Mireya Mayor of 'Expedition Africa'

Explorers require rugged gear, the sort Indiana Jones girds himself in.

Then, there's Mireya Mayor, a sexy blond explorer on History's Expedition Africa, airing Sundays. Mayor, a wildlife expert who holds a doctorate in anthropology, does what the three guys do while looking fashionable. In the eight-part series, the explorers travel the treacherous 970-mile journey that journalist Henry Morton Stanley took to find Dr. David Livingstone in 1871.

For those planning adventures of this nature, the most important wardrobe consideration is comfort.

"I like comfort, but given my background as a former NFL cheerleader, I do like to go with a little bit of a flair," Mayor says.

Her hiking boots from Asolo are hot pink.

"Sometimes I am limited by the choices because the field gear does come in khaki," she says. "And I will throw in a mauve tank top. I don't normally wear field pants. The problem with most, if not all, outdoor companies is they don't make pants for petite women. I am definitely small enough that their size 2s don't fit."

When evading an angry hippo, does one want to look stylish?

"You want to do it quickly, but you want to do it looking good," she says. "Just because I wake up in the jungle covered in mud and surrounded by wild beasts doesn't mean I don't want to look good. I am still a girl at the end of the day."

Mayor finds cargo pants at Abercrombie & Fitch, Macy's and the Gap.

Socks are important, and Mayor prefers wool. "They keep the leeches off, and they repel the humidity," she says. She buys hers at Jet's Florida Outdoors.

One of the most important articles of clothing is underwear, and she swears by ExOfficio.

"The whole thing is you can bring one pair of underwear with you for 14 days, five countries, because they repel moisture, are antibacterial and odor-repellent," she says. "And they dry in a heartbeat. They are phenomenal. They are the most amazing invention ever."

All serious treks require a great backpack, and Mayor loves Osprey.

Her hat, an Indiana Jones type, is by Scala, which she buys from Adventure 16. Sunglasses are important; she prefers Ray-Ban and Rudy Project.

An explorer's jacket must be all-weather, and Mayor wears North Face and Arc'teryx.

"Part of my outfit, which is just essential, is a knife," she says. Though she inadvertently bought an excellent knife, she picked Benchmade "because their logo is a really cool looking butterfly! Then you need the knife holster, and I have the best and very cool-looking holster." Her Combat Master is by Spec.-Ops.

While in remote Africa what does Mayor miss most? The fashionista explorer says, "Other than my husband and children, hot showers and sushi -- my Jimmy Choos."

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