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Tools

Most of what goes wrong out there is arithmetic somebody skipped at home. How much the rig actually weighs. How far the tank really goes on sand. How many litres a day for four people in forty degrees. Ten tools, free, private, and honest about their assumptions.

Four questions, three vehicles Rig Finder Everybody starts with the vehicle they want. This starts with the trip you are taking, the people in it and what you can spend, and works backwards to three machines that fit. Open

The number that decides the build Payload Ledger Most travel vehicles that reach a weighbridge are over their limit, and almost every owner is surprised. Enter the build and find out at the kitchen table instead. Open

Fuel, water, days Range and Water Three numbers decide whether a crossing is a trip or an incident. This works them out for your vehicle, your party and the surface you will actually drive. Open

The cheapest traction you own Tyre Pressure One set of tyres becomes four different tyres depending on what is in them. These are the starting pressures, front and rear, for your load and your surface. Open

Distance is not the question, hours are Stage Planner A hundred kilometres of tarmac is ninety minutes. A hundred kilometres of rutted piste is a full day. This converts a route into hours and hours into days. Open

Everything, once, in order Pack List Generated for the trip you described, grouped the way you will pack it, with a weight total so the list and the payload ledger agree with each other. Open

Rated for the vehicle you actually drive Recovery Kit Recovery equipment is rated by the weight it will be asked to move. Enter the loaded vehicle and the terrain and get a kit that matches, with the ratings written out. Open

Dressed for the temperature you will feel Layer System Wind and effort matter more than the number on the thermometer. Enter both and get a layer-by-layer list, with the items that are worth the money marked. Open

Days, calories, gas Camp Kitchen Work out what to buy, how much gas it will burn and which of it survives a week at thirty-five degrees in a steel box on a corrugated road. Open

Coordinates, bearings, distances Waypoint Tool The small conversion job that comes up constantly when a paper map, a device and a written note disagree about how a position is expressed. Open

Field notes

One letter a month from the track

New long reads, new routes in the Route Book and the occasional hard-won lesson. No advertising, unsubscribe in one click.