Video: World Traveler on Three Year Journey Creates Epic Selfie

Looking for a little inspiration to travel today? This video ought to do the trick. It was shot by Alex Chacon, who spent the last three years traveling the globe, crossing through 36 countries, and covering more than 200,000 km (125,000 miles) in the process. Along the way, he used his GoPro camera to capture some selfies, and the results are the 3 minute video below, which gives us a glimpse of his adventures. This makes me want to hit the road again soon!

Video: Traveling The Highest Road In The World

Looking for a little escape at the start of the week? Then look no further than this great travelogue style video that follows three traveler as they ride from Jaipur, India to Khardung La, the highest road in the world at 5369 meters (17,582 ft). It is a colorful, chaotic journey that looks like it would be quite an adventure.

The Great Ride Of China: 25,000 KM On A Motorcycle For Charity

Back in July, Buck Perley and Amy Mathieson began an epic adventure across China by motorcycle. The couple are on a mission to cover more than 25,000 km (15,534 miles) in four months while raising funds for charity along the way. If they are successful in this venture they'll set a new record for the longest ever motorcycle journey in a single country.

Buck and Amy have dubbed their excursion the Great Ride of China and as of this writing they are now 55 days and 11,480 km (7133 miles) into the journey. They began the trip in Beijing back on July 18 and have been traveling in a counter-clockwise direction around the border ever since. During that time they're CFMOTO 650 TR motorcycle has carried them to North Korea, Inner Mongolia, the Russian border, the ancient city of Xi'An, the famous Turpan Depression and beyond. Currently they are in Kashgar, not far from the Kyrgyzstan border and soon they'll be headed to Tibet where they plan on visiting Everest Base Camp. Remember, on that side of the mountain you can actually drive to BC, which should be quite the experience on a motorbike.

The idea for the Great Ride sprung from a desire to see more of what China has to offer and a deep interest in architecture and restoration processes on the part of Amy. They then came up with the idea of attempting to set the world record along the way, which is made possible thanks to China's massive size. Before setting out, Buck and Amy were introduced to the Free Lunch For Children organization, which true to its name provides lunches for students in more than 200 schools across the country. The duo decided that while they are taking their tour of China they wanted to try to give something back along the way, so they have been raising funds for the Free Lunch program. Their goal is to raise ¥5,000,000 or approximately $800,000.


So far the couple has visited 11 provinces but before they are done they hope to have passed through as many as 33 provinces once they are done. And once the trip is wrapped up, they intend to auction off all of their gear and equipment – including the motorcycle – with the proceeds going to the Free Lunch For Children organization.

You can follow Buck and Amy's progress on their website, where regular blog posts provide interesting insights into their experiences from the road. They're also posting regularly to their Facebook page which has more information about the ride.

Good luck to Buck and Amy as they continue their journey. What an amazing adventure this must be.

World's First Travel Documentary To Be Aired At Film Fest

The Guardian has a really interesting story today about two Iranian brothers who are credited with creating the first travel documentary films. The movies, which were made in the 1950's, had fallen off the radar for most fans of the genre, but thanks to a the curator of an upcoming film festival focused on adventure travel, the film will be shown to a new generation of fans.

Back in 1954, Abdullah and Issa Omidvar set out on a grand adventure. The two brothers wanted to ride their motorcycles to some of the most remote places possible, while learning more about the cultures they visited along the way. With just $90 in each of their pockets, they packed up their filmmaking equipment and hit the road. They're route took them through Pakistan and India, across Southeast Asia and into Australia. From there they hopped across the Pacific, rode the length of the Andes north and continued on all the way to Alaska and Canada where they crossed above the Arctic Circle. After that, they returned home briefly before returning to the road for another adventure in Africa. All the while they filmed their exploits, capturing some incredible footage of an evolving world that was still reeling from the changes brought on by a post-World War II shift in politics and imperialism.

The Omidvar spent ten years traveling the world, taking in as much culture, history and adventure as they could. And when they were finished, one went to Chile to found a film company while the other returned home to Iran, where he became a celebrity for his works. But over time, the western world had mostly forgotten about their contribution to cinema as their documentary films haven't been seen in years.

But Lois Pryce, who has ridden her motorcycle the length of the Americas and Africa, and written two wonderful books about the experience, learned about Abdullah and Issa's story and went searching for copies of some of their films for the Adventure Travel Film Festival which she co-founded. Pryce called in many favors and went to great lengths to find the films, eventually ending up with copies being sent her way from Issa himself. Those films will be shown at the fest, which will take place in Dorset in the U.K. on August 16-18. It will be a rare opportunity to see these vintage travel films, which are a time capsule of sorts, giving us a window into the past.

It must have been quite the adventure for the two brothers to travel the world during the 50's and early 60's. The planet was evolving a lot back then and some of the places that they visited aren't even there any more. It would be fun to see these films and compare the conditions for travel back then with now. We've come a long way since those films were made, but we've lost much along the way as well.

Thanks to CuChullaine for sharing this fascinating story.

Video: A Father-Son Motorcycle Adventure In The Himalaya

Here's a great story of a father and son duo who traveled through the Himalaya with one another on motorcycles, covering 4500 km (2800 miles) in the process. The son is an experienced motocross rider to whom being on the back of a bike is second nature. The father was new this type of travel but the pair bonded over their shared adventure through some pretty amazing landscapes. The entire journey was captured on GoPro cameras of course and makes for quite the compelling short film.

Video: An Octogenarian's Himalayan Adventure

Looking for a little inspiration for your own adventures? Then you'll certainly want to watch the video below which features 80 year old Simon Gandolfi riding his motorcycle through the remote Indian state of Himachal Pradesh which falls squarely in the Himalaya Mountains. Road conditions are somewhat less than ideal but the views are spectacular. We should all be so lucky to be enjoying life like this while in our 80's.

The Ice Run: 1500km Through Siberia On A Motorbike

The Adventurists are up to their old tricks. The same group that brought us the Mongol Rally and the Rickshaw Run, launched their latest overland adventure – The Ice Run. This time, they're racing across 1500km (932 miles) of frozen Siberian wasteland using old Russian motorcycles, complete with sidecar.

The inaugural Ice Run got underway yesterday at the southern end of the River Ob. The riders will now follow the frozen river north to the town of Salekhard, which sits above the Arctic Circle. During the brief summer months, the only way to complete that journey is by boat or airplane, but during the long winter, the frozen tundra, and even the river itself, allow for passage. Of course, the riders still have to deal with the snow, ice, and incredibly cold temperatures along the way.

Just how cold does it get there? According to this page on the Ice Run site, temperatures will fall between -10ºC and -60ºC (14ºF to -76ºF). Throw in winds that regularly hit 40mph and the windchill shaves another 40º off of those temperatures. As a result, machines start to break down and oil begins to freeze. The local police will even close the roads to prevent drivers from leaving town and getting stranded, quite literally, in the middle of nowhere.

There are currently 13 teams entered into this unique, and dare I say crazy, race. You can track their progress online by clicking here, and as of this writing they've covered roughly 150 miles so far. As with all the other events from the Adventurists, this road rally is helping to raise funds for charity. The live tracker also says that the teams have currently raised £11,980 ($18,770), with more to come.

And while we're on the subject of raising money for charity, I think it is worth pointing out that all of these great road races that the Adventurists have sponsored over the past few years have brought in more than £3.5 million ($5.5 million) for a variety of organizations. That's a pretty impressive number.

So, just what are the Ice Run riders dealing with out on the "road?" The video below, which was shot during an initial test run of the ride, will give you some indication. It's a toss up which looks colder, this video, or one of those shot on those winter climbs we've been following.