Alone and Stuck in Avra Valley, let the fun begin!

[Hedgehog]

This is a small part of Avra Valley Arizona, an area just west of Tucson Arizona.

This is a piece of ground I'm trying to get to know to add it to my Predator Calling area this fall. It has great potential with mountains on a Reservation that doesn't allow predator hunting to the west and farm land with spread out homes to the east. Coyote, Mt. Lions and Bobcats love that kind of ground.

So I'm out there polking around , just looking for new roads and access points .... I was rabbit hunting as well.

It is hot and dry, VERY dry we haven't had rain for a long time.



The ground was flat, no big deal, but it was dry. Trouble was brewing. So, I was driving along as in the picture above came around a corner and suddenly the Jeep slowed, OOOPPPPPPs I've been there before. So I stopped in an attempt to back out of what I already knew was trouble. To the Jeeps credit it fought well, we were able to back up about 10 feet. I in the last instant we were able to get straight to the only decent tree for some distance and the Jeep just sank right to the frame.

Great, I'm a long ways from help and stuck in a way that didn't show much hope for escape. But wait there is the 12,000 lb. winch, the nice shinny new Harbor Freight winch I installed last year. The Harbor Freight winches had great reviews especially for an inexpensive unit. So I'm sitting there thinkin' "DARN IT ALL TO HE..".. well okay I said "Darn It". There wasn't much for the winch to get ahold of. But WAY over the hill there was a big healthy tree.



The Jeep was actually stuck about 10 feet in front of the camera, but you can see the tree way over the berm.

I honestly didn't think I had enough cable to reach up over the berm to the tree. I did know one thing I could bury a tire as a dead fall, but honestly with the Temperatures hovering at 100d would you find that prospect of any interest?

So with the winch in neutral I started pulling the cable. It made it to the base of the hill with plenty of cable still on the spool. At the top the story was the same and I had hope.



Knowing that the secret to not being snake bit is to see the snake FIRST I carefully and slowly cleared a little bit and dove in, by the grace of god there was enough cable.



Now try not to be too hard on me, I know I need a tree saver, but I haven't gotten one yet, soon, but not yet.

Now came the test, will the Winch perform as advertised. The one complaint the testers ahd was the speed of the winch. So I got in the driver seat and hit the "GO" button on the winch control. Things started happening right away. The cable was clearly moving, not fast but it was moving, then it got tighter and " POP" it was loose. I began worrying about the winch transmission, but then the cable started to tighten up, it must have moved a little or settled in for the fight to come. The cable tightened, the Jeep twitched, the winch slowed down, but NEVER stopped. With the jeep in gear help the winch. The Jeep moved and started to dig a new hole. I'd out run the winch. Darn this thing is slow, but steady. The cable would tighten up, I'd move the Jeep a little. then wait for the winch to catch up. Once the Jeep was out of the hole I got out and let the winch do it's work.



I wanted to gt a good run at the soft sand so I had the winch pull the CJ up the berm quite a ways.



Here's a picture of the sand we were stuck in.




Looks innocent enough, this stuff is deep, the CJ was sitting on it's frame right here.

Using a little elevation to find some speed we shot through the soft sand and I didn't stop until I knew we were safe.




By-the -way the hunt was successfull. Who says you can't eat Jack Rabbit

 

[Torxhead]

Interesting story, Hedgehog, sounds like that winch just paid for itself.

 

[Hedgehog]

I figured the winch could do it, what surprised me was the over all lenght of the cable, it really was a long reach out there. I've never used a winch much, this was first for this winch.

 

[GatorBate]

Nothing like a bit of unexpected adventure to make a good story. A winch can come handy sometimes. There just decoration.

 

[jpeck71]

Good to know. I've got that same winch I bought for the JK I used to have. I haven't put it on my CJ yet and only tested it on the JK to wind the cable tight on the drum. If I remember it's like a 100 foot cable right?

I've heard bad things about driving on sand. Were your tires aired down? I've read that helps with the sand as well.

 

[Shifter]

Cool story...
Now serve me some stew.....please.:shooter:

 

[Hedgehog]

jpeck71 - This isn't really sand country so it isn't necesary to air down most of the time. The stuff I got stuck in isn't like sand, it's almost like .... well .... nothing at all. Just stand in it and your shoes sink to the ankles. Unless you've seen it I can't exactly describe it, the second a tire cracks the surface crust the only way to go is down. I was impressed witht he Jeep in one way. All 4 tires were spinning at once and we dropped like in an elevator. Lockers all around wouldn't have stopped it from happening.

I don't know how long the cable is, I should look it up though.

Shifter - I give you credit my man. Most people see Jack Rabbit and run the other way. I grew up near the Canada border, in the winter time we hunted Snow Shoe Hares, your in Mid-Michigan you might have hunted them as well. Honestly, strip the skin off and they look very much the same, sinse they are both hares they probably should look similar. They also taste similar. This one was nice and young with a few ticks (can't help it, it's a desert thing) on the ears, but clean in every other way. The tender loin on a Jack is excellent, the hind legs are a little on the tough side, still good though.

 

[Petescj]

jpeck71 -
The stuff I got stuck in isn't like sand, it's almost like .... well .... nothing at all. Just stand in it and your shoes sink to the ankles. Unless you've seen it I can't exactly describe it

I know exactly what your talking about. That sand supports absolutely nothing. Your up to the frame rails in no time flat. Glad you had the winch and some good reaction time to the situation. That is not an area you want to be stuck in with the Az. sun beating down on you.

 

[Hedgehog]

Another asside related to being stuck in this area. I was right on one of the heaviest illegal and drug trafficing routes in the US. Lately they have been traveling throught the reservation, but it's obvious that the traffic is also along the Reservation borders. Stop moving for any length of time and it is entirely possible find visitors hanging about.

 

[CJ007]

I think it's cool that you had a chance to test your winch unexpected. You never know what's gonna happen and that's what makes it fun.

Sometimes it turns into an impromptu camping trip and sometimes you just gotta eat some Jack Rabbit. Haha.

 

[Hedgehog]

CJ-007 - I don't need to get stuck to eat a nice young healthy Jack Rabbit. Granted it's not for everyone though.

Even dug way down in everything worked as planned. The winch worked, the bumper worked, the biggest worry was the winch plate it worked flawlessly. I'm pleased with the whole set-up.

 

[jdulmer]

Great story, Hedgehog. I need to go pick up one of those winches...



"Libertatem Aut Mortem"

 

[Kane]

A slow winch is still faster than no winch. Complaints about slow crack me up.

 

[Hedgehog]

About the only complaint I'd have with winch speed would be if you were trying to crawl to help the winch pull. For instance ALL my wheels were axle deep and I wanted to help by keeping the wheels moving to help with the "up and out" part. The Jeep essentially could not crawl slow enough to keep from over running the winch. It was really no big deal at all, actually it takes that's some thought to come up with a reason where a little more speed would help. I suppose this would go hand in hand with speed, the Harbor Freight winch has a significantly lower amperage draw than other winches in the same class.

 

[Torxhead]

When you are with a group of vehicles and everyone must winch on a given obsticle, having the slowest winch is not too flattering, or watching your winch go up in smoke or burn up a relay since you overheated it.

 

[Hedgehog]

Good point, I'm usually alone so speed isn't going to bother anyone else. Also my manhood is so old it doesn' really get involved with who's faster or slower. It's nice just to be involved.

 

[Mnbluepits]

i have one these bad land 12000lbs myself my buddies has a warn's and they all laugh at how slow mine was but when there stuck to door frame in mud and there warn winches are clicking off cause they getting hot and mine just keeps pulling me threw i turn and laugh at them..i even winched a 1975 chvy 3/4 with 1ton axles threw the same hole faster then the warns was doing. 2 of my group have now gone with the bad land and put there warn on a bumper hitch for there rear..

 

[Hedgehog]

Man, With all these stories I'm likin' my Badlands Winch more and more all the time! Not all Harbor Freight products are made in China. I don't know the 100% truth of this but I heard the Badlands Winch is manufactured or designed or assembled in the Boston area.

I need to go out this weekend and pull out my cable. It's got your typical "LETS get out of here" type of rewind. I need to pull it out and rewind it in a civilized fashion. A good deal of it is nicely wound, but down deep in the real there lives a mess.