Overland Trip Planning

By Donald Alley

Tales from the North Overland

We’ve all watched our favorite Youtubers on the road, with scenic vistas around every bend and drone footage rivaling the best Hollywood movies. As the day fades to evening we’ve seen 5-star meals cooked and shared with great friends over an epic campsite view and an amazing campfire. The night rings out with emotion filled stories of the day’s exploits and the laughter marking their camaraderie. 

Not able to make these trips our full time occupation, we nonetheless long for that sense of exploration, that feeling of discovery, the company of minded friends, and the bonds formed with new people as the anticipation of our travels are unerringly replaced with our sense of accomplishment.  We know many things go into planning a trip so we can make all this happen, so let’s talk about that transition from dad-chair to driver’s seat: Trip Planning.

Depending on how you learn, you may find these things useful:

The video I made on this very topic!

The Google Sheet I made to help with all this:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LZZwlHbfeE7xhbZHR3GD78gZAEHOnyF4cXwhc5ad8jw/edit?usp=sharing

As you read, it’s legit helpful to follow along  in the spreadsheet and see how it’s handled. It’s going to seem a bit too detailed and maybe even a bit daunting. The great thing is that after you do this once, future trips are much easier. I just duplicate the last sheet I made for the next trip.

Where do we go?

The first thing we ask ourselves is “Where should we go?”. The reality is we’ve all seen hundreds of videos of cool places in these videos, and want to go there ourselves. Sometimes we see interesting destinations in a news article or in different genres of media. We have many avenues of input for information. We just need to accumulate it in a meaningful way before it slips into the march of our day.

The trick is to simply write down the things we see, the places we want to go, and the experiences we want to have, as we are introduced to them. How we write them down is key, though. My preference is to use my usual To-Do List on my phone. We probably all have such a list in one form or another. An old Franklin Planner, the task list on our phones, sending a text to ourselves, whatever. Just make sure it’s easily accessible and there are no “laziness barriers” to adding to it. Post It notes on your desk or the dry erase board on the fridge isn’t good for this; you’ll forget to add it. Whatever the mechanism, make a spot where you can start to accumulate these ideas. 

After a time, you’re going to have quite a list. That’s the goal. Now we need to turn our list into usable data. Since most of us aren’t doing adventure travel full time, we are working within a budget and some time constraints. In other words, we’re using vacation days that we need to maximize. 

The way to turn our list of destinations into usable data is to represent them geographically. So, take that list, and make a Google Map, or a Gaia folder, or similar. I use Gaia for this because of its versatility.  The important thing is you can see where these are. During this step, if you have absolute must-do favorites, using a waypoint marker system with priority helps. Red for “I definitely want to do that” and blue for “That’d be cool”, for instance. 

This doesn’t have to be anything more than a set of waypoints right now.The important thing is they are in a single folder that you can turn on and off as needed.

Once you’ve accumulated some ideas, there’s a good chance you’re going to see some destinations clustered on the map. Whether it be trails in Utah, mountain roads in Colorado, or backcountry travel in the woodlands of Michigan, you’re likely to have enough destinations to fill that 2 week vacation you’ve got coming to you.

And, if you’re fortunate enough to have made adventure travel a full time endeavor, you already know that exploring clustered points of interest gets you maximum content with minimum travel.

Getting people onboard

I should mention… I’m an engineer. I’m a nerd. I tend to think in processes. You’ll see a lot of that here, and especially in this section. The good thing is that I can’t watch you rolling your eyes while you read this. Just bear through this section. It gets easier after this. That being said, this section is the ‘hub’ which interacts with every other section.

Now that we have a general idea of where we want to go, we need to start getting people on board. People come with their own needs, their own wants, and their own constraints. If this is a family trip, it’s easier. You know what each family member brings and what they want. If its an organized trip, you have to ensure you’re addressing a number of things. 

Open up that Google Sheet at the top of this article and follow along on the Objectives tab.

 Each person going on the trip most likely has some say in how things are going to go. If you’re running a tour or expedition where people are signing on to your pre-prepared trip, maybe not as much, but you’re still going to have these factors. They are:

Needs: This is what the trip MUST accomplish. If you’re hitting the entirety of the Wyoming Backcountry Discovery Route, and the trip is presented as such, everyone who signs up is going to have the expectation that this is the trip’s objective.

Nice to Have: These are the things that would be nice to accomplish, but not as high priority as a need.

Constraints: These are the limiting factors in play that have to be considered while pursuing the needs. Things like duration of trip, how much you have to spend, the range of your vehicle on a tank of gas, how long Aunt Martha is willing to spend in a vehicle each day… 

Some things can be both needs and constraints. For instance if you have to get lots of pictures for the ‘Gram, you have a need (must generate content). Likewise, you have a constraint because getting that perfect shot takes time. Walking up to set up the camera and going to retrieve it for that ‘drive by’ footage adds up. Really actually listen to all the people on the trip. Get together on Zoom or whatever. Take the time to understand the expectations (needs) and the limiting factors (constraints). Write them down.

Some things are needs but we don’t think of them. Weather monitoring, lists of nearby medical facilities, etc. 

Like I said above, this page is going to be the hub by which everything else is built around for this trip. This is the page where people will have a say in what happens. This is where they can see their concerns are met. This is where the technical limitations are factored in. Most importantly, as ideas evolve, this page (and probably your destinations map) are where you’ll start to detect that things might be getting too big for just one trip (mission creep).

What is our itinerary? What are our costs?

Where are we going each day and where are we ending up? How will we fill our fridges, batteries, fuel tanks, and bellies?

This is where the trip gets mapped out. This is where the routes get put in on the Nav program. Where are we starting, what are we seeing along the way, where are we stopping? There’s a whole bunch of How-To’s on using nav programs, and I don’t have the space to do it here, but just know that working on that at this phase is important. Ensure your items for this trip are in its own folder, and not your original “Trip Ideas” folder.

Remember how the Objectives section was the hub of things? This is where we start to bounce around between pages on the spreadsheet. As you plan routes, you’ll have constraints of vehicle range, driver skills, and vehicle capability. The routes you make will need to be adjusted for gas stops, trail difficulty, etc. You should include emergency bail out points as waypoints on the route, and hospitals on the map as well. 

If Aunt Martha needs to get out and stretch every hour, this is where putting in points of interest along the way can help. Scenic overlooks where you stop for lunch. 

Equally important is reviewing the constraints of peoples’ food capacity, water, batteries, etc. Build in resupply points along the way. I tend to do these first on the itinerary page so I know I need to end up near a town with a grocery, water refill, etc. It’s always a good idea to build in a campground with a shower facility every so often in the schedule. A site with electricity can offer a recharge, and a nearby laundromat is nice, too.

Similarly, here’s the place to decide where and what you’re eating. Remember that while Youtube shows someone making a 5-star meal on a skottle (are you really overlanding if you don’t have one?), his Trasharoo is full of McDonald bags from getting food on the road most of the way there. Your itinerary should show travel to/from days, and anticipated meals that need to be bought and prepared. I just put ‘road’ on mine to signify it’ll be a “0.1 miles from the exit” meal. If there is a must-stop-at restaurant, include that in the itinerary, too. On an Upper Peninsula trip we built in a stop at Muldoons Pasties in Munising just because we heard great things about them. 

While building the itinerary, it’s a good time to build up costs and expenses. You’ll have an idea of where you’re going, which will help inform on miles traversed for fuel estimates, as well as any tolls and entrance fees that may be needed. The resupply points will of course have costs associated with them.

This also helps ensure trip members understand what costs are associated with what activity and what is expected of them. 

All these little things help flesh out the trip, they help form the ultimate routes taken and why. But equally importantly, they demonstrate to your participants that their concerns are being met. It informs a lot of information about the adventure. It turns ‘your’ trip into ‘their’ trip, too.

What do we need to support this trip?

At this point, we have our destination(s) planned out, whether they be trails we will run, a series of campsites we must stay at, a myriad of points of interest we will explore, or activities we will do. It’s all in our needs and constraints page.

Now we have to identify all the things necessary to support the trip. Some of them will be group items and some will be individual items. We need to get a handle on it all and coordinate with others to ensure we have the stuff needed.

Did I say ‘stuff’? It’s really the ‘stuff and skills’! Our ‘packing list’ needs to include whatever training items we need to utilize the stuff. A compass with no orienteering skills doesn’t help that much. Cracking open a first aid kit in a time of need and feeling a wave of perplexedness wash over us at the sight of hundreds of little white wrapped items doesn’t help our injured friend. 

Here’s a list of categories of stuff you may need. Keep in mind your space constraints in your vehicle. It’s important to remember that a full spreadsheet doesn’t mean a full vehicle and vice versa. A “driver’s license” in one cell takes up the same amount of spreadsheet space as “Folding table” in another cell. It’s not the size of the spreadsheet, it’s how you use it.

Logistics: Drivers licenses, insurance slips, vehicle registrations, campsite reservations, ORV permits, medical info, spare keys left with another driver, cash, and credit cards. Make sure you have the documentation needed. A Trip Notebook is a great way to store all this information.

Vehicle support: Most ‘overland’ travel is vehicle based. The vehicle needs to run. So this is all the stuff that helps ensure that. Spare tire and jack, recovery gear, spare fluids, spare gas if needed.

Power and electronics: There’s always the one guy that thinks he’s being ‘pure outdoorsman’ with an old 1975 Toyota, a hatchet, compass, and paper map. Sure thing, mountain man. For the rest of us, we have phones, cameras, drones, emergency signaling devices, handheld transceivers, GPSs, etc. We need a way to keep them all running for the duration of the trip. Put that stuff in this column.

Navigation: Gotta get where we’re going. Phone, in-vehicle display, handheld GPS, and the know-how to use it. Ensure all the waypoints and routes you created before are transferred over. I like to use GaiaGPS for this, as the items I create sync between my phone, tablet, and computer. Since cell service is often unavailable in the far places of our exploration, ensure the maps are downloaded locally to your device. GaiaGPS does this well. Consider making a set of hardcopy maps in the trip notebook or a Delorme Atlas as a backup. 

Communications: Don’t rely exclusively on cell phones. Many overlanders use GMRS radios to communicate inter-vehicle. The vehicle-mounted ones can get great range. Pro tip: Have a couple handhelds as well for maintaining comms when doing a day hike or away-from-vehicle activity.

Camp: Here’s all the things needed to make camp for the night. Tent, sleeping bag, chairs, portable fire ring, pop-up privy, clothes lines, a folding table maybe? What makes camp your camp?

Kitchen: All the things you’ll need to preserve and prepare the meals. The Itinerary tab should show what’s being made. Time to ensure the stuff needed to make it (kitchen items) is packed and ingredients anticipated.

Personal hygiene, clothing, etc: These columns are for the individual to list what they’re packing. If you have a group, it can be a bit abashing to list out grooming supplies and stuff, but there’s a good chance if everyone can see others’ lists it will help them to remember important things too. Proudly add those wet wipes to your list.

Other support: If your trip has day hiking, make a column for what’s needed. Kayaking somewhere? Include that stuff. All your photography and video equipment should be here as well. 

TRAINING: As you make your list, ensure you know how to use each of the items you’re packing. If you don’t know, add it to your To-Do list and get the training needed. 

Final assessment

Whew. You’ve stuck with this. You’ve got your whole crew on board. You agree with the trip’s objectives. You have all the things and training needed to support it. Here’s the sanity check. 

Go over each day in your head. Each activity. Envision it, envision what you need to do it. Ensure your list has it on it. Ensure you’ve bought it.

Get together with your teammates. Talk it all through. Confirm it’s there. Confirm all the reservations are made. Confirm the permits have been pulled. Ask your buddies when they changed their oil last. Take the time to scrutinize the maps, the lists, everything. This isn’t a time for pride, it’s a time to work together to ensure things are complete.

For the items in your control, check them out as you pack them. Make sure they’re in good working order. Sharpen that knife you packed, make sure the handheld radio has a new battery. Make sure how you’re packing it will protect it as needed.

Go have fun!

Honestly, have fun. You did all this prep work. You took seriously what needed to be taken seriously. It was a lot of work, and now it’s time to enjoy the reward. Remember the picture painted in the first two paragraphs of this long winded article? Allow yourself the opportunity to experience it all. Get caught up in the scenic vistas, feel the sense of discovery around that bend, enjoy the food, the fire, and the camaraderie that you worked so hard to make. Truly understand the smiles, the banter, and the laughs are all, in a big part, due to people having everything they need and are enjoying this trip. Smile, overlander, you got this!

Don’t let all your planning be a straightjacket. Things happen on the road. That flat tire may preclude a stop someone wanted. The trail may be washed out. Someone could get injured. You might hear of the ultimate restaurant to eat at that was nowhere on your list. For all the planning we did here, we must ensure we maintain a fluid and adaptable mindset. Our plans were but a plan. Be safe, be smart, be cooperative, and enjoy!

Post trip reassess

What went well? What didn’t? Who did you work well with? Who didn’t enjoy this type of adventure? What recipes were great? What ones were too hard to prepare on the trail? What was top notch gear that worked proper and what was hot garbage? What skills did you need that you didn’t have? 

For the costs tab, consider duplicating the tab and making an estimated and actual one. See how close the predictions were. Especially for food and fuel, it will better inform the next trip on anticipated costs.

These are all things that we engineering types like to call a feedback loop. Our ‘outputs’ (the sum of our experiences) become ‘inputs’ (our planning insight) for the next iteration. It’s fine to make notes in the spreadsheet, update some things, move some things around, etc. Like what was said in the intro, the first time through this planning process takes some time. After that, new copies of this sheet continuously refine how you do stuff.

Wrap up

At some point, it’s great to journal things. To write those memories out so years later the handwriting, ink, pages, and sketches bring back the experiences from the far away recesses of your mind. While we did most of the things on a spreadsheet, I really recommend a tangible notebook for journaling. Let team members write in it, too. Fill the pages with shared experiences and amazing stories. 

I sincerely hope this planning method helps you reduce anxiety, get an organized approach to trip planning, and ultimately get out there and fill that journal!