How much is too much snow?

[akcabin]

I would probably go hunting. Maybe you might be able to harvest a good deer before 5 miles out.
I have been in plenty of weather and for me I try to not let the weather impact what I do concerning heading out or not. Every chance that you may have weather any time out.
I would be careful about letting air out of the tires though. Especially if they are that cold unless you have tires with bead lockers. You may roll the tire right off the rim.
You probably have your survival stuff with you.
And fwiw I have been stuck over 5 miles out n got stuck except with snogos. 3' of fresh fluffy snow that started packing. Snogos could not go. Couldn't see the trail. Tough walk out too. But I knew that going in so just a you'll have that moment

 

[WCB]

Dependent on type of snow, temps, and wind. 5-6" and real windy can cause issues with drifting. Wet or damp snow. Or even a slight warmup and sunny day followed by low temps. Now you have a crust layer to deal with. Mud etc is all in the back of my mind also if a major warm up is coming.

But lets say just normal snow with no predicted large melt off and no concerning winds....8" or so.

Also, make sure you know the elevation the reported snow total is for. While guiding the clients would get confused when the weather radio would say to expect 6-8" of snow and temps in the 20s and us guides were talking about extra feed for the horses and moving down in elevation to hunt when the day prior animals were at camps elevation and higher. Reported depth was at 6,000ft we were in the mid 9s. They figured it out when we woke up with more snow and considerably colder temps.

 

[Steve300xcw]

All depends on what kinda snow it is, what the roads are, what you are driving, and how much gas is in the tank

 

[ORJoe]

What's left in the forecast? Do I have snowshoes with me?
Because if there's enough snow to get me worried about driving out, hiking 5 miles without them is going to be an all day affair.
More storm and no snowshoes: 6" might be enough to trigger me to run away
Storm is over and I have snowshoes (or skis): I don't care if there's 2 feet I'm going hunting. It will probably melt down to 1 foot by the time I walk back to the truck.

Also, how far do I have to drive the truck to get to the lower elevation?

 

[JoeDirt]

Snow never use to bother me, im always prepared......

Until I got my Ram Diesel stuck in a melting snow drift chained up on all 4 tires. I didnt notice the snow was getting deeper. It took me 3-4 hours to dig out and a 6 pack of beer. I got backed out and turned around, luckily camp was my truck.

Once a chainsaw winch came in handy, the same Ram 2500 got sideways on a STEEP icy road front and back tires were in the ditch. We had a chainsaw winch on hand and that saved us. Being able to rig the ass end to a tree was worth more than any front bumper mounted winch.

 

[Fatcamp]

Last year we stayed longer than we should have. It snowed everyday with wind. We got a bull down on Wednesday and packed it out Thursday. We broke camp early Friday and spent 12 hours to go 35 miles. There was probably 10" of snowfall but it drifted 4-5' every couple hundred yards. I was already chained up but lots of shoveling got us out. That was a long ass day. It's doable but it really really sucked. We also had 4 guys shoveling. Looking back we should have broke camp Tuesday but my buddy got a nice 6 point so in the end it was worth it.

Wind matters as much as anything. 6" can be a major problem with 40mph winds.

 

[LongWayAround]

One year I had killed a large cow right as a storm was moving in. I got her packed out that evening as the snow was piling up. My camp was at the trailhead and soon I was the last one there. The other guys checked on me as they pulled out. I was determined to stay until morning but I got nervous when the snow was nearing a foot of accumulation. I bailed and drove to town spending the night in the front seat of my truck.

 

[taskswap]

For me it depends on road traffic and supplies. If I knew the weather would be fair after, and I had a few days' supplies, I'd push it to a foot or more before I bailed. In most of the places I go, there are always folks in jeeps and what-have-you running up and down forest roads even in the middle of winter. A few days after a storm it's usually pretty easy to get out of anywhere especially if you have chains and a decent shovel. That whole thing about over-crowding can be a blessing in disguise some times.

On the other hand, if the road was less traveled and/or getting "stuck" for a few days was going to be a problem, I'd probably bail literally as the snow started falling. Personally I'm less worried about snow itself because while it really sucks to do it, you absolutely can take the time to shovel tracks for your tires a hundred yards at a time. Usually you only have to do this in areas where you get drifts and it only takes me 10-15 mins to get through each one. It can take a half day to "get out" but it's absolutely doable - again, especially with chains.

But the mud, oh the mud. I fear mud way more than snow when I'm back-country. Where I go in CO, I once heard it said the mud is "slicker than s--- through a goose". When that snow starts melting and the road gets muddy underneath I've seen ditches swallow even lifted jeeps in 4-low with huge snow tires on them. You can air down to 10psi and try your chains, but if the mud wants you it's going to have its way with you and you won't enjoy it!

The single best thing I ever added to my rig was a front hitch and a hitch-mounted winch. Even a cheap Harbor Freight winch will get you out of a lot of tricky situations that would take hours of shovel-and-traction-board work otherwise. It takes time to do, but if I could choose only one recovery tool out of chains/winch/boards/shovel/saw I would go for the winch every day. (But bring them all just in case!)

Pro tip for anybody that hasn't spent much time on forest roads in the West. If you find yourself in trouble and you have the option to do it, try to drive out around 5am when the ground is frozen. It's a LOT easier to drive on frozen mud before it melts!

 

[xsn10s]

It really depends on the rig and how it's equipped. I used to snow wheel a lot in Bend with my buddies. None of us picked trucks to snow wheel with. Samurais, Wranglers, XJ's and a Scout II. Most ran lockers and aired down. We still got stuck in deep snow, but we all learned the capabilities of our rigs and the drivers. I even took a Subaru hatchback wheeling once (1986 with winter street tires). Best advise I can give is wheel with some buddies and help each other get unstuck. Or go out with a offroad group.

 

[doc holiday13]

A dry snow wouldn't bother me till i hit 10". Wet snow ... 6" would bother me and I'd start getting outta there.

 

[Dos Perros]

In 20 miles of road, there are going to be a few spots that are several times 'worse' than the median pucker factor. Driving in I'd make note of those spots, like steep climbs, creek crossings, slippery stuff with steep drop offs, exposed culverts, etc, and adjust accordingly. Based on your limited inputs, anything more than a few inches would make me nervous.

 

[yfarm]

Couple years ago was scouting on Labor Day weekend in northern NM, got gas in Taos and it was spitting snow, headed west toward Chama got up to about 8500 ft had a foot of heavy wet snow with unfrozen ground underneath. Opening weekend of archery elk, several stuck campers at campsites. Landowner in the area had bowhunters on his ranch at 10,000 ft got 30”,had trucks with trailers and UTVs, had to send in a large 4wd tractor to help the trucks out, trailers stayed until later in the fall after the early snow melted.15 miles from pavement 3 hr drive in dry conditions. I follow forecasts in the area and there is a large discrepancy in the weather service forecast depth vs actual.

 

[venado mula]

I avoid the snow because everything breaks in the snow but you high center more than anything in the snow and my truck can handle a foot of snow if I can keep traction (when I'm pulling the horse trailer I will park lower and ride in farther if the weather forecast is calling for heavy snow while I'm out). When you are deep in the backcountry or on the face of a mountain you just can't hustle back to the truck to move it so it becomes what it is unless you've planned for it.

 

[svivian]

Is this video what prompted the question?

 

[idahomuleys]

Is this video what prompted the question?

The question has been on my mind for a while and I had done a couple searches on here to see if it had been brought up. I did watch that video a couple days ago so I think it subconsciously made me write the question even though that video wasn't on my mind at the time

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[Customweld]

The question has been on my mind for a while and I had done a couple searches on here to see if it had been brought up. I did watch that video a couple days ago so I think it subconsciously made me write the question even though that video wasn't on my mind at the time

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Since you're from Idaho, do you remember a few years ago when that group of hunters got snowed in behind Cinnabar? They had horsetrailers, and a bunch of vehicles in there. The outfit running Stibnite took a D6 in there and plowed the road to get them all out. They were back in there 15 plus miles.

 

[Thinkingman]

Some issues to consider. Dry snow can buy you a little time. Wet snow can ruin your life with 5-6 inches. Measure your differential or axle clearance. Pushing snow can get ugly.

Another consideration is how much snow is normal per event. How much do you like to gamble?

Uphill or downhill? I have a spot that I can drive into but need chains on all four and 4 wheel drive to grind my way out of. Downhill I just have to sweat the corners. If you are the only one and downhill, you have a chance. If it's packed from traffic, you are in big trouble. If you are pushing snow with the axel or bumper, I would be moving when you can

Exactly what I was going to say.
A foot of pow is easy to manage, an half inch of freezing rain is treacherous.
Uphill is less dangerous than downhill travel.
Also is your level of experience and does your vehicle allow you to delete/manage the electronic nannies.

 

[Marble]

First, I carry a full set of chains, and if the weather is expected to get shitty, I may carry two sets.

Second, depends on the road. Some roads are twistyand have steep areas that can cause issues getting out.

Depends also on the future weather forecast.

We normally have a 6 horse trailer attached to our rig. So that prevents us from going up some roads, but does let us ride our horses in to where vehicles can't get to.

Sometimes it isn't the snow that's the problem. It's the mud after the snow drops and then weather gets warmer.



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[5MilesBack]

One year about 4:30 in the evening I shot a cow in snow up to my knees. When I got down to the truck there was no snow there. That's a big difference in snow for only about 6 miles distance between the two.

 

[Owyheehuntr]

Similar question has been on my mind. Planning to hunt about 2,000 ft higher in elevation this year for deer/elk in late Oct. than normal. Truck parked probably at 6500-6800 ft, 3-4 miles from the truck and a good 15 miles to a maintained road. The responses have been very informative so far.