Its only been a few days since I took Project 6x6 for a Spring rip around the trails in Torbay, a lot more snow has melted in that short span of time so I decided to head back out today this time on Project Foreman.

As expected these normally easy gravel paths were a lot more complicated today for my ATV on tires. Fortunately project Foreman is equipped with a High Lifter permanent front differential locker, a 1.5" Perfex lift and a brand new set of 27" ITP Mud Lite XTR Radial tires which would come in handy today.

Heavy snow melt meant there was an abundance of water on the trails and in the country. This part of the gravel pit is normally dry but today was quite flooded, and just two days ago this was still covered in ice!

This section of trail runs from the airport fence to Forest Landing and is where I had trouble reversing the Argo out of this water hole.

Looking back towards the second big water hole. I'm sure glad I turned around with the Argo as it was (and still is) much too narrow for that machine, the snowbanks at that time were also much higher!

For the most part the trails looked terrific and were covered in hardpack snow varying from 12-48" deep. Snow in and around the trees was even deeper! However looks can be deceiving and quite often a tire would drop into a soft or undermined (by moving water below) spot. Momentum is your friend in these situations so I stayed consistent on the throttle, when a tire suddenly dropped I just accelerated to pull through. This is where a true 4wd locked front differential makes the difference between riding and getting stuck every twenty feet, especially on a bike with much less ground clearance than newer units.

Sometimes a whole section of trail would drop as the weight of the bike overcame the undermined hardpack snow. Full skid plates really helped the bike slide along as all four tires keep pulling equally.

This path from Western Island Pond to the airport fence always has moving water but today it is quite amplified by recent rain and snowmelt.

Next I took a quick run in the path to Indian Meal line stopping at the first field. I didn't want to cross the ditch dug by farmers to keep people out, and the ATV trail around the outside of the fields had a heck of a lot of snow on it.

Heading back from the farmers field I stayed right instead of left in a big water hole. I had a job to get out due to the sheer volume of snow & slush. The snow here was waterlogged and much too soft to support the weight of Project Foreman. It was also much too deep to bash through and escape in either direction, it was to the top of my 27" tires.

After a bunch of back and forth attempts to break up the slush in search of hardpack snow I finally backed up and pinned the throttle to get through as much as I could letting my WARN ProVantage 2500 winch pull me the rest of the way!

When there are lots of nice big trees to use as a winch anchor you can afford to get stuck. Winching is a lot easier than digging out all that snow by hand!

Next I decided to tackle the section of airport fence trail between the path to Western Island Pond & the end of Runway 16.

I knew this would be tangly after my Argo ride a couple days ago. There is over four feet of snow on this section of trail which has a narrow crown packed by snowmobiles and tire swallowing drop offs on either side.

I walked the bike through the worst sections using zero tire spin and my shoulder braced against the gas tank to keep the bike from sliding sideways. In places there was only two inches of inside tire tread making contact with the hard pack snow.

After passing the narrowest section I began riding normal again only to have the trail under my left side tires collapse as it was undermined by moving water below. This high centred the bike leaving it helplessly spinning.

I needed to winch using an anchor on the right hand side to avoid being pulled further into soft snow & trees. Unfortunately the trees on the RHS were small and I was hooking up about 3' off the ground due to the depth of snow here. Fortunately this spruce held on although it was now pulled down across the trail.

My eBay direct from China CS 2500 mini chainsaw sprang to life and made short work of the downed tree. This saw is absolutely awesome and the best $150 I've spent on self recovery equipment recently.

One more re-rigging of the winch line had Project Foreman back on solid ground in relatively short order with minimal effort required. If you're going to trail ride alone especially in tangly conditions you need to go prepared for every thinkable scenario, especially in these days of self isolation and social distancing.

It's incredible how much snow has melted in the last couple of days. Take a look at the twelfth photo taken at this same spot just two days ago in my End of Winter Argo Ride story.

Self recovery gear for today's rip included my mini chainsaw, chainsaw tools & fuel, recovery strap, a tree saver strap, extra 25' ratchet strap, spare gloves, bottled water, air compressor and my Fiskars axe. This is in addition to the custom tool & tire repair kits I always have on the bike in the rear trunk, and of course my WARN winch.

Equally important for solo riding is to have your bike in top running order, replacing worn parts immediately so your not stranded on the trail with a failed wheel bearing, ball joint or worse. Try your best to not become someone else's adventure to get you out of the woods but never hesitate contacting a buddy to lend a hand. 

All in all it was a relatively short ride, but it was anything but ordinary or boring! Easy trails were exponentially more difficult today due to the snow but that made the ride so much more interesting! Again a fun afternoon can be had if you carry the right gear, if your in the woods on your own absolutely be prepared!

Cheers, MIKE

Copyright © 2025 Michael Smith