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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5765   
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Hello intrepid explorers, I am after some opinions.
Last week at my mother's 70th, my old man (similar vintage) discussed that he would like to do the 'trip of a lifetime' with me. I think this stems from the death of his beloved Springer which firstly frees him up but secondly reminds him of the finality of life. A late-life crisis as it were. Given his age, I felt his initial suggestion to canoe the Amazon might be a smidge tough. But he was very open to the idea of an overland exped. So, with this in mind, which of the following do we think would best suit a 75 year old retiree, travelled extensively when young (lived amongst tribes in Papua New Guinea as a young Doctor) but recently much more sedate. The trip will be a mix of roof-top tenting and hotels. Some sightseeing, the odd bike ride or canoe and likely a lot of beer, wine and steak. The 110 is not yet spec'd for proper over landing, so this will be very much road biased (suitable upgrades will be made, steering guards, racks, roof tents, awning, coolers, etc but not full overland spec). I can take off 4-6 weeks or so, so these are options I have considered: Short trips: Scandinavian Ring: Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Arctic Circle, Finland etc Morocco: standard selection of mountains, desert, sea and cities Long distance, English speaking: Canada/US: New York, Boston, Toronto, DC, Charlotte, Memphis/Nashville, LA, San Fran, Seattle, Vancouver etc South Africa: Garden Route, vineyards, Safari, into Namibia for the Skeleton Coast NZ: top to bottom North Island and then South Island ring Long distance foreign: India: Delhi, down the western coast to the tip, back up the eastern tip. Maybe pop into Nepal SE Asia: Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore. South America: Columbia to Tierra del Fuego along the PCH. So there we are. The old man is thinking 'epic' so a good selection I feel. Any opinions, thoughts, warnings, experiences etc very, very welcome. Thanks as ever  Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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20th Aug 2015 8:19am |
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| leeds Member Since: 28 Dec 2009 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 8578 
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Do I take it that 4-6 weeks is the length of the trip? I personally would not consider shipping a vehicle out some where for such a relatively short trip given the costs involved in shipping. For me it would be Scandinavia every time with 6 weeks you can see quite a bit without it being a race to get the miles under your belt. This is something we have done 3 times and done it differently each time.
If you are going in the summer then there are the Norwegian, Danish and Swedish Land Rover clubs annual meets, these run one after another and are a great way of meeting people. They are very different from UK shows, much smaller and very friendly. The first year we went we did the shows and then wiggled our way up to nord kapp on little interesting roads, we camped most of the time and tended to do a couple of nights wild camping followed by a night in a campsite to get clean  When right up at nord kapp we got a cabin for a couple of nights but never did any hotels. Some of the places we camped were stunning, imagine being woken by a small herd of reindeer wandering past or an arctic fox nicking your cooking spoon. The second trip we spent more time in Sweden and then island hopped through Åland to Finland proper. The ferries between the islands were very cheap provided you stayed on the islands for a night or two. You just had to drive down to the jetty and phone the captain to get picked up. Our last trip to Sweden was the west coast, Bohusalan. The only problem with Scandinavia is the unpredictability of the weather - first year we went I knew we were going to the Arctic circle so I took loads of fleeces etc and all I needed was shorts and vest tops, so the following year I took loads of vests and shorts and it sluiced down all the time we were in Norway. 
I strongly recommend Scandinavia there is so much to see, language is never a problem, though I did have yo speak German once in Finland as they didn't speak English. Can't tell you about hotels as we never did them but for variety and scenery it takes some beating. Regards Barbara |
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20th Aug 2015 8:54am |
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| stanley Member Since: 18 Sep 2009 Location: Dorset /hampshire Posts: 1026 
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Nows the time to make those memories , may I suggest , that time spent relaxing by a camp fire with your father with something extremely large and malty , preferably over the age of consent , clinking in the glass getting to know him even more is just as important as the trip
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20th Aug 2015 8:56am |
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| Eduardo Member Since: 28 Aug 2008 Location: Región Metropolitana Posts: 2109  
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South America is a good chance but 4-6 weeks is too short to do Colombia - Tierra del Fuego.
Probably you will be able to cover the south of Peru to Tierra del Fuego visiting Peru, Argentina, Bolivia and Chile if you going fast. Cheers Eduardo MY 2007 110 SW PUMA 2.4: Big Fog of 64' MY 1994 Jayco 1207 Folding camper: "El Tremendo"  Click image to enlarge |
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20th Aug 2015 11:28am |
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| wyvern Member Since: 14 Dec 2009 Location: Cornwall Posts: 2070 
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north Europe and Scandinavia would be my vote - the paddling on the fjords is second to none, the views are awesome and there are very few 'issues' to deal with ...
suggest a ring drive from Holland then via Germany Denmark Sweden into southern Norway, up the East of Norway to the Sammi lands, north into Finland & Lapland and across to Norkap then south to Bergen and home .. that will take about 6 weeks at a nice pace lots of opportunities to wild camp and pick up some adventures on the way! Poppy - TDCI (Puma) 110XS 2.2 - Camper conversion - see the build here - https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic56530.html
Elgar -TDCI(Puma) 110XS Dormobile - now sold Devon & Cornwall 4x4 Response - DC126 |
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20th Aug 2015 11:29am |
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| tookaphotoof Member Since: 18 Mar 2013 Location: dordrecht Posts: 1279  
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You might want to think hard what you really need. I've heard stories of people spending 20k on modifications which they possibly don't even need. Looking at the picture below I think you only need some extra diesel, a tent and some food. 
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20th Aug 2015 12:23pm |
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| leeds Member Since: 28 Dec 2009 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 8578
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For a 4 - 6 week trip, with minimal language problems and minimal security issues my vote would go to Scandinavia
Brendan |
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21st Aug 2015 8:00pm |
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| Dave_S Member Since: 27 Apr 2015 Location: UK Posts: 55 |
Up through Norway, then sail to Iceland - ring of Iceland and return.
Its fantastic - stunning, good off roading -can post photos if you want (we've been a couple of times - second time in the 90). Given current IS shenanigans you would need to think carefully about the ME/North Africa I guess.... |
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21st Aug 2015 8:30pm |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5765
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Thank you all for your thoughts. I did wonder if 4-6 weeks might be a tad short for some of the long distance options. My old man spent a working summer in Norway in the late 50s and visited regularly with work and I know he is a great fan, as am I. So may be that's the one? Morocco still holds appeal, especially as my parents live just a few miles from the ferry to Tangiers, so a practical option, but also one we can do any time. My preferred option would be South America, given its the only place in the options that I have not been, but it might be a tall order (thank you Eduardo for your heads up on time/distance) given the limited time. I'll put them all to him and see what he says, maybe a longer trip could be on the cards? But I know he would love Scandinavia, I certainly would, and as Stanley pointed out, time by the campfire is as important as where the camp fire is lit. One final option I did not consider was the UK, perhaps with a week at the IOM TT? That would be great fun. Maybe one for me and the boys given how much time my old man spends in the rural parts of the UK and Ireland whilst hunting and fishing... Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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22nd Aug 2015 6:24am |
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| leeds Member Since: 28 Dec 2009 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 8578
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Shipping your own vehicle anywhere outside Europe can prove to be quite expensive. Start thinking of several thousand pounds.
Also check the current cost of a Carnet which has risen sharply. Medical insurance with decent cover can prove expensive and is age related. Also taking your vehicle to Australia or New Zealand the vehicle has to be cleaner then clean. Looking at available time 4-6 weeks, if you want to do the further away places how about hitting an already prepared 4x4? OK they are not cheap to hire, however if your trip is only 4-6 weeks and you want to do part of Australia say it is worth considering. Just check any restrictions on where you can take the hired 4x4. There is a company in South America which does that sort of thing as well. However check the quality of 4x4 and reputation of the company carefully. For instance I would not recommend anyone to hire the standard 4x4 on Fraser Island as they are aimed at the young backpacker and the quality of the vehicle and ability of the drivers they hire them out to leave a lot to be desired! Brendan |
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22nd Aug 2015 8:35am |
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| Dave_S Member Since: 27 Apr 2015 Location: UK Posts: 55 |
Oh, meant to mention - also spent a lot of time off roading in the US - around Moab. You can rent modified Jeeps for not stupid money and driving on slick rock is different to anything we do in Europe.
BTW - I'm on the Isle of Man, if you want info on the TT option  |
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22nd Aug 2015 9:52am |
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| Td5 Member Since: 29 Jun 2015 Location: Finland Posts: 53  
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By no means do I call my self experinced overlander, but perhaps I chime in also....
Please remember that we have very extensive "every mans right" in Scandinavia, this do not include driving with a car on others land and to make open fire. Of course if you camp in camping areas, most of them have open fire places. But go to Russia, there it's a different story, you can drive almost everywhere, usually the local roads are difficult enough and you can camp & make fire. Scandinvia is really nice, but I wouldn't skip a trip to Russia if you come here. Don't take me wrong, the foreign policy of Russia is what it is and we Finns have got our ample share of it, but the local people are really nice in the back country. For example driving around lake Ladoga or lake Onega and camping on the beach for a week or so would be something quite different. There is also a lot? to see, Kizi island or petroglyphs at Besov Nosin to mention something. And I can assure that it's different over there, you're stepping in some places back to a different time. Brgds, Juha '96 300Tdi 90 '07 Puma 90 |
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25th Aug 2015 12:16pm |
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| Penguin Member Since: 08 Dec 2014 Location: Tienen Posts: 247  
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You always need it, when you don't have it... BTDTGTTS Better safe than sorry. 28/02 - Loss of a good friend...
In a time of chimpanzees, I was a penguin. |
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25th Aug 2015 12:38pm |
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| Eduardo Member Since: 28 Aug 2008 Location: Región Metropolitana Posts: 2109
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Grenadier,
You are welcome. Anything that you need, do not hesitate in PM me. Cheers! Eduardo MY 2007 110 SW PUMA 2.4: Big Fog of 64' MY 1994 Jayco 1207 Folding camper: "El Tremendo" Click image to enlarge |
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25th Aug 2015 1:37pm |
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