OK, got it. That helps a lot. Of course making very helpful/half-way usable comments from the peanut gallery out here is not so well guaranteed at best. I assume, as someone else did, that you are mostly using the FEL for the snow removal. I will say if I had over a mile of driveway to clear I would definitely be using a good front blade or blower. I lean towards a blade in your case because it is a LOT cheaper than a front blower and a mile or more is too far to be backing up with a rear blower, at least with my stiff neck. [I use a rear blower in WV mountains.] You probably do not have a mid PTO on the BX5800 and even if you did the front blower is expensive. Also, I know you got dumped on this year with a huge snowfall but how often do your really get that much ? (e.g. enough to justify a large blower.) You should be able to use any of several available blades with hydraulic angle using a third function up front on the loader frame. To me that is better than a blower for a gravel base road. Secondly, with a loader mounted blade you can plow downhill, not up hill, and let gravity help you. Going however slow you need to, you should be able to avoid the ditches better in that mode. Shove the snow into those convenient deep ditches ! You need seriously aggressive chains on all fours when the ice is there as the other guys have thoroughly stated and illustrated. With frequent ice and/or ice under snow I'd spring for the double priced chains with spikes or at least v's. My guess is (and I think you pretty much said) that getting in the ditch is mostly a result of loss of traction, in effect spinning into the ditch. That goes away if you are going DOWN hill with a front blade. That also means starting out from the house instead of trying to wade to the far end and then going uphill. That first trip down hill after a big snow probably packs snow and make the trip back up much worse too. Extracting the tractor from a bad or stuck situation goes away this way, I think. You'll no longer be worrying about how to extract it & if you have to back up hill occasionally that should not be a problem. I disagree with leonz approach of going to a smaller 2370 or something that size. Bigger is better in my opinion. You already have the better machine. Better clearance, more room for chains, better power, more weight on the chains on the ice, and able to handle more snow per pass. I think if you go this route your need for winches will be forgotten (though maybe not the need for wenches...) Also, the front blade route allows you to keep the backhoe on the tractor if you want to. Good ballast I'd call it.
