Date:         Mon, 1 Feb 1999 23:55:17 EST
Reply-To:     SSGSPEAR@AOL.COM
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Brad Spear <SSGSPEAR@AOL.COM>
Subject:      Snow Stuck Syncro
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII

Hi all!  This is just a little, or not so little tale of how I spent my
Saturday, 30 Jan, morning.

It started out a beautiful Minnesota morning.  Not a cloud in the sky and temp
in the lower 20s.  There was a freezing fog the night before and all the trees
were covered with a layer of frost that looks like that artificail flocking,
or frocking, or whatever the heck you call that stuff that is supposed to look
like snow.  It looked like a Christmas card!  I took some pictures of our back
yard, some of the neighbors pine trees.  One is about thirty feet the other is
about 26 feet, the top four feet or so were taken off in the 30 May 98 storm
that also took two our trees, part of the deck, a piece of the roof and the
power in the neighborhood for four days.  But, anyway, also took pictures of
our birch tree.

I started to Byerly's to get the Saturday papers.  I always get the
Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Saint Paul Pioneer Press in the morning.  One is
left wing (Strib) and the other right (Press) so to get a balance I read both
over an extra large vanilla capaccino (sp) from Caribou Coffee.  However, I
thought that before I went to Caribou and Byerly's I would stop by Crystal
Lake and get some pictures.  It's only two blocks away and not really out of
the way.

So, I got to the beach and (this is the part you don't get to do in LA, Los
Angeles or Lower Alabams) drove out on the lake for some closer pictures.  The
path on the lake is about as smooth as the parking lot for the beach.  There
were about a dozen or so vehicles out the already for people ice fishing.  I
just drove where they had.

I got the pictures and figured while I was out there I would drive across the
island in the middle just to say I drove on it.  I came at it from the east
side and went up, locking diff on.  No problem.  At the top the snow was a
little deeper and softer.  Small problem, but nothing the Syncro couldn't
handle.  Went down the west side, hit a drop off the was hidden by the snow.
Problem.  Couldn't go forward.  I wasn't clearing the snow and the only thing
the tires were grabbing at was ice.  Tried the winch with a tow strap tied to
a tree trunk.  Broke the tree trunk and misaligned the rear bumper.  I didn't
have a shovel so I started toward home.  Luckily, like I said, it was only two
blocks.  That is two blocks from the shore.  Shore is another four blocks
going north through about knee deep snow going straight across and not the
driving path.

On the way I remembered that the neighbor across the street, the one with the
pine trees, just bought a Dakota 4X4 about three weeks earlier.  I thought he
might like a chance to see how well it could do in the snow.  So, I asked him,
he said no problem and took me back to pull the Syncro out.  He asked if we
should bring shovels, I said no, we could get it out with the truck.

We got to the island, he drove up the west side and to the top and thought he
might have a better chance pulling from the west side.  He backed off the
island and drove around the north side got to the west side right in front of
the Syncro and..........got stuck.

So there we were with a Volkswagen Vanagon Syncro and a Dodge Dakota 4X4 stuck
in the snow beside the island in the middle of Crystal Lake.  And no shovels.
We both started back home, this time to get shovels.  That is a long tip
though the snow especially the second time.

Put the shovels and his single stage snowblower in the back of my wife's
Aerostar, the Westy's engine is still in pieces.  When it gets over 40 in the
garage I'll put it back together.  We took it back out on the lake to dig out
both vehicles.  Didn't go within ten feet of the island this time.

We got his dug out after an hour of digging.  He didn't go back the way he
came around.  Snow was too deep for one thing plus the was water in his tracks
for another.  Looked like the ice wasn't as thick over there!

He went around to the east side and backed over to where I was, hooked up the
tow rope, put it in 4-low and with me in reverse, just about got stuck again.
We ended up doing a LOT of digging to get thesyncro back on shore and up the
drop off.  Going back up the west side, the Syncro didn't want to follow the
same path that it took going dowm.  Kept going in the trees.  We used the tow
rope and his truck to guide the rear of the Syncro around to where we wanted
it.

We finally got it out.  Have a big scratch in the passenger door to remember
it by.  Plus the small sapeling the got caught in the front bumper.

So, I got it back home safe and somewhat sound and just in time for lunch,
about three and a half hours after I started out.  Never did the to Caribou.

Hoped you all enjoyed this!

Brad Spear
'72 Westy
'87 Syncro GL