Read our full review of the 2013 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara at OutDrive.ca

As the Jeep Wrangler churns its way up the incline of a quad trail, its nose is pointed skyward, I can’t see the “road” in front of the vehicle over the hood. I’m not entirely sure what’s on the other side of the rise. This is a point for faith in the Jeep’s four-wheel drive, and the Wrangler Unlimited’s inherent indestructibility. The psychological distance from roaming around town roofless in the sun is massive, as the Jeep drives home that it is an all access pass to the back country.

Strike that, given the vehicle’s heritage it will do deserts, mud pits, gravel, and rock crawling too. We wheel along the brief bench top of our off-road play area, before making a steep short decent down the far side. In four-low and first gear, the Jeep simply walks over and through the obstacles. The point for outdoors enthusiasts is that the back country has gotten that much closer. In a time constrained world of weekend get-aways, vehicles like the Jeep mean more time enjoying your outdoors destination than being in transit mode getting there. Consider it a way to put less “empty miles” of developed trail on your hiking boots.

A world of trail heads inaccessible to soft-roaders, sights simply out of range for the average hiker or mountain biker, lakes incapable in comfort simply because distance and weight of gear is opened by a vehicle like the Jeep. The same applies if you are simply physically unable to hike or bike. In our review, Kevin Miklossy, a Jeep enthusiast and owner, jokes, “If you can’t get there by jeep, it’s not worth going.”

The press vehicle we’ve pulled for review is equipped with the swank Sahara package, a Jeep term for luxury. Turning up the SiriusXM satellite radio a little, then adjusting the leather seat’s heater, I contemplate this “old” Jeep saying. The sophism isn’t true in the reality of outdoors and adventure, but I will give the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara this, it enables you to get you much closer to the outdoors that interest you. Consider it an all access pass to the back country.

Read our full review of the 2013 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara at OutDrive.ca