An occasional blog on topics related to my work. For a behind-the-scenes look, subscribe to my Patreon page.
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A final dash on the bikes would bring us to the beginning of the fourth and final leg of our journey along the Karun. (Start with Part 1 if you’re new to this series.) With visas ticking (ever the bane of the Westerner in a restrictive country with endless potential for travel), we returned the bicycles to their owner and set off once again on foot – though with significantly lighter loads than those with which we’d departed a month previously.
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Iran Part 3: Pedalling To Khuzestan [PHOTOS]
We’d heard that a series of dams were being constructed along the Karun. We hadn’t quite realised the extent of what this meant. No fewer than 3 major dams were already in existence on Iran’s longest river, including what the locals had told us was the biggest dam in the Middle East, and we heard of several more ongoing construction projects on the river’s tributaries. As we neared the confluence of the Karun and the Armand rivers, the prospect of paddling through hundreds of kilometres of politically sensitive building sites and manmade lakes was not one we were much looking…
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Iran Part 2: Packrafting The River Karun [PHOTOS]
We unshouldered our packs by the riverside after a week of gruelling winter trekking along roads that appeared on no maps or GPS. A couple of hours later we floated away from the riverbank and began to travel downstream by packraft. No trace of our presence was left on dry land, save for a couple of discarded apple cores. There was something childishly thrilling about the sense of subterfuge afforded by these little inflatable boats. We hadn’t known whether or not the river would have been navigable. A veteran paddler we’d met up with in Wales had said that we…
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Iran Part 1: A Winter Walk In The Zagros Mountains [PHOTOS]
At £26.99 they were the most expensive pair I’d ever bought. But I couldn’t have been more glad of my knee-length, wool-lined waterproof socks as I slogged through waist-deep snow in a cheap pair of trainers. My shoes were soaked through; I couldn’t feel my hands or nose; the 30-kilo pack dug into my shoulders and made my hips ache; but at least my toes were warm.
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Adventure In Progress: A Quick Update From Iran
There’s a good reason for this blog having been quiet for a few weeks: I’ve been on a deliberately low-tech adventure in the Middle East since early February. While Leon and I still have another couple of weeks on the road to look forward to, I wanted to share a few moments of this journey so far as a taste of the stories to come (and there will be many!). This journey was never envisaged to be a bicycle trip (though it would become one for a while). View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tom Allen (@tom_r_allen)…
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A Day In The Life Of An Adventure Filmmaker On Tour
As all adventurers know, it’s crucial to get a long day’s travelling off to the best possible start. Which is why, whenever circumstances allow, I begin my day with a ubiquitous Full English: Now, while I’d prefer to cycle to every film screening I attend, I all-too-often find myself on the train… …once I’ve waded through a jungle of fares and tickets, that is… …though I do sometimes go further afield:
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Anatomy Of A Successful Kickstarter Campaign (And What You Should Know Before Launching Yours)
In late 2012 I took a gamble on crowdfunding my first book project. After three weeks of planning and preparation, I clicked the ‘launch’ button early one morning from the comfort of my bed, and nodded off for a little doze. What happened next was this: £300 in pledges had come in before I got out of bed. I’d raised a grand before lunchtime. By the end of the day the total had climbed to £2,422 — 40% of my target. By the end of the first week the £6,000 goal had not just been met but exceeded. The campaign…
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How To Shoot Your Own Blockbuster Travel Documentary [Video]
Following on from the introduction to wild-camping, the second in this series of comic shorts deals with the difficulties of solo filmmaking. Get involved! Help get the word out about Janapar by sharing this video with the buttons above. (You can join the film’s mailing list if you wish to stay informed more regularly.)
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How To Effectively Film Your Journey, Adventure Or Expedition
I’ve began filming my adventures in 2007, when I’d barely picked up a video camera before. In 2011, I found myself presenting my first feature-length documentary at the Royal Geographical Society in London. I’ve since released two more feature docs (and numerous shorts), won film festival awards for my work, host workshops on travel filmmaking for newcomers, and make a significant portion of my living as an adventure filmmaker. This article is an introduction to how I think as a filmmaker, and how you should too. I’ll share some of the dos and don’ts I’ve learnt in relation to self-shot travel films, whether they’re…