One for the Road

This book wants to make you more adventurous and confident when you travel on your own.

Read more about how below, or go straight to where you can get the book.

What is it about?

It’s about traveling alone on three different journeys. None include lazing on a beach. These are trips you go on to learn both about the world and about yourself.

On trip 1 we travel though Patagonia and almost accidentally end up visiting Antarctica.
On trip 2 we see Southern Africa partially alone and partially as a group of strangers on an overland trip.
On trip 3 we stretch a journey on the week-long Trans-Siberian Railway to a full month through Russia.

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More about the book

Starting Out

In which a cyclone gives the book as well as a number of tin roofs in Fiji a flying start. There’s a lot of screaming, but in the end everything turns out just fine. As it almost always does.

Later we learn how the author is surprised by how he ends up traveling the world, after first going through a childhood in which travel was no joy. Before we take off in the first real chapter, we discuss whether traveling really can serve any purpose. (Spoiler: It does!)

Going South (2001)

In which the author backpacks aimlessly through the southern-most part of both Chile and Argentina, commonly known as Patagonia. Suddenly he discovers a way to get to Antarctica without running the risk of being put forward in the media as a polar explorer.

Of course he leaps at the opportunity.

This part of the book includes penguins.

Torres del Paine National Park, Chilean Patagonia

A view of the main attraction of the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile.

Early morning view from the camp site at Rio Serrano.

Route of trip through Patagonia and Antarctica.

In/Out of Africa (2002)

In which we go to Southern Africa because it is on our list of things to do before turning 30.

Starting and ending in Cape Town, there’s a lot in between. Elke the Brute, the howling skunkbutt cockroach and a fearless pilot apprentice contributes generously in enlivening the tale.

Trans-Siberian (2003)

In which we spend a month getting from Vladivostok to Moscow, getting it all backwards.

It turns out all tourists travel in the other direction, so most of this month is spent isolated in the company of 147 million Russians. Ten thousand kilometers turn out to be an even longer distance than we imagined.

Making plentiful stops in places like Khabarovsk, Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Yekateringburg and Kazan unburdens the mind a lot.

I Dare You

In which we try to convinces you that the journeys in this book can be done by anyone who think they are able to do so and most of those who don’t. This probably includes you. We tackle all kinds of arguments against traveling, such as:

But it’s so dangerous everywhere else but here at home!
I can’t fit all the clothes I need for three months in my luggage!
I have no one to travel together with!
I seriously can’t afford it!
… and so on.

You’ll also find a collection of useful and mostly legal tips and tricks for traveling frugally.

Clearly, you should get going sooner rather than later. And reading this book will get you started.

Actually, you even just reading this probably means that you have already started. Now continue!

Get the book

For tree: If you want a carbon-based physical copy of the book, you can head over to Lulu and get one there. This option isn’t free, because a tree has to die and someone actually must process that tree in order for your copy to be made. Sorry about that. The tree, I mean.

For free: Download using the buttons below. You can download the book in it’s entirety in all formats, but in PDF you can also download just one of the three main chapters.

PDF version is an exact copy of the paper version.
ePub version is text only, good for most tablets and mobiles.
MOBI version is also text only, and is best if you use a Kindle.

About Donations

This book wasn’t written with profit in mind. Any signs of appreciation are still welcome, be they postcards, e-mails, or donations.

To donate, please use the “Donate” button below. Payment will go through PayPal. PayPal is reliable. Your information will be safe.

I set the default donation to 3.50 US dollars. Change it to whatever you want. It doesn’t cost me a thing when you download a copy. Just keep in mind that the minimum processing fee is about half a dollar, and it will be deducted from the amount you choose.

Your chosen amount must be specified in US dollars ($). 1 Euro is worth roughly the same as 1 US dollar.

The shown recipient of the donation should be bjorn@bjornfree.com.

Thanks! #8D)

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