Travel Africa & beyond with 4x4 stories from readers and journalists.

Do go chasing waterfalls…

For most South Africans, the Wild Coast is simply too far away and too arduous to access to make it a worthwhile destination. An absolute travesty, if you ask me. After spending just over a week combing the beaches, bluffs, waterfalls and river mouths of the wildest Eastern Cape, I’ve been converted. This is paradise, my friends. But hurry – it may not be this way forever. The long haul It’s a long drive from Cape Town to the north coast of the Eastern Cape. It’s more than 1 000km of Garden Route meandering that quickly deteriorates into pothole-ridden, fatigue-inducing

Ultimate Adventures Iceland Experience

Come and join Ultimate Adventures and Arctic Truck Experience for an off-road adventure of a lifetime. You will get to drive your very own Toyota Hilux Arctic Truck while under the expert guidance of the AT guide that will accompany us for the full duration of the tour, sharing local knowledge and ensuring the best off-road experience Iceland has to offer. The itinerary has been designed to include all of the highlights one would expect to experience while travelling in this winter wonderland with the best chance of seeing the Northern Lights. Space is limited to 8 persons sharing with

Rainforest Challenge

We head to Malaysia for the Rainforest Challenge, a world of crimson mud, black scorpions and specially-adapted crawler rigs.

Nam-packed

It’s what you put in the miles, not the miles you put in. Strange for Namibia? The Ironman 4×4 lads, based in Windhoek, prove a point when they put together a rich and varied tour focused on the Erongo region…

Tankwa time-out

A few weekends ago we had the pleasure of once again travelling to the Tankwa Karoo. The Tankwa is a very special place for us. It’s where my fiancé Simon and I had one of our first Rolbos Overland adventures, which led to me penning our first blog and the two of us becoming full-time explorers. This time around we decided to try something new and travel along the Old Postal Road. Our final destination was a campsite called “Die Mond” situated on the banks of the Groot River. We left promptly at 06:00 on a Friday morning, taking the

Dune domination… in an X3

When BMW South Africa drops you a line asking you to join them for some dune driving in an X3, you might be a bit reluctant at first. The 4×4 community views BMW’s off-road capable offerings with healthy scepticism, and you won’t find an X3 or X5 off the beaten track that often. Historically, there have been a few simple explanations for that: minimal ground clearance, lack of off-road tires, poor underbody protection, and an off-road system more geared towards icy European roads than rocky African adventures. BMWs have, thus, always been relegated to the bench when it comes to

That’s the Spirit!

By now a well-established event on the South African 4×4 calendar, the Spirit of Africa is a chance for two-person teams from southern Africa to test their precision off-road driving skills to the limit at a game farm outside Mbombela (Nelspruit), and gain a chance to participate in the prestigious international finals. Over 25 elimination rounds, starting in April, more than 400 teams are whittled down to just 20 of the best-scoring teams. These then go on to compete for top honours at the International Spirit of Amarok Trophy which takes place in August, against teams from countries as diverse

Ultimate Adventures Zambia Migrations Expedition

Each year, Zambia plays host to two of the best-kept secrets in the natural world. That these wildlife spectacles are only ever witnessed by the avid adventurer is due to the remoteness of the areas in which they occur. Liuwa Plain National Park is situated in the Upper Zambezi flood plains of Western Zambia. The park covers an area of 3 600 square kilometres of vast grasslands and wooded islands, and the plain from which the park takes its name is 70km long and 30km wide. The park plays a vital role in the Zambezi’s catchment, and is flooded from late

South America in a Sprinter: Part 2

Chile is a very long country. From the border with Peru in the north, to the southernmost point of the Americas at Cape Horn, it extends 4270km along the Pacific Ocean – yet averages only 177km east to west. After spending many weeks in the Atacama Desert in the north, our next destination was legendary Patagonia. At the office of Transportes Austral in Puerto Montt, we bought tickets for the ferry from Hornopirén to Caleta Gonzalo. The road from Puerto Montt to La Arena is a short drive of about an hour, followed by a 40-minute ferry crossing to Pulche

Friendly Zambia

I stare intently at the petrol gauge while trying to drive with the least possible amount of throttle. I’m in sixth gear, moving at 50km/h, and trying to keep the revs as low as possible to stretch every possible kilometre from what little petrol remains. After 30km, I’m not really surprised to find the dusty town does not have a petrol station – rural Zambia is not a densely-populated place, after all. With little choice, I roll on, towards almost-certain failure. A handful of kilometres later, the engine dies. There is no coughing or spluttering, no indication that anything is

Browsing: Travel