Maybe it was that elusive idea of Spring

that made me so stupid. Anyway, I didn't clear the driveway last night. This morning I jumped in the car and drove off, not allowing for the road having been ploughed and there being thick wet snow piled in the driveway. I didn't get near the street before I was stuck and had to climb out of the window. No one is in the car in this picture, it's running in reverse but going nowhere.

Oh well, I thought, not so bad to have to pull just once this winter. I fetched the tractor and hooked it up. Alas, I'd removed the chains from the tractor. The wheels just spun.

Since the driveway slopes down to the road and the Beetle was stuck close to it I then had the idea of pulling it out forwards. I couldn't get the tractor out through the deep snow so I decided to use the Land Cruiser. I didn't clear the windows so steering that out through the trees involved pointing and hoping.

The VW doesn't have a hook on the front and it doesn't have a frame. I looked for somewhere to chain on to, mindful of that video where kids hook a truck to the bumper of a car and pull the car apart. The only point of any strength seemed to be the bonnet/hood latch so I fastened to that. I had the deranged idea that, if it didn't hold, it would break off with relatively little damage.

Ha! The Toyota wheels spun, the VW deformed. No progress was made.

Eventually I cleared the snow in front of the car by hand and the snow behind by tractor. A combination of wheel spin, tractor tugs and much kneeling and scraping under the car got it out to the road.

Two hours of hard work resulting in being cold and wet, a fine start to the day.