We are planning another intercontinental overland journey, and as always, our gear is an essential part of the trip. While we are not always able to get our paws on an actual product, the internet is a wonderful, addictive creature, and a few hours are easily lost to drooling over new gear, gizmos, and essentials. I have come across a…

To live in South Africa as an adventure biker has many advantages. It is a great place to get your motorcycle fitted out with state-of-the-art equipment, as well as a great starting point for an expedition to some of the wildest and most beautiful countries in Africa, such as Botswana, Zambia, Namibia, Tanzania, and Rwanda. But once you have visited…

Where do we mount the .50 caliber? Testing and modifying a military Jeep exploration platform.

Mobile apps are designed to improve our lives and provide us with readily available information. This is especially helpful while travelling. Hundreds of new apps are popping up left, right, and centre, so we connected with our fellow overlanders to help narrow down the search. Google Maps, iOverlander, and Maps.me were crowd favorites, and nearly every overlander we connected with…

Essential Background From the outset, this must be crystal clear: the Peak Design Everyday 30-liter backpack is not a dedicated mountaineering or field rucksack. It is a sleek yet unassuming backpack designed for camera gear, laptops, tablets, and daily work/commuter essentials. For these specific reasons, the pack piqued my interest. The company also appeals, as they practice corporate social responsibility,…

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 than six years. In 2019,…

June 25, 2020 :: Press Release In late June 2005, expeditionportal.com (known as ExPo) went live, serving initially as a community forum, and now as one of the world’s largest online overland resources for the vehicle-based adventure traveler. While the website has grown continually since 2005, growth has accelerated in recent years because of the rising popularity of overlanding. “The…

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2020. I woke up to find my tent in my face. Why had my shelter collapsed, leaving me wrapped up in a lasagna of damp nylon? I lay motionless, listening for any clues that might suggest the cause of my predicament. It was early and quiet, but not too still for…

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Overland Journal, Summer 2020. Even by the standards of Montana Land Rover clubs, this idea seemed like a pipe dream under the paired influences of Scottish ale and mid-winter cabin fever. The proposal was such: a weeklong overland foray in early May into some of the most remote country in Montana—the Upper Missouri River…

Back when the first tablets began to hit the market, I remember thinking, “Users NEED real buttons—these things will never replace a computer.” Clearly, I’m not the best forecaster of technological trends. I now own multiple touch screen devices. Their compact form and intuitive gestures have replaced the need for a computer in all but the most demanding of digital…

Raucous nights on the town, relationships with supermodels, and dashing good looks often captured the media’s attention, but it was his eclectic collages and often daring wildlife photography that solidified Peter Beard’s standing as one of the most notorious artists of the 20th century. Mr. Beard, who had dementia, passed away in April at the age of 82 years old…

This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Gear 2020 issue.  Northwestern Zambia is covered in soggy floodplains and even soggier drainage wetlands, sandwiched between endless acres of strangling forest. Deep below the surface, however, are rich deposits of copper ore which have long been attracting teams of exploration geologists to this inhospitable land. They are sent in for months…

This article was originally published in Overland Journal’s Gear 2020 issue.  As an instructor for various overlanding skills, I am often asked what the secret is for encouraging an unenthusiastic partner to appreciate the outdoors and how to make the overland experience enjoyable for them. People wonder if the solution may rely somewhat on buying certain products and amenities to…

If your plan is to travel remotely, capability is a key attribute of the vehicle you choose. While much of exploration is done on dirt roads and trails, the backcountry is filled with challenges and obstacles, including washouts, boulder-strewed washes, deep-water crossings from seasonal rains, thick mud, and soft sand. This is why I personally prepare my vehicles with reserve…

Overlanders are a curious breed. We’ll lament quality versus price, vintage versus modern, what-everyone-else-has versus unique, spending months grappling with the decision as to how to best spend our precious money. Over the years, I’ve observed the items most likely to be quickly upgraded, irrespective of cost, are tires, wheels, and suspension—the predominate logic being that those items are in…

The Baikal Project, Part Two A Guinness World Record for the Longest Distance Traveled Off-road On Ice Photos courtesy of the Baikal Project and Egidijus Babbelis Imagine Russia’s Lake Baikal during the dead of winter: does it freeze over entirely or just in spots? Are the frozen areas smooth like glass or chunky with plates of moving ice? And what…

Mac Mackenney is a legend in overland and expedition planning, completing logistics for major overland endeavors, including several by Ranulph Fiennes (The Greatest Living Explorer). Here are a few of his recent videos for a good skills download. Youtube Channel | driventoextremes.org | maxadventure.co.uk Note: Mac and his organization do a lot to help military members, including those suffering from…

When I first approached Scott Brady about covering the launch event for the 2020 Nissan Titan XD for Expedition Portal, it was a different time. He was just getting ready to embark on a journey to Namibia to drive the new Defender, and I had a full schedule of events planned for the spring. It felt like a lifetime ago…

AK47s, Chicharones, Red Tape, and a Smile

A Special Thanks to Chris Cordes for his time as Editor of Expedition Portal. We wish him all the success in his new role with the OnX Mapping Team. I still remember the first day that Chris Cordes started working at Overland Journal, interning from the management program at Embry Riddle University. We knew he was different, mature beyond his…