After a week of healthy snowfall it was decided that the Oilybits Hilux should be put through its paces in the deep snow, the venue chosen being just north of the Brecon Beacons in Wales, where much of the recent snowfall has been the heaviest in years.
Our trip started in Brecon town where we stopped for a mug of tea and a bacon butty to start the day, the snow was falling and the skies looked laden with plenty more. Having met some friends we piled into the Hilux for our first drive to Garth, via the B4519. This road proved to be a great opportunity to see what my Low Range gears were like as until now i had not needed to use them, and also to get used to driving on the deep snow. The drive was fairly easy as the snow wasnt deep, although in Low Range Gears for the steeper sections, the truck was doing just 6 MPG! After arriving in Garth we then took the MOD road up over the top of the hills to Tirabad, and what an amazing road this was! The snow was deep in the road, up to 12" and so high between the wheels that my sump guard was acting like a plough. My new Cooper Mud & Snow Tires did an excellent job though and in Low or High range the truck did not miss a beat and stayed firmly planted, averaging 30 to 40 mph regardless of the conditions, Low Range was useful for a couple of steep hills, where the High Range just spun out. At the top of the first hill was the beginning of the MOD track to Tirabad, where we were suddenly surrounded by sheep! I can only imagine they thought it was their farmer with some food for them, but alas we had nothing, and a few toots of the horn soon shifted them (note; very girly horn, I must buy something than sounds more 'manly'). We passed one snowdrift as high as the roof just after Tirabad and stopped for a photo opportunity, then made our way back down into Brecon for dinner. All in all a brilliant day, and some great photos were captured. Hilux 1, Snow 0
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