What is the appeal of off-roading?

[21BL2DR]

i simply want a capable vehicle that can carry my stuff, get me into and get me out of places I consider to be off the beaten path. rutted up forest roads, logging roads, and other types of terrain are my norm. I have no interest in trying to take on massive rocks, deep water, mud pits etc. just for fun. off grid camping interests me. I am planning a North Maine woods fishing adventure in a couple of years. throw the canoe on top, the gear inside, add the wife and dog and roll.

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[1st 75th ranger]

At first blush off-roading appears to be a guaranteed way to damage a vehicle and spends lots of money on repairs. To someone like myself who is completely uneducated with no experience in real off-roading, what is the appeal? Is it simply being able to drive where most vehicles can't? This isn't meant to offend; I'm simply educating myself.

P.S.... Being in Northern Ontario I appreciate access to nature and exploring / camping. I guess that's what is called overlanding.

What I'm referring to are the folks going out as a group in their new expensive vehicles for a day and tackling rocks, mud etc. Every single video I've seen their vehicles are bottoming out on rocks, getting scratched etc, with repairs obviously required.

I can see tackling rough terrain being a lot of fun but thought I'd see what those with experience would like to share.

Cheers.

i live in nj now have lived in sand rock mud woods etc ...the remote feel confidence of know tire placement limits is a rush and awakening
i have learned i dont like rock crawling ..love mod

At first blush off-roading appears to be a guaranteed way to damage a vehicle and spends lots of money on repairs. To someone like myself who is completely uneducated with no experience in real off-roading, what is the appeal? Is it simply being able to drive where most vehicles can't? This isn't meant to offend; I'm simply educating myself.

P.S.... Being in Northern Ontario I appreciate access to nature and exploring / camping. I guess that's what is called overlanding.

What I'm referring to are the folks going out as a group in their new expensive vehicles for a day and tackling rocks, mud etc. Every single video I've seen their vehicles are bottoming out on rocks, getting scratched etc, with repairs obviously required.

I can see tackling rough terrain being a lot of fun but thought I'd see what those with experience would like to share.

Cheers.

i off road weekly ..i have done rock mud woods sand
i dont like crawling anymore beats my bronco ...mud often but have submerged it lol
and like sand just not in my cracks ...ended up loving the woods
campsite trail hopping ..its therapy and builds confidence in wheel placement knowledge and serenity

 

[Nickhick]

At first blush off-roading appears to be a guaranteed way to damage a vehicle and spends lots of money on repairs. To someone like myself who is completely uneducated with no experience in real off-roading, what is the appeal? Is it simply being able to drive where most vehicles can't? This isn't meant to offend; I'm simply educating myself.

P.S.... Being in Northern Ontario I appreciate access to nature and exploring / camping. I guess that's what is called overlanding.

What I'm referring to are the folks going out as a group in their new expensive vehicles for a day and tackling rocks, mud etc. Every single video I've seen their vehicles are bottoming out on rocks, getting scratched etc, with repairs obviously required.

I can see tackling rough terrain being a lot of fun but thought I'd see what those with experience would like to share.

Cheers.

To just simply disappear from society for awhile. More satisfying and needed now than it has ever been.

 

[desibull]

The Bronco is my first ever off-road vehicle. One day it dawned on me that I am spending all this money paying for my 335i beamer and using it for groceries; some folks in Phoenix do take their beamers to a race track and experience its power but not me. Which is when I decided to get a vehicle that can take me places off the grid as well. After renting a Jeep and going on some trails in Durango I decided to get one as well. As I was hunting for a Jeep by chance I stumbled upon some info on the new bronco getting released. I fell in love with its looks, placed a reservation, and got it 2 years later. I have since explored a few trails around my place, taken friends, and just love the experience. I am too chicken I guess for the extreme rock crawling but such things do not really excite me. I want to be able to get a bit off the beaten path that ideally leads to some good hiking and picnic spots; that to me is an awesome off-road experience!!

 

[BRBUSTER72]

Going off road is the best….There is a sense of freedom, the idea that you are entering the wilderness, the frontier of civilization; when the pavement ends you are no longer governed by speed limit signs; the painted yellow and white lines telling you are in your lane are gone; listening to the sweet sounds of pebbles pinging your hood liners are all reminders you’re in wild country now. The unpaved road leads you through the wilderness (not designated wilderness land of course) but you can encounter wildlife: deer, elk, moose, bear, mountain lion, lynx, possum, musk ox, coyote, wolves, badgers, wolverine, owl, armadillo, bovine, sheep, bison, caribou…this list goes on…. But these creatures tend to stay away from the paved roads. If you drive these roads enough you can see these animals and more.

I always love getting to the very end of any road! As far as the vehicle can take me. At that point I get out and keep going on foot or use my two wheeled muscle powered vehicle. I need to know how far can the bike get me into the wilderness?

These are some of my lifetime end of the road achievements. Some are paved, others have no asphalt for 100s of miles:
Deadhorse, AK
Wonder Lake, Denali NP
North Fork Road, MT
Kintla Lake, Glacier NP
Cape Bruny, AUS, Tasmania, Hobart
Key West, FL
Several roads on Kodiak Island, AK
Seward Spit, Homer, AK
Cape Lookout, OR
Hoh Rainforest, Olympic NP
Moclips, WA
Copper Harbor, MI


There are hundreds more but these are my lifetime greatest hits. Get to the end of any of these roads and you’ll get it at that point.

Sometimes the destination unpaved roads will get you to places where pavement just does not go or belong. My favorites are forest service rental cabins and fire look outs, hot springs, waterfalls, oceans, dispersed camping, fishing holes, beaches (by the way, if driving on a beach with the top down or completely off isn’t something you have ever done maybe start with that. Just stay out of the ocean water and you will have fun.

My son just questioned my definition of “off road”….he says I’m driving on roads without pavement. Driving “off road” (by my 12 year old’s world view) is driving through the forest, through deserts, on beaches.
To each there is a hierarchy of off road driving and I suppose there are opinions of which is better….but drive where you are comfortable and you will begin to yearn for more adventures. Then you will find true happiness. Bronco Zen can be achieved! You just got to get there first.

Off the Grind sums it up the off road experience with some amazing footage.

https://youtube.com/@OFFTHEGRIND?si=MmwTUiUeZ2q7N0Ot

Fire look outs are great. Some of them are a 2 mile drive that can take over an hour to get there. I haven't been to many here in Idaho but it amazes me how they got them built where they did. Because of their placement and what they were meant for, the views are unsurpassed. At one time Idaho had over 900 of them. People make it a mission to see how many they can find and get to.

 

[Arrowbear Rider]

The Sport BL can actually go places where at least 95 percent of full size Broncos will never go, just look at the YT videos where skilled drivers have taken it.

I had to reread that, the key here is "will never go", as in WILL, not can't and I agree. A Sport BL has good enough clearance and awd with nannies to get one to some pretty cool places and remote camping. It's size would make it fun to "rally" a bit on a forest road.

gives you the views & benefits of a long hike....with zero effort!

Your effort is working to pay for the gas, insurance and of course the Bronco... Haha.

Oddly enough, I don't really see the point of getting a 4X4 unless you do actually take it off road a fair bit. Why pay the extra money for the 4X4 systems and extras unless you use them?

I agree here unless you live in a climate (snow) that a 4x4 comes in handy, but an extreme example of wasted capability for the money is an AMG G-Wagon with THREE locking diffs and crazy capability just to put on 22s with street tires and how much horsepower just to take the kids to daycare... (some of them go skiing) But, there are two everyday picking up the kids at a local day care near where I worked and the moms are dressed to impress every time.

Off-roading I do not like. I also hate huge groups of Jeeps and 4x4s going at a snails pace off-roading. You sit behind a queue of them all day just slowly crawling along, parking, getting out to watch others try to get over the same rocks, etc. not a fan.

Go on lessor rated trails and in smaller groups and you move along most of the way. In Moab at the Safari on some of trails, some were almost going too fast. On local trips we've done on a forest road from the bottom of the mountain to the top and we moved along at a good rate with 33 Broncos, so it depends on the group and trail.

One day it dawned on me that I am spending all this money paying for my 335i beamer and using it for groceries; some folks in Phoenix do take their beamers to a race track and experience its power but not me.

So true, I had made a deal to buy a manual Mustang online and was going to go in the morning to do the deal when I thought, "How am I going to go camping & exploring, skiing and such in a Mustang?", you can, but not as fun; and my days of SCCA racing are over.

But a manual Bronco? "Your car can go fast, but my Bronco can go anywhere".

I made my reservation that night for the Bronco and canceled the deal on the Mustang... I still have a Triumph for speed.

 

[Portagebay]

I I have no interest in rock crawling for fun and I have tried it several times in Moab. I like to travel to places that most cannot and enjoy the peace and quiet. I now live in Death Valley and plenty of opportunity to do so.

 

[kpark_67]

Like others have stated, that answer varies from person to person. For me, I love places like Ouray, CO. They aren't the hardest trails. I don't need 50k in upgrades to run them. I can (and have) run most of the trails there with my mostly stock Bronco and my previous FJ Cruiser. My only addition was a better front bumper with a winch. I do it for the views and experience. The first time I went over Imogene pass in late July I was hooked. The view from over 13,000 feet, while touching snow in the middle of summer. The views while on the way to and from the top. Around the next corner is another impossible view. Streams, waterfalls, animals, canyons, etc. Also, there aren't many people who can/will experience it. I have no trail damage from my excursions.

 

[TEAMSLO]

Heres a few things that Im sure have been mentioned many times already.

- Getting away from the city life, many times
- The scenery and the beauty you get to see and travel up close
- The excitement when doing more technical trails
- You'd be amazed with some of the great people you will meet as well. There is nothing like wheeling with a great group of people

In the beginning I was like most saying that I just wanted to do service roads, those are famous last words. Then I wanted to keep doing challenging trails for a few months. I learned in a short amount of time that it wasn't the challenge that I enjoyed most, it was the people I was with.

When you find a group that fits your schedule, trail type, and just all around great people..... I can't tell you what it's like other than almost like family. Below is a air down point with the group and the 2nd pic is all of us taking out big brother/big sister out to a day in the dirt.

EDIT - I forgot to mention, I live in Vegas but dont gamble/drink. My "release" is time in the dirt, after a long work week, I cannot wait to hit the dirt. I get excited still the day or night before although I have been out more than 100 times in just the past 2 years. My one regret is that I didn't start this lifestyle much sooner.

 

[Tricky Mike]

- You'd be amazed with some of the great people you will meet as well. There is nothing like wheeling with a great group of people

I'm pretty sure that 90%+ of my friends were found through the offroad scene.

 

[timhood]

At first blush off-roading appears to be a guaranteed way to damage a vehicle and spends lots of money on repairs. To someone like myself who is completely uneducated with no experience in real off-roading, what is the appeal? Is it simply being able to drive where most vehicles can't? This isn't meant to offend; I'm simply educating myself.

P.S.... Being in Northern Ontario I appreciate access to nature and exploring / camping. I guess that's what is called overlanding.

What I'm referring to are the folks going out as a group in their new expensive vehicles for a day and tackling rocks, mud etc. Every single video I've seen their vehicles are bottoming out on rocks, getting scratched etc, with repairs obviously required.

I can see tackling rough terrain being a lot of fun but thought I'd see what those with experience would like to share.

Cheers.

Different types of off-roading appeal to different people. There is plenty of fun to be had without damaging your vehicle. My son and I have been off-road about 20 times in the past year, including rock crawling nearly every time. We enjoy exploring places we've never seen--places the average vehicle can't reach. We also enjoy the scenic views and the time away from daily cares.

A significant reason why I got the Badlands trim was because it has all the capability I need for off-roading, including the skid plates and rock rails. The greatest potential for damage is from trees and brush scraping the sides. We bring along loppers to trim back any brush when that situation arises.

If you haven't already, I would suggest you take the Bronco Off-Roadeo course. Go to a location that best represents the kinds of off-roading most easily available to you. I think you'll find that once you've acquired some basic skills and understanding you can feel confident enough to try it in a manner that doesn't require vehicle damage. Our Bronco is for enjoyment, but it's too expensive (to me, at least) to beat up. If you have skid plates, don't worry about scraping something underneath. Nobody sees that, and that's what the skid plates are for, anyway.

 

[TEAMSLO]

Not quite on topic, but where is that?

 

[Big Boss]

Honestly it's just fun. I had Mustang's before. Wanted to know what they were really capable of on the drag strip so I got into drag racing. Then got the bronco, had 0 desire to off road, but that same feeling crept over me. Let's see what it can do off pavement and now I am hooked.

That said I have 0 desire to play in the rocks. Just give me some dirt, some puddles SOME mud and some hills and I am a happy person.

 

[TopRamenGod]

SPOCK: Greetings, Captain.

KIRK: Spock! ...What are you doing in this neck of the woods?

SPOCK: I have been monitoring your progress.

KIRK: I'm flattered. Twelve hundred points of interest in Yosemite, you pick me.

SPOCK: I regret to inform you that the record time for free-climbing El Capitan is in no danger of being broken.

KIRK: I'm not trying to break any records. I'm doing this because I enjoy it. Not to mention the most important reason for climbing a mountain.

SPOCK: And that is?

KIRK: Because it's there.

 

[prospectfour]

I'm weird. I don't seek out off road and have no desire to see what the Bronco can do. What I did want is a roomy capable off road vehicle for my filming. The Bronco Badlands fit the bill. Hundreds of miles (solo) trail driving the Oregon Desert looking for history to film. I even dodge mud whenever possible because it's a pain to pressure wash later. But sometimes I just gotta do it!

Here's some photos of last Summers adventures!

Still like the RT Trails? It's a contender for my next set of rubber.

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