Four Wheeling in South Africa

by Kristin Poulter
(Cape Town)

My partner and I own 2 Suzuki 4x4s which we have taken to some very beautiful and exciting places in the Western Cape, South Africa. Our favorite trip to date is a trail called "West Coast Eco" which runs a long the strip of coastline from Cape Town to Koiingnaas and passes through the Northern Cape. This trail is completely wild with no infrastructure of any kind for miles, besides the occasional campers with the same idea.

In the past the area was actively mined for diamonds and thus has earned the name "the diamond coast", the authories tell us that diamonds may still be unearthed if one has the patience to scratch around! We loaded up all our camping gear and just disappeared. There is a huge amount of ship wrecks in the area just waiting be explored. A little further inland one can experience Kokerboom forests and other natural marvels.

We are very lucky to have many places where we can go in the Western Cape. Another favourite here is the Atlantis dunes which is also on the West Coast near Cape Town. The dunes are a municipality run area which is actually a water catchment zone housing an aquifer that provides the surrounding area with its water supply. The dunes are an exciting trip with many challenges and obstacles but most of all, we love to be out in the fresh air, enjoying the beauty of the scenery.