Really, the puddle didn't look that deep

I’d already been through several of them out on the mudflats at Wilson’s Cut. I picked the wrong line through this hazard though. Over on the left; that’s the line not-to-follow.


The left side didn’t look that ugly before I drove into it. I buried the entire left side of the Jeep. I invoked the first rule of 4 wheel drive survival: Drive around in 2 wheel drive. When you find yourself stuck, put it in 4 wheel drive, back out, turn around, and go home. 4 wheel drive didn’t get me out. I stopped making it worse, and turned everything off. The driver’s door wouldn’t open. I was surrounded by mud.

I climbed out the gun-turret and sat on the roof. No help in sight. I called our friend Jeff to come get me in his dually. While I was waiting, a car appeared on the horizon, worked its way to me, and stopped. To my great relief, it wasn’t a Hummer, it was another Jeep. A Wrangler with big fat tires.


I tossed the Good Samaritan a tow-strap, and after a couple tries, we got me out. Success! Saved! I got to call Jeff off before he even got his truck dirty.

I left a little of the front end trim in the mud, but hell, who needs a front air-dam on a Jeep anyway. Dirty, bruised, and only a little broken.

It made perfect sense to be there though. I had to be there. We have a bird-walk through a marsh coming up and I had to make sure my mud-boots worked okay. All I was doing was getting to a really good place to test-drive the mud-boots.

That part of the adventure was a roaring success. Once we got the car rescued, I went on with the mud-boot test and they worked just fine.