Meet Ben Southall – founder of Best Life Adventures
Adventurer, presenter, author and digital journalist are just a few of the titles I’ve collected in recent years. Ultimately though, I’m a guy who has an intense passion for global travel, adventure and gruelling outdoor challenges. Colonel Mustard, my veteran Land...
Top Ten places to go kayaking in Australia
After exploring Australia for over a decade, by land air and sea, I've fallen in love with human-powered journeys that involve water. Be that kayaking the length of the Great Barrier Reef, outrigging around the islands of the Torres Strait, or paddling the waters...
Cold. Limited oxygen. Tough trail – Why bother?
UPDATE: read the ABC news article about this expedition here. After three and a half years away from the awe-inspiring mountains of the Himalayas, it was truly magnificent to once again walk among giants. After so long away, I think I'd become nonchalant and blase...
PADDLE THE WHANGANUI RIVER – Post Expedition Report
Paddling 120 kilometres on the Whanganui River gave me five days of unfiltered adventure and absolute mental clarity - something I haven't experienced in well over a decade. The ability to take a random life thought all the way from conception to completion with no...
Brutal, but beautiful – Arctic Expedition Report 2023
Our 2023 Extreme Dreams: Tri-Nation Arctic expedition is complete. Here's the lowdown from our Expedition Director, Ben Southall. Vast swathes of frozen tundra stretch towards the horizon, bisected by the dark foreboding water of the saltwater fjords far below. After...
Ride the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail (+ a 5 year old in tow)
Adventure is not just for grown-ups. Best Life Adventures founder Ben Southall recently embarked on a two-and-a-half day Back Pocket Adventure with his son Atlas on the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail (BVRT) – the longest rail trail in Australia. So, this Father's Day If...
Moreton Bay Wilderness Kayak – Expedition Report 2022
We’re just back from three days of majestic adventure on the crystal clear waters of Moreton Bay...yes you heard me right, Moreton Bay. It's hard to imagine such clear conditions when you're only 25kms from the infamous Brisbane River (aka the Chocolate Snake) as it...
Extreme Dreams: Africa – Expedition Report – Part 2 Serengeti
In July 2022 we finally completed our long-awaited Extreme Dreams: Wildest Africa and the Mountains of the Moon expedition and boy was it worth the wait. A tough mountain ascent on the equator followed by four days of Big 5 action in the Serengeti. If you haven't...
Extreme Dreams: Africa Expedition Report – Part 1 Rwenzoris
In July 2022 we finally completed our long-awaited Extreme Dreams: Wildest Africa expedition and boy was it worth the wait. A tough mountain ascent on the equator followed by four days of Big 5 action in the Serengeti.
Balanz Corporate Team Adventure Expedition Report – May 2022
What a cracking weekend of Autumnal adventures we just had with the team from Balanz in chilly Victoria. This year's annual adventure swapped paddle for peddle-power as we took on the famous 'Murray to Mountains' rail trail for 125kms of cycling over two days on MTBs...