Terra Overland opening 4x4 park in McGaheysville

MCGAHEYSVILLE, Va. (WHSV) - In McGaheysville off-roading enthusiasts will soon have an exciting new option. Terra Overland Outdoor Adventures takes people on off-roading jeep expeditions around the Valley but now it’s adding a new element to its business by opening its obstacle course and training grounds to the public.

“This is sort of like how a skate park runs but it’s for 4x4s so it’s great for people that have never taken their jeep out off-road. They can test their jeep here and see what they actually can do and what they like to do,” said Dawn Creamer, co-owner of Terra Overland.

The park is located at Terra Overland’s base camp off Route 33 in McGaheysville. Its owners say that it’s a great way to test out your vehicle before going off-roading.

“A lot of people have never even put their vehicle in four-wheel drive so come down, learn how four-wheel low works, air down the tires, and just have a good time. Learn your approach, breakover, and departure before you actually get out in the woods. Learn the capabilities of your vehicle before you get out there,” said Shawn Vanderpoel, co-owner of Terra Overland.

Terra Overland originally used the park to prepare customers before going off-roading but now they’ve decided to open it to the public on weekends and have added numerous obstacles.

“We wanted to build something for the local people. So the local residents if you’ve got a 4x4 come on down, hang out, I get it there are over 2,000 miles of off-road trails less than 30 minutes from here, so the idea was just to have the obstacles here. You can hit them in any direction, any order, it’s not follow the leader it’s not an obstacle course, what’s great about it is that it’s your own adventure,” said Vanderpoel.

The owners hope the park will help more people get into off-roading and enjoy the outdoors.

“We’re really trying to democratize the outdoors so anybody they we can get out here and teach them how to do that and how to immerse themselves into foresting on the real trails and the mountains it’s just so beneficial for people emotionally. It’s a lot of fun and it really creates a lot of lifelong memories,” said Creamer.

Terra Overland has also partnered with the U.S. Army’s Moral Wellness and Recreation Programs to take troops out to the park and then off-roading. There are also plans to have food trucks and live music at future events at the park.

Terra Overland is holding a soft opening of the park over the next few weekends before opening to the public fully on October 5. You can learn more about the park and sign up to use it here.

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