Four wheel drives get stuck, it’s a fact of life, nothing's perfect, even 4WD tractors and tracked vehicles get bogged. So inevitably a vehicle with less  ground clearance, smaller wheels and less traction will too. In fact some 4x4’s barely deserve the reputation of the name, having such terrible ground clearance that a speed bump might stick them. Some vehicles are a lot better off road than others, the best I've owned have been a Landrover Defender and a Toyota Hilux 4x4 ute. There are many other good ones of cource.

The consequences of a stuck vehicle can be as simple as five minutes work with a shovel, or days waiting for rescue in a potentially life threatening situation. My worst was a 6 hour slog alone, hand winching a stuck 4x4 pickup/ute from mud in the Australian bush.

Equipment is the key, 4x4’s are heavy vehicles by nature. They carry an extra differential, so are always more heavy than an equivalent 2wd car. So if you are venturing off the road carry at least some rescue gear.

A very basic kit would be
Axe
Shovel
Strong long Rope (if you take nothing else take this)
First aid kit
Drinking water

Also consider
Snatch strap
Tree protector.
Shackles
High lift Jack
Winch
More rope or chain
Mobile phone or 2 way radio
Another person (always useful)

Getting your self out is all going to depend on the type of terrain your are dealing with and the equipment available. It’s good to have a helper and better still a vehicle mounted winch, but if not you can still often get out by yourself. There are so many techniques to consider, but here are some ideas.

Tyre pressures
Most guides will recommend that you lower your tyre pressure, before venturing off road. In practice very few of us do that. So at the first sign that you are stuck lower the pressure. The jury is out on how low you can go but something around 16 psi should be safe. Too low and the tyre will come off the rim and then you really have  problems. Lowering the pressure increases the foot print of the tyre and therefore the traction of your 4x4 vehicle.

If you are in a convoy then the snatch strap has to be the first thing to try. Follow the instructions for your strap, but basically it works by attaching either end to a strong towing point on the two vehicles.  The lead or rear vehicle then drives away briskly. The elastic action of the strap pulls the stuck car and driver out. They are marvelous things.

Failing that it’s time to get down and dirty. Assess the situation. Which way out can you go?. Quite often it’s best to reverse your 4x4 out of the problem, but make your own judgment as to the nearest firm ground. If possible dig the dirt away from in front of the leading wheels and If your in a wet situation and it's at all possible dig channels to drain the water away from the vehicle, churning wheels in water will create a right old soup in no time at all. Try shoveling in branches or brush etc under the wheels to give a firm footing. But to be honest that rarely works for me, I’m usually too far into the soft stuff by then.

No Good?
Then look for some sort of anchor point in front or behind, it’s funny how trees hitch up their roots and make a run for it as soon as they think your going to get stuck (but I’ve never caught them at it). If you do find a tree or maybe a strong bush within range of your rope, attach it to the object as low to the ground as possible, a high anchor point will very probably pull the tree or bush out of the ground and  on to you..

Tightly attach the rope to the vehicle on to the approved towing points (you have one don’t you?) then back to the tree, thus doubling the rope. Find yourself a nice stout branch slip it between the ropes at the centre point between the object and the vehicle. You may find it easier to dig a trench at this point but it’s not always necessary. Wind the branch up so you twist the rope and effectively shorten it. This has a pretty amazing pulling power. I’ve extracted a few stuck vehicle's this way and pretty quickly. But watch that branch it’s under extreme tension and it can hit you on the head, believe me I’ve been there and it is not one little bit funny (I stiil have a slight dent in my skull).

A better and I think safer variation which uses less rope is as follows. Once more attach the rope tightly to the object/anchor and the vehicle. Then dig a hole beside the rope and find your self a good stout branch or pole, put it upright into the hole. Loop the rope around the  pole and put a longer branch through the loop. Then holding onto the second branch walk around the in ground pole. The in ground pole rotates creating a winch, which shortens the rope. The longer the branch the more leverage you can create. It helps if you have someone to hold the in ground pole upright but it is possible without.

If you lack something to anchor your rope to in sand or loose soil, try burying your spare wheel, with a rope attached if you put it in the hole flat against the pull you will have all of the material on top of the wheel as an anchor. Doing that is a major pain but we are talking extreme measures now.

A high lift jack is useful as it can be used to lift the vehicle high enough to insert branches etc directly under the wheels, you can also with some modification use it as a winch. If you don't have a High lift jack but are in an area with plenty of trees you can try another method.

This is probably going to damage your vehicle so work out were your priorities are there. Find a log to serve as a fulcrum and lie it down close to the side of the 4x4. Then find a long pole insert the thin end under the vehicle and leaver down the thick end. If the leverage is enough the vehicle should lift. If you have a helper get them to carefully shove material (branches bark etc) under the wheels. If your by your self find as many poles as you can and insert them in the same way. About 8 large ones should be enough to lift the vehicle.

So there you go just a few ideas, with them you can get out of a lot of trouble. But it takes a lot of time and effort. I find that it's always worth taking some time to stand back and think the problem through before you attack it.

For heavens sake consider your own safety when doing these things and even whether you should be trying to shift it at all, maybe it’s better to just ask for help.