Winter Wheeling

[Dave]

How do you prepare yourself and your vehicle for snow wheeling? Do you have a full tank of fuel? Do you air down? Always be prepared to spend time outside on foot in the snow. Appropriate gear is a necessity if things go pear shaped. Water, food, and communications are key as you are most likely to get stuck. Carry a SPOT or other EPIRB device. Let someone know where you are going! The number one tool every vehicle should have is a shovel. Additional items you should always carry are a first aid kit with hand warmers and emergency blankets, fire extinguisher, flashlight(s), matches/lighter, recovery gear and a full tool kit.

A winch, tow straps, tree savers, snatch block, soft and hard shackles and tire chains should be a requirement when venturing out solo (not recommended). Make sure to carry a jump pack or jumper cables in case you kill your battery while performing recovery operations. Carry MaxTrax and extra winch line and long tree straps. You may encounter deep, icy ruts and are likely to require a long line pull or redirection to regain mobility.

Are you fully prepared?

 

[Malamute]

I once broke through the crust on old snow in my Willys pickup, I dug about 3 feet below the tires and it was still snow, so i started putting it back. After getting the axles and frame clear, I had some 1x6 boards 4 ft long Id found at a campsite someone had been using for firewood and used them to stay on top of the snow, moving 4 feet at a time. All that digging in old snow was with a folding army shovel, the WWII type with wood handle. 6 hours worth. I got a long handled round point shovel after that, and other stuff like a Hi-Lift jack.

Little shovels are not very good tools. Long handle shovels are.

I always had basic camp gear and some food, change of clothes, spare ammo, tarp for shelter. later trucks looked more like they were ready for an extended expedition with all the junk I took along. Back in the day nobody talked much about not going alone, which ive mostly done.

 

[Dave]

I once broke through the crust on old snow in my Willys pickup, I dug about 3 feet below the tires and it was still snow, so i started putting it back. After getting the axles and frame clear, I had some 1x6 boards 4 ft long Id found at a campsite someone had been using for firewood and used them to stay on top of the snow, moving 4 feet at a time. All that digging in old snow was with a folding army shovel, the WWII type with wood handle. 6 hours worth. I got a long handled round point shovel after that, and other stuff like a Hi-Lift jack.

Little shovels are not very good tools. Long handle shovels are.

I always had basic camp gear and some food, change of clothes, spare ammo, tarp for shelter. later trucks looked more like they were ready for an extended expedition with all the junk I took along. Back in the day nobody talked much about not going alone, which ive mostly done.

Grear story, and excellent point about the shovel. Like a proper size axe and saw, when you need one you’re glad you have the real thing onboard.

 

[Malamute]

I learned some other lessons the hard way. I never had a winch, but a come-a-long is still useful. Hydraulic bottle jacks, Hi-Lift jack, some boards to set them on so they dont sink. Tire chains. I cant remember how many times Ive dug myself out of mud and snow. This was before cell phones, so its do it or walk out. A few times it ended up being the latter.

One time required a friend with his truck and a chain saw. Good times.

I almost got a guy with a backhoe stuck coming in to try to get me out. the ground was saturated and was like jello. I went in late at night after it had frozen, but waited too long the next day to try to leave.

 

[WashingtonTaco]

An example of why you need winch line extensions.

My business partner @Will Gillette had a rescue on Monday December the 27th. A person in a 2wd Taco had been staying in a cabin on Cama Beach State Park on Camano Island WA. The road out was compacted snow and ice and the 2wd Taco couldn't make the climb approximately 400' in gain. He found two park rangers attempting to shove dirt on the road to try to afford some traction.

Wills first attempt was to use traction boards but the Taco just spat them out. Next thought was to run a winch line and pull the Taco up. Will pulled 60' of SX winch line off the drum, a 60' SX winch line extension and a 100' ARB winch line extension strap, 220' of line and barely reached the Taco. After pulling the SX extension, resetting the pull and pulling in the 100' extension he felt the Taco was on a less steep section and was able to perform a traction extraction using just the ARB winch line extension (pictured). Needless to say the Taco owner and park rangers were happy to see Will. Solid work helping the community.