4x4 Adventures can take you places others will not dare to go

All it takes is a taste of one of the many 4x4 adventures one can go on, just one off-road trip with one of your friends in his or her four-wheel-drive bakkie, truck, ARV, CRV or whathaveyou and that’s it – you’ll be hooked. Whereas there are others among us who require even less temptation, becoming addicted to 4x4 adventures even before we’ve gone on one – just from visiting a 4x4 vehicle dealership or one of those shops selling 4x4 accessories, got-to-haves, essential extras, call them what you will.

4x4 Mega World is one of those places, a shop that once you step inside is difficult to leave if you’ve fallen under the spell of 4x4 adventures. Specialised suspension, bullbars, supplementary headlights, winches and other recovery equipment are some of the ways they can upgrade your vehicle, and the range of cool accessories on offer includes Safari Bow tents, Engel fridges, the Garmin GPS range and every Leatherman knife there is. Undoubtedly, if you’re serious about 4x4 adventures then camping equipment has to be near the top of your “to get” list

Having said that, though, once you’re you’ve bought, rented or leased a 4x4, the next step is to learn how to drive it properly! Think about it: if you drive a truck or bus you’d need to get a special licence, and what you’re going to be doing in a 4x4 can be a lot more dangerous and sometimes in places that are definitely dangerous. You need to be properly prepared before you contemplate any 4x4 adventures. And besides, 4x4 driver training can be fun too.

Vat4 Safaris outside Nelspruit, for example, include driver training as part of the package of services they offer – from self-drive safaris to 4x4 adventures led by their experienced safari leaders in separate vehicles, Land Rover rentals, to delicious meals prepared by their bush chef and comfortable accommodation in stylish campsites, lodges or guesthouses. Their Alkmaar property is a citrus and macadamia farm that boasts a 7km 4x4 route and a 4x4 obstacle course on which their driver training is conducted.

4x4 driver training and 4x4 adventures are also offered at Riverwild, also just outside Nelspruit and featuring a tented bush camp with self-catering facilities.

4x4 junkies in search of a different sort of place for their next fix could consider De Berg at the foot of the Drakensberg in the Eastern Cape, where they offer a route for 4x4 adventures near the Lesotho border. Or you could contemplate the Bergplaats Game Lodge 80km outside Beaufort West where – unless you have a horse or quad bike or are a fit hiker – their God’s Window lodge in the mountains is accessible only by those keen on 4x4 adventures.

In fact the list of places to choose from for 4x4 adventures is as long as you want to make it. Once it’s in your blood and once you’ve become experienced at it, well, you’ll be up for any 4x4 challenge there is.