW GS Series’ 40th Anniversary
Pinnacle of the air-cooled BMW GS lineage, the 1994 R 100 GS with factory Paris–Dakar components goes wherever you want to go, and then some. Gina De Pasquale puts the project bike through initial testing across varied Central California terrain. Editor’s note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s 2021 Gear Issue. …
One for the Road
Editor’s note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Fall 2020 Issue. Let’s accept that adventure motorcycling means long, unsupported journeys across the world’s developing nations, lately redefined as the Global South. Overlanding is another word for it, as distinct from regular touring vacations or even gnarly domestic adventures that aren’t hard to have…
Finding The Way Home
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Fall 2020 issue. The first time I slept in my Jeep, I was cold, scared, and stuck. I raced the sunset as I finished up a short ski tour among the cacti in the Alabama Hills. In the midst of the snowiest winter in Sierra Nevada…
Redemption Rally
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Fall 2020 issue. Photography courtesy of Rebelle Rally On day two of the Rebelle Rally, my teammate and I found ourselves unexpectedly running in eighth place, ratcheting up both pressure and expectation. With five more days of navigating our way through the desert, could…
Camp Fare
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Fall 2020 issue. While many of us travel with dehydrated meals, a shelf-stable meal can be a good alternative. What they give up in shelf life, they make up for in ease of heating and convenience. Notably, they also require no additional water, as the fluids used…
The Overlander’s Every Day Carry (EDC)
Host Scott Brady and co-host Matt Scott discuss the Principles of Overlanding for practical everyday carry (EDC) and travel gear for overland travel, emphasizing minimizing items, avoiding overtly tactical-looking clothing abroad, and complying with local knife laws. They describe preferred clothing (durable, understated jackets), sunglasses, and how smartphones have replaced many pocket items, especially for…
Paradise Found
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Fall 2020 issue. On an evening in July 1985, Fat Paul Wonsok met Bros at Stan’s Bar at the Babanango Hotel in distant Zululand. Wonsok, so named because a goat once ate his other sock, had a proposal. Over brandy, he spoke of the Kgalagadi, the…
Vehicle Review Mashup (Summer 2020)
Overland Journal Podcast host Scott Brady and cohost Matt Scott discuss a recurring quarterly format reviewing new vehicles they’ve recently driven, focusing on pros and cons for overland and off-road use. They cover the Jeep Gladiator Mojave’s desert-focused tuning, interior upgrades, stronger axle components, and tradeoffs versus the Rubicon (no front locker or sway-bar disconnect,…
How We Began Our Overland Journey and What We Learned
Two weeks before the start of our overland adventure, my mother and I went to Spain for a week. Coen was flabbergasted. Buried in a list of things he felt needed to be done, he couldn’t understand why I went on vacation. On the other hand, I didn’t understand what all the fuss was about….
A Journey to the Arctic Circle
We put our finger on the map, packed the car, and left the UK on a rainy Thursday evening. Not the most memorable start to an adventure, but after spending the previous two weeks converting the inside of our Land Rover Defender from a tired utility truck into a home on wheels, we couldn’t wait…
Behind the Builds: Overland Journal’s Latest Projects and Tech
Scott Brady and Matt Scott discuss Overland Journal Podcast project vehicle updates, including a deep dive on Scott’s 2007 Lexus GX 470 (Prado 120-based) build with ARB Old Man Emu BP-51 suspension, AEV Crestone DOT-legal beadlock wheels, plans for an ARB bumper, Warn winch, possible roof rack, ARB LINX, and an effort to retain the…
Traveling Around The World by Motorcycle : A Female’s Perspective
When people learn my husband, Dave, and I traveled around the world by motorcycle, the assumption might be I sat on the back of his bike. I enjoy mentioning there were two bikes. Dave rode a BMW F 800 GS. I was on a G 650 GS then upgraded to an F 800. I’m not…
Goodbye, Transmission
In my mind, destroying a manual transmission is an act of violence. It is something that involves loud grinding, clunking, maybe even a stalled engine. I believed it was something that would leave you stranded on the side of the road waiting on a tow truck. It turns out, it wasn’t anything like that. Olivia…
Adventure in Scotland by Land Rover Discovery
Wet and windy, those were the two words that summed up the British weather for our short road trip around Scotland. We explored one of the tallest roads in Britain to the most northerly point of the UK, taking the time to shoot photos and appreciate the stunning views we had almost all to ourselves. …
Overlanding Southern New Brunswick
Sleep beside the highest tides in the world, and drive on the ocean floor to an island in one of Atlantic Canada’s most underrated provinces, New Brunswick. While Prince Edward Island (PEI) and Nova Scotia are more popular destinations for overlanders, New Brunswick offers some unique experiences. As a New Brunswicker from the northeast region,…
All Things Kenya | Interview With Dos and Wamuyu Kariuki of Throttle Adventures
It’s an emotional time for Dos and Wamuyu of Throttle Adventures. Like many overland travellers, COVID-19 has thrown a wrench into their travel plans. After two years, five continents, 24 countries, four months of quarantine in Managua, Nicaragua, two bikes in a shipping container, and COVID-19 restrictions lifting just enough, the couple is set to…
It Was the Dog That Barked
Published in Overland Journal Europe, Summer 2019 Time travel to Portugal—2,000 kilometres forward; 100 years back. Daylight was fading fast as we took a last exploratory walk through the twisted alleys in the almost deserted village of Antigo de Sarraquinhos. We stopped in front of the only house with a dim light shining through an…
Interview With Rachelle Croft of Expedition Overland
In 2011, Rachelle Croft was in the midst of an intense period of motherhood. Her youngest of three sons had just turned one. Her husband, Clay, was on the road and traveling frequently. “Honestly, I was definitely a little depressed. I loved our boys but missed adventure. At that time, I didn’t realize that being…
Arctic Adventures: Rallying the 2020 Alcan 5000
Long hours on ice-covered roads coupled with continual concentration seeped deeply into our bodies. After nearly 30 tanks of diesel and 10 days of white wonderlands, we neared the end of our Arctic journey, completing the 2020 Alcan 5000 Rally. What started as a pipe dream to pilot an old, right-hand-drive diesel deep into the…