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Travelling Tim's Recent Overland Journeys

I have been travelling for many years, sometimes by myself, sometimes with one or two friends, and sometimes with a group of people. Since selling up in 2006 and travelling full-time to follow my heart as a travel photographer, I have been on a few major expeditions, quite often on Overland Trucks. For those of you unfamiliar with the idea of Overlanding, let me explain. Overland Trucks take a small group of people through often rugged and extreme climates, countryside and cultures. The trucks are completely self-sufficient, which means they can visit parts of the world that would be impossible to get to on public transport or by more normal means. They have tents and cooking equipment, and the passengers take it in turns to buy food from the local markets, then cook for their fellow passengers on gas stoves or on open wood fires. Though campsites are used in more populated parts of the world, the real joy of Overlanding is to 'rough-camp' wherever the truck happens to stop. This might be in a forest, on the side of a mountain, in the middle of a desert, or on a deserted sea shore, miles away from anyone else.

For a travel photographer, travelling on Overland Trucks can have a lot of advantages, though of course there are some disadvantages over solo travel as well. The advantages can be:

  1. Able to reach remote locations completely off the beaten track
  2. Pleasure of travelling with like-minded companions
  3. The chance to make new life-long friends
  4. Crew takes care of the complicated border paperwork and vehicle maintenance
  5. The truck carries your bags and equipment securely
  6. If you get ill there are people to look after you as you continue travelling
  7. Vegetarians will find truck food much easier than some local choices

The disadvantages of Overland travel can be:

  1. Trip speed may not suit - no chance to stop enroute
  2. No choice of travelling companions - you may get the 'passenger from hell'
  3. Trip style may not suit - sometimes there is too much partying
  4. Some sites important to you may be missed out
  5. No flexibility - start/end dates usually fixed in advance
  6. You are not so immersed in the local culture

To sum up, I would say that Overland travel is excellent if used as an overview of a country, allowing the travel photographer to get a good idea of the various regions, towns and cities; decide which one he likes, and then go back later as a solo traveller to photograph them in the required depth. If you are interested, an internet search will soon reveal a variety of companies that travel to the areas of interest. I would particularly recommend Dragoman External link opens a new Browser window as a reliable and experienced organiser.

The following list takes you to maps of some of my recent Overland Expeditions, plus other interesting journeys:

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Uzbek camel driver waits with his Bactrian Camel charges in the Nuratau-Kyrzylkum Biosphere Reserve, near Lake Aidarkul.

Uzbek camel driver waits with his Bactrian Camel charges in the Nuratau-Kyrzylkum Biosphere Reserve, near Lake Aidarkul..

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