The 2011 Expedition Portal Overland Awards 

4wd SUV of the Year – North America (US and Canada)

The North American overland vehicle landscape is a depressing view, the DOT and EPA constraining any hope of serious hardware options hitting our shores.  The 70 Series Land Cruiser, diesel G-Wagen and Defender 110s absent from dealer lots. However, there are still a few options worth investing in, and one has been awarded with the Expedition Portal Overland Vehicle of the Year Award for North America – the 2012 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon

There are no other factory stock vehicles that can match the Rubicon Wrangler in technical terrain 

via West County Explorers Club: This rare 1966 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ45 is currently for sale on Craigslist. This longbed version of the Land Cruiser was know as a station wagon in its day. The seller says the body and interior are in rough but usable condition. Mechanically it sounds sorted out, however, with a newer engine and transmission, Old Man Emu suspension and a factory PTO winch. The owner is currently considering offers over $5000.

From the release:

With a production run limited to only 500 units , this special-edition "Safari" includes as well as the olive green painted LEICA M8.2 and the silver anodised finished LEICA ELMARIT-M 28mm f/2.8 ASPH.lens, an exclusive Billingham camera case and an elegant carrying strap, bearing an embossed Leica logo. The inspiration for the olive green paint has been the M cameras supplied by Leitz to the „Bundeswehr" (German Army) in the 1960's as well as the LEICA R3 „Safari", both of which are much sought after today and therefore very expensive.


The top cover, bottom plate, camera back and the leatherette „VULKANIT" covering are all coated with a resistant olive green paint finish, which provides a pleasant touch and grip. The top cover is also engraved with the traditional Leica script. All operational elements are finished in silver chrome and therefore match with the silver anodised lens.

LEICA ELMARIT-M 28 mm f/2.8 ASPH.
The LEICA ELMARIT-M 28 mm f/2.8 ASPH. lens has been very popular since its introduction into the M system. It's very compact dimensions and outstanding performance also apply to this silver anodised version, exclusively available in the Limited Edition „Safari". By using silver anodising on aluminium parts, the low weight of only 180 grams has been maintained. The lens is completed with a classic metal lens hood, also in silver anodised finish.

Billingham Combination Bag M „Safari"
The English Specialist manufacturer of high quality camera cases, Billingham, has produced exclusively for the new Edition „Safari" the matching bag in olive green with tan coloured top-grain leather trim. The Billingham Combination Bag M „Safari" is made of water resistant fabric „FibreNyte" and can take the complete „Safari" Set as well as further lenses and accessories.

The carrying strap: Genuine leather with Leica embossing
The outer side of this elegant carrying strap consists of tan-coloured calfskin, the inner side of anti slip pigskin. It's very high quality can be seen for example by the carefully finished hemlines of the strap. An embossed Leica Logo also adorns the middle of the carrying strap.

Last week we reviewed the Spot Connect, now Spot has released some statistics as to how many times their devices have actually been used.

Since the technology debuted in 2007, Spot has released that the devices are responsible for initiating more than 1,500 emergency rescues. 55% of the rescues in 105 countries have been in the United States. California, Colorado, Utah, Alaska and Florida have the highest number of SPOT SOS activations. Officials in 2011 have responded to over 546 requests, including 27 aviation and 117 marine requests.

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Electronics: Camera Kit, Laptop, and Backups

One of my main goals in this journey is to document much of what I’m learning and experiencing along the way – mostly in still photographs, with some occasional video. Since I plan to travel light, I started researching smaller pocket-sized cameras. I didn’t want to be lugging around huge camera bodies & lenses, which would shout out, “hey, check out this gringo tourist and his fancy gear!”

The 2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Edition

I remember when the first Wrangler Rubicon came out in 2003. With factory locking differentials on Dana 44 axles and a 4:1 low range, it was a giant step for Jeep. For years enthusiasts had been asking, and when they made it happen, it turned into a success. This reminds me of another criticism people had with the Wrangler which by design is small, with minimal storage, yet capable off road. People wanted more storage and space for passengers. This was kept in mind and in 2007 they released the Wrangler Unlimited. A four door with a plethora of storage in comparison to the earlier models and one of the best new overland platforms currently sold in North America.

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Download the full size wallpaper here

Axial SCX-10 Honcho: The Review

Unfortunately, sitting in my office right now as I’m typing this I’m looking at a Land Cruiser 78 Series so rare, it’s a museum piece. There’s also two BMW GS Motorcycles, one of them again, so rare, it’s a museum piece. There’s also the constant plethora of gear coming in and out for testing, a good portion of which isn’t even released to the public yet. I’m not mentioning this to frustrate you - I’m mentioning this because it takes quite a bit to impress me these days. When you walk by a Jeep Wrangler J8, and a AEV Hemi Jeep daily you become quite numb to most things. It’s probably worse for the people in my office, they’ve been here quite a bit longer. There’s times I feel sorry for everyone.