Several years ago we started doing road trips but found that something was missing. We knew there was more to it but didn't really know what that was. On one trip we went to Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Being short on time, we took a gravel trail to get out of the park. Half way up the trail we rounded a corner and there was this holy crap view. At that moment we looked at each with the same thought, we are one of the very few to get to see this. A short time later we ran across Overland Journal at a book store. That one issue showed us what we were missing. It gave us our direction.
At first I wanted to know what Overlanding really was but the more I read the less I cared what the definition was. I have a bunch of books written by people who have traveled in North, Central, and South America, Asia, Europe, Africa, or just around the world. After reading the first couple it became clear what Overlanding is and what its all about. We also quickly learned that Overland styles are just as varied as the people who Overland. To each of them the rig, the gear, the roads and trails, are all tools to get to where they want to explore. And to each, learning about the people who live where they are is just as important to them as that holy crap view. What I got from each of them was to have the courage to get out of your comfort zone and go somewhere you have never been, appreciate what nature has to offer, and meet people who are different from you so you can see just how similar they are to you.
Shortly after learning about Overlanding for the first time we ran across OB. Since then there has probably been 300 posts asking about or stating the definition of Overlanding. The conversations over the years have been like sitting on a beach watching the ocean waves come in. At first it was the "you're not an Overlander if . . ." Then it moved into the down play phase, Overlanding is off-roading and camping. I really loved the hiding in the woods phase, find a campsite as far from people as possible and stay there for a week. At one point we had the "I'm too good to call myself an Overlander". Then of course, we had the elitist movement, "if you have more than $300 invested in your rig and gear you are an elitist". By far the worse has to be "if you don't do what I do, you are not an Overlander . . . or just plain stupid". If you read them you can see that a lot of folks get it, but there is likely just as many who just want the definition to conform to what they already do, even if it means going to the same National Forest and camping at the same campsite year after year.
I constantly read people talk about going to some National Forest and finding a campsite to spend a week camping, and call it Overlanding. We wouldn't call it Overlanding but then its not my place to say one way or the other. We recently talked about attending Overland Expo for the entire week. It quickly came up that we would need to run the frig for four days straight and would need solar or a dual battery set up. Then it dawned on us, the reason we had not thought about this before is because we had never basecamped before. We do two trips a year, 8 or 9 days traveling between 1,500 and 2,500 miles each. When we get home we usually have over a thousand pictures to go through. If you are in the mindset that Overlanding is just off-roading and camping, in our humble opinion, you are really selling yourself short. It is a wonderful "hobby" but it does take the courage to leave your comfort zone far behind.
My basic point here is, no one is wrong. We each have our own wants and desired, financial or time limitations, or just plain situation, so who has the right to say someone else is wrong because they don't fit into your view of Overlanding. If you know that trail is just a tool used to take you to something few others have seen, and that small town you are passing through can be just as interesting as that holy crap view, you are an Overlander. If you don't, that's alright too. Just give others respect to have a difference of opinion.
