Get ready to laugh at my expense. I am still on an adrenaline high or else I would be embarrassed. Right now I am just glad to still have a truck. I fished the pig this morning solo. Trolled small spoons and had my limit in about 3-4 hours. Anyone who has fished there knows that the boat launches are not meant for 2WD vehicles, and they get progressively worse as the water level drops. The allure of fishing always seems to override my common sense. Launching my boat was somewhat uneventful. I spun out in the dirt for awhile but eventually made it to the level comfort of the parking area. The natural ramp is quite steep, loose, and downright frightening in my rig. When it came time to trailer the boat my luck ran dry. I carefully backed down the sorry excuse for a ramp and turned the truck off (first mistake). My park brake has some issues (second mistake) so I put the truck in gear and stepped out to put a block behind the wheel. The next few seconds are one of those moments in life when everything is in slow motion and you posess super human strength, while lacking coordination and dexterity. I shut the door (third mistake) and grabbed the wheel block from inside the bed. I had no sooner lifted the block out of the truck when the vehicle popped out of gear and started descending into the water! I fumbled wildly for the door handle, opened the door, and in one motion landed on the seat and stomped down on all three pedals hoping to find the brake. My first mistake of turning the truck off had rendered the power breaking useless but I managed to stop the vehicle just shy of having water spill into the cabin. I do not remember having been this freaked out for a long time. I wasn't sure what to do so I just sat there pushing the brake pedal to the floor so hard that my leg felt like it might fall off. I was not about to trade my truck for 12 measly kokanee. First a small SUV with a tow strap came to my aid. Didn't even move me an inch. Then a Suburban tried. Moved me about 6 inches before the strap broke. Some nice guys helped me wedge rocks behind my tires and drove me to a farm house where I borrowed a chain. When we got back some guys with a big Dodge and a heavy duty strap had already pulled me out and left. I didn't even get to thank them. Things could have been much worse. The truck is running fine and received the closest thing to a car wash it has seen this year.
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"The allure of fishing always seems to override my common sense."
I do the same thing. [laugh]
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That sucks . I would suggest you change the gear lube in the differential and transmission to flush out the water several times if water is present . I know the differential should have some .
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Dude that really sucks. Sorry I didn't get back to you we were out at porcupine and I didn't get your message until really late. Now you see why I have Brian drive my boat up there. Oh well it will be one of those things you can look back on and laugh at, and at least you limited out right. By the way, how long were you fishing?
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I fished for kokes for 3-4 hours and then fished for my truck for another 2 hours. What is the process for flushing my diff and trans lube? Is there a way to tell if there is water in there?
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That sounds like a fun day[
], well most of it anyway. Too bad I did not know you were going, I could have gone up with you today because my plans for fishing Bear lake fell though[frown]. I've had things like that happen before, it just makes the experience all the more memorable[
]. The process for checking or changing the oil in the rear diff or your trans is the same. Open the drain plug in either and see if any white looking oil comes out. If it is white then you need to drain all you fluid and put fresh oil in. If it isn't white or foamy then you might be Ok but if you have never changed your oil, it won't hurt to change it anyway, especially in the diff. Is your trans a manuel or a automatic?
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What a story! I'm glad things didn't end up worse for ya. It will be one of things you share for posterity sakes!
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Thats one hell of a report and saved the truck and caught fish too.
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[left]Thanks for the laugh.
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[left]I'm glad I'm not the only one that takes my vehicle were I shouldn't.
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Thats crazy ish good thing you got your truck sounds like somthing I would do.
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Milenine, I got ta thank you for that great story and cudos to the dud(s) that pulle you up and out while you were gone.
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[font "Verdana"][#ff0000]I was thinking of taking my tracker up there, where it may not belong this time of year, are any bigger boats getting out or just the smaller tin tubs? How mucky was the bottom or is it still fairly solid? May have to take the rowboat instead. Congrats on all 13 of your catches! Yikes![/#ff0000][/font]
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Sounds like a wild and yet fun adventure. Nice to read a report once where someone got helped anonymously rather than, "While I was gone they helped themselves to the prop or stole my ice shack."
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[font "Times New Roman"]Milenine,[/font]
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[font "Times New Roman"]I was there also for Friday night and Saturday morning. We trolled by you several times and I talked to you at the other boat ramp when you were looking for a chain. Sorry we did not have a chain to help you out. I am glad someone was able to help. [/font]
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[font "Times New Roman"]We caught around thirty Kokes between Friday night and Saturday morning. Most were caught at 40 feet on a serpent spoon and a RMT pink dodger. They sure are small fellers in there. [/font]
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[font "Times New Roman"]I also saw another BFT sticker on the window of a Chevy as we pulled out. I did not get to talk to them to see how they did. [/font]
Neveronsunday,
I don't see why you couldn't launch any size boat in there as long as you have a good 4x4 to launch it. The boat launches are very doable in any truck bigger than mine, and the water is very deep. I have seen some pretty big fishing boats in there this year. It is a wakeless lake, thankfully.
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You have to change your diff lube IF it is not a sealed system; it is not a sealed system IF there is a blow-off (breather) valve on the top of your diff that allows air out, and therefore allows things in (water). And everybody here who's trailering a boat s/b running an extended rear-diff breather anyway.
3 other systems that were exposed/submerged for a significant period of time but are sealed were your brake, tranny, and gas tank.
I think you would be crazy not to change each of these fluids. Water in any these systems will probably not cause catastrophic and/or immediate problems, but it ain't good to introduce a foreign fluid to any fluid-based system.
So what's the odds of you getting water in a sealed system? Probably not great, however, if the system was hot (think tranny), and suddenly got submerged in cold water, the seals might not do their job. If you hadn't been driving for a while when the truck took a deep six, the tranny probably wasn't hot.
But why wonder? Changing fluids is slightly time-consuming, but easy. There isn't a fluid in my truck that I haven't changed at least once. And if the fluids hadn't been changed in a while, it's a good idea to do anyway.
If this freaks you out to do it yourself, take it to any mechanic.
Sorry about your mess, man.
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[font "Times New Roman"]We had a 21 foot cuddy on the water Fri and Sat and it was no problem launching it. We did have 4X4 thought. We were the biggest boat on the water and I’m sure we had a few comments by others as we went by, but it was all fun.[/font]
OH man , I am really sorry. But please take from the other posters about the rear end fluid. I have been through some hurricanes and know first hand what will happen if you don't change the oil. Its real simple and cheap.
Thanks for the post and good luck.
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I purchased some oil yesterday and will probably change it out tonight. If you want to read the extended version of my truck ordeal it is [url "http://adventurejournal.blogspot.com/2008/08/chevy-s10-field-test.html"]here.[/url]
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Great story,@ least you cought some fish! It would have been worse if you would have done it when unloading[pirate]!! Then you wouldnt have got to fish!! Where did you here Porcupine is " wakeless"? I have fished up there for years and never herd that?
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