Winter driving safety...
Be prepared to be trapped in a blizzard or road closure
Everyone
My wife is probably the best prepared winter driver I know. She not only has bottles of water and a stash of granola bars and cheese crackers in the glovebox, she always puts a heavy coat in the backseat along with gloves and scarves.
It’s getting bad out there
A few years ago one of the largest and most dangerous snow storms in history pummeled much of the country. I have a few colleagues in Buffalo, and was not able to reach them by phone. I hoped they were okay, but there had already been dozens of deaths in the area. Not only were thousands of people being trapped in their homes without power, there were a number of victims who were trapped on the side of the road in their cars and died from exposure to cold.
Campers should know how to boondock in their cars
When I was driving 50,000 miles a year in a Sprinter van teaching seminars across the county, I not only took plenty of water bottles, granola bars and beef jerky in the van, I also packed a sleeping bag, spare wool socks, and heavy gloves.
And while I never got stuck in a snowbank, I did have several trips where road closures shut down roads, so I had to sleep overnight in a parking area. And because I had water, snacks, a heavy coat, wool socks and a sleeping bag, I was quite comfortable curled up in the middle seat even though the outside temperature dipped below freezing.
I’m not a sleeping bag expert!
No, I’m not. But I’ve contacted REI to see if they can recommend an inexpensive sleeping bag you can roll up in a stuff bag and keep in the back of your car. That way, if you do find yourself stuck somewhere in a snowstorm you can be safe and comfortable while waiting for rescue.
There’s more to learn
I’m in discussion with one of my writing colleagues who happens to be a wilderness first responder in Washington State, and who knows a lot about keeping safe during snow storms. While this info may not help you right now (it’s a little late to buy a sleeping bag this season), I’ll bet there will be great sleeping bag sales in the spring, along with other safety items like wool-blend socks, warm gloves, and go bags for snacks and water.
Please leave your comments…
If any of you are first responders or winter survival experts, please comment below with more safety items and options for winter travel and survival.
Let’s stay safe (and warm) out there… Mike
I recall an older article about truck back-seat inflatable beds. I never found an article on the results of your investigation. Would you please push a link if possible? Thanks in advance.
Maybe a .5-1 kWh power station and a couple of pairs of rechargeable hand warmers could play an important role in a vehicle survival kit? In your past articles, you showed that an electric blanket won't last very long on with a small to mi-sized power station but these days you can get a pair of 6,000 mAhr rechargeable hand warmers for $25 on Amazon.
https://a.co/d/fZe79X4
The ad says they last up to 20 hours and they are USB-C charging. They don't say what the operating voltage is so we won't know exactly how much energy it will take to recharge them without doing an experiment but if they charge at 5V, then it would require 30 Whr to recharge them. It it's 9V, then it would be 54 Whr but even then, you could recharge them almost 10 times times with a .5 kWhr power station! Maybe you or one of your readers have already done this experiment? It would seem like a couple of pairs of hand warmers and a small to mid-sized power station could keep one very cozy in an insulated sleeping bag like the one you mentioned in today's article for days.