YotaTech Forums - Into the Wild, Take 2

For pictures in this trip report see the album: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/kc659/...=/d398&.src=ph

This was a subsequent trip "Into the wild" in the interior of Alaska. (See my previous trip: https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f100/into-wild-near-healy-ak-70633/)

This took place on the 2nd of December. The temperature started out at about -10 F. A friend Kevin was up visiting and we decided to make another go of it in my 99 Tacoma.

There was about a foot of powdery snow and the trip was uneventful until we came to the first large river rightly named the Savage. The ice banks were much higher than the water and I hung the frame up on the drop-off. Nothing that a little winching/ice hacking/chainsawing wouldn’t fix (pictures 1-15) Crossing the open water was also difficult for the same reason.

The next river (the Telkanika) was where I took all the fording pictures from the last post. This time it was fully frozen over which was verified on foot before driving across (pictures 23-26); no water this time but a beautiful winter afternoon sunset at about 2PM.

Shortly after crossing the Telkanika, the “road” passes through a series of beaver ponds and ice dam overflows. While driving through this area my rear end broke through some ice and got us stuck (pictures 26-30) At first look no big deal until we took a closer look (picture 31); not good.

With a 30 mile hike to the main road looking at us and darkness falling we were both highly motivated to rig something to allow us to limp out so out came the gear. (by the way, rather than warming up the temperature was dropping; before the night was out we would see temperatures below -30 F).

First was the hi-lift to get the wheel and axel out of the mud and ice(picture 31). With this done we could see that another problem had arisen; the rear axle had been tweaked to the rear so far, the driveshaft had fallen out of its sleeve (pictures 32,33). Something else that would need fixing if we were to drive out. This was harder than initially apparent because everything was so cold and frozen that we had to heat it just to get it unbolted and again to get it back together (pictures 34-36). With this out of the way, using a come-along we pulled the axle back into position, tie-wired the broken spring to the frame, secured everything with tie-downs and the come-along (picture 37). Both of us had long since quit looking at the time but I would estimate it took 6 hours from breakdown to when we thought we would be ready to roll again. Looking back, our tracks where we had broken through the ice were refrozen to about an inch thick; a testament to the cold (pictures 40,41).

I say thought we would be ready to roll because as soon as we attempted it, we were rejected yet again. The rear wheel would not turn, and with as cold as it was, I was not willing to try and make the engine force it to. It was obvious that the brake drum had frozen water in it. We chipped at the ice and removed the wheel and tried various methods for freeing the drum including heating some windshield washer fluid and pouring it over the drum. What ultimately worked was again building a small fire under it and heating it until the melted water stopped pouring from it (pictures 42-44).

We had the same issue with one of the front wheels but this was easer to free (disk breaks are nice). Finally, we were moving again. Limping, more like it but at least we were moving, and we weren’t hiking yet. The pictures stopped at this point; the cold finally got to the batteries. We retraced our tracks back the way we had come.

After about 200 yards, we heard the sound that just like a rattlesnakes rattle, seems to be instinctual to danger for 4x4’ers; a loud pulsating hiss. Yes; to top it off we got a flat as well. Fortunately, it was the same wheel we had taken off to thaw so it was ready for removal and we replaced it with the spare. Rolling again.

We continued following the trail back to civilization until we got back to the open water of the Savage river. Actually, warning signs as we neared the river were apparent as slush in the overflow channels; the river was about 2 feet higher than when we crossed it outbound. With weather conditions like this chunks of ice calve off into the river and float downstream until they hang up and create temporary dams; changing the level of rivers, sometimes drastically in short periods of time. That is what we were looking at. We contemplated finding the dam and attempting to demolish it to lower the water; but after a closer look, I thought we could make it.

As we plunged off the ice bank, this decision was visually questioned as a wave of greenish arctic water washed over the hood. Much puckering ensued as we both braced for a cold swim but to our surprise the taco motored across the river and up onto the bank on the opposite side, the civilization side.

We were not there yet and after climbing out of the river another problem became apparent. It was so cold that everything was freezing as soon as I came to a stop. I had to keep moving for fear that if it froze, it wouldn’t move again until spring. This required a lot of jockeying back and forth as Kevin rigged the winch over some of the more difficult portions of the trail that I couldn’t drive normally for fear of compromising the jerry rigged setup for the rear axle.

This is pretty much how we continued for the rest of the trail back; holding our breath over every beaver pond and creek, keeping things from freezing while rigging, and hoping the battery would hold out for the winching. Finally, at about 3AM we were back to town (pictures 45,46).

Looking back at this trip there were many times while we were out there that I wished I hadn’t made some of the decisions I did. What made things work out was a preparedness that extended to tools, equipment, clothing, food and determination. If I were honest, probably what was the determining factor is that both of us were very highly motivated to not have to walk out on foot. We had the gear for it, but that wouldn’t have changed the fact that it would have been a long walk. Trips like this help to emphasize the importance of having the right gear, both for the truck and the passengers. Things like dual battery systems and spare tires provide backup, things like tie-wire, duct tape (which doesn’t work when it’s that cold) on-board welders and spare parts allow parts to be fixed. Tools allow the fixing. Appropriate clothing and fire sources and food allow the passengers to remain comfortable and think clearly. Another requirement is to accept that things happen that are out of anyone’s control and sometimes a long hike is the only way to fix it.

Not being one to give up on a goal, I changed my mode of winter transportation and right after the first of the year headed back the same trail with the bus in my sights. This time I was successful and as I passed waypoints from earlier trips the memories of the trials and tribulations played in my mind and reminded me of things to put into practice for future trips (pictures 47-50).