The Over Lander

Old-school maps are better than any fancy tech for traversing the back of beyond, says Sam, who also offers a useful tip for coping with a flat battery

- Sam Watson

When you’re planning a long overland trip, especially through trackless countryside such as a desert, it’s a good idea to examine the lie of the land before you go. Satellite and aerial photography (as per the excellent Google Earth) is of course very good for this, but it’s often hard to understand properly the relief or contours of the terrain from a two dimensional photo – and if you’re old school like me, it’s hard to beat a proper map.

Problem is that decent maps of a remote area can be hard to get hold of. Places that used to be part of the Empire, or have strong British links, have often been surveyed to the standard of our own Ordnance Survey maps, as is the case with Kenya, Palestine or Egypt – but in many countries the possession of such maps is either discouraged or downright illegal, as they are seen as militarily sensitive documents of interest to a potential invader.