Overland Journal Summer 2012

Henry Plummer I just want to let you know how much we enjoy your very fine magazine—well produced, beautiful photography, and interesting stories. In particular, we enjoyed your section on winter reading recommendations. It makes me want to curl up with any one of them in front of the fire with a glass of scotch, the cat by my side, and my husband snoozing in the chair next to me. I have to add a favorite of my own, The Boy, Me and the Cat, by Henry Plummer. It is the journal of Henry Plummer, who in 1912 sailed his 25-foot catboat from New Bedford, MA, to Florida, with his 16-year-old son and their cat. It is a charming and interesting account of their adventures traveling the intercoastal waterways. The book…

Bruce Dorn Bruce Dorn, DGA, began his photographic career as a still photographer for Condé Nast Publishing and Time/ Life in the early 70s. After a segue from fashion and photojournalism into advertising work, Bruce added commercial filmmaking to his resume in the early 80s. Bruce’s television commercial campaigns have earned him multiple Clios, Mobius, Addy, and Art Directors Club awards, as well as a Bronze Lion from Cannes. Bruce is a Canon Explorer of Light, a Western Digital Creative Master, a Tiffen Image-Maker, and a Corel Painter Master. In 1984, Bruce was inducted into the Directors Guild of America. Steve Larsen Steve Larsen is a freelance moto-journalist living in Arizona. Larsen’s work regularly appears in Motorcycle Consumer News and Rider Magazine. He is an accomplished motorcycle rider, and is as comfortable at…

I’m not sure what it is about GPS units that command our unwavering trust. It is almost as if when we press the “on” button, we turn our brain “off,” and throw common sense out with baby and bathwater. I’ll be the first one to admit that I often use a GPS while driving: for directions, to look up a restaurant or my next cup of joe, and to estimate drive times. My Garmin, loaded with the Tracks4Africa mapping software, literally saved my bacon in 2008, when I was caught in the middle of a 90,000-square-kilometer brushfire in the Kalahari. Certainly a GPS can be an exceptionally valuable overlanding tool. However, I’ve had a couple of GPSrelated experiences this month that left me thinking “really…?” (Note: with any new unit…

“I am looking forward to being able to slow down and observe and immerse myself in many of the world’s most fascinating cultures, and travel across its most beautiful and challenging landscapes.”- Greg Miller In early 2007 I mapped out what I considered to be the ultimate overland adventure—to travel around the world and to all of its continents. I documented nearly every stage and formed the initial logistics and costs—then I waited. As with many of life’s goals, I needed to wait for the best timing, or in this case, the best partner. Fast forward to summer 2011, and a casual conversation among friends in the backyard of Paul May, owner of Equipt Expedition Outfitters. I had invited Greg Miller, a friend and Overland Journal subscriber that owns a few dozen…

ioSafe Rugged Portable $250 I’ve owned at least a dozen portable hard drives, all of which I handled with the care of a brain surgeon at the operating table. The MILSPEC ioSafe billet aluminum Rugged Portable (titanium is also available) may be the last. It is crush resistant to 2,500 pounds, submersible to 10 feet for three days (diesel or aircraft fuel for one hour), and features fully-suspended, six-axis shock protection. Data recovery service is included for one year, it will function at altitudes of 30,000 feet, and your data will survive a freefall of up to 10 feet. The unit measures 3.9x5.7x1.0 inches, is available in 500GB or 1TB capacities, and yes, that is my truck parked on top of my 500GB unit. (CC) iosafe.com, 888-984-6723 Snow Peak SnowMiner Headlamp/Lantern $56 Hate…

Rucksacks, over the centuries, have been highly varied and very necessary tools for humans on the go. For hunters carrying large game, military troops hauling ammunition, or Andean mountaineers, rucksacks are a staple piece of kit. I am one of those travelers. My primary backpack has a patch from each of the countries it has accompanied me to. Friends say it looks like it has been drug behind a motorcycle down a Latin American dirt road. Well, it has. Being a lesser-quality imported pack, it is worse for wear, regardless of usage. I recently began a quest for the ultimate backpack, one that will last long enough to hand down to my children. I found exactly what I was looking for at Red Oxx. And, it is made in the USA—a…