Calling all intrepid overlanders, adventurous spirits and lovers of a good story! This adventure challenge is all about sniffing out secret gems – then sharing your discoveries with others. What’s more, this time round, the Turkana Challenge 4 is open to overlanders on four wheels too.

Remember those ‘choose-your-own-adventure’ books where you could decide how the story unfolded? On the lonely road through the forest or the rugged one over the mountain… That spirit is alive and well in the Turkana Challenge 4, which lets you write your own story of travelling off the beaten track.

The people at Turkana make tough-as-anything luggage for bikers, so past challenges have been for adventure riders. But this time they are inviting 4x4s (or whatever you deem capable) to take part too. Every quarter, there is a prompt to set you off on an adventure, whether it’s staying over at a characterful old town hotel or taking in a jaw-dropping pass. All you have to do for a shot at the prizes is to get a picture with your challenge number. This is your chance to seek out quirky spots, make new discoveries and inspire others with your stories.

Inside the challenges

Anyone who has done a fair amount of overlanding will have got stuck once or twice. While it’s no fun getting bogged down in mud or sunk in deep sand, it’s even more deadly getting stuck in a rut. An adventure challenge like Turkana Challenge 4 is your antidote to doing the same thing day in and day out. Open your imagination, widen your horizons and invite the unexpected into your explorations.

• Aug – Oct: Historic Challenge | Interesting Places to Stay) | Micro Adventures
• Nov – Jan: Passes | Roadside Legends | Old Town Hotels
• Feb – Apr: Beautiful Churches | Scenic Spots to Unwind | Characters (people)
• May – Jul: Bridges | War Stories | Routes (ox wagon, postal, etc)

Aside from the quarterly challenges, there are also some challenges running all year long. These are longer adventures that may call for one big trip or several shorter excursions.

• Road Trip: Tour the most scenic small towns (northern or southern route)
• I’ll Be Dammed: Make your way to SA’s biggest dams (in the north, south or west)
• The Extremes: Travel to the country’s centre and four corners
• Follow the Light: Seek out the lighthouses (along the eastern, southern or western shoreline)

Register for Turkana Challenge 4.

T4A Online Trip Planner: Your adventure builder

Every good storyteller knows the value of plot. Luckily, when it comes to plotting routes, the Tracks4Africa Online Trip Planner is just the tool you need. It brings together all the data from our GPS Maps on a desktop view, so you have distance and travel time at your fingertips. This makes it ideal for planning routes along back roads and gravel tracks.

If you have specific destinations in mind for the Turkana Challenge, you can add them to your favourites. Then play around on the Trip Planner with different ways of linking them up.

You can also zoom in on an area to discover the local points of interest. Toggle on the various categories – such as attractions, lodging, scenic – to see what suits your idea. Zoom out to cast the net wider. You can even use the Trip Planner to search for a mountain pass, historic bridge or battlefield.

Where will you go?

There’s plenty of inspiration for your trips on the Tracks4Africa blog. Among the hotels of yesteryear, it’s worth checking out the Zuurberg Mountain Village Inn, first opened in 1861. As a bonus, you’ll get to travel scenic Doringnek Pass (read more in A day trip over the Zuurberg Mountains). In Prince Albert, the historic Swartberg Hotel has kept its Victorian touches and a reputation for lamb dishes (By motorbike through the Attaquaskloof and Gamkaskloof). Although a modern recreation of the 1903 hotel, the John Jack Inn has ample atmosphere (On gravel roads to Chrissiesmeer).

Among other interesting places to stay, there are the corbelled houses of Osfontein, with their stone roofs (Road trip with dogs). The Diepwalle camping decks let you sleep in the heart of the forest (Prince Alfred Pass: between forests and the Little Karoo). Or perhaps you would prefer the seclusion of Tierhoek Campsite, where you camp at the foot of imposing boulders (An express flower trip).

Want to spend some time chatting to a local legend? The owner of Walkerbouts Inn in Rhodes, Dave Walker, is a wonderful storyteller (Why the Ben 10 are South Africa’s top gravel passes). Or journey to Namaqualand for the stories of oom Gert Sarrisam (Highlights from the Namaqualand research trip).

Travel through the South African countryside and there’s no shortage of beautiful old churches. The Pella Cathedral, dating back to 1814, is a must-visit in the Northern Cape (Exploring the Namakwa 4×4 Eco Trail). The pretty Wakkerstroom Church has an impressive steeple (On adventure bikes to Wakkerstroom). In Hogsback, there’s the stone-built chapel of St Patrick on the Hill (A magical Hogsback adventure).

With Tracks4Africa guiding the way, you’re all set to rack up experiences that make for great stories.