Got stuck overnight in 2' of snow - lessons learned

[Muckle]

Well, it finally happened. After about a year of overlanding and 30+ nights in my trailer, we finally got ourselves into quite a tricky situation. There were a number of mistakes I made on this trip that continued to compound on each other, ultimately resulting in getting stuck in about 2' of snow and having to spend the night on a mountain.

I used Starlink to reach an off-road recovery company that sent a groomer up the next morning to help get me out. However, while he was on his way up, I was able to finally get myself out by airing down the tires more than I already had, and using 4LO. The snow hardened up enough overnight that it gave me just enough additional traction to get out.

It wasn't a life-or-death situation by any means, but definitely the sketchiest predicament I've been in. I should have stopped at the first sign of deep snow. I pushed forward, read a map incorrectly, and found myself in a bad spot.

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[PUMPKINKING]

A wise person once said, "mistakes are the most important things in life."

 

[Miqie]

Which tires do you have, and are you still happy with them?

 

[Dirt]

Swing by your local Les Schwab tire store and pick up a set or two of tire chains. They help a lot....

 

[TxGlenn]

Thats a solid production video!

 

[Sagebrush]

That's why our teardrop has a copy of the Cannibal Cookbook; Human Meat Recipes from Around the World.

A must-have for overlanding.

 

[Wife bought my 24 TRD]

Ever heard of a WINCH?

 

[TFOUTS]

Get some snow socks

https://a.co/d/fyS2h2q

 

[bajathree]

Thats a solid production video!

Me thinks that may have been the entire purpose of getting stuck and making the video;) YouTube hits.

 

[Muckle]

Which tires do you have, and are you still happy with them?

KO3s…no complaints.

Thats a solid production video!

Thank you! I actually filmed a bit less than normal because I was stressed, so I felt it was a bit lacking in some areas. Appreciate the feedback, though.

Ever heard of a WINCH?

I have yet to find one that I like that doesn’t completely change the front end look. Not a good reason to not have one, I know.

Me thinks that may have been the entire purpose of getting stuck and making the video;) YouTube hits.

Ha. I wish. YouTube won’t pay for the $400 service call for the groomer that came out

 

[gofastdan]

Great video and I love your honesty.

This is one reason I went with a wedge camper over a trailer. I've been on to many forest roads where I had to turn around and/or back down a hill because of road blockage from snow or fallen trees and in many of those situations a trailer would make it very hard to get turned around. I'm pretty risk averse so my default behavior would be to not even try but that would mean sticking to campgrounds and to me that's unacceptable.

 

[Cabby30]

That was a fun video; I felt the anxiety. It reminded me of getting stranded in the snow with my younger sister without any water or snacks since we had just planned for a light trail loop. We eventually dug our way out before full nightfall though.

 

[Muckle]

Great video and I love your honesty.

This is one reason I went with a wedge camper over a trailer. I've been on to many forest roads where I had to turn around and/or back down a hill because of road blockage from snow or fallen trees and in many of those situations a trailer would make it very hard to get turned around. I'm pretty risk averse so my default behavior would be to not even try but that would mean sticking to campgrounds and to me that's unacceptable.

Agreed on the trailer issue. Long term, I have my eye on a Four Wheel Camper or something similar. Want the “livability” so I can work remotely while in an interior area, but yea - I have got myself into a couple tricky spots towing a trailer.

That was a fun video; I felt the anxiety. It reminded me of getting stranded in the snow with my younger sister without any water or snacks since we had just planned for a light trail loop. We eventually dug our way out before full nightfall though.

It’s fun to look back on. Not so much fun in the moment!

 

[WKTJR1]

Nice video.
You were well prepared to "survive" unlike the classic tourists in the rental car scenario.

 

[StreeTaco]

Hi buddy, just watched your video and was wondering if in any attempts to self recover, did you utilize MTS? Or Crawl Control? I know you used 4Lo and locker, but didn’t see you try MTS.. It’s not active just by selecting 4Lo , you must activate it secondarily.

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