Preparations

Car Preparations and Enhancements

Sterlin is our 2002 Land Rover Discovery II and our first expedition vehicle. The dream started in 1992 in a desert town in Morocco where 2 fully expedition worthy Discoverys were our neighbors for a night in the campground. These…

Mapping Technology

This post provides a brief overview of the mapping technology in use on the trip. We have two Garmin GPS units. For the car we have a 5 inch Garmin nüvi 52LM that is useful for driving directions. For walking around…

Health and Vaccinations.

We both went to Downtown Medical to get the necessary inoculations and prescriptions. Their website doesn’t look like much, but service is prompt and good. They take walk-ins but make an appointment if you can, it reduces the wait time and makes things a…

Documents

Friday, March 1, 2013 We applied for, and today got issued, 2nd US passports. It turns out it is not that difficult to get these, as long as you can give a good reason why you need it. I explained…

New Tires

Sterlin is fitted with Grabber AT2 tires from General Tire.  Basically a stock tire that is a little wider than normal and with a more aggressive grip for both on and off road driving. The Vehicle Dependent Expedition Guide (VDEG)…

Sand Tracks

Sterlin has aluminum sand tracks or sand ladders mounted on the roof rack. These are not really carried to free us from sand or soft ground, but rather are there in case we have to create a bridge across rutted…

Jerry Cans

We added 4 Jerry cans for fuel and to extend the range of the thirsty discovery engine. Land Rover Discoveries have very poor fuel economy achieving around 15 mpg or 15.7 l So a full fuel tank provides a range of…

Survival Kit

Our very thoughtful friends Nadine and Tim provided us with an essential food survival kit: Looks like the mimosa and smoked trout have Caroline’s name on them; the chocolates and shortbread seem to be earmarked for Stephen. We’re happy to share…

Driving Lamps

Sterlin has been fitted with two extra driving lamps mounted on the front brush bar. The thought is these lamps will mainly be used to light our camping area.  But, in the unlikely event we drive at night, they might…

Water Tank, Filter and Pump

Sterlin is fitted with a 50 liter (13 gallon) clean water tank which is connected to an electric pump which pumps the water through a water purification or filter system. The plan is that the water tank will always hold clean…

Fire Extinguishers

Sterlin carries two fire extinguishers. The first line of defense is from a H3R clean agent fire extinguisher with 2.5lb of agent. The unit is mounted on the storage box behind the passengers seat. The second fire extinguisher is stored…

Stainless Steel Rear Cargo Door

We replaced Sterlin’s original rear cargo panel with an upgraded stainless steel panel and added a fold down work table. The replacement panel is from Columbia Overland and is purpose built for the Land Rover Discovery II. The fold down table is…

Dual Battery and 12v Distribution

Sterlin now has two batteries, one battery for the engine and a new one for auxiliaries. The auxiliary battery is installed in the engine bay next to the main battery. The two batteries are electrically connected via a charging solenoid.…

First Aid, Health and Emergency Locator Devices

Sterlin is equipped with a fairly comprehensive first aid kit. We selected the Adventure Medical Mountain Comprehensive. This kit is located behind the passengers seat with a simple and easy to release strap. Prior to the trip we obtained vacations for Hepatitis…