My car is far away, uphill, in the snow. How can I make this easier?

February 4, 2011 3:20 PM

My driveway isn't going to get plowed anymore this season. How do I make the trip up to and down from my car at the top easier?

My house is at the bottom of a very steep, 1/2 mile long, paved driveway. It already has a good 8+ inches of snow with a crust of ice on it and we're expecting more this weekend (here in Connecticut).

Any ideas for how to make trudging up and down -- often carrying stuff (e.g., groceries) -- easier?

Snowmobile, ATV, Jeep are of my price range (well, maybe if I found a used snowmobile that ran well for $500 I'd consider it).

posted by The Dutchman to Home & Garden (10 answers total)

Get some of these professional crampons for your boots and use them whenever things get icy. Even if it's just snow, they keep you from slipping downhill when you're climbing, which is the thing that's adding a lot of exertion to the trudging. Snowshoes when snow is deeper and softer; get fitted professionally so you have a set that's right for your weight.

And, a sled for the groceries, I'd say.
posted by beagle at 3:34 PM on February 4, 2011

Ditto sled, one of this sort.
posted by anaelith at 3:40 PM on February 4, 2011

Response by poster: Wow! Think I could resell them on ebay?
posted by The Dutchman at 4:35 PM on February 4, 2011

Then you would be able to buy a snow-mobile. Okay, my advice, buy the crampons, sell them on craigslist or ebay, and then buy a snow-mobile.
posted by TheBones at 4:55 PM on February 4, 2011

I have the same issue, although not as steep a slope, but all ice. My truck slides on it. Or did until I went to the local garden center and got a couple bags of sand. I laid it down along the tire tracks or the width of the tires. Walking and driving on it is a significant improvement. Only issue is the abrasiveness of the sand I track into the house.
posted by AugustWest at 6:05 PM on February 4, 2011

Tire chains. Go anywhere. Seriously.
posted by PareidoliaticBoy at 6:28 PM on February 4, 2011

Forgot the linkage.
posted by PareidoliaticBoy at 6:31 PM on February 4, 2011

Tire chains will not get you through 8" of snow. It builds up under the car and locks you in place. Tires do just fine on snow, it is the rest of the car that has trouble with it.

I would pay someone with a truck to drive up and down it, to make tire ruts and to smash down the snow.
posted by gjc at 8:57 PM on February 4, 2011

Something like ski patrol type sled you can hurt yourself pulling a sled down hill with rope.
posted by hortense at 9:56 PM on February 4, 2011

hortense is right - you don't want to try to control a sled with a rope, going down a steep hill. I have no idea where to buy one, but I have used a sled with two poles attached to a waist belt to drag camping gear when backcountry skiing. It'll push you downhill, but can't run over you.

That said, if you can fit all your stuff into it, I find an internal frame backpack is way easier to manage.

(for icy, combine either with crampons ... I know nothing about buying them, but they're frigging magical)
posted by Metasyntactic at 3:42 AM on February 5, 2011