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

Beautifully Barren – Do Limpopo 4×4 eco trails

Words and pictures by Grant Spolander SHINGWEDZI 4X4 ECO-TRAIL While the Kruger National Park appeals to many holidaymakers, to some, the reserve fails to offer the very thing that many off-road adventurers seek: an escape. We visit Kruger’s unruly neighbour for a chance to drive a little-known trail lost in solitude. I hate the Kruger National Park. Okay, maybe “hate” is a bit strong, but I can’t help but feel grumpy about the unnaturalness of it all. Firstly: the roads. Nothing takes the bush out of a bush experience quite like a tarred road. Secondly: traffic jams. A wilderness holiday

Beauty in the making

Words by Patrick Cruywagen Pictures by Patrick Cruywagen and various GORONGOSA NATIONAL PARK, MOZAMBIQUE International news reports about Africa usually focus on subjects like war, famine, disease, corruption, poverty and Robert Mugabe. When visiting Gorongosa we stumbled onto a story with a positive spin, and a park that might well turn into the Serengeti of the South. IT’S BEEN A PERFECT SUNDAY IN THE BUSH, SO far. We enjoyed a great game drive in the morning, followed by a late brunch on the banks of the Msicadzi River. Rob Janisch (my host and the owner of Explore Gorongosa, the only

Relying on Rubber

Words and pictures by Stuart Williams The folk at Arctic Trucks in Reykjavik, Iceland have a simple solution to any off-road problem – just increase the surface area. That’s why they convert Hilux and Cruisers to run on tyres as big as 44”! Stuart Williams was lucky enough to hitch a ride to Iceland to drive these beasts across a glacier. IN ORDER TO MAKE TRAVEL easier on sand or ice, you need to deflate your tyres to increase your surface area. Of course not all of us have the luxury of an 18.5 bar swing in pressure. That’s right,

Coasting to Kunene

Words and pictures by Grant Spolander EXPLORING NAMIBIA’S SKELETON COAST The Kunene River mouth is one of the most inaccessible places on earth. Guarded by a deadly coastline and a merciless desert, this most north-western point of Namibia has for many years remained a no-go zone for 4×4 adventurers. However as Grant Spolander recently discovered, there’s change afoot. Sun-bleached bones litter this coastline like KFC packets on the Durban beachfront after Boxing Day; if the Seychelles is paradise found then Namibia’s northern coastline is Auschwitz reincarnate. To travel this region alone is like donning a KKK outfit and joining a

The Road Less Travelled

Words by Patrick Cruywagen Pictures by Patrick Cruywagen and Alison Dunn Kariba to Binga – tracking Kariba’s southern shores If you want to know what it’s like to drive for days without seeing another traveller, then you need to take the track from Kariba to Binga. As our Bush Editor discovered, this route offers a stiff off-road challenge and demands lots of patience. While at Mana Pools some locals warned me that the people in the town of Kariba were a little… well, let’s just say ‘different’. Kariba is a lakeside town where there isn’t much to do except head

Sustenance Seeking

Words and pictures by Grant Spolander A SEARCH FOR SOLITUDE ON MOZ’S SOUTHERN SHORES Grant Spolander, feeling a tad ill-equipped, explores one of Mozambique’s most popular coastal getaways in search of budget deals and tranquil offerings. Despite his inhibitions, he still manages to stumble upon some great deals and humble retreats. “Where have you been?” The question is rhetorical more than anything else, so we keep our mouths shut. “You have no stamps on this form and you’re missing another form that must look like this!” The Mozambican border official holds up an immigration form filled with stamps. My stomach

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