Need a way to get across a creek

[Doewhacker]

What about a floating bridge tied of say 20' of each side of bank on some pontoons say something like those blue water barrels tethered with some courage and some sort of top plywood or rough cut or something....would allow bridge to move up and down with rising waters. Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk

 

The first log or branch that comes down will destroy that.

[stoneam2006]

True....hadn't thought of that....you would have to be able to move in and out of water after use maybe a few pulleys and some extra rope to pull out and in.

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[stoneam2006]

Or make debris stop up stream to catch debris

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[Culvercreek hunt club]

If you have trees available standing on either side the rope and plank bridge is an easy solution. all above the water so rising water and debris is not an issue.

[Doewhacker]

True....hadn't thought of that....you would have to be able to move in and out of water after use maybe a few pulleys and some extra rope to pull out and in. Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk

 

Trust me after all these years we have thought of everything. The power of moving water is really something.

 

Whole lot of risk involved in creek crossing, especially when it is sub zero.

[Jeremy K]

Your best would be a small boat and a guide line, you can build a bridge and you will get very good at rebuilding every year when it gets wiped out, esp if the water can change from 4-6 deep depending on a good rain.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

you can build a bridge and you will get very good at rebuilding every year when it gets wiped out, esp if the water can change from 4-6 deep depending on a good rain.

I don't agree. If you are up high enough it is a non issue. foundations are the weak link. get up like a rope bridge does and it isn't an issue. We had one on property we hunted and it was 4' off the water at the low point of the bridge. It spanned about 75' and after 10 years it was still there  the last time we hunted that property.

[phade]

small john boat and a rope guide as noted.

[Doc]

Assuming it is just to get people across, the small john-boat or canoe idea sounds like a good solution. Leave the thing tied securely so floods don't take it away when it's not in use.

[Doewhacker]

I don't agree. If you are up high enough it is a non issue. foundations are the weak link. get up like a rope bridge does and it isn't an issue. We had one on property we hunted and it was 4' off the water at the low point of the bridge. It spanned about 75' and after 10 years it was still there  the last time we hunted that property.

 

 

How did you get it tight enough on that kind of span?

[Hunter1]

Rope bridge up high or a boat an rope. If the creek freezes the ice jam whem thaw comes will rip out a bridge

 

[Culvercreek hunt club]

How did you get it tight enough on that kind of span?

 

 

simple come a long will be plenty if things like a wheeler can't get there. Mounted on 4 trees  it is very very stable. that bridge had about a 3' wide walking surface. cross members were about at 3-4' OC and there were 3 planks running the length of the bridge. spaces were left so some snow would fall through early on.

[Doewhacker]

simple come a long will be plenty if things like a wheeler can't get there. Mounted on 4 trees  it is very very stable. that bridge had about a 3' wide walking surface. cross members were about at 3-4' OC and there were 3 planks running the length of the bridge. spaces were left so some snow would fall through early on.

 

I'll keep that in mind, for now I am done with that place any way..lol

 

Just thinking about it ticks me off.

[Hunting3m]

I heard a very strong and cheap "bridge" can be made with 2 old telephone poles. They are very strong, cheap, and were recommended for a friend who wanted to drive his gator over a creek. 

[fasteddie]

If I notice any power poles missing along the highway i'll know where to look !

[dbHunterNY]

single person inflatable cheap pool inflatable or better an old tractor tube and tarp top if you've got them.  store the cheap inflatable and a cheap hand pump in a sack tied to the base of a tree. you can even keep a spare.  tie rope across going across the stream to bases of trees.  rope shouldn't touch the water.  you can walk yourself across by pulling along the rope.  pack them in the sack if you're not coming back soon.  that's what I'd do and it'd cost less than a bridge or anything else that crazy.  waders is asking for trouble in times of fast current with a creek that deep and wide.

 

[Four Season Whitetail's]

I heard a very strong and cheap "bridge" can be made with 2 old telephone poles. They are very strong, cheap, and were recommended for a friend who wanted to drive his gator over a creek. 

I used long pieces of railroad tracks. Used longer pieces than needed, lay 4 to 6 side by side and then a couple walking sticks to keep the balance as you walk across.  Ours is only maybe 12ft across or so but very fast and high with ice in the spring.  They have been down for years now with no problems.

[Daveboone]

I would think the johnboat idea would be simplest, cheapest and safest. Place it there a couple months ahead of time and the deer wont pay it any attention. As previously mentioned, run a line from one shore to the other for pulling yourself along. Probably the easiest way to move gear or a deer across also. You sure wouldn't want to try to move a deer with a zip line or a suspension bridge.

[Ewags66]

I've been dealing with this problem for 20 years now. I have a creek that I have to cross to hunt any of my property. Its about 20 yards wide and is about 1 1/2 feet deep on average.  Its in the southern tier and is at the bottom of a big hill. Back in the day before we had 4 wheelers we used to wade across with waders on and leave them on the other side. Then we moved up to 4 wheel drive trucks which worked for a while but sometimes it was too muddy to get out of the creek bottom. One time we hunted a half a day in the pouring rain and went to drive out with a S-10 Blazer. We got to the creek and it was rolling. We all looked at each other and said go for it. (No other way out with a vehicle) The water actually came over the hood and the truck started to float. I was in the back seat jumping up and down so the back wheels would touch the ground and keep us going forward. We will never do that again, that was stupid, and we are lucky we made it across. I checked with the DEC and had a agent meet me down there. To my surprise the creek isn't protected and he suggested getting a dozer in there and widen it where we cross so when it rains it gets wider and not that much deeper. I also found a web site waterdata.usgs.gov that has a monitors in a a lot of creeks and streams that measures depth and is updated every few minutes. I can monitor at my house and if it gets over 2 1/2 feet deep we stay home. It sucks but it has saved us on driving 2 hours for nothing. I would also check with neighbors to see if it any more shallow where it goes threw their property. I have used this option with all my neighbors being cool and letting us cross at their place(if needed) and ride our 4 wheelers slowly back to our property. Sorry about the long story but I know what you're going through. Good luck. 

[jjb4900]

20 yards across (60 feet), is a pretty far span to build a bridge, definitely would be a job to build something safe to cover that distance..........I would think stretching a rope across and using that to pull a john boat across might be the safest and cheapest way to go...using the rope instead of oars will cut down on unnecessary noise.

[WNYBuckHunter]

I agree on the boat and rope. The deer will get used to it being there. Keep an oar in there just in case you lose a grip on the rope lol.

[papabear]

had the same thing once we used an 8 foot aluminum boat we tided a rope to one tree went tough the handles of the boat to another tree  and just pulled our self across the stream worked grate

[martinhunter12]

Thanks for the advice, I believe the jon boat with the roap will be what we try. makes sense all around

[Doc]

Thanks for the advice, I believe the jon boat with the roap will be what we try. makes sense all around

Just make sure that when you leave either side, that boat is securely fastened to something substantial and pulled up high and dry on the bank.

[catskillkid]

We had the same issue on land that we hunted in PA. It was very hard to cross the stream when the water was high after a storm. The solution was to string a cable from a large tree on one side to a tree on the other side and pulled it tight and clamped with fish clamps. Attached a  pully and bosun chair.

Worked great!