Build something too soft and it disappears into the background noise of urban crossovers. Build something too serious and customers walk straight past it towards something easier to park outside a supermarket.

The original Jeep Avenger managed to avoid both traps. It arrived with proper Jeep character compressed into a footprint small enough for European cities, while still offering genuine rough-road credibility many rivals only pretend to possess. Now, with more than 270,000 orders already behind it, Jeep has returned with an updated version that sharpens the formula rather than reinventing it.

And frankly, that was probably the sensible decision.

The new Avenger still sits firmly in the compact B-SUV category, but Jeep has clearly spent time refining the details owners actually notice after living with a vehicle for a few years. The styling changes are subtle rather than theatrical, yet they push the Avenger closer towards the rest of the modern Jeep family. The illuminated seven-slot grille, inspired by the larger Compass, gives the front end more presence at night and helps distinguish it in traffic without drifting into gimmick territory.

Elsewhere, practicality remains central to the design philosophy.

The cladding, moulded skid plates, and protected lighting units are not there purely for show. Anyone who regularly squeezes through narrow village streets, rocky tracks, or crowded city car parks will understand why these details matter. Small knocks happen. Jeep knows it. The Avenger has been designed accordingly.

The revised bumpers strengthen that protective feel, while new wheel designs and two fresh colours, Forest and Bamboo, continue the brand’s habit of linking its vehicles to the outdoors rather than the urban jungle alone. A black roof option adds a little visual contrast without overcomplicating things.

Inside, Jeep has focused heavily on improving perceived quality. Softer materials on the doors, a padded lower dashboard, revised upholstery, and more durable finishes suggest the company understands that compact SUVs are no longer judged purely on practicality. Buyers now expect small vehicles to feel genuinely premium.

Importantly, the Avenger still retains the functional touches that make it useful beyond school runs and commuting. The square rear load area remains practical. Interior storage totals up to 34 litres. The reversible cargo floor can be cleaned easily after muddy boots, wet dogs, or camping gear have been thrown in the back.

And yes, the Selec-Terrain system survives the update. That matters more than it might first appear.

Many compact SUVs talk about lifestyle while quietly panicking at the sight of gravel. The Avenger continues to offer surprisingly serious geometry for a vehicle of this size, with up to 210 mm of ground clearance and respectable approach and departure angles. Hill Descent Control and Selec-Terrain remain standard across the range, reinforcing the idea that this is still a Jeep first and a crossover second.

Technology receives one of the largest upgrades.

New LED matrix headlights arrive alongside a 360-degree camera system capable of digitally reconstructing the vehicle’s surroundings during parking manoeuvres. In crowded European cities, where alloy wheels often survive only weeks before meeting granite kerbs, systems like this quickly move from luxury to necessity.

Underneath, Jeep continues its broad powertrain strategy.

Rather than forcing buyers towards one solution, the new Avenger offers almost every drivetrain currently relevant in Europe. Traditionalists can still choose the new 1.2-litre Turbo 100 petrol engine paired with a six-speed manual gearbox. Hybrid buyers receive the 110 hp e-Hybrid with automatic transmission and limited low-speed electric running capability.

Those wanting something more capable off-road will inevitably gravitate towards the 145 hp 4xe version, which combines electrification with all-wheel drive and serious rear axle torque delivery. Jeep claims the system can still climb steep loose surfaces even when front axle grip disappears completely — exactly the sort of engineering detail that separates proper traction systems from marketing exercises.

At the other end of the spectrum sits the fully electric version producing 156 hp, offering up to 400 km WLTP range alongside rapid charging capability.

In many ways, this freedom of choice may be the Avenger’s greatest strength.

Some manufacturers have become so focused on electrification targets and platform sharing that customers are simply expected to adapt. Jeep seems to understand that European buyers remain divided. Some want petrol simplicity. Some want hybrid efficiency. Others want full electric silence. The Avenger allows all of them to coexist under the same badge.

The new Turbo 100 petrol engine deserves particular attention because it quietly addresses several concerns buyers increasingly raise about small turbocharged engines. Jeep emphasises durability, reduced maintenance intervals, improved efficiency, and the switch to timing chain operation. More importantly, the engine reportedly endured over 30,000 hours of testing during development.

That sort of detail matters to people who actually keep vehicles beyond finance cycles.

The trim structure also appears sensibly organised. Longitude, Altitude, and Summit cover the front-wheel-drive range, while the more rugged 4xe variants arrive as Upland and Overland models. Even the entry-level vehicles receive full LED lighting, automatic climate control, cruise control, wireless smartphone integration, and Jeep’s connected services system.

Then there is the anniversary edition.

To celebrate 85 years of Jeep, the company has created a dedicated Avenger special edition featuring gold-finished wheels, tartan detailing, illuminated grille treatment, unique upholstery, and various heritage-inspired touches. It could easily have become overdone, but from the details released so far it appears Jeep has managed to walk the line between nostalgic and tasteful reasonably well.

Ultimately, the updated Avenger succeeds because Jeep resisted the temptation to overcomplicate the formula.

This is not a radical reinvention. It is a careful evolution of a compact SUV that already understood its audience surprisingly well. The improvements focus on usability, quality, technology, and choice rather than headline-grabbing theatrics.

And in a market increasingly filled with vehicles trying desperately to imitate adventure without fully understanding it, that restrained confidence may be exactly why the Avenger continues to resonate.

The post New Jeep Avenger: Compact SUV Grows Up Without Losing Its Sense of Adventure appeared first on overland-europe.

Others are decided years in advance … and then followed through without compromise.

Igor made that decision in his twenties. Before forty, he and his wife would stop everything and leave. Not for a holiday, but properly leave. Work, routine, structure—all of it replaced by a Land Rover Defender, three children, and two years on the road.

What followed wasn’t a curated adventure.

It was a family compressed into one vehicle, learning quickly what mattered and what didn’t. There were moments that tested that decision: a night on a Syrian beach that shifted in tone, a fall in Jordan that could have ended the journey in an instant, and the quieter challenge of returning home to a life that no longer felt the same.

This conversation is not about the route.

It’s about what happens when you actually leave, and what stays with you when you come back.

A rare, honest account of long-term overland travel with a family. Listen to the full conversation below.

INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

SPONSOR: This episode is brought to you by Taking the Pea

The post Podcast #23: Igor Jelinski, the Overlanding CEO – Two Years Overlanding with Family appeared first on overland-europe.

The RS badge has always carried a dual meaning. In its earliest form, it stood for Rennsport, rooted firmly in competition. That changed in 1976 with the arrival of the BMW R 100 RS, when BMW reframed the abbreviation as Reise und Sport—travel and performance combined into a single purpose. What might sound like a simple redefinition was, in reality, a shift in how motorcycles could be used. The RS was no longer about chasing lap times. It was about covering serious distance at speed, without exhausting the rider in the process.

The R 100 RS made that philosophy tangible. It introduced a frame-mounted full fairing developed in the wind tunnel, something no large-scale production motorcycle had offered before. The result was not just visual identity, but function. Wind protection improved stability and reduced fatigue, allowing riders to maintain higher average speeds over long distances with far less effort. In practical terms, it changed what a day in the saddle could look like. The RS did not simply move faster; it made sustained speed usable.

That distinction became clearer a year later at Nardò. BMW took a modified RS onto the high-speed test track in southern Italy and pursued endurance records rather than outright velocity. The machine exceeded 220 km/h and set multiple records across distance and time categories, including 10 kilometres, 100 kilometres, and extended runs over six, twelve, and twenty-four hours. The exercise was not about spectacle. It demonstrated that the RS concept could hold together under pressure, maintaining pace over time rather than peaking briefly before fading.

Through the decades that followed, BMW refined the RS without losing sight of its purpose. The core remained the boxer twin, a configuration that delivered usable torque and a mechanical simplicity that suited long-distance travel. When demand grew for its return in the mid-1980s, the reintroduced BMW R 100 RS Monolever confirmed that riders were not interested in novelty for its own sake. They wanted continuity, provided it continued to work.

The 1990s brought more substantial technical change. With the BMW R 1100 RS, BMW moved to four-valve technology, air/oil cooling, and modern fuel injection. Power increased significantly, but the more important development lay in control. The introduction of the Telelever front suspension reduced dive under braking and improved stability, particularly in real-world riding conditions where surfaces and speeds varied. The RS became more precise without becoming demanding.

Subsequent generations followed the same pattern of measured evolution. The BMW R 1200 RS introduced a liquid-cooled boxer engine and semi-active suspension, allowing the motorcycle to adapt dynamically to changing conditions. This was not technology for its own sake, but an extension of the original idea: maintaining performance across distance, regardless of terrain or load. The BMW R 1250 RS built on this with ShiftCam variable valve timing, improving torque delivery across the rev range and reducing the compromises typically associated with engine tuning.

Alongside the boxer lineage, BMW explored the RS concept with four-cylinder K-series models. Machines such as the BMW K 100 RS approached the same problem from a different angle, offering smoothness, stability, and high-speed capability with a distinct engine layout. Despite their differences, these motorcycles adhered to the same principle: combining sustained performance with the ability to travel comfortably over long distances. The RS identity proved flexible enough to accommodate both approaches without losing coherence.

The current expression of this philosophy is the BMW R 1300 RS. On paper, it represents a significant step forward, with a 1300 cc boxer engine producing 145 horsepower, making it the most powerful production boxer BMW has built to date. However, the figures alone do not define the motorcycle. The more telling changes lie in the integration of systems that refine how that performance is delivered. A new chassis and updated aerodynamics improve precision at speed, while electronic systems such as riding modes, engine drag torque control, and optional automated shifting enhance usability rather than overshadow it.

What emerges from this progression is a clear pattern. The RS series has never pursued extremes for their own sake. It has avoided becoming either a pure sport machine or a dedicated tourer, instead occupying the space between. This is a more difficult position to maintain because it requires balance rather than specialisation. The challenge lies not in achieving peak performance in a single area, but in ensuring that no aspect undermines another.

Fifty years on, that balance remains the defining characteristic of the RS. The motorcycles carrying this badge continue to address the same fundamental requirement: enabling riders to travel long distances at meaningful speed, with a level of control and comfort that makes the journey sustainable. There are machines that are faster, and others that are more comfortable in isolation, but few manage to combine both qualities without compromise.

That is why the RS designation still matters. It has not been preserved as a historical reference, nor diluted into a marketing label. It continues to describe a practical solution to a real problem, one that has not changed significantly since 1976. The road is still long, the distances still demanding, and the desire to cover them efficiently remains. The RS endures because it was built around that reality from the beginning.

BMW MOTORRAD

The post Fifty Years of BMW RS Motorcycles: The Long Road Between Speed and Distance appeared first on overland-europe.

There is no polite way to soften this one. The Lidl Grill Meister Steck-Gasgrill doesn’t just fall short, it misses the point entirely. At €34.99, expectations are modest. Nobody is asking for precision engineering or restaurant-grade performance. But even at this level, a grill should do one thing properly: produce consistent, usable heat. This one doesn’t.

First Impressions: Packaging and Concept

The grill arrives in a black carry bag, a practical touch that suggests portability and simplicity. Everything is packed inside: 

• 1 x burner tube
• 1 x foot section
• 1 x head section
• 1 x base section
• 2 x side section
• 1 x heat distributor
• 1 x grill plate
• 1 x gas hose
• 1 x fireproof underlay
• 1 x instruction manual 

Everything you need except the gas bottle, which is not supplied. On paper, it’s the kind of compact solution that fits neatly into a boot or pannier, ready for spontaneous use.

There’s a certain appeal in that. Minimal, self-contained, no fuss. But first impressions don’t last long.

Assembly: Simple, but Not Refined

Putting it together is straightforward enough. One pair of hands is sufficient, and the modular “slot together” concept keeps things fairly quick. No tools, no instructions needed beyond common sense.

That said, the finish is reflected in the price. Some of the slots lack enough tolerance to let the components slide together without jiggling. Some punched edges are left with a noticeable lip and sharp enough to catch skin if you’re not paying attention. It’s not catastrophic, but it’s careless. The sort of detail that tells you someone in marketing was more interested in delivering an aggressive price than supplying quality.

In Use: Where It Falls Apart

This is where the grill stops being a product and becomes a liability.

The burner simply does not distribute heat evenly. In testing, one side of the 33 x 23 cm grill plate reached high temperature quickly while the other side remained effectively cold. Not warm. Not low heat. Cold. A simple toast test left one half charred, the other cold.

That’s not a minor imbalance. That’s a fundamental failure.

At that point, there’s no point loading it with meat. Cooking becomes guesswork at best, wasteful at worst. A grill that cannot deliver even heat across its surface isn’t a compromised tool, it’s a non-functional one.

A quick search for a solution on the internet and typical problems with gas grills can be put down to spiders have setting up home in the burner tube or gas outlet holes blocked by fat from an earlier cooking session. But we are talking about a brand new piece of kit straight out of the box. Interestingly, the search threw up other disgruntled users who had fallen into the same trap.

Verdict

The idea is sound: compact, affordable, portable. But execution matters, and here it simply isn’t there.

This is not a case of “good for the price”, it’s a case of not working as intended.

You would genuinely achieve more consistent heat distribution by setting fire to €35 in notes and trying to cook over the result.

Blunt, but accurate.

Conclusion: Not recommended.

The post Lidl Grill Meister Portable Gas Barbecue: Cheap, Compact, and Fundamentally Broken appeared first on overland-europe.

The German manufacturer has introduced a new generation of solar charge controllers designed specifically for motorhomes, expedition vehicles, and off-road builds. At the centre of the update is a dedicated charging programme for heated LiFePO₄ batteries, an increasingly common setup in modern overland vehicles, but one that has historically struggled in low temperatures.

Charging Lithium in the Cold—Without Workarounds

Lithium batteries are efficient, stable, and increasingly the default choice for serious travel setups. But they come with a known limitation: charging at low temperatures can damage the cells, forcing many systems to either reduce output or stop charging altogether.

Votronic’s approach sidesteps that compromise. The new controllers are designed to work directly with heated LiFePO₄ batteries, allowing them to charge safely even in cold conditions, without the need for an additional temperature sensor.

In real-world terms, it removes one more point of failure, one more component to install, and one more variable to manage in a system that should ideally look after itself. For vehicles used year-round—winter camping rigs, alpine travellers, or long-distance expedition builds—it translates into something simple: the system keeps working.

More Energy, Faster Recovery

The controllers continue to rely on MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) technology, which is now standard at this level but still worth getting right. By constantly adjusting to the optimal operating point of the solar panels, the system extracts more usable energy compared to older PWM-based setups.

In practice, that means shorter charging times and better overall yield from the same solar array—useful on short winter days or when parked in less-than-ideal conditions. The system also automatically adapts to different battery types, including AGM, gel, and traditional lead-acid, making it flexible across mixed or legacy setups.

An additional detail that will appeal to those running dual-battery systems is the integrated maintenance charging for the starter battery. It’s a small thing, but one that avoids flat batteries after extended stays off-grid.

Built for Installers, Not Just End Users

Votronic has clearly aimed this generation at professional installers and vehicle builders as much as at end users. The focus is on straightforward integration into existing onboard electrical systems, with fully automatic charging processes and an emphasis on operational reliability.

That positioning makes sense. Modern overland electrical systems are no longer simple add-ons, they are integrated, often complex systems where compatibility and ease of installation matter as much as outright performance. A controller that drops cleanly into an existing setup without requiring workarounds or additional components earns its place quickly.

A Quiet but Relevant Update

There is nothing flashy about a solar charge controller. It sits out of sight, does its job, and is usually only noticed when it fails. But this update addresses a known limitation in a growing segment of the market, and does so in a way that reflects how people are actually using their vehicles.

For anyone running lithium systems in colder climates, or planning to, the ability to maintain charging without intervention is not a luxury. It is a baseline requirement that has, until now, often needed careful system design to achieve.

Votronic’s updated range is available immediately through specialist dealers and authorised installation partners.

VOTRONIC

The post Cold-Weather Charging Solved: Votronic Updates Solar Regulators for Year-Round Expedition Use appeared first on overland-europe.

Michele Ricucci is a very well-known and respected photographer and drone pilot. He has had photo exhibitions in multiple places around the world and the footage he gathers is simply fantastic.

‘The Gringo’s Tale’ is his first attempt at writing a book, and let me start my comments by saying that I hope it’s not the last.

Good photographers, to my mind, create pictures that tell a story with a magic blend of either subtlety or bluntness, drama and beauty. The very best seem to weave in an element of ‘clever’ that they see and few others do, until the photographer shows it to them. When I first heard of this book I wondered if Michele could create similarly impactful pictures with words. He can.

‘The Gringo’s Tales’ takes you riding over 9,000 miles across Mexico. Michele sets off with Roberto, a restauranteur friend from Italy, on two decidedly dodgy bikes. Bikes that ‘everyone’ was telling them not to ride across Mexico on. The point was that their budgets were tiny; that saying about tailors cutting their suits according to the cloth they have, came straight into my mind.

Michele is a man who when he made this trip had already bought a second-hand Honda XR 150 in South America and explored on it for over 21,000 miles. Oh, and I should mention that he didn’t have a bike license…

There are a series of layers to the book which kept my attention more than held. One of those is that he has a desire to see the world away from booking dot com and tourist sites. He’s driven to explore off the beaten track and to meet, to spend time with people who have no choice but to make life work with courage and ingenuity, the hard way, but yet have kindness and appreciation firmly in the front of their minds.

Michele is a man who spends less time worrying about how clean a place is but focuses on the point that there is a place to sleep. He’s a man who listens to advice, and then makes a plan to follow his instincts. Most of the time his instincts are both courageous, and spot on. At times they had me asking if he had all his marbles. But read on respectfully and full of hope.

Other than saying that his ‘word pictures’ are great!, I really don’t want to give more away about this book, or I am going to detract from the raw magnetism.

What I do want to say is that if you ride a motorcycle, you will be interested in this book. If you love to travel by motorcycle, you’ll be in awe, and yep perhaps horrified in sections. At others, you’ll be blown away by the stories – the tales of the unexpected, and the skill of the storytelling. I suspect you’ll end the book thinking , ‘Wow, what a ride.’

I had to have a long moment’s silence to let what I’d been reading settle in my mind. It still hasn’t. For sure it’s a keeper and I have no doubt that I’ll be reading it several times more.

Published in January, ‘The Gringo’s Tales’ is available from Amazon.

The post Riding Mexico the Hard Way: Michele Ricucci’s Raw and Unfiltered Motorcycle Journey appeared first on overland-europe.

In 2026, the Colorado-based company marks 25 years in business. A quarter of a century is long enough to see trends come and go, materials rise and fall out of favour, and entire segments of the outdoor industry reinvent themselves more than once. Through that, Big Agnes has remained anchored to a relatively simple idea: sleep matters, and it can be improved.

The company was founded in 2001 in Steamboat Springs, a small mountain town that still shapes how the brand operates. What began as a rough concept for a sleeping system—reportedly sketched out long before it became a product—has grown into a broad catalogue covering tents, mats, camp furniture, packs and clothing. The common thread has been consistency rather than reinvention for its own sake.

Bill Gamber, co-founder and still closely associated with the direction of the company, has often framed it in practical terms. Listen to the people using the gear. Adjust. Refine. Repeat. It is not a particularly glamorous philosophy, but it is one that tends to survive contact with real-world use.

That approach is reflected in how Big Agnes has expanded. Products are not developed in isolation or in idealised conditions, but tested in the same mountains and trails that sit on the company’s doorstep. Over time, that has built a reputation not through marketing claims, but through familiarity. Gear that works, and continues to work.

Earlier this year, the company introduced its VST tent series, aimed at lightweight backpackers and long-distance hikers. The brief is straightforward: reduce weight, improve durability, and retain a level of comfort that makes extended time outdoors sustainable rather than punishing. It is not a radical departure from what has come before, but an iteration of it … something Big Agnes has become known for.

To mark the anniversary, the company is releasing a limited “EST. 2001” collection. It brings together a selection of existing products—sleeping mats, bags, camp furniture and accessories—finished with a design inspired by the alpenglow seen in the nearby Zirkel Wilderness. There is also a small range of apparel and everyday items carrying the same motif.

The collection itself is not the story. It is a marker.

What sits behind it is a company that has grown without losing sight of where its equipment is used. Big Agnes still operates from a small town, but its reach is now global. That brings a different set of responsibilities, particularly around materials, manufacturing and the environments its customers depend on. In recent years, the brand has put increasing weight behind more sustainable production methods and support for conservation and public land initiatives … again, not as a headline, but as a gradual shift in how things are done.

There is a useful moment in Episode 14 of the OverlandEurope podcast, where Bill Gamber talks about the early days of the company and the people behind it. What comes through is not a story of rapid growth or aggressive expansion, but of a team building something they believed in, and then staying close to it as it developed. It explains, perhaps better than any product release, why the brand still feels grounded despite its scale.

Twenty-five years is enough time to establish a reputation. It is also long enough to drift away from it. Big Agnes, for now, appears to have avoided that second part.

And if the past is any indication, the next phase will not be defined by sudden changes, but by the same steady process that got them here in the first place.

The post Big Agnes at 25 Years: Small-Town Roots, Sleeping Systems and Measured Progress appeared first on overland-europe.

In certain circles, he was best known as part of the team behind the 1955 London to Singapore journey—an expedition later documented in First Overland that would go on to define many generation’s understanding of long-distance travel by vehicle. At a time when much of the route remained uncertain or simply did not exist, Slessor and his companions drove two largely standard Land Rover Series I vehicles across continents, establishing what many considered impossible.

Following the expedition, he built a long career with the BBC, producing documentaries over five decades. During that time, his work earned both the support of David Attenborough and formal recognition through a Peabody Award for outstanding journalism.

Yet for all of this, he remained a notably modest man. Driven, certainly, and disciplined in the way he approached both work and life, but never in pursuit of recognition. What mattered to him was the act of doing, of seeing something through properly, regardless of whether anyone was watching.

When he spoke about the past, he did so with a clarity that was striking. Events that had taken place decades earlier were recalled in precise detail, without exaggeration or nostalgia, as if they had only just happened. There was no sense of performance in it, only memory and a quiet willingness to share it.

I met Tim at a point when I was unsure which direction to take professionally. Over a series of long conversations at his home in London and during stays at his house in France, he spoke about his own life, the decisions he had made, and the challenges he had worked through. What stood out was not just the experience, but the clarity with which he viewed it. He had an ability to cut through uncertainty without forcing an answer. Those conversations gave me direction and ultimately led me towards journalism. He was my friend and mentor, and together we worked on one of my first articles, revisiting the London to Singapore expedition that had defined the beginning of his own public life.

He also held a clear and, at times, critical view of how overland travel has evolved. In 1955, he and his companions set out in basic vehicles with limited equipment, relying on judgement, adaptability, and a willingness to proceed into the unknown. In later years, he observed, the emphasis had shifted towards increasingly complex vehicles and equipment, often beyond what is necessary. While modern technology makes certain challenges more manageable, it can also encourage people to push further into difficulty than they might otherwise choose, sometimes with less understanding of how to extract themselves when things go wrong. For Slessor, the principle remained simple: travel did not need to be complicated to be meaningful.

Beyond First Overland, he wrote several other books, including Lying in State and Out West.

He remained, throughout his life, an advocate for straightforward, affordable travel, with the focus set upon experience.

For those who had the benefit of his time, that example will remain.

The post Tim Slessor, First Overland Pioneer and BBC Documentary Producer, Dies at 95 appeared first on overland-europe.

Tanzania • Colombia • Morocco • Arctic Europe • Nile Basin • United States • Berlin to Cape Town

Featured Stories

A Road Through Tanzania Begins to Unravel
An overland route in East Africa shifts from structure to uncertainty under field conditions.

A Berlin-to-Cape Town Story
A transcontinental journey linking Europe and Southern Africa through distance, logistics and continuity.

Colombia in Low Gear
Reduced pace. Increased awareness. Terrain and culture approached without compression.

Riding Cold
Motorcycle travel in low temperatures. Exposure, fatigue and mechanical limits.

Morocco: The Sunlit Granary Fortress
Architecture shaped by climate, storage and long-term survival.

Interview with Graham Field
Travel stripped back to experience, judgement and time on the road.

Field Tests

INEOS Grenadier MY26 & Black Edition
Refinement without dilution. Updates focused on usability and real-world driving.

Overland Photography: Field Test in Arctic Light
Equipment and technique under conditions where light is limited and unforgiving.

Travel & Portfolio

Portfolio: An American Road Trip
A visual record of long-distance travel across the United States.

Skills & Fieldcraft

Overland Medicine: Malaria on the Nile
A field case. Preparation in place. Outcome uncertain.

Overland Chef

One-Pot Tuna
Minimal kit. Direct method. Reliable outcome.

After Hours

Tomato Jam
Food as routine, not indulgence, at the end of long travel days.

This issue is for subscribers only.

Please log in below, or subscribe Subscribe for full access.

The post Number 12: Africa, Andes and Arctic Light: Expedition Journeys Across Continents and Conditions appeared first on overland-europe.

You go for the landscape first. The Pyrenees in the north, sharp and quiet, where tracks disappear into forests and the air feels cleaner with every kilometre. Then, the land softens as it rolls south through vineyards, olive groves, dry stone walls, before finally breaking open along the Mediterranean, where light, salt, and history sit side by side.

But it’s the people who make it stick.

Catalonia has a strong sense of identity. Not loud, not performative—just present. You feel it in small conversations in a bar de poble (village bar), in the way food is prepared without fuss, in the quiet pride behind local traditions. This isn’t a place built for tourists. It’s a place that lets you in slowly, if you pay attention.

For someone who travels to understand, not just to see, it works.

You can follow old trading routes into the mountains, park up beside a forgotten monastery, or sit with a winemaker who’s been working the same land for generations.

There’s space to move, but also depth if you stop.

Catalonia offers both: distance and detail. And that combination is rare.

Is it then surprising that after a day exploring backcountry trails, we rolled into Capmany to find a restaurant and let the day’s events settle into something we could actually hold onto?

The tracks had led us down out of the Albera foothills, tyres dusted white, the heat still shimmering off the bonnet. Capmany didn’t announce itself. It simply appeared. Stone walls, a church tower, the low hum of a place that had been here long before anyone thought to write about it.

We parked without much thought and walked in, following instinct rather than a map, until we found Cal Ferrer. A restaurant built into arched foundations. Five tables outside on the pavement, a few more inside a bare-bricked room.

Modern, yes. But no theatrics. No menu engineered for passing trade. Just honest food that belonged to the land we’d been driving through and wine that hadn’t travelled far at all. The kind of place where conversation sits low, where time loosens its grip, and where the day, dust, distance, small discoveries start to make sense.

This is where we found it. A simple, remarkable dessert. Creamy cheesecake, served with a spoonful of jam. Luscious. And, to my surprise, crustless… a quiet win for anyone with gluten intolerance.

That detail stayed with me. Because it meant this wasn’t adapted. It wasn’t reinvented. It had always been this way.

And that’s the thing about places like this. Recipes don’t change much.

To put the icing on the cake, so to speak, if you have a GROVE or Omnia oven and are prepared to sacrifice a little gas, you can pull this five-ingredient dessert together wherever your wheels stop turning for the day.

Treat the recipe below as a practice run at home. Then downsize the ingredients for travel and the oven you use.

Tristan Brailey has made this more than a few times. It never misses.

Serves 8-10
Cook time 25-30 min
Equipment Large bowl, whisk, springform or round baking pan (or Omnia silicone baking mould, as in the photo)

Ingredients:

1 kg Philadelphia (or any other cream cheese)
360 g sugar
7-8 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
some brown cane sugar (for a slightly caramelised crust)

Preheat the oven to 170°C.

Using a whisk, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl until smooth and creamy.

Line a 10-inch (26 cm) springform pan or round baking pan with butter, oil, or enough parchment paper that it extends past the edges of the pan. This will help you remove the cheesecake from the pan later on, and will prevent it from sticking. (You can use a smaller pan for a higher cheesecake but may need to bake longer so that the center isn’t too runny.)

Bake on the centre rack for about 25-30 minutes (in the Omnia: for about 30 minutes at medium-low heat.

Note Because of the smaller size of the mould, I used a lesser amount of the cream cheese mixture). The cake will rise quite a bit but don’t worry, it will settle when it’s out of the oven.

Let it start to cool gradually by leaving it out on the counter. After an hour or so, move the cake to the fridge to cool completely. Let the cake cool fully before taking it out of the cake tin. After a few hours in the refrigerator, your cheesecake should be chilled enough to cut. (I recommend making this the day before you want to eat it, as it really benefits from a night in the fridge.)

Enjoy with a glass of sherry!

The post Capmany Cheesecake: A Village Recipe That Never Left the Empordà Hills appeared first on overland-europe.