Each of my visits to the Laurel Highlands region in Pennsylvania has brought on a new adventure.
If you enjoy a driving challenge, the Jeep Off-Road Experience at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort is definitely for you!
My first visit to Laurel Highlands was in the winter to experience three local ski resorts.
The next time was our last leg of our RV adventure, which included shooting clay pigeons for the first time. My third visit back to the region once again did not disappoint!
Nemacolin is the type of resort where you could park once and never have to leave the property until it’s time to go.
If you do decide to venture off-site you will find plenty of additional adventures in the surrounding area too.
(The resort is located about 20 minutes away from the Frank Lloyd Wright home “Fallingwater.”)
Jeep Off-Road Driving Academy
I signed up for the Jeep Off-Road Driving Tour because I knew that it would stretch me.
Off-Road Driving is definitely something that I’m not very confident in, probably because if I make a really bad mistake, it could end very badly.
What I didn’t know about the tour was that I would be immediately challenged to step outside of my comfort zone.
Our Jeep tour started with our instructor giving us an overview of the Rubicon followed by a demo of all of the obstacles on the test course.
Deb from Just Short of Crazy and Liz from Eat, Move, Make joined me on the Jeep Off-Road Adventure.
The Test Track for the Off-Road Driving Experience
Each driver must first complete the test track before they can drive on the off-road course.
The test track has obstacles that mimic challenges that you might experience on the off-road course.
We climbed the Jeep over rocks, logs, and through ditches.
A section of the course was even designed to simulate getting stuck by spinning out a few of our tires.
The most intimidating part of the test course for me was the part with sharp hills that you couldn’t see over followed immediately by an incline at a sharp angle.
Put Your Driving Skills to the Test
It was probably good that my group volunteered me to go first because I might have chickened out otherwise.
I wanted to make sure that I was doing each step of the way correctly to the point that my instructor said that I don’t have to continue to ask questions….. I just really like reassurance when I’m out of my element.
It felt a bit crazy to drive up a hill that you couldn’t see the other side of but it all worked out.
I did it and as a result, I felt more confident that I could complete the rest of the course.
That included a section where I had to drive through several feet of water.
The water section of the test course was probably my next favorite challenge after overcoming the steep hill.
I’d never driven in that deep of water prior to that day and it was really fun!
The Jeep Off-Road Course Experience
After each of us completed the test course we were cleared for driving on the off-road course.
We rotated the driver position a few times on different portions of the rugged 20-mile off-road terrain trail.
It was really fun putting our new found skills to the test on the trail. We got to experience pretty much everything that we practiced on the course.
I enjoyed taking on the super steep inclines and splashing through several feet of water.
Each of us definitely felt more confident in our driving skills after the experience.
Additional Adventures On-Site at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort
The resort offers something for everyone’s vacation style from great food, outdoor adventure, golf, and spa treatments to name a few.
Thrill-seekers will definitely want to check out the zipline and the high ropes course.
Art Sculptures and More Nemacolin Woodlands Resort
Art lovers will enjoy discovering the architecture, paintings, and sculptures located throughout the property.
If you want a more in-depth experience take the inside Curator’s tour and the Outside Sculpture tour.
There are also a variety of art classes available for more hands-on learning.
My Room at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort
My room was located inside the Chateau Lafayette created with a design inspired as a tribute to European hotels.
I slept great on my king size bed and had plenty of room to get ready in the large bathroom.
At Nemacolin, there is strong attention to detail throughout the 2000 acre property.
More Information
You can find out more information from the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort website.
Disclosure: My hosted visit was part of the MATPRA Media Marketplace Conference. All opinions are my own.
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That’s a lot of good ideas, it’s fun to go offroading. Thanks!