The climate here is considered - semi-arid. Also, all my chips are Ponderosa pine. That could make a difference. I have 25 year old piles of pine chips out on the property. Yes, they are degrading but darn slowly.
Bobcat Toolcat 5610G, Deere X744, Cub Cadet IH 982
I like the chips and have not seen the mud issue. It takes a while for the chips to settle so don't worry about final leveling for a couple months.... So, put down twice as much as you need.
My vintage Oliver PTO drive manure spreader does a great job spreading wood chips on trails and walking paths.
Loader her up and engage the bed apron only for nice even distribution about 3 feet wide. Engaging the beaters spreads things out to around 8 feet but the coverage gets pretty scant.