Enter Mr Sandman
Looking to hone your sand driving skills? The lush forests and tricky dunes of the Le Parc du Marquenterre will do just that!
DRIVING on sand is alien to most Brits and who can blame them? The UK is a tiny island lying off the western coast of Europe, it does not feature some of the driest places on the continent, such as Australia with its Simpson Desert or Africa’s Sahara. For those who do live in such inhospitable environments tyre pressures are hardly ever higher than 15 psi, while kids are taught to first master the sand before daring to venture out on sterile tar roads.
All of this is swilling about in my head as I make my way to the port of Dover in my 1998 Defender 110 2.8i. It’s a sunny, hot day but as my Defender was sold exclusively in South Africa it has air con. I’m on my way to France for the Ardent Off-road sand driving weekend at Marquenterre, which is only an hour away from the port of Calais. As we
will be camping and I am on my own, I just threw a Robens tent, Dometic cooler box and Weber Go Anywhere BBQ into the back of my Defender 110 prior to leaving. What more does a man need? Well, the ARB Tred Pro recovery tracks were also chucked in, just in case. Those who have been sand driving before will know that a compressor and tyre pressure gauge are also a good idea. Then if you don’t have a winch, some recovery straps and shackles could also come in handy. I was so ready for this.
Sand driving can be humbling as it’s a surface like no other. Get it wrong and you can get badly bogged down. Crest a dune with too much speed and you could get some serious air while doing damage to your Land Rover. It’s all about knowing how to get the best out of your Land Rover. Too much or too little power and you ain’t going to make it. Find your Land Rover’s sweet spot (correct gear and revs) and you will master the sand faster.
I remember doing a week-long crossing of the Namib Desert years ago. I drove a Defender 110 Td5 double cab. All the other vehicles in the convoy were Toyota Land Cruisers. It was like an ISIS gathering with a token Brit thrown in for entertainment. I quickly discovered that third and fourth gear in low range were going to be my saviour. Driving on the long monster dunes required really quick up and down gear changes. Momentum is your best friend in the sand. I had to work really hard to gain the respect of the others that week, but by the end of it all no-one had a bad word to say about Land Rovers, especially those that had to have a few attempts at getting up dunes that I got up first time!
Getting to Marquenterre is easy. After taking the ferry (included in Ardent Adventures fee) or Eurotunnel to Calais, you just head south on the A16 (includes a toll fee) for an hour before heading to the coast, campsite and nearby Marquenterre National Park. It’s a great trip for those not sure about venturing into the deepest, darkest EU.
Our campsite, Le Champ Neuf, is only minutes away from the park. I was told there would be about 30 4x4s and half of them have already arrived by the time I park up under a tree in the leafy campsite. Johnny Nel from Front Runner UK has joined me in his standard Discovery 4, he is en route to Germany to get it kitted out with every accessory imaginable.
“Sand driving can be humbling as it’s a surface like no other. It’s all about knowing how to get the best out of your Land Rover”
Before setting up my tent I take a walk around the campsite. There is a lovely mix of Land Rovers, from the latest new Discovery to early Defenders. Tomorrow is going to be fun. The campsite has everything one might need. You can rent BBQS, swim in the incredible indoor pool or else play a game of Boules. It’s the perfect base from which to launch an attack on the nearby dune forest.
Johnny and I decide to take advantage of the long days and take a walk to the nearby park. It’s known as an ornithological park and so we head for the freshwater ponds and brackish lagoon to see if we can spot some of the 300 bird species found in this small 2 sq.km bird sanctuary. This sanctuary is the perfect stopover for birds travelling between the cold of the UK, Iceland, Scandinavia and Siberia and the heat of West Africa.
We can both see and hear why twitchers from all around the world come here. It’s as if we are listening to an orchestra of birds, each species with its unique sound, all trying harder than the next to be heard. There are miles of tracks to take through this birding paradise. We see grey herons, white storks and some Eurasian spoonbills. We make our way back to the campsite via the park HQ. A sign tells us that they do photography workshops and horse-drawn cart outings in the park. It’s definitely a must-visit if you are coming to drive the dunes. Once back at the campsite I get a BBQ going while Johnny pours us a drink.
Before setting off the next morning I deflate my tyres to about 15 psi. I also pack all the kit out of my Defender and place it in my ground tent. Weight is your enemy in the sand, especially if it’s on your roofrack. Our guides Andrew Robinson and John Smith lead us to the park where local guides on quad bikes are waiting, and they split the group into two. Thankfully our group only consists of Land Rovers. Croissants and coffee are served while some use the time to deflate tyres even more, and our guide gives us a final
“The one danger of running at really low pressures is that if you turn sharply you run the risk of a tyre coming off the rim”
briefing. It’s fairly simple: follow the Land Rover or quad bike in front of you and if you don’t make it then reverse and have another go. If you don’t make it after three attempts then take the easier alternative.
I’m just behind the quad bike as we snake our way through the forest and over some low, easy dunes. The sun is out and the leaves provide a welcome shelter from its sharp rays. I make the classic mistake when going up the first, long dune. I’m in high range and don’t give it enough beans. Too conservative some might say. I reverse. Pop it into low range. Engage the centre-diff and pull away in second before quickly changing to third. The BMW engine roars as a male lion might if an elephant was to stand on its balls. This time I fly up the dune without any dramas while the rev counter hits 4500. I now have my strategy figured out for the rest of the day. I love driving a manual Defender with basic technology. Everyone is in a similar boat. It’s all about finding your Land Rover’s sand driving sweet spot.
The newer Land Rovers with all their technology are not finding life as easy. Andy Mair and his son Ben are in a 2019 new Discovery. Its 3.0-litre engine produces 306 bhp yet still it fails to make one of the long, technical climbs. I take a peek inside and advise him to turn off the Dynamic Stability Control or else it will keep on transferring power to the wheels which are losing traction. Wheelspin equals getting bogged down. Things go a little better after this.
According to our guide you can spend a whole day driving the dunes without going up the same one twice. It is great to see a French National Park providing a safe and controlled environment for 4x4 drivers to enjoy. In fact, 4x4 owners from all over Europe come to Marquenterre to enjoy the sand driving experience. Would it not be great if the authorities who manage the national parks in Britain also took the needs of 4x4 owners into consideration when making decisions? We live in hope.
The more dunes we drive the more comfortable I become with it. It has been a few years since I have driven on dunes. During one of the stops I deflate my tyres even more to make life easier for myself. The one danger of running at really low pressures is that if you turn sharply you run the risk of a tyre coming off the rim. I don’t want that to happen to me today.
Our guide stops at a series of dunes that sort of run parallel
to each other and declares it a time to play. The dunes are of varying difficulty and I try some of the easier ones. Youngster Oli Button is in a soft top 1985 Ninety – a week before the trip he took out the Tdi engine and replaced it with a 3.5 litre Efi V8. It’s also had a two-inch lift. Oli expertly drives it as if he is auditioning for a role in the next Fast and the Furious movie. There is one extreme dune that no-one can get up. Oli gets up at the fourth attempt but not before leaving a trail of spare parts in his wake. “This is such good fun. Very different to anything I have driven in England. I am so impressed at how the V8 has gone,” he declares.
From here it is a short drive to our scenic lunch stop. We can see the sea from our elevated position. The sun is beating down and I put up my Front Runner awning for protection from it’s harsh rays The gas BBQ is fired up and 20 minutes later the sausages are ready to be stuffed into a baguette and covered in French mayonnaise. This is most certainly the life, and a cooling breeze from the sea makes it all just seem so perfect.
After an hour of eating and relaxing it’s time for the afternoon session. It’s more of the same stuff except by now everyone seems to be getting the hang of it and we move along rather nicely. That is until I get it all wrong. I’m not sure if it’s because I ate too many sausages or over-confidence. I reverse and try again. This time I make it. The 2.8i powers its way to the top. Humble pie never tasted so good.
It feels as if the dunes are getting progressively harder. Now that the new Discovery has opted to run the dunes in
low range it too is doing heaps better. It also helps that they hired wheels and off-road tyres from Ardent Adventures because standard low profiles would’ve been a disaster. It would be great to have a Land Rover engineer with us driving the latest Land Rover products to see how they would do if driven by the ‘experts.’ Maybe we should invite them next year?
Mark Cook is driving a 1999 Defender 90 Td5 and he too gets up all the dunes without even a hint of drama. I love the sound of the Td5 engine in the sand and it reminds me of my Namib desert crossing many years ago. “The only dune I could not get up was the one that Oli managed, with the big ridge near the top. My Defender has surprised me today at just how capable it is. What an incredible setting and only an hour from Calais,” says Mark. It helps that he is actually a very good driver.
Just before 5.00pm the two groups come together in a large open area of sand and we are told to treat it as a playground. Now is the time to show off those newlyacquired sand driving skills, and passengers are given a turn behind the wheel to see what they learnt. Everyone has big smiles on their faces. Whoever thought that playing in the sand could be so much fun? Eventually a halt is called and we head back to the park HQ to air up the tyres.
Now that the group has had a shared adventure we are a lot closer and loads of people join Johnny and I for a BBQ that night. War stories from the day are exchanged and its well after midnight when the final guest leaves. As someone who has done many 4x4 trips around the world I can confidently declare that this has been one of the better ones. You don’t have to travel a million miles and you get to experience a surface most don’t have the opportunity to access and you don’t break the bank in the process. Also if you are looking to do add-ons to your weekend there are loads to choose from. The D-day beaches are not far from here while the best aquarium in Europe can be found on the way back to Calais. What are you waiting for? Book yourself a driving trip in the dunes of Marquenterre.