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14 April 2017: As we continue our exploration of the Tadrart we entered a new kind of landscape where massive sand dunes meet rocky cliffs. It is a place where the sand is actually filling in the canyons and burying these massive rock formations. By chance we came across a herd of wild camels grazing near the base of a dune…
13 April 2017: This morning we left Djanet and headed south and east towards the Libyan border into a region of the desert known as Tadrart. The first part of the day was a straight shot on pavement, which then got rough before disappearing entirely as we picked up a piste that would take us to the southern entrance to the Tadrart (there are only two ways in or out of this region, which is surrounded by cliffs and mountains). A military checkpoint on the way in was routine and there was no signs of tension or unusual activity in the area. We were cleared to go on, and made our way to a place called El Berdj where we set up camp for the night…
12 April 2017: Arrived in Algiers after a long travel day that began in New York, with a stop-over in Paris on the way. Another layover before continuing onward via a late night flight to Djanet, in the southeastern corner of Algeria near the border with Libya and Niger where we are beginning a scouting trip into a new corner of the Sahara…
11 April 2017: Leaving for the Sahara tonite. After several months of planning, its time to get back to the Sahara and explore a section of the desert that has been unaccessible to most western travelers in recent years…
THIS MONTH:
Heading into south-eastern Algeria near the borders with Libya and Niger, for a return to the Sahara with a new scouting mission. Exciting to be able to explore a different part of this vast desert and connect with the local communities in the region. From a base in Djanet, we will explore the Tadrart up to the Libyan border and then loop back to Erg Admer heading northwest to the Ihrir oasis…
COMING UP SOON:
Teaching navigational skills and talking about international overlanding at the First Annual Wheelers Overland Adventure, May 18-21 at Anthracite Offroad Adventure Area (AOAA) in eastern Pennsylvania. The four-day overland camping and wheeling event is sponsored by Quadratec and Offroad Consulting, and brings together a diverse group of overlanders for trail runs, skills instruction, and networking opportunities in a festival atmosphere with onsite camping and optional activities the whole family can enjoy…
Trail Guiding for the 9th annual Topless for Tatas Charity Wheeling Event at Rausch Creek off-road park 11-13 August. TFT brings together off-roaders from all over to raise awareness about Breast Cancer and raise funds for the American Cancer Society. Last year’s event raised over $30,000 for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation…
ABOUT DJANET
Djanet is an oasis city in Illizi Province, southeast Algeria primarily inhabited by the Kel Ajjer Tuareg people. Djanet lies in a valley carved by the wadi Oued Idjeriou through the southwest edge of the Tassili n’Ajjer mountain range. The town itself is at an altitude of 1,035 metres (3,396 ft), but the mountains to the east and north reach as high as 1,905 metres (6,250 ft). The region has been inhabited since Neolithic times, and for tens of thousands of years the area was not desert. The flora and fauna were luxuriant as is seen in the numerous rock paintings of Tassili n’Ajjer. Today Djanet has a hot desert climate, with very hot summers and mild winters. The city is extremely dry throughout the year, with an annual average rainfall of just 14.6 millimetres (0.57 in).
THE BLUE HEART CAMPAIGN
Team Engage supports the UN’s Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Human Trafficking and the Blue Heart Campaign as their platform to raise awareness about global human trafficking— an issue which disproportionately effects women. Human trafficking is modern day slavery and includes sex trafficking (forced prostitution and forced marriage), labor trafficking (domestic servitude, sweatshops and fraudulent bonded labor contracts), child soldiers and organ trafficking. According to the International Labor Organization, nearly 21 million people or 3 out of every 1,000 people worldwide are victims of human trafficking. The UN Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Human Trafficking was established in 2010 and provides direct humanitarian, legal and financial aid to human trafficking victims. They provide grants to small grassroot NGOs that directly assist victims with housing, food, legal aid, access to justice, psychosocial support, medical care and training. Click here to donate directly to the Fund…
Nesconset | Paris | Alger | Djanet
MORE NOTES FROM THE ROAD:
1-7 April – AOAA
March – Long Island
February – Sand dunes and Paris
January – El Camino del Diablo and more
December – Roadtrip
November – Paris
October – Rebelle wrap up
1-7 Oct – NY to Reno
26-30 Sep – Rally Prep
19-25 Sep – Long Island
12-18 Sep – Yuma and Glamis
5-11 Sep – Sedona
29 Aug – 4 Sep – Long Island
23-28 August – Rod Hall Drive Training
15-22 August – Reno Rebelle Training
8-14 August – TFT8
1-7 August – Serbia overland
July – Serbia, Rally planning
June – Mongolia
16-31 May – Overland Expo, Mongolia
1-15 May – Paris
April – training desert prep
Archive
SPECIAL REPORT
Detailed series on a solo scouting journey into some of the remotest backcountry around Moab. The six day 450-mile off-pavement trip into the Maze district of the Canyonlands National Park offers insight into the challenges of expedition planning… [read]
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