Stuffie Steve
Member
- Posts
- 11
- Location
- Falkland Islands
So this is me.
Living on in a country where Land Rovers rule, it wasnt long before I found myself sitting behind the wheel of a 110 and heading off into the back and beyond on my first true off road driving experience - I guess I should point out, not before gaining a little off road tuition from an experienced local.
The Falkland Islands are an off-roaders dream. With metalled roads restricted to the capital Stanley and intermittent stretches on the 35 mile drive to the military airport at Mount Pleasant (the only route on and off the islands) access to the settlements dotted around the two main islands is by gravel and clay tracks that put the Land Rovers suspension to the test with adjoining pot holes that could almost ground a saloon car.
Within an area the size of Wales and a population of approximately 3000 its easy to find yourself on your own once you get out of town and off the beaten track, so we usually drive in pairs or small convoys when venturing off into the unknown. Only very experienced local drivers or the foolhardy would dare drive far afield on their own in the terrain we have here. Even the military are told to forget the off road training they have and seek local advice when venturing into unfamiliar territory.
With no native trees the Falkland Islands is a land of wide open spaces, big skies, remote white sand beaches, peat bogs, rough grass with hidden meandering streams, stone runs and water blisters just waiting to catch the uninitiated driver out.
Driving in the Falkland Islands, you soon learn to read the land and become amateur botanists. Green and/or tall plant growth means wet and generally areas best avoided. Small hidden streams are deceptive; a gash in what would appear to be clear open grassland barely wide enough to get your foot in can unexpectedly open up and engulf the front end of a rover when driven across due to the underground erosion, so its always wize to get out and check before.
I drive a Land Rover Defender 90 300 tdi thats getting on a bit, and currently in the process of getting a nice bright shiny new galvanized chassis from Richards Chassis. I would have loved to carry out the changeover myself, but fortunately know a very good experienced mechanic, with all the kit that will have the job done in a fraction of the time it would take me.
My 90 boasts a number of additions: wide mud tiers (pretty much as standard here), sump/steering guard, diff guards, internal roll bar, rock sliders, snorkel, Warn 8275 winch and bumper. Scorpion Racing wheel carrier (modified). I also carry four waffle boards (long and short), kinetic recovery rope, two snatch blocks, ground anchor (home made) and GPS mobile unit, just to be on the safe side.
I do not race or rally, but along with work, make full use my 90 to explore the more remote regions of the islands with my partner and friends.
Living on in a country where Land Rovers rule, it wasnt long before I found myself sitting behind the wheel of a 110 and heading off into the back and beyond on my first true off road driving experience - I guess I should point out, not before gaining a little off road tuition from an experienced local.
The Falkland Islands are an off-roaders dream. With metalled roads restricted to the capital Stanley and intermittent stretches on the 35 mile drive to the military airport at Mount Pleasant (the only route on and off the islands) access to the settlements dotted around the two main islands is by gravel and clay tracks that put the Land Rovers suspension to the test with adjoining pot holes that could almost ground a saloon car.
Within an area the size of Wales and a population of approximately 3000 its easy to find yourself on your own once you get out of town and off the beaten track, so we usually drive in pairs or small convoys when venturing off into the unknown. Only very experienced local drivers or the foolhardy would dare drive far afield on their own in the terrain we have here. Even the military are told to forget the off road training they have and seek local advice when venturing into unfamiliar territory.
With no native trees the Falkland Islands is a land of wide open spaces, big skies, remote white sand beaches, peat bogs, rough grass with hidden meandering streams, stone runs and water blisters just waiting to catch the uninitiated driver out.
Driving in the Falkland Islands, you soon learn to read the land and become amateur botanists. Green and/or tall plant growth means wet and generally areas best avoided. Small hidden streams are deceptive; a gash in what would appear to be clear open grassland barely wide enough to get your foot in can unexpectedly open up and engulf the front end of a rover when driven across due to the underground erosion, so its always wize to get out and check before.
I drive a Land Rover Defender 90 300 tdi thats getting on a bit, and currently in the process of getting a nice bright shiny new galvanized chassis from Richards Chassis. I would have loved to carry out the changeover myself, but fortunately know a very good experienced mechanic, with all the kit that will have the job done in a fraction of the time it would take me.
My 90 boasts a number of additions: wide mud tiers (pretty much as standard here), sump/steering guard, diff guards, internal roll bar, rock sliders, snorkel, Warn 8275 winch and bumper. Scorpion Racing wheel carrier (modified). I also carry four waffle boards (long and short), kinetic recovery rope, two snatch blocks, ground anchor (home made) and GPS mobile unit, just to be on the safe side.
I do not race or rally, but along with work, make full use my 90 to explore the more remote regions of the islands with my partner and friends.
