Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2018. What do you envision when you think of California? Shimmering oceans, warm beaches, and a stunning coastline? Perhaps towering redwoods or sparse deserts filled…
Where the Wild Places Are
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2018. Photography by Joe Fleming and Scott Brady TRAVEL CHANGES US IF WE LET IT. There is something different about Peru. On my third trip…
Field Tested: DMOS Stealth Shovel
Jackson, Wyoming-based DMOS is a force to be reckoned with. Since their Kickstarter debut in the fall of 2015, this woman-owned company has taken the bull by its horns. DMOS exists to build tools that are…
BFGoodrich KM3 Mud Terrain: New Mexico Backroads’ 12,000-mile Review
Over two years and 40,000 miles, I conducted an in-depth and long-term review of BFGoodrich’s KO2 all terrain during New Mexico Backroads’ normal scouting, training, and guiding fieldwork. The KO2 unseated the KM2 mud terrain as…
Understanding Gearing And Why You Want To Re-gear
Have you ever noticed that on most phones and computers, overlanding auto-corrects to overloading? Call it a fun coincidence, but it’s also appropriate given our tendency to weigh down our vehicles with bumpers, winches, armor, tents,…
Overland Routes | Pacific Crest: Oregon Segment
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Spring 2018. A cool wind whistled through the pines around us, and I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with crisp mountain air. We had…
2018 Triumph Tiger 800 XCA
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Winter 2018. Photography by Jason Spafford Triumph launched the Tiger in 1937 with a 4-speed transmission and 20 horsepower; the model was produced until the night…
Field Tested: Lithium444 Power Pack by Flexopower
At events like Overland Expo, you can’t even throw your favorite collapsible spork without hitting at least one new portable power pack dealer. To be special in this market, you can’t just be good; you have…
Organizational Alchemy
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Fall 2018. “Junk show” were the words used to describe one camper’s vehicle, the back seat and storage area a cascading pile of sagging Rubbermaid containers…
Beast From The East: 1980 Unimog 416
“What?” I yelled back at Tom Henwood for the third or possibly fourth time since we left the shop. He laughed and handed me a headset to deaden the cacophony swirling around the cab. It helped,…
Look Out Mercedes, Ford’s Releasing an AWD Transit Van in 2020
For quite some time now, Mercedes has enjoyed nearly unrivaled sales in the factory all-wheel-drive and four-wheel-drive van market. In fact, they have been so successful in the space that they have occasionally had trouble keeping…
RawHyde Adventure Days 2019
If you haven’t heard of RawHyde’s Adventure Days yet, it is an overland and adventure motorcycle training event planned for February. Their location is about an hour north of Los Angeles in the beautiful Mojave Desert. This location provides easy access for all of our friends in the Southwest, especially SoCal.
A Search for Petroglyphs in the Gobi Desert
“Okay, the big question is how to approach this point. From the north? The south?” Coen was zooming in on his iPhone, enlarging the area mentioned in the Lonely Planet guidebook. It’s the first guidebook we’ve…
Form Meets Function
This will probably come as a surprise to exactly none of you, but I love Land Rover Defenders. I’m not sure if it’s their character, heritage, or looks that get me most, but I’ve often found…
Locked and Loaded
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Spring 2018. I still remember my very first overland trip, a 4-day journey across El Camino Del Diablo, the infamous border road with Mexico that crosses…
Celebrating International Women’s Day
“…as woman, I have no country. As a woman I want no country. As a woman, my country is the whole world.” -Virginia Woolf Six months ago I became the “woman behind the phone” managing the Women…
The Modern Campaign Camp
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Fall 2017. In the ever-expanding lexicon of the backcountry traveler, a new word has emerged which, depending on your personal perspective, can register as a compliment…
Adventures with Abby to Hogsback
It was two days after Christmas with the temperature in Johannesburg sitting at a boiling 37 degrees. Abby (my American pit bull terrier) and I were desperately looking for some activity or adventure to keep us…
My Favorite Free Travel Apps
I have been living on the road for just over a year now, and one of the more common questions I receive is What are the best apps for travel and overlanding? As you can imagine,…
Treeline Outdoors Tamarack Constellation
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2018. Camping is one of the most enjoyable aspects of overland travel—nothing beats pulling up to a remote lake with no other vehicles or buildings…