A sidetrack is a secondary hole drilled outward from an existing wellbore or main tunnel. Drillers initiate a sidetrack to bypass an obstruction, such as a stuck drill string, or to reach a new geological target without starting a completely new well from the surface. It requires placing a whipstock or using a steerable motor to deflect the drill bit.
Heard on the job
We hit an impassable fault zone at 3,000 feet, so we plan to plug back and kick off a sidetrack.