Don't want to break a nail? All jokes aside, yes, it's some tough work, especially if you have a long road. It's recommended to do it in the dry of late summer or early fall. If the entire road needs it then it might not be worth it, but any time you cut down trees just add to it, eventually you will get it done. It's going to take just as much work to put gravel down. I've only done small wet spots, not exactly a full road so I don't have much of an explanation other than level it out and lay down the logs, every so often hammer down a few logs or picketts into the ground vertically on each side to keep that section in place. EDIT: I just found a blog about one and it talkes about making every other log a skinny one, so big, skinny, big, skinny, so on.
Just looking at some of your pictures it looks like you can drive next to the trail in most areas where there is more vegetation covering the ground. when it does dry out you could go in with a tractor and box blade to smooth out your trails then I would plant grass to try and get things to grow again. After your grass covers the trail just try not to drive in the same spot over and over. If you do identify certain spots that just always seem to stay muddy you should look into rock or mulch for just the trouble spots.
Every trail that isn't graveled by logging companies around here gets like that. Not much you can do. When they log it in 2 years have them gravel it. Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
This!!!! You need to get a crown going on the road and get it above grade. A ditch on either side will allow the water to drain away to the lowest area, and hopefully run away from the road. Use the dirt to crown the road. Really not that much labor with the right tools. At minimum, a tractor with a bucket and a box blade could get it done. The excavator could really speed things up.
Even my graded and ditched spots eventually get ruts. It is the nature of that clay. I need something more than just ditching. I already have that in places.
Place I hunt in south Alabama is pure red clay so all trails look the same as that. We box blade them to smooth them out whenever it is dry enough to do so... and will be backfilling some loose bulk gravel in the worst spots this summer to provide a more solid bottom.
How well does that Tractor box compact the soil in the ruts? Does that actaully hold up decently post grading?
Box just smoothes, doesn't compact. You could put your atv and deer in the airboat. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk
Depends on the area... if it's typically a dry area that washes out in heavy rains/ruts out when driving on it soaking wet then it can hold up for a few weeks-months depending on use.... If it is like it looks in the picture, it seems the water table in that area is just high and it will hold water basically 24/7/365 in those ruts. If thats the case, you are wasting your time discing/dragging/box blading.. you need to give a hard bottom in those areas. Is large grade gravel expensive in your area? Limestone is so abundant in KY that they practically give it away back home...
I'm just thinking outload here. If you just fill in the ruts with loose clay I am guessing the first time you drove over it, it would sink down pretty fast again. Could be wrong though. Good idea. All in one package. Kids would love it too. The people on my road would really freak with those rich southern Wisconsin people with all their money show up and pave their trails and use air boats.
Water table is extremely high. You probably didn't see my apple tree thread but I was hitting the table at 8-12" being on a mound. It probably is only 4-6” right now. In summer it can get down to 3-5' deep or deeper.
An airboat running dry will sound like a herd of angry helicopters too. Great for neighbor relations. How about a swamp buggy? You can run them quiet enough that the neighbors can still hear the banjo music. If'n you play it a touch louder. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk
In that case I'd say your only permanent fix is backfilling with gravel in the bad spots or just dealing with it...
