It’s a bit funny when some of your friends dissappears for a while and then suddenly gets in contact with you years after. Life is a bit complicated so normally I do not raise questions in this case ) Someone I haven’t seen for ages wants to have a spontanious drink? Sure) I have got invitation for an event? Yeah, why not?.. Long story short – last weekend I got unexpected chance to visit an off-road park and shoot awesome pictures I have decided to share with you.
Off-road in Russia:
– Bloody hell, we have just broken suspension and burnt the transmission, let’s drink some vodka! ))
– But we already drank all vodka we had! ((Off-road in New Zealand:
– Park entrance fee $60
– Drinking alcohol is prohibited
– Firearms are prohibited
– Starting fire is prohibited
– Heaps of other stuff which is illegal here ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
So, as I already mentioned, last Sunday I visited a 4WD park in Woodhill Forest, which is located at West Auckland. If you somehow missed that – Woodhill Forest is a pine tree forest, which covers approximately 12,000 hectares between Muriwai beach and South Head.
Woodhill forest is a very popular place amongst aucklanders to do number of sport and recreational activities: paintball, mountain biking, tree climbing, horse riding and of course, 4WD!
It’s a commercial forest, so you have to pay for most of the activities. New Zealand is long, so in theory, if you go outside of big city there should be a number of places you can do a recreational stuff for free. Everything you need to do is just to know locals)
What I want to note – there were a few good 4wd SUV and trucks at carpark nearby the entrance with empty trailers. It turned out some guys come to the park with their own built vehicles, ATVs and buggy’s they can’t drive on a public roads. As I was told, New Zealand road code and legislation became a bit more stricted for the last years as it used to be. So, nowadays it’s getting harder to get your car certified after you make some changes.
10AM. A short briefing and we are almost ready to go
Another thing I have noticed: most of SUV in the park were at least 20, 30 or may be even 40 years old. From my point of view it is a very pragmatic not to use a family car for that kind of activities. Then, having a car as simple as you can (so it has less electronics) is much better for the Off-road. And again, Aotearoa has a very mild climate so in theory, cars in New Zealand tend to last a bit longer?
Further more, Woodhill Forest is located just a few kilometers from Tasman sea and hence it is a sand-based forest. What does it mean for an Off-road? It means sometimes it’s a bit tricky to find mud pools and puddles)
However, there are plenty of downhills and uphills) Haven’t been driving in such a conditions for a while!
Also, due to the fact 4wd track goes in between the trees, there are a few very narrow places you may need an assistance to go through. Anyway, visiting park was quite a positive experience to me – thanks to the club members for the help and some guidance.
I’ve been asked for a few times when I plan to lift up my Subaru Forester and join the club. Well, I had to reply that I will do that as soon as I get my own double garage)
Lastly, a few more pics for you to watch – hope you enjoy)
Click here to download these pics on your desktop.
Making cool stuff is always time and money consuming. If you really love what I do, you can help me with getting a new gear & equipment, so I could go for a next level and keep sharing photo and video content with you for free. Or you can literally buy me a beer! ))
Ivan Grigoryev's Blog
Living in New Zealand. Blogging about the country, beautiful places, everyday life.
Do a skydive - halfway completed; get 1400 - still working on; reach 300kph - completed by 96.6%