Who we are...
We are Tommy and Jake and we are the the creators of T & J 4X4.
Jake (Left) Tommy (right)
Having both grown up in the countryside of Devon, South west UK, we both got used to seeing trucks and 4X4 vehicles, sparking our interest from a very young age. Knowing the benefits of just owning an off-road vehicle, especially in more rural areas, encouraged us to detour own. Jake has bought and sold a handful of Land Rovers whilst Tommy has saved and stuck with the Ford Ranger. Having been on many off-road trips, the best ones photographed on the Trips page, we couldn’t help but urge many of our friends and family to try to do the same thing, stressing how eye opening travelling around and seeing the things we had seen were.
The Spain and Portugal trip was the best combination of a lads holiday; full of fun, jokes, and laughter as well as a learning opportunity improving our language, navigational and camping skills. On return to the UK our brains were ticking as we wondered how we could inspire more people to travel around this kind of way. We wanted to do something where we could show people of the same interests what we have been up to on these trips, from the prep, to what tips and tricks we have to offer for people who are looking to travel this kind of way.
Thus, T & J 4X4 began.
What makes 4x4 travelling better than an ordinary road trip?
Tommy with his mother (Trudi) in the Sahara desert, Morocco.
Lets take a moment to discuss why travelling 4X4 out-shines any other way of travelling in so many different ways.
1. You can camp anywhere! Yep, that’s right! Wherever you land you can camp; within reason, of course. The best way is using a roof tent, which can be set up in a matter of minutes (check our our roof tent reviews here).There is no need to go through the hassle of booking hotels and rushing for check-in times etc. Take your time, enjoy your day, whenever you’re happy to stop; thats when you will camp up.
2.You get to see beautiful scenery that many other travellers cannot! with the ability to sweep up and down sand dunes, bounce over rocky terrain and climb over slippery wet slopes you and your friends can access many descreat areas that arent accessible by roads and that sounds pretty cool to us.
3.You can get stuck! now you might wonder, why are we excited about getting stuck? well whats the point in kitting out your truck with the best recovery gear if you dont get to use it? Someone in the convoy gettinmg stuck is the perfect opportunity to try out your sand boards and if they are really stuck youll need the winch (check out our sand board and winch reviews here)
4.You will learn something new ever day! Whether youre learning about another friends vehicle, some of the local language, a new species of animal youve never seen,there is always something new to learn along the way. Which brings us onto…
5. The wildlife! Being able to access rural areas away from the built up areas gives you more of a chance to come toe to toe with some amazing wildlife from wild boar to eagles to some pretty interesting creepy crawleys.
6. You are off the ground! One benefit of having a roof tent on a rather large vehicle is that you can store your clothes, food and gear in the truck while you sleep up top. this keeps you out the way of wildlife at night and in a well cushioned roof tent youll be in for a good nights sleep. (check out our mattress and sleeping bag reviews)
The friendships
When working hard at your typical 9-5 job and taking each day as it comes you tend to spend time with the same people day in day out. You spend more time at work with your colleagues than your loved ones. The people you spend time with throughout the day may or may not have the same interests as you but travelling 4X4 offers a wonderful opportunity to connect with people with the same passions and interests.
Making new friends travelling this way is inevitable and were sure after going through the challenges of the hard terrains, the breakdowns, the late night games and drinks around the campfire that the friends made on the trips will be the friends you also take back with you.
Bring the family!
One of the great things about these trips is that it is a great opportunity to bring kids along with you. with a perfect chance to have a combination of a holiday and an educational trip this way of travelling will teach your kids life long skills including map reading, teamwork and communication.
Travelling with another adult at your side however is highly recommended, switching driver often so each can rest and the other can enjoy the views, navigate and choose the playlist is of course essential.
We think 4X4 travelling is the number 1 way to bond with your friends and family and we say this from experience.
We made friends with some of the locals in Nazare over a game of sand football.