Lesson's Learned

[Streakerfreak]

7wt and I decided it was time to get out for a few hours and do a little exploring. The plan was to check out some unmaintained roads and then head to some ruins from the 1800s in my hometown.

We met at a parking lot a few miles away from the roads. Generally I am no more then a few hundred feet away from my truck. It's always prepared for cold weather, recovery, and emergencies. I never have to worry, so when I jumped into his truck, I did not think to grab any extra stuff besides my camera. Its not often that I am unprepared for something, today would be the day to change that.

As we made our way down the roads, we took note of all the rock walls, root cellars, etc. Pretty common in rural New England. There was a nice covering of snow and the ice was pretty think over the swampy areas.

Let's talk about irony. As we turned down a road, Jarret commented on the thickness of the ice due to the cold weather this month. Suddenly, the driver side tire cracked through the ice. We had found a thin spot!

Climbing out of the truck we noticed that the rest of the ice was very think. We figured that we would be able to rock the truck back onto the thick ice.

Did it work....nope! The tires just tore up the thinker ice, causing us to get stuck even more.

It was at this time I realized I had left all my cold weather gear back in my truck and we were with out the gear to make a proper Hi-Lift winch. I started to get cold and my fingers were stiffening up. It was time to set my camera to full automatic mode to keep my fingers off the camera as much as possible. Jarret had a pare of work gloves which helped a bit, but my hands were still bone cold.

We broke out the Hi-Lift and other gear. As we accessed the situation we decided it was best to Frankenstein the gear into a Hi-Lift winch. No it was not the proper gear, but it was are only choice.

It was around this time we started hearing blasts from a shotgun, in the near distance. Again, we were unprepared and did not think to have orange vests. Huge mistake, I know. I was clearly more worried then Jarret was about the situation. A few years ago I was shot at while in a No Hunting State park. The branches next to meet broke off from the shot. After that experience I tend to be a little more apprehensive about situations like this. Luckily, nothing else came out of this and we were back to the stuck situation.

 

[Streakerfreak]

After two hours, several re-rigging's, wet feet, and cold extremities, we were out. The two of us together were able to deal with the situation effectively.

Unfortunately, we had to end it here. We cleaned up the road, put the rocks back and we called it a day. With that said, it was a major learning experience for the two of us and we even enjoyed the process very much. It was a fun day.

Be prepared, no matter what your doing.

 

[jcbrandon]

Glad it worked out for you without a lot of drama. Nice work keeping your heads together.

I'm curious; why did you decide to go in a single truck when you had two available? No sarcasm in that question. Just curious what factors led to that decision.

 

[Streakerfreak]

I'm curious; why did you decide to go in a single truck when you had two available? No sarcasm in that question. Just curious what factors led to that decision.

Yeah I know. I think we got a little too comfortable with the roads in Connecticut and took an unneeded risk. That said I enjoy the conversations we have when we head out. I guess you can say it's our fireside chat when we can't have a campfire. It was a nice learning experience for the both of us though. We had a lot of fun.

 

[7wt]

Yup, learned some things today. First off I need to get a couple more shackles, some chains, a winch extension rope and a extra tree protector. All I had was the Hi Lift accessory kit with it's one shackle and attachment with choke chains. I used a snatch rope as a tree protector and another one to hook up to the Hi Lift winch foot. That one had the choke chains on it. The winching was a slow go but very effective. It was the first time my Hi Lift has been used in anger and I am very glad I had it! Also, I normally have a couple of warmer gloves in my truck as well as an extra jacket and a fleece blanket but I took them out yesterday so I could put some other junk back there for the day and didn't replace them. That left me with a pair of neoprene gloves I use when I scrape ice off my truck and left Phil with an old pair of knit meat packers gloves I keep in there for light weather and if I ever need to pack meat. Better than nothing I suppose.

One thing I learned is to get the stuff you think you will never use. I try to stream line as much as possible and not carry everything for every situation. I like to go light but now I realize I need to add more to what I keep in there on a daily basis. Most of that stuff had been there for years without ever been looked at. I just never needed it so I never thought to add more. Now I know. For those with an eye for detail, Phil posted a pick of me on the wrong side of the Hi Lift (in between the handle and top). I wasn't jacking at that point, just taking up the slack in the system. When all the heavy lifting was done I was at the base side of the jack pulling the handle back towards me. I learned that lesson a while back. As far as the shot gun went, I wasn't worried about that as I knew ******** Cheney wasn't around.

Now for some more pics:

 

[calamaridog]

Proof that the hi-lift can be used as a winch:victory:

Maybe it's time to try one of those Black Rat winches instead:ylsmoke:

Tks for sharing the "learning experience"!

 

[BigAl]

Been there, done that, a hilift as a winch is slooow...., but it works It's a good point you make about having proper clothes for the weather. I like to have a change of clothes and extra boots too. If there is water, I find a way to step in it. The only thing I see you guys did wrong was no bon fire, all that jacking calls for a bonfire and a beer.:sombrero:

 

[7wt]

If there is water, I find a way to step in it.

Oh good, there is someone else that does this. I can't seem to avoid it. I did today, stepped right through the ice into mucky water. My feet were very cold. The funny part is I have an old pair of hip waders in the bed of my truck for things like this. I just didn't think I'd go through the ice, guess I need to lay off the chili dogs a little. One thing that wasn't mentioned was that it was cold and windy. The temps today were in the mid 20's. My left foot (the ice cracker) was a touch blue when I got home. The mud/ice mix froze up good and solid in my wheels and made my truck shake like it had some terrible neurological disorder. I had to limit myself to 45 mph on the highway much to the dismay of others that were sharing the road behind me. I had to spend a good amount of time at the car wash blasting ice mud out of my wheels. Its pretty miserable being cold, spraying water that turns to ice before you are done cleaning your truck. Oh what winter joys!

 

[Z O O R O P A]

Looks like a lot of fun, look forward to joining you all soon

 

[BIGdaddy]

dam it, phil!!!!:bigbossHL::littlefriend:

****** are you thinking?!

did your wife ********** you around when you got home?:sport_box

how the heck am i supposed to visit/hang out when we eventually make it east if you are a friggin' phil-cicle?




[smacks forehead]
glad you're alright, dude.

 

[kcowyo]

Murphy's Law in effect..... :violent-smiley-031:

A good lesson Phil, thanks for sharing it with the rest of us. I'm guilty of the same thing on occasion, not grabbing my emergency kit from one vehicle when taking out the other one. I'm sure I'll remember this tale next time I'm feeling lazy.

Jarret, I hope you don't lose the foot.
.

 

[p1michaud]

Sounds like you did not have all the items to keep you warm and cozy, but you had sufficient recovery gear and knowledge to get you unstuck and on your way. Great lesson and well done. You even kept your cool enough to take some pics, in these situations my mind flips over to problem solving and typically forgets about taking pictures. It may not always be funny at the moment, but later on they make for good stories better told with photos to prove it. :elkgrin:

Stay warm!

 

[Cabrito]

Man, I got cold just reading about that.

Nice work guys.

-m

 

[007]

I have an action packer affectionately labeled, "the cold weather unit". It stays in my truck most of the year and offers great piece of mind. Not that you guys will ever forget your gear again! but it is easy to transfer to another vehicle and know its all there.

It has:

-0 sleeping bag
wool blanket
Coveralls
Coat
2 pairs of gloves
2 pairs of socks
Snow packs
Pocket rocket mini stove
Ski googles
Hat
Scarf
Fire starting stuff.

 

[T.Low]

We've all been there one way or another!

My packing motto is "I'll throw this in so that I won't need it". I only tend to need the one thing i didn't bring, so if i bring it, I won't need to use it.

It was funny about the one rig for the two of you comment. My buddies and I all laugh cause there is no way we can ever ride two up, everyone wants to drive their own rig all the time.:smiley_drive: