KEY POINTS:
Jeep owners explore rocky terrain near Queenstown.
Jeep enthusiasts are so keen on their annual jamboree that organisers are having to put a limit on numbers taking part in four-wheel-drive events.
On the 10th anniversary of the New Zealand Jeep Jamboree held in Queenstown last weekend, more than 300 turned up.
The first year it was held - in 1997 in the Waikato - there were fewer than 50 vehicles and 100 people.
Numbers now have to be capped to minimise any effects on the environment and enable the four-wheel-drive trips to be run safely.
The jamboree was established to give owners of authentic American Jeeps the chance to drive off-road in locations not open to the public.
At Queenstown, two high-country properties provided very different driving experiences. One took Jeep owners into Lord of the Rings territory at the end of Lake Wakatipu and the other allowed them to tackle steep, rocky terrain overlooking the Kawerau gorge.
Despite the rugged challenges, all the Jeeps - whether 65-year-old veterans from World War II or the latest $80,000 luxury seven-seat Jeep Commander - conquered the trails. The jamboree is based on similar events started in the United States by returning World War II soldiers who bought surplus Jeeps from the Army. The world's first jamboree was held more than 50 years ago in the mountains of northern California along the Rubicon Trail. "There's a lot of history to the Jeep Jamboree and we have been writing our own chapter in New Zealand for the past 10 years, creating an event that is unique," says Brett Aspden, general manager of the Chrysler Group. It's more than just a four-wheel-driving event."
