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Book — The First Overland: Four Wheels & Frontiers

• CATEGORIES: Books, Trips This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE II: Coincidently, Daniel Strohl published a story today discussing the “Last Overland” journey of 1955 which went from London to Singapore.

UPDATE: After five years of occasional searching, I finally snagged a copy of this book from the US. It’s more of a detailed travelogue than I’d expected, with specifics on the mileage and other details from the trip. It was a quick, fun read.

From the original November 2, 2013, post:  It is 1957 and you are stuck in Singapore fighting on behalf of the British government.  You are ready to leave.  You want to get home.  How do you get there?  Maybe you should buy yourself a junked MB and drive home? It’s only 13,000 miles …..

To add to the fun, with the exception of a school wall map, you have no maps of any kind (though you do have a compass and protractor), let alone mileage markers or directions.  And, it’s likely that gas stations will be few and far between.  Finally, you will likely encounter various factions of people not so friendly to you and your buddy.  Now, that sounds like an adventure!

And, it was a true adventure for Roy Follows and Noel Dudgeon, starting as two Colonial Police officers as part of a force battling Chinese Communists near the end of the Malayan Emergency.  Ready to head home, the pair bought an MB in February of 1958 and begin a long journey home full constant brake-downs, broken parts, and other obstacles.  Here are some pics of from the book, included a compiled map from the back and front covers.

1957-four-wheels-and-frontiers-roy-follow2

 

1957-four-wheels-and-frontiers-roy-follow-map

I never did understand why they named the jeep “Pliuet 1”.

1957-four-wheels-and-frontiers-roy-follow6

1957-four-wheels-and-frontiers-roy-follow4

1957-four-wheels-and-frontiers-roy-follow5And some Misc Images from the 2013 post:

the_first_overland_elephant_pic

the_first_overland_3_small_pics

the_first_overland_2_small_pics

 

4 Comments on “Book — The First Overland: Four Wheels & Frontiers

  1. J.R. Welsh

    Now that must have been a trip. The years I was born, talk about on your own. That must have been the trail ride of a lifetime !! It would be GREAT to do something like that now days.

  2. Hein Prinsloo

    I have a ’53 CJ3B in Brisbane Australia , completely rebuilt over the past year , and just itching to do something similar ! Anybody interested in sponsoring and coming along let me know ? Could start right here and end in Africa or wherever , go right around the world , as long as it is in the Willys !

  3. Roberto Flores

    Wow! That´s seems to be a fantastic adventure! I have got some info about this book some years ago, but I couldn´t find any pic until now. Again, many thanks Dave!

    Hein, have you thought to contact the guys at the International Flat Fender Club? Perhaps they could help you with that! Ah! And good luck, sir!!!

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