Bogged in Sand - Andamooka Station

Well, the other day I headed out to Andamooka Station and got bogged in the sand on the way.

The ute bogged in the sand on the Andamooka Track.

It’s autumn here in Australia. Much of Western Australia and South Australia is experiencing hotter and drier weather than in an average year. In fact the temperatures in the arid region of South Australia have been more like summer temperatures than what you’d expect in autumn. But it’s cooling down a bit now.

The extreme heat and dry air make the sandy tracks the more treacherous in the heat of the afternoon, any moisture content having evaporated.

So after having got through several sandy patches by the skin of my teeth, the ute came to a stop; wheels in the deep wheel tracks and diff in the sand, on this track that really is a 4 x 4 (four wheel drive) track.

I dug out the sand under the ute, freeing the diff. Then leveled off the wheel tracks for some distance.

Well, first thing was to slip, slop, slap. That’s Australian promotional talk for slip on a shirt, slop on the sun cream and slap on a hat, followed by a preparatory drink of water.

Next was to unload the ATV (quadbike) from the trailer, lessening the load. Then a good bit of digging to free the diff, remove the excess sand under the ute and clear the crown between the wheel ruts for the next 20 metres or so to give me my best chance.

When that wasn’t enough to get me out, I dug some more and loaded the bike on the ute, over the back axle. The bank beside the ute was nearly as high as the tray, so loading the bike was easy.

Still not free of the sand, I let a good bit of air out of the back tyres and succeeded.

An hour’s slaving in the hot sun knocked me about a bit, but all’s well that ends well.

Digging wasn’t all that hard in the loose sand but I sure worked up a thirst a few times.