JEEP EXPEDITIONS, EVENTS, AND PEOPLE

WHILE it is commonly accepted that the Willys helped win the war, Jeeps have undertaken some of the most incredible, inspiring and unlikely expeditions on record. They have traversed uncharted deserts of Africa, passed through countries many have never heard of, driven through the world’s densest jungles and even crossed oceans. We begin this journey of exploration with the legendary Long Range Desert Group.

1943

Long Range Desert Group: As a product of the WWII efforts, the first Jeeps, or Ford GPWS, were deployed in Libya to battle the Axis Alliance. Laden with machine guns, heaps of ammunition and fuel, they sneaked in behind enemy lines for hit-andrun and recce missions.

1948

Half Safe: One of the most impressive early Jeep expeditions was undertaken by Australian Ben Carlin. Piloting a 1942 Ford GPA amphibian, Carlin and his wife Elenore set off from Halifax, Canada, on a circumnavigation of the globe. It took Carlin three co-drivers and 10 years to complete a journey of 63,000 miles on land and 17,000 miles by sea.

1969

East West Australia: Ian Mcdonald and his small team made the first east-to-west crossing of the Simpson Desert as part of a 6000-mile expedition from Cape Byron to Steep Point.

1958

Singapore to England Overland: Roy Follows and Noel Dudgeon spent a year piloting their British surplus Willys, utilised during the WWII efforts in Burma, from Singapore to London.

1954-55

Helen and Frank

Schreider traversed the

Americas from Alaska to the tip of South

America in an amphibious

Ford GPA named La

Tortuga. They would go on to undertake numerous expeditions around the world for the National Geographic Society; usually at the helm of La Tortuga.

1953

Jeepers Jamboree: Mark A Smith and some friends in Georgetown, California, organised a Jeep trip on the Rubicon Trail to help boost the town’s economy. Their fledgling event would later be nicknamed ‘The Granddaddy of Jeep Trips’ and their home trail known the world over.

1978

Expedicion de las Americas: With five stock CJ-7S, Mark A Smith and a small team made the first unsupported crossing of the infamous Darien Gap between Panama and Colombia during their 21,000-mile trek from the tip of North America to the tip of South America.

1982

Jeep Jamboree USA: Mark Smith’s vision to create an international Jeep culture prompted him to launch Jeep Jamboree USA. In the coming decades, he expanded the event roster to include dozens of Jamboree events around the world.

1984-89

A World Odyssey: Loren and Patty Upton set a Guinness World Record for the longest four-wheel drive journey by automobile in a 1966 CJ-5 called the Sand Ship Discovery. The journey included the first solo allland crossing of the Darien Gap.

IN 2019

Author Chris Collard and publisher Ben Davidson successfully recreated East West Australia in celebration of its 50th anniversary, which included 1969 East West members Ian Mcdonald and John Eggleston.

THANK YOU

Photos provided by the below people/organisations - Mark A. Smith Off Road - LRDG Preservation Society - Guildford Grammar School - Jeepers Jamboree - Malcolm Wilson - Mark A. Smith - Loren and Patty Upton - Jeep Australia - Jeep