What is Switchback Overland about?
In college, a friend introduced me to the great outdoors when he took me on a backpacking trip into the Grand Canyon. Ever since then, I have had the desire to see and explore as much of this beautiful land as possible.
It started with backpacking, then moved to mountain biking. The logic being I could go farther in a shorter period of time.
As life progresses and families grow, I found myself with less free time to get out and explore. I wanted to introduce my boys to the great outdoors at a young age, so we started car camping.
The kids had fun, but after three outings full of rowdy neighbors keeping us up half the night, I was ready to throw in the towel on campgrounds.
Then on a whim I rented a Jeep during a Moab trip and took my boys “wheeling”. It was my first time experiencing trails in that way. It was like a mix of mountain biking and bouldering. And my boys had a blast.
After we got back from Moab the search was on for our own adventure vehicle. It was then that I started hearing of this thing called “overlanding”. It was a term that seemed hard to define as one single thing. It appears to mean something different to each person who uses it.
Here’s my working definition:
Having the ability to create your own adventure away from the crowds.
I see our family participating in this mode of outdoor recreation until the boys are grown and out of the house.
Switchback Overland is a resource for those just getting started in creating their own adventure. As a digital publication, our focus will be on providing content you can use to be inspired and equipped to get out and experience this beautiful world.