Welcome back..miss me? If you are reading this and thinking What the hell is this..go back and read Part 1 you lazy sod.

so on we go again.

Now grab your shovel and dig away the sand from behind the front and rear wheels and make a path between the front and rear wheels.
If any of the chassis, diffs sump guard etc is on the ground, dig sand away from there also.

The next parts can be done either of 2 ways.
Option 1. Get back in the vehicle , put the 4wd now into L4 or low range if you will ( Many will tell you never to use Low range blah blah blah..bloody hell the vehicle has low range for a reason use it, what it does is lowers the gear ratios, basically put it means the wheels will rotate much slower at higher revs, this helps a lot in eliminating huge amounts of wheelspin)..

(Just remember..the people who made your 4 wheel drive have a fair idea of what they are doing, and have incorporated most of the gizmos the average Joe needs to get unstuck..it's just about how you use them all).

Just to deviate a moment..... You can get 4 different drivers in the same scenario and all 4 will probably do things just that little bit different, what works for one may not work for another as their own unique driving style comes into play...and thats why i said in the beginning, this is only MY views and what works for me..but all 4 drivers will employ the same basic components., unless you have a 1983 nissan patrol with huge tyres and 13ft lift kit, then you just floor it, hope for the best and take out all the wild life in a radius of 300 metres all the while laughing your arse off going "i'm not very bright but i can lift heavy fings...ha ha ha" (by the way..i have nothing against Nissan Patrols..it's just they seem to be the weapon of choice for boguns). Oh good god..all the ex Nissan Patrol people who may stubble across this blog will no doubt hammer the crap out of me.. I ain't listening so tough titties princess suck it up and move on) Disregard that outburst..they can't read anyways.

Now lets get back on track (no pun intended)..Oh crap I have forgotten 1 very very very important thing here.
SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed).....She is still in the vehicle right? For gods sake man..make sure she has some survival biscuits, water, a blanket and or aircon on or heater on..which ever the season dictates..make sure she is as comfortable as can be..if she isn't you are gunna get it..and get it goooood...in a BAD way. The future of your off roading fun depends on it. Reassure her all is well, even if you are like OMG OMG we are going to end up on channel 7 news...family of 2 found starved in brand new 4 wheel drive just 2km's from (insert town city HERE). You have more chance of dying by being run over by an out of control nissan patrol bogun.

Ok..moving on..AGAIN..I promise not to deviate again...for a while.

Now GENTLY apply throttle in reverse..let the vehicle move a little bit back, then stop and go forward a little..stop go back and forward 3 or 4 times and then try and backup following the tracks you made coming in. Remember DO NOT FLOOR IT and cause huge amounts of wheelspin..resist that urge.

If all goes well you will be moving backwards and out of the sticky stuff. If it didn't..time for option 2

Option 2. Do the same as option 1, but before getting back into vehicle, take out those nice new sand track recovery boards you sold a kidney for and place 1 behind each of the rear wheels. The key part with sand tracks is how you place them.

Don't be lazy and just throw them down and think "Yup, that'll do it, because the guarentee says it will ..WRONG!.

You will read and perhaps have seen videos of these sand board recovery tracks and hardly any show the correct method, they all kinda skip over that crucial placement which is.

Dig a little extra sand from behind and under the back of the rear wheels and then slide the boards hard up against the wheel (sloping end under the wheel) What you should end up with is the boards look like they are just under the rear part of the tyre.

Now once again gently start going back..the tyres will grip the boards and you will start moving..keep a constant speed and just keep going until you are back on firmer ground. then go and collect your recovery boards (take your shovel as they are most probably buried).

IMPORTANT TIP: All of the polycarbonate plasticy type sand recovery mats can be easily damaged by "lead foot disease", which is giving way to much throttle and wheelspinning on the mats, this will burn off the nice chunky knobby lugs..Avoid that, after all those cool looking mats just added 4 years to your home mortgage.

If and i do stress IF all that failed, we can go 1 step further at this point before it becomes a "BOGGED" situation.

Collect your mats..Dig the sand away yet again, place the mats under the rear of the wheels but this time lower your tyres that little bit more. You should be at 18psi if you listened further back, so now drop the tyres down to 15 psi and try the same method as option 2.

So now lets work on the assumption you made it out and back onto firmer ground... Great stuff there Mr BushTucker Man.

Now that you are back on firmer ground, decide if going forward via a slightly different route is an option or decide to turn back. Your call.

Whichever you decide just remember to pump your tyres again BEFORE getting back on the bitumen.

Next blog i shall talk about 4wd accessories.

Stay tuned.