Things to know when you're up to your axle in mud

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Preparations for mud can prevent a hunting outing from turning into a muddy disaster. (Special/Forest Starr & Kim Starr)

Alabama hunters will probably be forced to deal with an old nemesis -- mud -- for the remainder of the hunting season. It is something that they haven't had to deal with much in recent seasons.

The advent of the ATV as a tool for hunters has lessened the frequency of sticking trucks up to the axles in mud but it still happens. I spent much of Friday night trying to remember exactly what I used to carry in my truck for such situations.

Ideally, a hunter has a fourwheel- drive truck with a winch but not everyone does. A few items put in the back of the truck for the remainder of the season can be a savior when stuck in the mud.

I've found that old carpet remnants can be a lifesaver on a cold winter night when stuck on some deserted road. It doesn't hurt for the carpet to get wet and stay wet in the back of the truck throughout the season. Sometimes all you need is to roll the carpet out in front of the tires to get some traction.

A small shovel is also a must. It comes in handy when a mound of mud has built up in front of tires.

It saves having to get down on your hands and knees and raking mud away by hand.

A 30-foot by two-inch recovery strap is a must, too. If you're stuck, getting someone within a few feet to pull you out will probably get him stuck, too. The recovery strap will provide a little distance. The strap is also designed to absorb shock so a rescuer can jerk you out of the mud.

If you can't find someone to pull you out, using a car jack often works. Jack up the vehicle one corner at a time, making sure the tire clears the mud. Fill the hole with the carpet or rocks to provide traction. Your mud kit should include a two-foot-long piece of treated 6 x 6. This is to sit your jack on so it won't stick in the mud.

There are a few don'ts when stuck in the mud.

One, of course, is spinning the tires burying yourself deeper into the mud.

Another is a driver slamming the vehicle in reverse and then violently forward, trying to rock the vehicle out. If you own a truck with an automatic transmission, it can be a very expensive escape method. Automatic transmissions weren't built for such abuse and overheat quickly when rocking a vehicle out of the mud. A few minutes of slamming a transmission from forward to reverse and back can be a $3,000 repair bill.

My son and I drive a Kobuta RTV 900

Mud doesn't bother it too much.