Table of contents for May/June 2020 in SA4x4

The scale of the COVID-19 pandemic has surprised us all. As has the severity and impact of the lockdown restrictions imposed in South Africa since late March. It was the right thing to do but, as with any severe action, the medical gains in containing the potential spread of the virus are slowly being outweighed by the massive costs in lost business. It shows just how fragile both our health systems and our economies really are. A brief pause in the large scale of time is a healthy thing, but for all of us involved in meeting human demand, from manufacturing cars to offering great tourist escapes, that pause is weighing heavily on lost income. We can’t make the usual decisions or go about planning to expand or reinterpret our…

In order to truly comprehend and correctly utilise your vehicle’s four-wheel drive systems out on the trail, one needs a basic understanding of certain generic ‘offroad’ concepts. So, prior to continuing on driving skills per se, this column deals with some terminology. I have endeavoured to limit the number of terms to those considered absolutely indispensable, and to distil this terminology to the simplest explanations possible particularly for our newbies (that said, you’re never too experienced to discover something new). For the more technically minded, or those wishing to pursue the subject in greater depth, there are numerous alternative resources that go into great detail. This list has been created in such a way that a grasp of each term is necessary to understand the terms that follow. Where applicable,…

I was damn glad that tonight we were looking for frogs and aquatic stuff in a croaking and groaning swamp, rather than rare snakes! I knew my companions would go ape if they found a deadly twig snake or mamba, but for now, I was happy the hunt was on for other goggas. I had met medical doctor Colin Tilbury that evening, just before heading out to the mud hole. Johan Marais, the Snake Man, whispered in my ear: “Colin is probably the world’s best authority on chameleons.” We were heading back at quite a lick towards our camp, Gugulesizwe. Colin Tilbury, sitting behind me, kept saying rather loudly, “Chameleon… chameleon… chameleon.” I couldn’t help but ask: “What bloody chameleon?” In reply, Colin asked our campsite head ranger, Mbongeni Myeni…

I have to extend a big thank you to Chris Thomson of Hi-Range Safari City, the 4x4 goto place in Gaborone. He was one of the core sponsors of this trip, together with Darrell van Zeil of Opposite Lock in Gauteng. I drove with Chris and Darrel from Gauteng down to Gugulesizwe and found them inspiring travel companions, quickly learning that both he and Darrel are snake-mad outdoor enthusiasts. Chris started his life as a freshwater fishing guide up at Shakawe in the Okavango Delta. Chris is somewhat quiet and laid back, but get him talking about fishing or 4x4ing and he’s in his element. I really loved looking at some pictures and his stories of a recent fishing trip to Gabon. His business, Hi-Range Safari City, has built up…

Nobody said overlanding is for sissies, and our exit route from Angola was a stern test of this. It took three days to cover 160km of the worst road we had ever seen, as we plunged from one giant puddle to the next, each one threatening to tip Agnes onto her side. The final stretch to the Zambian border was the worst we had seen, and our racing engine warned the border official at the Jimbe gate, who raised the boom as we just made it to solid ground. Our passports were stamped at what was possibly the least frequented border in Zambia after the date stamp was moved from its position quite some years back. As we moved on to clear the vehicle through customs, raggedy hand-drawn signs led…

There are two groups of people when it comes to modifying vehicles: those who modify for looks and the guys who do it out of necessity. At SA4x4, we tend to have more in common with the latter group. Richard Kiggen, the owner of the Isuzu-based rig you see on these pages, is definitely a guy who puts his travel needs first. What motivated your build, we asked, and this was his reply: “I love the beauty of Africa, its landscapes and cultures, and I feel that it must be explored. I have always travelled on adventure bikes but increasingly became more interested in 4x4 overlanding. My idea was to construct a 4x4 that offers usability, comfort, and luxury for people who want a real adventure.” His build started out…

Space and weight are two key concerns in the overlanding and camping playbook. You need to conserve both. So it was interesting to pick up Tentco’s Caprivi 3 nylon tent. The entire tent packs into a bag of dimensions 65 x 12 x 14cm, and it weighs just 6.35kg. Nothing remarkable about that if you are looking at a high-end three-season or four-season hiking tent, which can withstand a huge storm, but is usually very cramped. The thing is, this tent pitches to a remarkably spacious 3.0 x 3.0 metre footprint, with a roof height at the apex of 1.8m. So it can easily function as a very comfortable off-vehicle room that can be used, say, when you have pitched your rooftop tent, but want more sheltered space on the…

ARMCHAIR OVERLANDING WITH DAN GREC We’ve often featured the adventures of overland adventurer Dan Grec in the pages of SA4x4. He recently wrapped up a two-year round trip through Africa, so it’s great news that he had published a large-format book containing some of the photographic highlights. Titled ‘999 Days Around Africa: The Road Chose Me”, it contains 75 full-colour pages packed with photos from all 35 countries he visited on the expedition. It’ll make a superbly inspiring gift. At this stage it is only in print via Amazon. ISBN 978-0-9951989-5-1 Amazon link www.amzn.to/2H93IUH) Dan tells us he is putting the finishing touches on his second travel book, ‘The Road Chose Me Volume 2: Three years and 54,000 miles around Africa’, which he says should be available on Amazon from…

KUKONJE & BOTSWANA’S RIVER FLOWS I was most interested in reading the article on Botswana’s Hunter’s Road in the April issue of SA4x4. It certainly is a challenge with all that black cotton soil in the rains! In the article, the author mentioned that they visited Kukonje Island. Although more people are familiar with Kubu Island, I agree with the author that a visit to its sister Kukonje Island is worthwhile. Although both are located on Sowa Pan, the two islands are very different. Kubu is much smaller with rounded outcrops, boulders, and small cliffs of granite which are dotted with massive baobabs. In contrast, Kukonje is much larger and is made up of a flat horizontal sheet of dolerite, a blackish igneous rock. This has resulted in the formation…

It seems that a ‘must-have’ piece of equipment, which is often mounted on peoples’ 4x4s, is a winch. It most certainly has that ‘wow’ factor and makes you look like the ultimate adventurer. This piece of equipment has been available for decades, yet many owners have no idea how to operate it safely. Winches are used for lifting in industrial applications, as well as for pulling; think of overhead cranes lifting containers in the harbour, and the tow truck or flatbed that comes to pick your vehicle up after an accident or breakdown. In this series we keep on stressing that you should attend a recovery course for a reason; the last thing you want is for a mishap to happen in the middle of the wilderness that results in…

I want to tell you about the Gugulesizwe Camp, a camp with a real heart. I can use fancy words about ‘watershed moments’ and ‘true joint ventures between community, conservation authorities, and ecotourism partners’. Or I can tell you about the genuine community welcome we felt, the moment we stepped out of our Opposite Lock double-cab at Gugulesizwe Camp. I’ve knocked around the travel industry for almost four decades. I have a reasonable ‘people’s meter’! My meter needle swung immediately to ‘real/genuine welcome’. Gugulesizwe, quickly known as Gugs by the people lucky enough to have experienced it, is an example of what can happen when there is a genuine sharing between the local community and guys like James McCulloch, the young MD, and David Middleton, James’s lifelong friend, from Maputaland…

The rugged Tibesti Mountains are as far as you can get from civilisation in Africa. Situated in the centre of the Sahara, in northern Chad, it’s a long four-day 1 500km journey from the capital, N’Djamena, much of which is on tracks, or pistes, that is not for the faint-hearted. It’s not surprising, therefore, that the area attracts only a few hundred determined adventurers a year and, in 2016, I was to be one of them! From Johannesburg, I travelled by Ethiopian Airlines to N’Djamena with a night stop in Addis Ababa. Arriving in N’Djamena, I met up with my fellow travellers; like me, they also wanted to travel to the middle of nowhere in search of raw adventure with Milan-based tour operator, Spazi D’Avventura. Meeting Pierot, Tibesti connoisseur After…

The Amarok is a cleverly-engineered pickup. From launch in 2010, it was a step or two ahead of the rivals in terms of technology, if not ability. Back then, the flagship version used a 120kW 2.0-litre turbodiesel, which was a very different approach to that of its rivals. “The body is too wide, there’s not enough lugging power, the 6-speed gearbox is notchy,” said the doubters, “and where is the 3.0-litre V6 that it needs?” Even so, the little 2.0-litre proved reliable, capable, and able to take on anything the rivals managed in standard form. VW might have been too quick to pre-empt the major downsizing trend with its 2.0-litre turbo motor (which was long established in the T5 Transporter), in line with emerging emissions regulations and a more ecological…

Rob Dziubdziela Rob’s Discovery 4 SDV6 HSE was built to conquer a massive cross-continent trip. The modification list is very extensive, but a few highlights include the ARB front bumper, Ironman 12 000lb winch, Rival underbody protection, Big Country Ostrich wing awning, custom rooftop tent, Hella spotlights, Compomotive 18-inch wheels, 420W solar panels, and an X-Lifter system to adjust the air suspension on the go or to level the vehicle out while camping. Rob, who took this snap while testing his rig in the Kruger National Park, is planning to drive from Cape Town to London, he will then ship the vehicle to Uruguay, and then make his way north to Alaska. The alternative route could be shipping the car to Alaska and then driving south to Chile. Mike van…

#GREATVALUEGREATSERVICE Mahindra has launched a new after-sales promise statement across its entire dealer network to create a superb service experience and a closer relationship with customers. Called #GreatValueGreatService, the campaign combines industry best-practice and a brand-new app interface to ensure customers receive a seamless and friendly experience when servicing or repairing a vehicle at an affordable price. “The new #GreatValueGreatService promise is built on three primary aspects of a customer’s expectations. These are: #1 ease and convenience, #2 the quality of the service or repair process and #3 overall affordability,” says Rajesh Gupta, CEO of Mahindra South Africa. PUTS THE UTE IN CUTE Have you ever looked at a Jimny and thought, ‘I want a bakkie version?’ Well, a Suzuki dealership in Whanganui, New Zealand, has you covered. The certified…

The writer of this month’s winning letter receives one of the most useful recovery aids you can carry on your vehicle – a set of two Total Traction by Treds recovery tracks from Ironman 4x4. That’s quite a mouthful, but these bright green Australian-engineered and manufactured tracks will get your vehicle out of trouble in a hurry, whether you are mired in sand, mud or snow, or hung up on a rocky patch that has got your wheels scrabbling for traction. Treds are 1.1 metres long and feature a four-channel underside for rigidity and stability, aggressive ramp entry teeth, and grippy hex nodules along the length of the track. The set is valued at R4795.…

Whilst ‘growing younger’ sounds like the sales pitch for a new anti-ageing cosmetic, it is indeed a scientific fact. Well, in some insects at least! One of the weirdest phenomena in all of nature is the ability of certain insects to grow younger, or put another way, age in reverse. Termites are one such example; honey bees another. Termites practice division of labour via a caste system, with each caste having a specific task. Only the ‘royal couple’ are able to reproduce, whilst workers and soldiers forgo this ability in order to perform the tasks of foraging and protection for the good of the colony. Ants often raid termite nests, killing many of the soldier termites. This results in a disproportionate ratio of worker to soldier termites. The colony can…

TOYOTA FORTUNER The Epic treatment For 2020, Toyota has bestowed the revered Fortuner with a host of exterior additions and created the latest iteration – the new ‘Fortuner Epic’. Two Epic variants are on offer, both based on the 2.8-litre GD-6 derivatives: the ‘standard’ Epic and the Epic Black. As the name implies, the latter uses black accents to up the ante visually. The Epic package will be applied to all Fortuner 2.8 models, in other words, both rear-drive only and four-wheel-drive variants. The exterior has been enhanced with the fitment of a branded nudge-bar and tow bar. Epic Black models feature a bi-tone design with black roof, black roof rails, black side-view mirrors, and unique all-black 18-inch alloy wheels. Epic variants can be had in Glacier White, Chromium Silver,…

I have enough information to write 10 articles about Johan Marais, South Africa’s well-known naturalist, snake man, entrepreneur, and photographer. He’s the author of the ‘A Complete Guide to the Snakes of Southern Africa.’ And, I believe, a new and updated edition is in the pipeline. I could tell you tales of how he started catching snakes near his home in Durban from the age of seven. Still catching anything that slithered or slid, he went on to become a cop in the Durban drug squad. It’s a long tale of adventure including field trips as far as Uganda, Namibia, and Mozambique. Snakes were always the core of his life but this didn’t stop him from all sorts of ventures, from owning a chain of bookshops to farming with crocs…

If I were only allowed to pack three items in a survival pack, they would be a knife, paracord, and duct tape. With these, I think you could surmount any catastrophe. It’s likely we know the origins of the knife and paracord (ok, if you don’t, paracord is used for parachute guylines), but what about duct (or duck) tape? What’s the story there? Without a doubt, duct tape has to be one of the greatest products ever invented. I have lost count of the myriad times I have used it to get me out of a sticky situation, and read stories of similar accounts. That has to be one of its biggest attributes: there seem to be few boundaries as to its application. Going back to WW2 Believe it or…

We will be the first to admit that this is not the typical vehicle we test, but if the opportunity comes to get the keys for the most powerful SUV in the world for a couple of days, you grab it, much like your passengers will be grabbing at the handles when you unleash the full 527kW. Yes, Jeep has dialled in 527kW and 875Nm from their infamous 6.2-litre Hemi V8, by coupling it with a 2.4-litre supercharger. Speaking of which, it generates 11PSI of boost while spinning at 14 600rpm and requires 60kW just to operate. It whines away gloriously in the background and really kicks in from about 2 000rpm. That massive power output figure comes at a price though, and even with the so-called ECO mode activated,…

MIKE VAN DYK 2018 Mahindra S11 4x4 Occupation: Technical Lecturer Modifications: Front Runner roof rack, Howling Moon rooftop tent, 4x4 Mega World side awning. Future modifications: Dual-battery system, snorkel. Dream car: This is it. Most memorable trip: June/July 2019, three weeks through Botswana, Rundu, Etosha, Spitzkoppe, Keetmanshoop, and through Rietfontein border post into RSA (6 000km total, with 700km on gravel roads). Planned trip: Richtersveld and southern Namibia, up to Lüderitz and back, in 2021. I never leave home without: My wife, a camera, a fat wallet, a decent jack, and a 12V compressor. This pic of Mike (who says he is ‘74 years young’) was snapped by his wife as he was balancing on the trailer. He was trying to take a pic of Mariepskop outside Hoedspruit, but in…