Best Personal Items To Bring When You Go Snow Wheeling
November 9, 2023
Off-Road Snow Wheeling Checklist, Part 1: Personal Gear
So we all know that getting out and going winter wheeling can be quite the challenge, so today we want to go through all the things that we like to bring along to make sure we stay safe, warm, and under control.
As we go through all this stuff, remember that this stuff can take even the most dedicated off-road enthusiast years to accumulate, especially because it can be rather costly to grab all of it at once. So don't think that you have to get everything on our list in one go - start with the safety-focused gear and go from there. With that in mind, let's jump right in and start building our roster.
Table Of Contents
-Emergency Supplies & Extra Clothes
-Offline-Ready Maps, Ropes, and Emergency Blankets
-Fire Starting Kits and Nighttime Gear
Best Personal Safety Gear For Snow Wheeling
Today we'll keep our discussion to personal gear to bring along either on your person or in your rig, so keep reading to see what to bring along with you.
Provisions
We'll start with what to bring for you personally, which of course means extra food, extra water, and a first aid kit, all packed into a bag that you can access easily. This way, if an emergency arises, you can grab the bag, get out of the situation, and make sure you can address any injuries if one happened.
We'd also recommend carrying at least two radios with you so you can keep in contact with your spotter easily - even a 20 dollar one from Walmart should be just fine to keep you linked up to the outside world.
Emergency Supplies and Extra Clothes
If, for some reason, you get stuck outside of your vehicle and need to sleep in the wilderness, any tool that can be used to cut firewood will be great to have. This way you can start a fire, and not only does this create the opportunity to cook food, but it also really helps with morale - of course, you'll also need to have something with you that you can use to start a fire whenever you need one.
You've gotta have some water as well, and we like to have at least four 20-ounce bottles at all times. You can survive up to 30 days without food if you need to, but only two to four days without water, so make sure that you're properly hydrated at all times.
Along with emergency supplies, we also like to keep extra clothes packed along with us. After all, if you get wet, a spare set of clothes is great for keeping warm and comfortable, allowing you the comfort you need to work on your rig if you need to and avoid any weather-related illnesses.
Offline-Ready Maps, Ropes and Emergency Blankets
When you're out on the trails and far away from civilization, knowing where you are is super important especially when you stop having service on your devices. Be sure to carry a paper map with you, utilize your vehicle's GPS if you need to, and have some offline maps downloaded onto your device from an app like Gaia Maps or something similar - this way, you can stay oriented and move in the right direction.
Of course, you also want to keep some extra rope on your person - this can be used for stringing in between trees and hanging a tarp over it so you can have some shelter. Carry a couple survival wraps with you as well, just so you're able to keep warm inside your blankets.
Fire Starting Kits and Nighttime Gear
Fire starting kits aren't a necessity, but they're a great option if you have the means to pick one up. We like the kits filled with sawdust and paraffin wax - you can light them up in around five seconds and they'll stay lit for about an hour, which is much more efficient than going with the "rub two sticks together" method - by the way, has that ever worked?
Finally, when it's nighttime you'll need to be able to see, so we'd also recommend picking up some head lights, LED pod lights, and anything else that you can mount while you work with your hands.
