Breakfast Meeting: Marakele 4x4 eco route - End of June

[Hedgehog]

Less than 2 months to go

[Hedgehog]

Reminder that no trailers are allowed..

[Hedgehog]

46 Days

[Hedgehog]

So the whole trip has been moved on by a month.

Due to the wet conditions

I am still waiting for formal confirmation of this

If not sent by trip date, we rock up at the gate on the documented date

[Hedgehog]

So the whole trip has been moved on by a month.

Due to the wet conditions

I am still waiting for formal confirmation of this

If not sent by trip date, we rock up at the gate on the documented date

Confirmation documents received

22 to 24 July

[offroadbiker]

Is the route, the one where you go through the tunnel, drive about 300m and then turn left onto gravel? It seems to go around the mountain....

[Hedgehog]

Is the route, the one where you go through the tunnel, drive about 300m and then turn left onto gravel? It seems to go around the mountain....

Dirk, I have not done the echo route at Marakele yet.

The route has been closed for some years, and apparently the new one is slightly different to the older one.

[McGuywer]

Being jealous for missing this, I did some Googling.

Not sure how relevant this info is, but here is the website:
https://www.sanparks.org/parks/marak..._eco_trail.php

[Hedgehog]

Tick Tock

[AfricainHD]

Eventually the week has arrived.... it is going to be epic!

[Hedgehog]

4 days to go

[Hedgehog]

What a trip!

Eco route? That's no eco route... that's a 3 day off road marathon!

[Graham]

Wow, really? Sounds very interesting.
A review/trip report would be highly appreciated if possible!

[Hedgehog]

Wow, really? Sounds very interesting.
A review/trip report would be highly appreciated if possible!

Mike will be posting one soon

[AfricainHD]

Wow, really? Sounds very interesting.
A review/trip report would be highly appreciated if possible!

We will get one up this evening.... did we mention the scenery?

[AfricainHD]

A little trip report on the Marakele 4x4 Eco Trail

After initially booking this trip in January of this year and subsequent delays due to the trail being to wet to drive, the week of our booking finally arrived.
Amore (my much better half) and I are in a fortunate position as our two vehicles are rather capable and initially had to decide which vehicle to take on the trail. The 105, camping in luxury with a fully kitted vehicle, or the Jimny which had the basics, was bought in February and hadn’t done an extended trip through rougher terrain. With the Swaziland trip planned for October and the plans to take the Jimny on that trip it was decided that the little guy would get a shake down.

With the trail due to start on the Friday, we departed just after midday on the Thursday before, with the intention to drive as far as we could get, and once sunset started looming, we would find a place to spend the evening. It was an uneventful drive up to our first stop at Alzu and the Jimny was doing well.

Weight wise we weren't loaded to the hilt and one of our missions for any packing system we have had in all of our vehicles in the past has been to have an uninterrupted view through the back window, hence the Front Runner travel bag up top.

From Alzu towards Pretoria on the N4 we hit a severe headwind and man, did that made the going tough! However, it did allow me to practice my drafting skills and this made a substantial difference to this part of the trip.


Proof that a loaded Jimny can sit at the speed limit on cruise control


We just kept driving and decided to head towards Rustenburg, not the most direct route, but would allow us to tick off another province visited on the trip. Slowed down some by the roadworks on the N4, we managed to arrive in Rustenburg as nightfall was approaching and spent the evening at Excalibur Boutique Hotel. Clean, nice rooms, bathrooms and the food was out of the brilliant. The bed wasn't the best, however for just over R1100 it was good value for money overall.

We departed Rustenburg at 06:30 on the Friday morning and headed up to Thabazimbi where we intended to do our shopping, final fuel up and wood purchasing for the trail itself. After a breakfast and final checks we arrived at the main gate of Marakele National Park at 10:30 and waited for the rest of the group to arrive.

Everyone, arrived over the next hour, final preparations and formalities with Sanparks completed.

We met up with our guide and the 53km drive to the north gate of the park started. After a couple of kilometers we turned off onto the dirt for the first time, through the boom gates installed for security purposes we went. A quick stop to deflate for the 50km trek to the north gate. It was an uneventful dusty trip up to the north gate with a few different antelope species spotted through the fences and an elephant.

Once we had entered the north gate, it did not take long to engage low range and that is where the short stick remained for the next few days. After a being warned in our briefing that there were a lot of rocks, it took us less than an hour to realize that this was going to be a very, very bumpy trip. We chose the slightly longer trip and if memory serves me correctly we were aiming to get to the second of the three potential camps available on the trail. With the trail being newly reopened and us being only the third group through, the trail was fairly overgrown and in some places was extremely difficult to follow, with the guide often having to leave his vehicle to check on the direction of the trail. We had a vehicle in the group which was having an overheating problem, not being helped by the long grass, high temperatures in general and the sheltered valleys we were going through. This required a stop every half an hour or so to let the temps calm down a bit and this actually allowed us to take in more of the scenery and experience we were having.



The last hour of the afternoon saw us climbing a mountain where we had the sun on the horizon for the entire duration of the climb. It was the never setting sun and made some technical parts of the trail rather challenging as the sun almost reduced visibility to zero. We arrived into camp as the last bit of light was fading from the sky. We all quickly setup camp, grabbed a cold beverage and gathered around the fire. It was a great catch up as we hadn't seen most of the group since the 3 Provinces trip earlier this year.

From the early hours of the Saturday morning we heard lions roaring off in the distance. We were greeted with a spectacular sunrise and after a couple of cups of coffee we were back on the trail by 07:30, with the temperatures rising sharply after 8am and an indication from our guide that we were expected to be at camp between 4-5pm if all went well, we all soon realized it was going to be a long day in the seat. However, there was plenty of banter on the radio and A LOT of magnificent scenery to take in.


At around 10am we stopped for a quick brunch on the side of the trail while we let the Hilux cool down a bit. We were all still a little lost for words as this was more than your typical Sanparks Eco Trail, it was more, much more. There were some really nice technical sections on the trail and scenery to blow your mind. The Jimny was performing very well and the only fault I could find after all the mods that have been done, is that 1st gear low range is just too fast for some technical aspects. I was going up climbs faster than I would want to, it was easy to work around and I would just let a larger gap form with the vehicle in front of us and then tackle the obstacle at the speed the Jimny was comfortable at. I know the scenery has been mentioned above, however you cannot get away from it. At the crest of every hill, around every bend, there is something new in terms of rock formations, valleys and mountains. Words and pictures are not enough to portray what we were taking in.



At around midday we approached a little stream with rock pools and if you wanted, was an opportunity to have a swim and freshen up if you liked. The Hilux at this point was behaving so we did not stop for too long as we thought we would make hay while the sun shines. We had a few more technical sections to get through amongst the rest of the rocks. The group sailed through these obstacles and just after 1pm we crested the last mountain with spectacular views over a small plain at the bottom. At the very bottom of this was our camp for the second and final evening. We arrived at our camp shortly after 2pm. We all setup camp and shortly after gathered in the shade for a relaxed afternoon.



After a wonderful evening under the stars we were greeted with a fairly strong north easter. A hot dry wind that got rid of the early morning chills. A slower start to the morning saw us leave camp just after 8am as it was a shorter day, Roughly 26km to the exit point at the northern entrance gate. The radios were quieter this morning and we were ambling along, seemingly just waiting to get to the exit gate. Rather unexpectedly after a picturesque descent into a valley we came across a small stream crossing, followed by what was arguably a more technically challenging set of climbs. This got us going again and the spirits were lifted, the radios perked up as the sheer surprise of this type of driving we were getting to do in a national park.



We had a very quick stop for a grab and go, and the last 5km's of the drive were completed fairly quickly as time was getting on and the rocks smoothed out. We arrived back at the northern entrance gate at just after 1pm. After quick goodbyes we all headed in our separate directions. We decided to take a different route home and went via Vaalwater, onto the N1 (which was really busy and getting through the tolls gates proved to be a hack at around a 10 minute wait at each). Then onto the N4, heading east. We eventually arrived home at 9pm. It was a long day in the saddle, however as we turned off the R40 into our entrance, I said to Amore, "It feels like we haven't been here in ages."

Now if that isn't a sign of a good trip then I don't know what is?

A trip like this can and has the potential to not be so enjoyable for a multitude of different reasons, and as thoroughly enjoyable as we found it, which a lot of it had to do with the group we were with. There are some things to try and factor in to decide if it is worth it for yourselves.

• It was three days of very rocky driving, like being in a permanent shaker.
• I feel that if you go with an unknown group, the potential for having to wait for an inexperienced driver, and or spend time recovering and guiding them through obstacles could be challenging an become tedious.
• You need to be fully self sufficient.
• And finally you will see no notes about animal sightings. Due to the terrain and area we were in, the game viewing and birding in general was very sparse. Thankfully not a prerequisite for us, but something to bare in mind.

The negatives for us about this whole experience are centered around Sanparks and the way they operate. On the booking sheet it was stated that there were enviro loos at the camps... They were non-existent. One burnt by fire sometime ago, and further destroyed by elephants and the second, completely inoperable due to no enzymes being available and not supplied by the Honorary Rangers.

The booking sheet also stated that a radio would be given to each vehicle to communicate. When asked about these radios we were told that they are broken. Luckily we all had our radios with the ORRA channels and a spare available to give one to the guide. Now, if doing this trail with 4 other people you didn't know and through the obstacles that we encountered without any communication, not only would this prove frustrating, it could also become rather dangerous as there are a number of areas where the margin for error is very small and lack of effective communication methods could prove a challenge.

This could potentially come from our experience within the hospitality industry and what we have come to expect from guides as such, and this sentiment was echoed by another member in our group. In terms of what the guide was like, we just felt that there could have been more communication and offering of information, at times it was almost as if all he was there to do was drive in front of the group and we must just follow that vehicle.. Could he wheel a 4x4? Yes, most definitely.

Did the above negatives ruin the trip for us? No, they did not. It was a truly special experience and as mentioned further above, I think the group you do it with really has the potential to make or break a trip like this and to everyone who was on this trip, you were out the top drawer! Another fantastic experience with special people.

[Hedgehog]

Awesome report Mike!

[PsyPhin]

Looks awesome. Maybe next time I can join.

[Oom_Paul]

Thanks for the trip report! Quite keen to go do this one. Nice photos too!