Four days after our Sedona trip we were back on the road for another snow trip. This storm was warmer than the previous so it had rained on the plateau and melted all the snow. Instead of going to the lower-mid elevations this time we went to the rim at around 7,500 ft. I-17 was still a mess and I didn't want to fight everyone driving up to Flagstaff. I was on-call so I had to have signal so the plan was to drive up the Mogollon Rim and find a place were I have signal.
There was a lot of snow around the 260 and 87 intersection and a good hill but no signal. I headed towards Happy Jack. We turned up north at Lake Mary Rd then took Old Highway 87. Where it stopped there was a F-250 backed in. So I headed down a private road to make a u-turn. When I got back to the F-250 a sedan was coming up so I moved to the side. This is when things got fun. The sedan didn't turn, it just went back and I had stopped on ice. When I started to move I started sliding down a hill on the passenger's side. I thought no big deal, I'll pour some kitty litter under my tires and be on my way. Well that didn't work. The F-250 tried to pull me out but this guy was kinda a dipstick that didn't know what he was doing. He started sliding as well so he went to put on chains but they were the wrong sized chains. So he tells me my best bet is to go 100 yards down the road to where I turned and the guy there has a backhoe. Eventually I realized I'm not getting out so I ran to the guy's house for a little help.
Before I even get to the front porch the home owner comes to see what I need. He tells me he'll put on his boots and help me out. By the time I get back to my truck I can see the guy in the F-250 splitting. So the guy who owns the backhoe shows up first in an off-road vehicle with his wife and tries to pull me out with a winch. I kept sliding. So he says no problem, let me get the backhoe. He comes back with the backhoe and a 30,000 pound towing strap. I was talking to his dad and he said he took the corner hard with the backhoe the day before and said he knew it was going to be a problem later. Well it was, the next day! Anyways he pulled me out with no issue. But then I'm on the road, again sliding on ice. So he turns his backhoe around and uses the big scoop to widen the road and make an 8 foot tall hill. He got me off the ice and we were on our way. We thanked him for his help and he said no problem, I got to do something fun. Really nice guy that didn't seem bothered at all.
We drove down the road to the Happy Jack Lodge, where they have a Verizon tower but decided not to stay there. There is a good hill but there was a lot of people and I didn't want to deal with that. So we turned around and went a mile down the road and had our own private spot. This time we did things right. The kids had better clothes, I had a stove, hot chocolate, chili, and a heater. I was over prepared though. I got the heater turned on and we didn't even need it. It was 37 degrees but in the sun at high elevation it was actually so warm I took off my shirt and went full Alabama for a while.
We only stayed a couple hours but it was a fun trip and I didn't get paged. Now we know where to go, and where not to go, when I'm on-call or not.
Driving into Camp Verde. The clouds are from all the evaporation. I was cool once we were down in it because we could see all the snow evaporating and rising.
Doh.
That's the way to get pulled out.
Maurina and Ollie.
All three of my little turd butts.
The save everyone's vision I put my shirt back on for this picture.
Snow baby got back.
Yes, still in Arizona.
No comments:
Post a Comment