Marakele 4x4 Eco Trail — rocky terrain, game sightings, and overnight report
Went through last Easter weekend in a Land Cruiser 79 DC. Here is the full report.
The approach road is graded gravel for the first 43km then transitions to a proper 4x4 track. We had 3 vehicles in convoy which made recovery easy when we needed a second opinion on a tricky crossing. Total distance from the gate to our campsite was 24km and took 2 hours.
Camping: The campsite has braai facilities and cold ablutions. Signal is MTN gets 2 bars at the high point.
Fuel: filled up in the last town before the turn-off. Diesel consumption was around 12L/100km on the technical sections — budget for higher than your tar road figure. We carried 34L spare in jerry cans.
The solitude is reason enough to go back every year. Happy to answer any questions from people planning this route.
3 Replies
Solo or convoy? I ask because I am planning this as a solo trip which I know is not ideal. My Garmin inReach Mini gives me a bit of confidence but keen to hear your view on whether it is sensible alone.
Went through this one two seasons back and our experience was similar. The crossing you mentioned was also the part that got our attention. What tyre pressures were you running? We found 1.3bar front and rear worked well on that surface.
Good write-up. One thing to add from our trip there — the campsite booking process has changed since the last reports I read. They have installed a new water tank at the halfway point which changes the water carrying calculations.