Ford Everest takes the guesswork out of finding Angie’s G-Spot

The fun of a trip is not just defined by what you get up to when you are away from home, but almost equally by the experience you have getting to and from your destination. A last-minute decision to escape the reality of everyday life and go mentally recharge down on the Garden Route for a few days was made exponentially more satisfying courtesy of having the company of the new Ford Everest as our mode of transport.

The headcount for the weeklong trip was only three humans, but one of them was my teenage daughter. So the cargo manifesto required packing space for a small village that was not planning on returning home for decades. Thankfully, there is an abundance of interior space and seating flexibility offered by the Ford Everest.

The second row seats slide with a 60:40 split seatback and the third-row splits 50:50. The latter can be folded flat to allow for the precious cargo I had onboard to be carried easily and safely.

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Space to boot

As is the norm with teenagers, who live in world that now consists of 60 seconds of TikTok, a trip around the block seems like an overland odyssey from South Africa to China. This 600 km “never-ending” trek from Gqeberha down to our base camp in Knysna and back again days later, was only survivable because of the legroom and space on offer. And comfy seats, storage for all things needed or not, and power outlets in all three rows to ensure that electronic devices were always juiced up.

As to be expected from the R1 168 300 flagship Ford Everest 3.0 V6 turbodiesel Platinum model, the on-road performance and ride comfort offered by this large SUV is nothing short of impressive. With 184 kW of power and 600 Nm of torque on tap silently running down through a smooth shifting 10-speed auto box; long distances are effortlessly covered in complete comfort.

Once settled we, obviously, tackled all the touristy things one does when at the coast. We spent most of our time at the beach absorbing as much vitamin D as one can. And saving many cold beverages, that are made from barley, water, hops, and yeast, from dying a very unnoble death by heat exposure.

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A quirky little gem

But before heading back to China as my daughter said, we decided to venture a little off the beaten track. We went hunting for Angie’s G-Spot, a quirky little gem that must be experienced whenever you are in the area. Angie’s G-Spot, like in the Karma Sutra but not real life, can be found easily if you know where to look.

Take the R339 off the N2 just outside Knysna on your way to Plettenberg Bay. And then head over the Prince Alfred Pass for about 50 km. On your right, you will find what you are looking for nestled on the banks of the Keurbooms River.

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On the way there, I decided to take a little detour. So we headed up to the Spitzkop lookout point for two reasons. One, this is the highest point accessible by car in the Knysna area. And from here it is said you see the top of the Prince Alfred Pass. Plus George, Natures Valley, the Knysna Heads and Sedgefield.

And two, it is also said you should only attempt this part of the journey in a 4×4 vehicle. This challenge became the perfect opportunity for me to see what this “go anywhere” SUV, that offers an advanced, electronically controlled on-demand 4×4 system with selectable drive modes, could do.

Ford Everest passes test

The R339 is a dirt road that has become rather eroded away. The narrow tight sections on the pass can be tricky at the best of times. Thanks to some rain, tricky becomes more interesting when going up a road, come path, come goat track, to the top of Spitzkop.

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What can only be more entertaining than this, is having to reverse and slide in mud all the way back down. A maintenance truck had attempted to carry out repairs on the road and fallen over. And, it was now completely blocking the road. And was going to do so for a very long time. We were not sure what was going to get up there and recover it.

I was ever grateful for the off-road ability of the Everest Platinum. I never made it to the top of the world to marvel at the splendour of the Western Cape. But I did found Angie’s G-Spot.