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Mutare Dungbeetle - Trail Drive
November 20 / 22
"We do not have time to set up the Jamboree so you can come on the best 4x4 Trail drive in the country" Now having just been on the Sanyati Adventure this was fighting talk! But what a drive. We have been on a 100k 4x4 trail in Low Range…..wow. I did hear Ralph Stead complain that we had TWICE been onto a bit of tar road, not good enough!
The route started from Chris Maas's house in Cecil Kop Game Park and followed the Mozambique border over the mountains through forests, the Imbeza forest, down the side of a never ending hillside where the cars looked like Dinky toys. To get back onto a forest track we had to lower Mass Kirk's Cruiser down a slippery bank with Mark Benzon's Patrol. Past Penhalonga and into Redwing Mine for more tracks in the hills. The Mutare water pipeline track was rough and interesting, past St Augustine's Mission, where we found a deep gulley where Ralph's Defender tried to go through but got stuck.
On along the pipe line track to Smallbridge Dam for the night. A festive evening with a disco till all hours and a lovely evening with a Fish Eagle, fire flies and twittering frogs
Sunday, a lazy start with more pipeline track, past Hillcrest school and a fantastic mountain track which brought us out on top of Christmas Pass. An incredible experience for us Harare drivers as we have nothing like this to play on. Many thanks to Roger and Gareth Barry and Michael Maas. 16 cars started, mostly Mutare competition cars, and 5 big wagons from Harare.
Harare contingent;
Ralph and Rose Stead - Defender
Mark and Hilary Benzon with Roger Ellis – Patrol
Mass Kirk and Sons and Danish visitors – Cruiser
Michael and Pat Gill – Big Patrol
Carol and Derek Weare came along but could not do the trail in their 2 x 4.
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