Photo by Desert Wolf Tours

I’m behind the wheel of an amazing vehicle called a Tomcar, facing a steep hill covered with rocky debris. The Sonoran, looking more like a meadow about to burst into flower than a dry dusty desert, surrounds me.

Our guide Brandon is so familiar with the trail that he knows the exact position I need to attain before I gun the engine and drive that nimble vehicle right up the hill.

“Hit it” calls Brandon. Down goes my foot on the accelerator and with astounding sure-footedness (if a vehicle could be said to be sure-footed), up the hill goes my yellow Tomcar.

I might even have hollered as I crested the hill.

I am being hosted to one of Desert Wolf Tours trips through the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, just outside of Scottsdale.

The Sonoran Desert covers large parts of Arizona and California as well as Mexico. It is a varied eco-system across the territory, but it is also the only place, according to wikipedia, where the saguaro cactus grows wild. In fact, there looked to be a whole forest of these elegant and regal cacti. See the slideshow below

I’ve driven a Hummer through the national forests, and a mud buggy through the back lands of Kauai. And now, a Tomcar through the desert. This might be my favorite, as I take to the shoulder of washed out trails tilted sidewise at angles I would never have considered, except for Brandon’s total (and appropriately placed) trust in the Tomcars. And darned if that little car didn’t chug along despite being just about tipped over.

The Tomcar was developed by Israel for the Israel Defense Forces as an offroad military vehicle. It has independent suspension for all of its wheels, incredible stability on turns and tilts, and a low center of gravity. What enables it to traverse offroad conditions is also its 15 inch ground clearance. (Source:http://www.export.gov.il/Eng/_Articles/Article.asp?ArticleID=4675&CategoryID=622

This is one fun vehicle to drive - especially to drive  through the desert beauty of the Sonoran,  explore abandoned turquoise mines, cross rivers, and go into the heart of the desert. This year the rains have been so heavy that there was both good and bad news - the Sonoran was actually gorgeously green, but the river that divided us from some of the ghost towns and ruins was too high even for the Tomcar to cross.

But we stopped often as Brandon spoke with passion about the plants of the desert, drove past stands of saguaro, searched for turquoise at an old mine, and learned about the history of the area, including the story of man who founded Phoenix.

And throughout the whole trip, Brandon took photos, hanging out the side of the Tomcar, or as we rumbled by. These aren’t sold, they’re part of the package and you can download them for free.

And, we got to drive one of the coolest vehicles across all types of terrain.

Who knew you could have so much fun legally?

Subscribe above to receive notices about future fascinating and informative columns in your emailbox. Read about more Offbeat Travel and follow me on twitter as OffbeatTravel

(c) Neala Schwartzberg