11/25 - Stuck in the Mud!

Sunday after Thanksgiving we decided to do some trail maintenance, mainly mowing and cutting brush so we could cross-country ski this winter. I spent Saturday afternoon getting the mower deck in shape and ready for installation in the field. Marlene raked leaves while Norah and Kitty played in them. Sunday afternoon we hitched up the trailer and headed north. When we got there, the cul-de-sac by the house was deeply rutted. I decided that it was likely we would get stuck if I tried to turn around using it. The ground to the west of the cul-de-sac looked decent, so I swung off the driveway on that side, got turned around and was making my way back to the driveway. I hesitated a bit trying to decide which way would have firmer ground. Once my momentum was broken, I was lost. Trying to get going again just resulted in burying the wheels deeper. Fortunately we had the camera with us so Marlene was able to record these auspicious moments for posterity.

I unhitched the trailer, but still could not get any forward progress. I got out the jack and we grabbed some nearby boards and started digging out. After jacking up the front and placing boards under the wheels, I succeeded in moving forward a few feet. Once the wheels slid sideways off the boards, they sank into the mud again.

I opened up the trailer and got the shovel out. I dug the chunks of clay out from where I needed to place the jack.
Digging Out

I quickly discovered that the jack was sinking into the mud faster than the car was going up. I put a wide board under the jack and got significantly better results.
Board needed under jack.

I jacked up each side and placed the boards under the wheels again. This time I got the tractor out of the trailer and the 50' length of rope that I keep in the car, which I used as a tow strap.

Handy to have a tractor along.

With Marlene on the tractor on the firm driveway pulling and me driving the car while trying to keep the wheels from spinning, we made some good progress even after driving off the end of the boards. This lasted until the left wheel hit the edge of the firm driveway. Instead of driving up onto the road, the right wheel started digging in.

So close...

At some point we took break and carried our picnic lunch over to the snow-covered picnic table. We didn't even bother clearing the snow off the table. We found a couple of dry spots on the bench and proceeded to eat a quick lunch.

One more round of jacking up each side and placing boards under the wheels. With the edge of the driveway so close, the boards were slanted upwards quite a bit. And the slick mud had coated the tires thoroughly. Even with Marlene on the tractor and me giving the car as much gas as I could without spinning the wheels, we could not get going. Finally Marlene revved the tractor all the way up and the car popped forward and out onto the driveway.

I took the tractor and dragged the trailer up onto the driveway. We hitched up the trailer, put the tractor back into the trailer, threw all of the muddy gear into the trailer and headed home. It was starting to get dark by this time. Two and a half hours of getting out of the mud and we had had enough. No useful work was accomplished today.

Messy Stuff!