From the Middle East to Colorado mountains Mountains: Our Overland Journey

[idanw]

Hey everyone,

After years of following this forum from afar, I finally made the jump and moved to the US! I'm excited to be here and to become a part of the overlanding community.

My name is Idan, and I'm 41. For the past 20 years, I've been running Black Taurus (https://b-taurus.com/), a company that makes 4wd and camping equipment. We recently opened a branch here in the US, and I'm looking forward to getting to know the American overlanding scene.

Speaking of overlanding... in June 2023, my wife, Sivan (also 41), and I decided to take our two boys, Yogev (9) and Ofer (7), on a pretty epic adventure. We've been exploring the deserts of the Middle East (Israel, Jordan, Egypt) for years, but we were ready for something bigger. We shipped our rig from Israel to Turkey with a vague plan to explore the Balkans, Europe, and Morocco. Somehow, we ended up in Colorado! 😄

We knew we wanted to do a long trip, but with plenty of breaks along the way so we could head back home to keep the business running and the kids in school (at least part-time).

Our Rig:

Since we love getting off the beaten path, we needed a vehicle that could handle some serious off-roading and allow us to be self-sufficient for up to a week. But we also needed something comfortable for those long driving days with the family. A full-size truck was the obvious choice.

We went with a 2021 Ram 2500 with the 6.7 Cummins, and we had an Alucabin camper installed. We added a 2" lift, 2.5" Fox shocks, and heavy-duty rear coil springs to handle the extra weight of the camper.

The camper itself has two double beds, a 35-gallon freshwater tank, 140 amps of auxiliary batteries, 400W of solar panels, a water heater, a cabin heater, a 220V inverter, and all the other essentials.

Since this was a pretty long journey (Turkey to Colorado!), I'll be sharing the adventure in parts. Stay tuned for the next post about our time in Turkey!

I'd love to hear from you guys – feel free to ask any questions you have about the trip or our rig!

 

[Ace Brown]

Welcome! Looking forward to your trip report.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ITTOG]

Nice build and I look forward to your pictures in Turkey.

Where did you end up in the US, for your business?

 

[idanw]

We're an online business, so you won't find a physical store. You'll probably meet us at the major overland shows across the US! Our main warehouse is in Wilmington, DE, but we're planning a west coast location soon to speed up deliveries. Our headquarters and most of the team are based in the Negev desert in Israel, while I'm located near Boulder, CO.

 

[idanw]

Israel to Turkey: The Overland Adventure Begins!

Getting our rig out of Israel proved to be quite the challenge. Surrounded by neighboring countries, overland vehicle travel isn't exactly commonplace. Forget RORO boats or any vehicle ferries – they simply don't exist. After some serious digging, we finally scored a spot on a cargo ship hauling building materials from Turkey back to Israel. The best part? The ship was returning completely empty! We had the entire deck to ourselves, along with the friendly crew. The captain even let the kids roam around the ship and visit the bridge – a real treat! After a 24-hour voyage, we arrived in Turkey.
Landing in Turkey, however, was another story. Turkish customs officials aren't used to seeing overlanders, especially not ones arriving on a cargo ship from Israel (let's just say the relationship between the two countries is a little…complicated). We arrived in Iskenderun, a small port town near the Syrian border, on one of the hottest and most humid days of the year (think 113°F!). Port control wouldn't let us disembark because they simply didn't know what to do with us! Long story short, we spent a full 24 hours at the port. Sivan and the kids stayed on the ship with our camper while I tried my best to charm (and convince) the customs officials. Eventually, we prevailed!
Our adventure really kicked off when we met up with my colleague Naama and her family. They had been on a year-long overland trip with their three kids (who were about the same age as ours!), traveling in our Toyota Hilux with an Alucab Khaya slide-in camper . It’s so much fun traveling with another family, especially with kids the same age!
We rendezvoused in Cappadocia, an ancient region in the heart of Turkey. Think incredible off-road trails, amazing hiking, fascinating archaeological sites, and thousands of caves! We spent about five days there, exploring the trails and letting the kids run wild in the caves. Summer in Cappadocia also means one thing: hot air balloon festival!
From Cappadocia, we pointed our tires towards the Kaçkar Mountains. Reaching nearly 13,000 feet, this mountain range is one of the highest you can access by off-road vehicle in the Middle East. The Kaçkars are crisscrossed with less-traveled trails, dotted with tiny villages nestled along the rivers. It felt like stepping back in time 100 years, with local farmers working the land with their animals. We spent over a week exploring the Kaçkars, camping along the rivers, sometimes near the mountain peaks, hiking, and even spending a couple of nights in a local village house.
After the Kaçkars, we drove down to the Black Sea coast. Here, we said goodbye to Naama and her family, who were heading off to Georgia and Armenia. We turned northwest, towards Bulgaria and Romania – but that’s a story for another post!