Baystate Jeepers

Hi,

My wife and I are planning a safari trip to Botswana in October. The trip will be a 4wd self-drive on a combination of paved roads and unpaved, but well-traveled roads. This will likely involve driving in sand and shallow water-crossings. We are hoping to get a bit of experience or a few hands-on pointers before we go, and we were told that posting to this forum would be a good place to start.

We don't own a jeep, but are otherwise open to suggestions.

This is my first forum, so I apologize for any breach of etiquette.

Thanks,

Marcin

Hi Marcin,

Where do you live? Our members are from all over the area and I wonder if providing your location would make it easier for people to step up and help. The safari sounds interesting. Do you have any web links to information specific to the driving expectations? Photos or descriptions would be helpful.

Hi,

We live in Boston, but would be willing to drive a fair distance to get some experience, even if for a short lesson or ride-along. Most of the information we have gotten about road conditions has been from a variety of blogs about self-drive trips in Moremi National Park that we found online. I think the type of conditions we will mostly encounter will be like those featured in the attached photos (taken from one such blog).
We would be happy to get some experience (or at least be in the car) driving on something similar, with some basic tips on maintaing control, not getting stuck, and what to do if we do get stuck. We have read some about driving in such conditions, but I figure that does not come close to the real thing.

Thanks for the help,

Marcin

We have a lot of members with all types of experience on all types of terrain . We just took a person on a ride along on one of the toughest trails we do. I think from his expressions through the day, he was impressed with what the Jeeps are capable of doing. He expressed his doubt and amazement at the end of the day. I think the type of vehicle you will be driving and the equipment it has ,(traction devices,recovery,tires,winch,tire air psi) will dictate what type of experience you can expect to have. Im sure the vehicles are ready for what youll encounter as thats what they are set up to do. You could relate sand to snow in some conditions. You have traction , but you feel the vehicle moving around. If stuck in sand , like snow, the more you spin the tires the deeper you sink. Water is totally different as you dont know how deep it is , unless you watch some one go first. Care must be taken but momentum will be you best friend. Not to say you bonzi the water hole. There are so many variables to trekking and as a rule we try never to wheel alone. A ride along might be an eye opener in such it would show you how good an equipped vehicle can be Vs. our street cars . Welcome to our forum . It sounds like this will be a fun trip. FjR68

There are a couple of events coming up that are going to offer 101 demos. One has a trail ride and the other some rock piles and mud trench. It may be worth while to attend one or both of those. I am not 100% sure which BSJ people will be at either one but if they are going on the trail ride or rocks they may be able to give you a ride on them. I don't want to speak for anyone though.

The events are:

Jeep Fest Sat August 16th at 425 Ten Rod Rd, North Kingston RI

Great American Jeep Rally September 13th at 43 Lower Butcher Rd, Ellington CT

Personal I recommend the Jeep Rally but I am bias.

Thanks! The Jeep Rally would work better with our schedule, and sounds pretty interesting regardless.

In the meantime, I am wondering if there are any beaches within a few hours of Boston that allow 4wd vehicles? It seems that would be a good place to start. Also, any recommendations for Jeep rentals would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Cape Cod- you need to get a beach pass

It looks like at the Cape Cod National Seashore, they don't issue beach passes to rental Jeeps (though I'm not even sure where to rent a Jeep from).

Are there rallys or anything like that there, where we could try to join? Or, can anyone suggest some other way of finding someone to go for a ride with out there, even if it's just pointing me to the right forum?

Thanks.

At the GAJR, they do a trail run on the day after- Sept 14.

Other than that, we have a run THIS SATURDAY for NH. I'll add you to the evite and you can post up if someone can take on a passenger.

asauer17 wrote:At the GAJR, they do a trail run on the day after- Sept 14.

Those runs typically are limited and tickets need to be purchased ahead of time. Also this year there will not be any ride the day after the Rally.

If you happen to be on the Outer Banks of North Carolina before you leave (I know, it's a hike) you can rent a Jeep and drive on the beach up there.
As far as driving on sand goes - a few things
1. - reduce tire pressure. 12 to 15 psi should work well for most tires these days.
2. - for damp, packed sand, just drive like you normally do, without the jackrabbit starts and stops. Use 4 Hi, gentle pressure on the accelerator to start, gentle pressure on the brakes to stop.
3. - for dry, deep sand - 4 hi, very gentle pressure on the gas to get started, get to and maintain 15 - 20 MPH, and just keep rolling until you get where you're going. Don't crank on the wheel, just kind of point the jeep where you want it to go and let it "have it's head" as long as it's going generally where you're headed. You won't have the firm control that you're used to, just let it go and it will get there.
4. - in dry, deep sand - I never touch the brake. Just lifting your foot off the gas will be enough to get the Jeep stopped - even if it's an automatic. If you step on the brake, it will built up a little sand bump in front of the tire, when you got to start again you'll have to drive over it. It's hard to get used to, but once you do it a few times you'll get the hang of it.
Most important thing in sand - don't spin or lock the wheels. If you start spinning, you start digging. Once your start digging, you're stuck.