It’s difficult to resist the temptation to pack for every imaginable situation, whether it’s climbing Mt. Kenya or going out for dinner in a nice restaurant.

Going on a game-viewing safari is a major commitment of time and money. You want to make the most out of your trip and preparing for it can be stressful, even for experienced travelers. This series of articles in The Atlas is here to guide you through your preparations.

My climbing partners and I rode a train into the canyon, it stopped in the middle of nowhere and we jumped out. The conductor said “Good luck, we’re coming back on Tuesday. Be ready.”

Slicing crisply through corners with laser precision I experience exactly the same joy and delight that I did the first time I rode the bike. I laugh out loud as I weave through the woods.  It is that much fun.  I can’t contain myself.

Those were the golden years of the late 1990s at the Mfongosi Camp on the grassy banks of the Tugela in KwaZulu Natal:  huge rapids, huge excitement, and huge parties.

He prodded at the wood in the grill and splashed some water across the surface.  It exploded in a cloud of sizzling steam.

The views to Rainier and Mount Stuart were spectacular and the wildflowers bloomed all around. 

Skiing down the Muir snowfield is a joy unlike any other.  The terrain flows ahead of you, unmarked and open in all directions.  It’s like a giant white canvas on which to draw your tracks. 

Is Florida a destination for the adventurous traveler?  Perhaps not, but if you are looking for mild yet rewarding experiences then the Sunshine State is well worth your attention.

The stock door panel on a Discovery covers a lot of real estate but doesn’t offer much function beside a pocket and a subwoofer.  I wanted to replace this with a panel that would expand the utility of the cargo space.  Let’s be honest:  my days of alpine climbing are mostly behind me and I spend more time car camping (also known to some as “overlanding”) these days than I do shivering on Mount Rainier. 

My dog, Bastien, loves to travel and camp.  He knows it’s time for an adventure when I start loading gear into the Land Rover.  It can be challenging to pack equipment into the cargo space in a way that is comfortable and safe for the dog while also convenient for me to access.

What I love most about this record is the feeling of intimacy – it’s heartfelt, it’s revealing, and the arrangements are complex. It sounds like they are right there in the room, performing just for you.  This could be my favorite record of the year.

The streets and passageways are dense, steep, and convoluted.  Also exciting is the vitality of the street scene - throngs of pedestrians pack the streets late into the night as the air cools. 

It’s not often that opening the mail makes my heart race.  Yesterday brought one of those moments.

“Nick, you shouldn’t see anything too extreme,” Doug replied.  “I have been trying to make it more of a non-damaging event.  Hope to see you there.”

We switched off the engine and observed in silence as he approached us, walked within a couple of meters of the Land Rover, and settled down with some delicious foliage nearby.  For half an hour we sat there, watching each other.  This was a magical Tembe moment. 

Chilled beer, steaming stew, flickering firelight beneath the southern sky among fellow Land Rover enthusiasts, this is about as good as it gets.  Jenna and I went to sleep in our tent listening to lions roar outside of camp.

On my last visit to Sani Pass I had been a passenger and was now looking forward to driving the route. The road climbed steeply up to the head of a valley. Above us to the right were the cliffs known as the 12 Apostles. The road was narrow, only a car's width for much of the way, with nothing between the edge and a long drop off.