I’ve always tried to put my finger on why I’m so at peace travelling by road. Particularly dirt roads. On a motorbike, the safety-critical concentration required to follow the correct line (to avoid near invisible wheel-grabbing ruts and mounds of sand) is surprisingly cathartic. It’s the focusing that halts the mind’s constant chatter and allows you to be in the moment.And while a car’s metal and often social cocoon removes the frisson of danger and oneness with nature you experience on a motorcycle, the concentration required to avoid the pitfalls of South Africa’s 300,000km of gravel roads (mostly ungraded) in a car makes it a effective mind-silencing activity as well.I’m thinking this as another sharp thud rocks our old Pajero iO as Annette and I make our way across the Tankwa Karoo in early July. I stop the car to see if all’s OK and after satisfying my penchant for pedantry we wander among the blazing blooms, a sea of colour that stretches east to the Roggeveld Mountains, about 20km distant.When the Swedish naturalist Carl Thunberg (often called the father of South African botany) prepared to cross the Tankwa Karoo during a scorching December in 1774, the view that greeted him was starkly different from ours. He described it as being “so destitute of water that even a sparrow could not subsist in it, and so devoid of every living creature that only a few rats were to be seen here”.We’re making our way along the Rietfonteinpad from Tankwa padstal to join the “forgotten highway” (R356) — the main road north for ox wagons in the 18th and 19th centuries. It’s still the preferred route for adventure riders and drivers making for Sutherland from Ceres or the Bokkeveld hamlet of Op-die-Berg. We choose the latter to once again experience our preferred Tankwa access route, via the epically scenic Katbakkies and Skittery passes.Though all appeared fine when I looked under the car earlier, the right front wheel is suddenly making a strange scraping sound under hard braking. But Little John is a tough old horse, and we continue, albeit more slowly, with eyes and minds sharply focused for more chassis-jarring pitfalls en route.The Gothic spire of Sutherland’s landmark NG church pokes through the purple haze enveloping the town as we roll in at dusk. Unpacking the car at our nearby digs, we’re shocked at just how noisy the centre of this once-quiet Karoo dorpie has become. Across from us is a bottle store and shop where the subwoofers of numerous bakkies vie for the attention of the seemingly drug-dazed young prostitutes. When we remark on this to our host later, she says the workforce from the new wind farms surrounding the town has had a mostly deleterious effect on the town, damaging the tourism trade as well.The next day we make our way along the extension of the R356 towards an old stone house on Osfontein Guest Farm — our home-to-be for 10 glorious nights — about 250km away. As is our wont on our back-of-beyond wanderings, we have an appointment to view some real estate en route, an ever-so-cute-looking Karoo cottage in Fraserburg, so we’re already pressed for time this morning when disaster strikes.Trying not to brake too hard, to avoid worsening the damage done to the front wheel’s suspension yesterday, the car bashes into a deeper than expected rut; violently shaking the ageing chassis. This time I discover the right sway bar bracket’s mounting has broken off.There’s nothing to do but go more slowly along the badly deteriorated road — the worst I’ve seen it in 21 years — yet it conspires to make us hopelessly late for our house-viewing appointment. By the time we’re able to reach the agent on her cell she’s gone shopping and can only show us the cottage later; but we decide to check out its location so long.Not only is it situated close to the wrong side of town, it’s sandwiched between two rundown houses with numbers of seemingly unemployed indigents sitting on their respective stoeps. It’s a nonstarter for us and we cancel our delayed viewing with the agent and head for local co-op’s workshop to have the Pajero iO attended to.While the stony-faced mechanic mutters about rust and what a big job it is, we escape and go for a walk around the more salubrious southern side of town. Here we see a number of cottages and houses that we’d be prepared to invest in, but, of course, they’re not for sale.Having built up our appetites, we head for Die Pers Malva Restaurant. It’s not long after a tasty meal of chicken wraps and chips that we get a call from the garage — our car is ready. Paul and his team have done an excellent job welding in a new steel plate to fix the sway-bar bracket, at a bargain price too, and we’re soon on our way towards Loxton.The R356 seems in much better condition on this side of town, but it’s just about 20km on this more agreeable stretch when we get a little bored with the gravel highway and hang a left onto the lesser travelled R308 to Carnarvon. With not another car in sight and the cathartic Karoo landscape all around us, it looks to be an inspired choice.About a third of the way in, though, a number of deep washaways slow us down to a crawl. And when we discover our planned turn-off to the right (a shortcut to Osfontein) no longer exists, we realise we’ve an extra 50km to cover. This wouldn’t have been a problem were it not for the rapidly setting sun and the prospect of errant fauna tangling with our bulbar.As if to prove this point, we soon confront three bat-eared foxes standing in the middle of the road, and a short while later a steenbok zigzags in front of the car before trying to get through the fences on either side of the road.But we make it to Osfontein’s entrance road with 20 minutes of sunlight to spare. Just 2km short of the farmhouse, I spot an aardvark in the veld. It’s a big deal as we’ve never seen one in the wild before. I follow it on foot with my big lens camera, yet in the bad light I battle to get a good shot, even when it runs across the road in front of me.A movie clip of the next 10 days would reflect: blazing log fires and red wine nights; long veld walks and koppie climbs; hot outdoor showers; an adventure drive down the badly eroded dirt track to Beaufort West — we overnighted there and took day drives through the Karoo National Park; afternoon naps; regular stargazing; 4x4-ing on the extensive network of farm tracks; and reading until our eyes couldn’t anymore.When our time here ends, there’s fortunately still the two-day backroads return trip via Calvinia to look forward to, but that’s another story.Travel NotesGetting there: It’s 613km from Cape Town to Osfontein Guest Farm (N1 and R381) — of which about 100km is on the mainly gravel R381 (badly eroded in places). From Johannesburg, it’s 960km, all tar except for the farm’s 6km dirt access road.What sort of car will I need: Depending on where you’re coming from and the route you choose, you can drive here in a sedan with reasonable ground clearance (from the west and the north), but coming from the Cape, unless you go the long way around via Calvinia or Victoria West, you will need a higher clearance SUV, preferably an AWD in the wet. And if you choose the backroads route we drove, the latter suggestion would also apply.The backroads routes: From Ceres, take the R303 to Op-die-Berg (45km ― tar) and turn right towards the Tankwa a few hundred metres out of town. After 18km (tar), turn right on the Kagga Kamma dirt track (DR2244) and make for the Katbakkies and Skittery passes. You’ll reach the R355 after 36km (28km dirt). Turn left and head for the Tankwa padstal (3km ― dirt) and then take the Rietfonteinpad until the intersection with the R356 (19km ― dirt). Turn left at the T-junction and continue to the R354 (60km ― dirt). Turn left here and you’ll reach Sutherland in 37km (tar). Distance from Ceres to Sutherland: 218km — 110km dirt.Sutherland to Osfontein: via Fraserburg on the R356, it’s 107km (94km on dirt) and 22km (dirt) to the R308 Carnarvon turn-off and then 103km (dirt) to the T-junction with the R63 outside Carnarvon. It’s 24km (tar) to the Osfontein farm turn-off and 6km (dirt) to the farm.Distance from Sutherland to Osfontein guest farm: 262km (225km on dirt)What to take with you: Osfontein is 42km from the nearest supply town (Carnarvon), so take everything you’ll need with you. Wood, however, can be ordered from your hosts.What is there to do there: The farm is the ideal environment to kick back and restore body, mind and soul. But many activities and nearby attractions are on offer: mountain-biking, hiking, koppie climbing and 4x4-ing (grade 1-2) on an extensive network of farm dirt tracks; birdwatching and stargazing; swimming in the farm dam; drive to Loxton for a meal at Loxton Lekker (books and other goodies on sale) and visit the base of EWT’s Riverine Rabbit programme ; go for a drink at the famous Blikkies Bar in Carnarvon, plus overnight in Beaufort West and take a day drive through the Karoo National Park.Where we stayed: Sutherland — Die Heks se Huis (064 657 0693); Loxton-Carnarvon — Osfontein Guest Farm (072 310 7979) and Beaufort West — Mitat (066 250 1638).Best time of year to go: April to October.Business Day