Lets see what your Winter Kit looks like... (1 Viewer)

[REZARF]

I was cleaning my 100 today and I figured someone might benefit from seeing my winter car kit. Living and playing in Colorado comes with some realistic risks. Winter brings on another whole can of worms to address to make sure you can live to play another day.

I'm not talking about your general preparedness items, jumpers, recovery gear, bush tools... but winter specific stuff you add in the Cruiser for these cold months.

I'd be interested in the collective wisdom of the IH8MUD community. I always learn from others peoples kits...

My moat likely situation is to slide off the road or become mired in snow and unable to get out my own. I keep a base level of tools, recovery gear and communications in the rig I wanted to focus on winter gear. I know from living in Florida and the south most of my life that this doesn't apply to all and a Florida kit can include flip flops and sunscreen but this could actually help some of us northerners.

Here's a few shots of my setup.

And one of the pack itself....

Main Winter Kit: Arc'Teryx backpack Silo 30

On my backpack:
Wool blanket (military surplus)
Snow shovel
Two man shelter
Trekking poles for walking or shelter setup
Ice axe
6 pack bottle water

In my backpack:

Clothes
Full change of clothes
Winter cap
Heavy winter gloves
Two pairs wool socks
Face mask thing
Shemag

Food and water:
6 water bottles
Empty water bladder
3 MRE's
Stove, fuel, and fuel canister
Utensils
A big stick of pepperoni
One pack of sea/marine rations
Starbucks coffee packs

Gear:
Compass
Emergency Tarp
Knife
Chem lights
Flashight
Small camping lantern LED
Hand warmers
Candles
Rope
Zip ties
Gorilla tape
Fire kit
Medical IFAK
Contractor trash bags
Solar charger with battery pack
Spare HAM radio battery and antenna
Yak trax micro spikes

 

[Rigger]

 

[custyota]

Winter kit haha I live in San Diego!

 

[oakback]

I know from living in Florida and the south most of my life that this doesn't apply to all and a Florida kit can include flip flops and sunscreen

We did get some snow on the ground this year! I had my recovery gear and anticipated pulling people from ditches (in 2 years I've pulled 3 people from ditches on rainy days), but instead they just shut down everything.

 

[TheForger]

I’ve used the SPOT Gen3 GPS Messenger quite a few times before. It’s a handheld unit that can send GPS coordinates as well as a preselected message via text or email to whoever you specify to let them know you made it to camp, you’re okay, you might be gone an extra day, etc... It also has an SOS button that you can press and it will automatically send an emergency alert to those same people you specify, as well as the GEOS International Emergency Response Coordination Center who will dispatch local ESAR groups and authorities to your location. Those whom you grant access to can also track your progress to see where you’ve gone on a live map. It’s more of a peace-of-mind thing incase the worst of the worst happens, but it’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

 

[Dork]

Spare set of clothes for the kids, extra set of gloves/touque for each of us and a couple blankets all tossed in a small duffel bag. One bag in each vehicle.

Its 2018: even this is considered overkill among most people up here in Canada.

 

[rolliges]

Every vehicle in winter needs new and ice-resistant wipers (no metal trusses) and an extra gallon of winter wiper fluid. Blanket, water, etc....

 

[cmck]

I was cleaning my 100 today and I figured someone might benefit from seeing my winter car kit. Living and playing in Colorado comes with some realistic risks. Winter brings on another whole can of worms to address to make sure you can live to play another day.

I'm not talking about your general preparedness items, jumpers, recovery gear, bush tools... but winter specific stuff you add in the Cruiser for these cold months.

I'd be interested in the collective wisdom of the IH8MUD community. I always learn from others peoples kits...

My moat likely situation is to slide off the road or become mired in snow and unable to get out my own. I keep a base level of tools, recovery gear and communications in the rig I wanted to focus on winter gear. I know from living in Florida and the south most of my life that this doesn't apply to all and a Florida kit can include flip flops and sunscreen but this could actually help some of us northerners.

Here's a few shots of my setup.

And one of the pack itself....

Main Winter Kit: Arc'Teryx backpack Silo 30

On my backpack:
Wool blanket (military surplus)
Snow shovel
Two man shelter
Trekking poles for walking or shelter setup
Ice axe
6 pack bottle water

In my backpack:

Clothes
Full change of clothes
Winter cap
Heavy winter gloves
Two pairs wool socks
Face mask thing
Shemag

Food and water:
6 water bottles
Empty water bladder
3 MRE's
Stove, fuel, and fuel canister
Utensils
A big stick of pepperoni
One pack of sea/marine rations
Starbucks coffee packs

Gear:
Compass
Emergency Tarp
Knife
Chem lights
Flashight
Small camping lantern LED
Hand warmers
Candles
Rope
Zip ties
Gorilla tape
Fire kit
Medical IFAK
Contractor trash bags
Solar charger with battery pack
Spare HAM radio battery and antenna
Yak trax micro spikes

I’m in the northeast and in upstate NY we do have a real winter. The simple answer is it depends.
Around Town: Basic recovery, extra pair of boots and work gloves.

Out for a trip of exploring: This is where I could in fact try a Forrest Road that hasn’t been plowed since the first snow. You could break a part, but it’s more likely you got stuck and your trying to get unstuck by yourself.

In that case you want to be able to stay in the truck (it’s good shelter) till your rescue plan kicks in. This assumes that you can call out or have a radio contact.

In this case I throw in a insulated sleeping pad, a zero degree down bag (not a cheap one) and carry a gallon of water in a wide mouth container or containers. I take a msr 1 liter stove, 2 headlamps and spare lithium batteries, 2 small gas canisters, snow shovel, 3 dehydrated meals and some hard candies.

Going to the Mountians: This is a situation where I could be an hour from a town, no cell signal and where if you go for an overnight camping trip, you could get 2 feet of snow and there might not be another car or a plow for a few days.

In addition to the above I carry a full tank of fuel, the snow chains, snowshoes, the real down jacket and pants. A winter pack 85l, hard shells, the real gps (not a phone), 2 gallons of water, 3x the food, the real boots, multiple pairs of what I call hands and feet. I’m an experienced winter mountaineer and I know the techniques to stay warm and hike out if it’s required. I would stay with the land cruiser in almost all cases.

If this sounds like a lot of stuff, it is. Also, it’s the kind of stuff that you would take on a winter camping trip anyway.

The last thing I take is a head on my shoulders. If you take this with you 98% of the time you never use the other stuff.

 

[ewillis]

A friggin ice axe? I don't want to live anywhere that would be a remote possibility of being needed. Water, blanket, and a Garmin InReach...done

 

[N22]

From my experience in upstate NY winters:
A few wool blankets,matches, and a snow shovel.

I typically carry a lot of truck related stuff so I don't have to add much.
When I decide what size tires work well on the truck, I''ll get a set of tire chains.

Also a plow and warning lights, but I don't think that's what you were asking about.

 

[MANUCHAO]

If you going to carry water like that in below freezing areas.. you might want to get some insulation for it... ice won't do much for yah...that, & good size pot to melt snow..

Good kit...

 

[cmck]

A friggin ice axe? I don't want to live anywhere that would be a remote possibility of being needed. Water, blanket, and a Garmin InReach...done

I love my ice “axes” and walking in crampons is Awesome!

 

[cmck]

If you going to carry water like that in below freezing areas.. you might want to get some insulation for it... ice won't do much for yah...that, & good size pot to melt snow..

Good kit...

You can use the ice axe to break the bottle and then melt the ice from the water bottle because it takes less fuel then starting with snow which is mostly air.

In the past on winter hikes I have keep water in the car multiple nights in a sealed 5 gal bucket and that volume of water did not freeze. If it does, it will just be a skin on top that you can break. Note that need was more about resupply of water for the next hike and trailhead. It’s over kill for the be prepared idea.

However a wide mouth bottle like a nalgene or a yeti bottle will keep water unfrozen somewhat longer than a narrow neck.

 

[half k cruiser]

View attachment 1619700

That looks very similar to my daily carry kit ! Except for the graph paper, I don't get that one.

 

[brownbear]

I think the most important winter kit items ( I live in the cold) is blankets, and proper winter snow gear. Like a snow suit.
But realistically you will stay in your car until you are rescued. Break down in a remote area, stay put. They all die when try to walk out.
Communication tools are good to have. But have a plan. Tell your plan to your family, neighbours etc. Use a trip person so they know you are there safely when you arrive. If you do not arrive, or check in, at a predetermined time they will initiate help.
It should not take days to be found. Stay on your route, and have check in's.

It's 2018, but it's not uncommon to end up parked on a road for 12 hours or more waiting for the road to re-open from a storm. The warm blankets etc will let you turn off the engine to save gas. Warm for five-10 minutes an hour and re-shut off. You could do this for a long time. Where as idling you might only get 5 hours or so. It won't be 70 in the car, but you can spot idle for 20 plus hours or more.

 

[Jarred]

Nice kit. Good thing we don't need much of them here in the south.

 

[larryrmnp]

A serious shovel for every person in the party.

A hiking GPS with up-to-date topo maps. (We have a maze of logging roads.)

Regular cell phone plus a no-contract for another provider that partly covers the area.

Chains for 4 wheels.

Except in the summer and again for every person:
Zero degree down mummy sleeping bag. (We have unpredictable sometimes extreme weather.)
Complete winter back packing camping gear including cross country skis. (Visiting remote lakes in the fall with no
other people likely to show up for months.)

Wish list:
Cell range extender
AED
Satellite Messenger
Bear Spray

 

[cody c]

Interesting thread.

I've done a bit of snow wheeling into ghost valley west of Calgary for ice climbing access, it's in an area where we don't get cell reception, snow drifts we've seen as tall as my truck in one spot years ago, and involves numerous water crossings with rocky or icy access and departures, trails that are difficult to follow or find and inconsistent snow depths. It's quite an easy location to get stuck or break down.

In terms of items to have, the first would be communicating with your partner or friends where you are going, what time you are expected to be out, and when and what to do if you don't return by a certain time.

The second would be to travel with sensible people, who are themselves well prepared for the trip and not likely to make poor decisions, like driving fast or drunk or dangerously. Whats better than a winch? It's usually (but not always) a tow strap for snow wheeling. It has more value when there is a vehicle to attach to though.

Chains, good V-bars or similar heavy duty chains. is next on the list. We will say that recovery gear is not specific to winter wheeling and is a given.

I have a GPS, but really it's just an ipad with GPS, it doesn't help recover a vehicle, if we have to walk out, the tire tracks are what you'll be walking out on, the GPS won't help to do that, and mine is too awkward to carry. If were talking about hiking out on a route alternate to the way you drove in, thats probably a really bad idea. If you hiked in somewhere during your trip and need to return, then that's a different story.

A spare set of winter boots in your vehicle, in case yours get wet or someone else has an issue, or you weren't planning on recovering someone and now need to walk through snow to help.

I leave a sleeping bag in the back, it's seen more use as a mat to lay under the cruiser for some sort of repair. If your heater will no longer work on your trip, your passengers in the back can bundle in under it on the way out, if you have to spend the night, it's certainly better than nothing.

A good full size (none of the folding milsurp lightweight stuff) shovels. I prefer a pointed D handle, the square face shovel is better for big scoops of snow, but is very difficult for hard or rocky ground, sometimes even hard ice. I wouldn't bother with that lightweight shovel for recovery gear, it's meant for an avalanche shovel, if you ever have to bust up large chunks of ice that your high centered on you would understand why. For avalanche rescue it makes more sense.

Chainsaw (preferably) and axe. Crucial tools for making a fire, getting a large pole to help with extraction and juggling drunk, well maybe not the last one. Chainsaw gas also helps to get a fire going!

I leave extra food and water in the truck throughout the year, and also take more food than I think I could eat during the trip in the vehicle, we have bumped into people who were stuck or underprepared, and often were hungrier than we thought on our way out, better looking at it than for it, and anyone will benefit from the extra calories to keep them warm and clear headed. Some sort of chocolate granola bars or snacks with decent shelf life. My girls usually need one for a drive that took longer than expected so they aren't usually in the vehicle for more than half a year or so.

I'm not sure why you need an ice axe for your winter kit, we would bring ice climbing gear into the valley, but wouldn't carry it out if we had to, it would stay in the truck and we'd be walking in our tiretracks.

Always check out the terrain (or ice thickness) if you feel there could be risk before driving it first.

An old picture from years ago, have the old bumper and smaller tires on it, no roof rack or snorkel:

cody_cruiser5_zps2bdrmy5d
cody_cruiser5_zps2bdrmy5d by cody chatfield, on Flickr

Edit: I like the idea about the starbucks coffee packets, thats a good thing to have!