Even as I write this, Daniel Moylan and some of his friends are in the middle of a 12-month trek around the planet in a vehicle originally prepared for the Land Rover Global Expedition - due to be led by none other than Sir Ranulph Fiennes - of 1998. The 110 actually started life as a military-spec Wolf XD (Extra Duty), complete with heavy-duty chassis, axles, wheels and engine. Sadly, Land Rover's Global Expedition, which was due to follow an overland route from London to New York, never happened. The build-up was beset with technical difficulties but, in any event, the whole thing was called off by Land Rover's then new owner, BMW. The 110 eventually wound up in the Camel Trophy museum, its massive internal and external roll cages (together capable of fending off nine tonnes of crushing pressure), remaining untested. Daniel bought the vehicle after its release from storage in 2003. He has always been a keen traveller and following an accident in 2004, he decided to re-evaluate his priorities. That's when the idea of the Lone Wolf Transglobal Expedition came into being. It tool Daniel - a member of the Royal Geographical Society - and his friends almost two years to plan and organise the trip.

Daniel's expedition team consists of a chef (a role filled by Rowan Brown), two camera operators (Wenche Selvig Johansen and Ole Johan Roska) and a navigator (Gabrielle Oug). Back at home, his two brothers, Nicky and Oliver together with another friend, Amy Stubberfield, are co-ordinating the whole adventure, liaising with sponsor and smoothing the path to help make sure the trip continues to run without fuss. Apart from doing the lion's share (or should that be the wolf's share?) of the driving, Daniel's also responsible for maintenance and repairs. He's a proficient mechanic but if something happens that he can't fix, they're carrying enough spares for major heart surgery and there are always mechanics around. Besides, the Wolf engine is simple, with no complex electronics. So, why's Daniel doing the trip? His main goal is to use this expedition to illustrate an important fact that he thinks has been missed by so many people. In his opinion, the world is ruled by fear and ignorance; he thinks people have forgotten that our overseas neighbours are all members of one race, the human race. Daniel's experience is that, no matter where on hearth you go, the people you meet are generally kind, welcoming and compassionate.



So, what he intends to show, above all else, is that the world is not such a dangerous place after all. Daniel also hopes to raise funds for two charities he's passionate about; MSF and AwaRE. MSF (Médecins Sans Frontières) is the leading non governmental organisation for emergency medical aid. Meanwhile, AwaRE (Aquatic World Responsibility and Education) is committed to the conservation and preservation of the aquatic environment and its resources, a prime concern being the world's fast-disappearing coral reefs. To keep up to date with the progress of the Lone Wolf Transglobal Expedition, check out www.lonewolftransglobal.com If you'd like to make a donation to either of the two charities that the expedition is supporting, please log on to www.justgiving.com/wolftransglobal/ or www.justgiving.com/wolfaware/