Easily unload gravel from pickup truck

Question

I have a road at a backwoods location in Eastern Ontario that has large dips/holes.

The picture doesn't do the road justice. The hole is large and the bumps are bedrock with 1-2 inches of moss and soil on top. Driving truck on rocky trail

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I plan to fill my truck (2010 Silverado 1500; 6.5 ft bed) with gravel from a natural sand pit 1km away by hand shovelling.

I will need to unload several gravel loads into the holes in the road. Is there an easy way to unload the gravel instead of hand shovelling it into the hole?

Edit: I'm on a shoestring budget.

Answer 1

Try a Tarp that can be pulled out with a crank.

(The link explains it) I have used them on a friends truck. They work well.

Not expensive, but for the price if it works just a few times it is worth it. Spend a bit of time shopping and you will find them in a heavier design but at a higher price.

Answer 2

There is such a thing as a dump trailer you can rent. They're heavy duty and can help you release the sand easily into the hole. Your pickup should be able to tow it easily.

Answer 3

Something like this might be a really good option here, especially because it sounds like you're shoveling the gravel into the bed yourself.

5 gallon buckets are super cheap, so buying a bunch of them isn't too bad. There's still a manual labor element to the whole thing (I'm assuming that's ok, because you're on a budget), but that's going to make sure that most of the gravel ends up in buckets that are easy to grab and dump in the desired area. Shovel off anything that's on top of the buckets that's preventing you from grabbing each bucket, and then start pulling buckets out. After that, anything left that was in between the buckets can be shoveled, or maybe swept out.

Answer 4

I'd consider hoeing it off the back of the truck from behind, if using your pickup truck was a prerequisite.

I'd consider renting a small dump truck if the pickup truck was not a prerequisite.

Whatever vehicle is used, be sure not to overload it. I'd imagine that off-roading over bumpy land is a lot harder on a loaded vehicle than driving on a flat asphalted road.

Answer 5

Two options come to mind.

1. Buy sandbags from a local retailer. These provide for units of carrying that can be filled on the ground, moved into the truck bed (particularly if there is one person in the bed and one handing up bags), and then dumped out of the bed as desired. You don't have to fill them all the way if they get too heavy for you. You get it all in the truck bed in individual containers, filled to be lifted by available personnel. You don't get sand absolutely everywhere in your truck bed. Reusable to boot. Even better, given what looks like a slope with drainage there, you can use some filled sandbags to anchor the downhill side and hold your fill in place much better (might want to get some rocks there eventually to make it more solid).

2. I'm seeing a variety of fill in close vicinity to the road that might be easier to shovel and throw. Up to you.

Answer 6

I have never done something like that but you could get an old sturdy plywood board roughly the size of your truck bed with enough to spare that you can stand between the board and the cabin. Place a hydraulic jack under it and use it to crank the cabin side of the board up to unload easier.