Too often folks venture into the wilderness with the latest and greatest gadgets, gear, etc. While many of those things are useful, how prepared are they for the worst case scenario?
You're out in the mountains of San Bernardino, winding your way along a fire road by yourself for a relaxing weekend of exploration. Sure, it's winter, but this is Southern California and we don't get snow here! Right?
Cue Murphy's Law. That storm that was tracking north before you left on your trip has now changed direction and is smacking right into where you are. Snowfall has begun, and while surprised you figure it won't stick and you can keep going. After a couple of hours, you realize your error as the trail becomes slick, icy and you are now stuck.
While this may seem like an unlikely scenario, last season we saw this play out several times. Video after video surfaced on social media, showing folks stuck out on relatively easy trails wearing nothing but jeans and a cotton t-shirt or at best, a hoodie.
Having an emergency kit is critical in situations like this. What started as a relaxing weekend could turn deadly if not prepared.
Preparedness doesn't mean you have to bring everything under the sun to account for all possibilities. The most important starting point is knowledge. Learn how to start a fire with simple firestarting tools, how to render first aid, manage heat or cold, signal for help, etc.
Having the knowledge and right gear go hand in hand. One without the other can be useless. Enter a stove like our ultra-light, ultra-compact stick burner stove.
This thing packs down to a tiny footprint, is sturdy when assembled, easy to use, and as long as you have dead wood you have fuel. This gives you the ability to safely melt snow into drinking water or render other water sources safer to drink than just filtering alone. Should you have emergency freeze dried foods in your rig, you now have a way to heat water for them.
These reasons are why we keep a stove like this in our vehicle's emergency kit. You can find this stove and more in the Camping Gear section of our store.