Winter Travel - What Do You Carry in Your Vehicle in Case of Emergency

I keep a hoodie in my backseat and a pair of shoes in the floorboard for when it's too cold for flip flops. If it's going to get below 50, I'll throw my old carhart in there just to be safe.
I also keep a two-piece fishing rod and some plastics in there as well.

Winters in FL are rough, and you have to stay prepared for anything.

Matches and long burning candles. A single candle in your car, plus a blanket, can provide enough warmth to keep you from freezing to death if you are dry. Learned this from folks who survived the great blizzard of ‘ 74
in North Dakota.

And a small mirror, if someone is looking for you by air, using a mirror to reflect sunlight can be seen for miles even through thick forest

Last Edited by Dodger007 on 09/08/2019 09:03 AM

MSR Dragonfly Stove for making drinking water from snow. I can keep folks from a dozen vehicles hydrated with that beast. I do not only prep for myself.

Contractor Garbage Bags and Duct Tape to seal up a broken window if stranded due to a crash. Vehicle is shelter. Have patch kit at the ready.

Waterproof rain/snow pants too. Think of changing a tire, or attempting to push a car out of a snowbank. You will end up wet, and drying yourself may be difficult if the heat is not working due to damaged radiator or engine. Keep yourself dry from the jump. Extra dry clothes in case.

I have a Glock E-Tool(Military Shovel) but it is not very efficient in deep snow as the blade is small. It can chop the hell out of ice tho. I have had the MSR mountaineering snow shovel on my buy list for years but do not own it yet. Living poor as I do not measure wealth in Dollars.

All the food and wool blankets everyone else mentioned too. Fat calories help warm me up. High fat foods are the best.

My husband and I talked about this. We thought about moving to WY. And the winters out there are not easy.

Our 4x4 2500 truck would contain,
A extra tank of gas, 2 thermal blankets. A bag or 2 of kitty litter, 2 2×4 boards water,a lighter, a cooler packed with vacuum packed calorie cakes, a couple change of clothes. Extra boots gloves, A CB,extra cellphone batteries(fully charged) emergency start fire blocks, a box of road flares box of instant hand warmers. And a first aid kit.

Basically the back of the truck is loaded up.
I am going to do my best not going to starve, nor freeze to death in the middle of nowhere.
(disregard what the meme says)

I used to have a back pack with emergency supplies in it. This thread is a good reminder that I need to start doing that again.

We don't have bad winters here, but some of the things I keep in my pack is extra tennis shoes, socks, change of clothes, water, snack bars and towels. I also have a first aid kit that I keep in my car at all times.



:Five_Stars*:

Ham Radio.
Weapon.
Water.
Never less than half a tank of fuel.

5 stars OP!

Thanks for the reminder!!!!!

And don't forget to change your furnace filter in your house.

Thread: Winter Preps in your Car

In VT, I carried two 50 lb bags of Black Beauty sandblast in the back for weight. Never got stuck, and never had to crack one open.

Common sense and good tires are your best tools.

If it's that bad out, STAY HOME!

Dress for the weather. If you're one of those people that hops in their car with a sweatshirt and sneakers when it's -10 degrees and snowing, you get everything you deserve.

Layer up, have your boots on and at least be able to walk to where you're going if you can't drive there.

If you live where it snows regarly, spend the money and have another set of wheels with true snow tires. With studs, preferably. Have a set of tire chains and know how to use them

Choose the right vehicle. If your daily driver is an SRT Challenger, you're not going anywhere when it snows. Get yourself a cheap winter beater. Subarus and older Grand Cherokees are cheap and really good in snow.

Have heavy gauge jumper cables, a jack and plenty of tow rope. Get one of those large ratchet straps, 3000-4000 lbs. Not only are they very long, you can use them as a come a long (poor man's winch).

Now I'm not one for camping out in the car, so screw piss bottles, blankets and all that. If I get stuck, I'm going to get unstuck. If I can't do that, I'll get out and hoof it. If it's that bad out there had better be a damn good reason I'm out in it and I'm not sitting in a car. You're more apt to catch a ride walking with your thumb out instead of freezing to death in a snow covered car trying to piss in a bottle.

I grew up in the snow so maybe I take this for granted but I love sliding a car around in the snow. That shit they call drifting or hooning, we called it winter driving.

If you can't drive in the stuff, don't go out in it. Stay home.

Tire pump
10lb fire extinguisher
88 alkaline water
lifewater straw
back-up cellphone battery/flashlight
rain jacket

just winter? I carry all the time, backpack with all tools necessary, first aid, blankets...blah blah blah, a small soft sided picnic cooler with foods (small can stuff, chicken, soup, ravioli kind of stuff) and a thermal jug of water as well as some water packs...and dog food

I always kept a box of beef jerky and a case of water in my car. I had a really long commute and pretty much lived on coffee and cigarettes. I also always had a magnalite flashlight the size of a billy club and a ka bar. I was in the deep south and drove remote back roads for about 40 miles a trip. Have only driven in a blizzard once and at was near the Grand Canyon exit. I was in an RV and totally snow blind. I didn't know NOT to get off on an exit ramp. The roads were passable, but the exit ramp was solid ice. The RV slid all the way down and somehow I got to a stop going back up the entry ramp on the side of the road. I was literally shaking and thought we were going to die. It was a blizzard and fucking freezing out and there was NO TRAFFIC coming down that exit. Luckily we had propane and were able to heat the vehicle and just go to sleep. It was the most stressful drive of my life and my boyfriend slept through it in the way back of the RV. He couldn't hear me yelling at him.

Obviously you do NOT travel in snow country in the winter. Are you going to fill up you soup container 2 o 3 times a day? Traveling one a month or so OK advice, going out in it 2 to 4 times a day not so much.

BETTER basic advice \/ \/ \/ \/ \/



#1 ... if you are going to run your engine MAKE SURE the exhaust is CLEAR!!! Then only run it for a few minutes each hour CHECKING each time to make sure the exhaust is clear


I don't carry a snowmobile equipment (don't have one) but do carry the rest ... PLUS

Basic car emergency kit that you can buy in many auto parts stores, even Wal-Mart in the north areas, that includes jumper cables, tow strap, air pump, etc.

I also carry

*Compass (often overlooked)
*Leatherman multi tool
*Flashlight (I carry two)
*Collapsible shovel - for shoveling out tires
*Plastic snow treads to squeeze under tires if stuck in deeper snow (some people use the over sized outside door mats)
*Auto Jumper Battery Pack ... that has USB outlets on it (newer ones are VERY small and hold a charge for months)
*CB
***Bright Orange tape or plastic that can be used to signal others that someone is there (sometimes hard to spot a 3/4 buried vehicle during bad visibility - both for aircraft - or **more dangerous for you is the snowplows clearing a road who can't see you)

*FULL change of cloths - all wool except for underwear which is poly
*Insulated high top hiking boots plus TWO pair of high top wool socks and TWO pair of nylon liners
*Ski Pants - big enough to pull over clothes (in place of snowmobile suit)
*Extra Winter Coat (HEAVY) WITH HOOD AND separate heavy cap
*Extra HEAVY winter gloves and HEAVY winter mittons that are LEATHER (the "leather" requirement is VERY important - think workman's gloves for winter outdoor work, much cheaper and better than regular department store gloves)
*Winter sleeping bag
*WOOL blanket
*Metal can with several long burning candles /strike anywhere matches (can heat car is really snowed in - but have to keep window cracked - ONLY burn candle inside METAL can)
*Several energy bars (can keep in metal can)
*Camping toilet paper (in metal can)
*Pack of handi wipes (in metal can)


Obviously one should also have the normal charger adapters and charger cords for your cell phone (better to charge off of the jumper pack than via the car if the engine is not running).

Water is going to freeze if left in car ... but not bad idea to get in the habit of taking one or more bottles with you when you go out (and one can "improve" my candle heating system so it can melt some snow for water it one is stranded for a longer time)

My stuff doesn't take up much space - I can reach it withOUT having to get into a trunk (may be very hard to do) and goes in at the beginning of the winter and doesn't come out until the end except for the Battery Booster which I try to recharge every 3 weeks or so.

Where I would get stranded the longest I would probably be stuck in the vehicle would be 24 hours ... but if one pays attention to the weather that should NOT happen, one would be picked up in 3 to 6 hours, or could walk over to a farm house.

(don't be afraid to get out and walk to a farm house IF it looks close - but ONLY if you are wearing the proper winter clothing and the drifts are NOT high - if drifts are going to be real deep walking out may not be an option, but in that case the farmer probably has a snowmobile and will be checking out the areas near his farm once the storm lets up)

Great list. I have the added take-down bow for "quiet" hunting.

I know it may be overkill, but I bought a bike and and designed a trailer that I bought at a police auction for $20. They fit in the back of my little hatchback and are nice little bug-out backups in case we run outta fuel.

I have about the same in all other items, but you have a few that I will be adding. Thanks.

I should say that in the handgun area, I use a revolver as I think I heard the mechanism on a auto may freeze up or malfunction. Don't have any personal experience, but I trust my revolvers and a couple speed loaders.

A Glock

Datrex emergency rations, MRE's , Red Green Possum Lodge Duct tape, Bata Bunny boots, Lifestraws, Jumper cables, electrical cords for your engine head bolt & battery heaters, light up adaptors, hand & feet warmer packets, ski face mask, shovel, snowshoes, wool mittens, polar fleece undergarments, matches, tinder, survival candles, extra parkas, wool blankets, gas deicer, scrapers,
Garmin In Reach Explorer Satellite com., firearms/ ammo. ice fishing gear....

Work Coat. (Yellow reflective, the kind that road workers use)
Boots with several pairs of socks.
Flashlight.

I dont live far enough away from urban areas to worry about supplies, I just need to prevent hypothermia and not get run over by a snowplow while I'm walking to shelter.

If I was making a long distance trip:

-Food ( Bag of candy or trail mix )
-4 large bottles of water.
-Couple of blankets.
-"Fire starting kit" Fancy term for dryer lint and a Bic lighter packed into a watertight jar ( like a prescription bottle)
-Whistle , this one is usually overlooked because people dont realize how hard it is to yell for help when you're exhausted and freezing.


Stay with the car as a heat source/shelter.
Wait for help.
If no help comes and weather improves and you can SEE evidence of shelter or other people , walk to it.
If weather is not getting better or you cant see shelter after the car runs out of fuel , start a fire.

Honk the horn every ten minutes until the battery goes dead
Blow the whistle every ten minutes until you are dead.

Most people can only move a few hundred yards in deep snow /freezing weather.
Your body needs experience in that situation to deal with it.

If you're not acclimatized , as soon as your core temperature starts to drop you will lose circulation to your legs , all of your caloric energy will be diverted to heat generation and you'll suddenly find yourself incapable of taking more than a few stops at a time.

You have no control over the process , your body needs to learn how to conserve heat.
An acclimatized persons body knows to suppress shivering and trust that the leg muscles will generate enough heat.

Even if you are in good shape , if your body has little experience dealing with extreme cold, DONT TRY TO WALK OUT.

left off:
Kitty Litter for throwing under tires if stuck and the snow isn't deep (see snow treads or front door mats PLUS tow strap above for that). Personally I carry the type that comes in the plastic container - doesn't spill out once use some and put the lid back on. Be sure to have something to scoop it with though ... hands tends to be porous and it spill out into your vehicle when you use them (...ask me how I know! LOL)

mentioned above but worth repeating:
Face Mask
Ski Goggles

AR-15 with 42-42 round clips.
If I'm going through Baltimore,
hand grenades and flame-thrower.

Right there with you! I have this all the time also. I could camp out for a week with the stuff in my trunk. No worries here. Everyone in my family thinks I'm nuts. I'm prepared if SHTF and I need to leave in moment's notice. Everything is in the car. mini Tent, sleeping bag, beach chair, food, life straw, batteries, transistor radio, water, tools, rope, duct tape, exacto knifes, saw, first aid, wipes, tp, mini grill, charcoal, can opener, ziploc bag of honey, tea, sugar, cocoa, instant coffee, cremora, etc.etc. Too much to name. Most stuff is in a huge hiking backpack. I use those plastic zipper bags that comforters or sheets come in and organize by food (food, drink, utensil) tools, etc.

I must say 911 and GLP put the fear of EMP attack and grid going down and this is why I'm ready.

Sounds like you need a heavy duty pull behind luggage cart with HUGE tires on it if you are going to go any distance ...
(don't laugh ... I did that for a time after 9/11)

Blanket, high vis vest, small shovel, parka, gloves, water, pull strap.

Been stuck on I-90 for hours in a lake effect blizzard more than once, it’s not any fun. Drive a Suburban, so usually end up as the rescuer for folks who don’t plan at all.

2 flashlights
Power converter
Power brick with solar options
Batteries
Box of MREs
Extra blanket, socks, sweats, underwear and hoodie
Disaster shroud and rain gear
Flare gun
Leatherman
Fire starter and waterproof matches
Knife set with machete
Rope
2 xtra usb iphone cords
Military flatware and cookware set
Military shovel / hammer
Benjamin Marauder Woods Walker PCP Air Pistol (.22) with xtra ammo

Jack Daniels

Typically the snow doesn't even fly on the mountain roads until late October, once in a while early October but even then it will melt off and Indian summer comes before winter.

and a fire extinguisher

Thank you for the link to your previous topic.

This guy went winter camping to a "bothy" in Wales with his wife and dog.

4" of snow was predicted. Bad prediction.

35 minutes long

[link to www.youtube.com (secure)]

An empty coffee can with some kitty litter works fine for ladies. I always save my empty ones to pour used / hot grease into.