Military Vehicles, June 1997,: [MV] DUKW's

[MV] DUKW's

G740@aol.com
Mon, 16 Jun 1997 15:02:35 -0400 (EDT)

Hello list,
I have never had any great stories to tell about MV's until this last
weekend. I finally decided to give my wife and I a much needed vacation, so
we headed up north to the boundry waters of Minnesota and Canada. While
waiting for my wife to do some shopping for the kids at home I wandered
around a sea plane base, resort. I noticed an ND tire and went to inspect
it. Was not a size I recognized 10.50 x 18, it was new just laying there. I
went to inquire about the tire and found the next door neighbor new about it.
He said it belonged to a DUKW. BIG :-) I asked what had happened to the
dukw and he said DUKWS. Originally there were 3, one was sold to a guy down
south, as he put it, and the other two belonged to a guy down the road.
These dukw's as it seems were used to portage the people in and out of the
Lac la Croix area of Canada on canoe trips. Anyway, I got the phone number
of the guy who owns the tires and the guy who owns the dukws and immeadiatly
proceeded to track them down, wife in tow. She actually didn't protest this
adventure! Actually enjoyed it. After a half day of running aroung the
wilderness, I got a hold of the guys wife who new nothing about a dukw. She
tracked him down at a job site and finally reached pay dirt. Russ as it
turns out still had the dukw's in a gravel pit a 1/2 mile form his house and
his wife didn't even know it. He told me how to get to them thru the
neighbors yard/drive and off I went. Down the hill and low and behold 2
DUKW's one serial 353-6116 and the other 353-12550. Not bad condition for
sitting in the pit for 10 years. Went back and payed the man, went back and
payed the neighbor for the tires and now I own two DUKW's. It will take a
lot of work just to get them out of the sand pit cause of all the trees grown
around them, but what a find. My wife just shakes her head in ammusement,
she says I have a homing device built in my head for MV's and this just
proves it. Not even looking for one and I end up with two. Hurray for two
more that are saved from extiction!!!!!!!! Now to figure out how to get them
home, 5 hours away, and in the middle of no where. Any volunteers? Hope you
enjoy the story.

Best regards, John Bizal
Prior Lake, MN

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