This article is sponsored by Propper, the guys dedicated to equipping those who commit their lives to serving others. In addition to the Propper gear that’s perfect for the mission, we’ve scoured the market for the very best from other brands to build out a kit that will help you brave the cold with ease.
It’s time for a little adventure. Now, it’s not that you don’t love your significant other and respect your boss, but you’ve got to go out and get right with nature every once in a while. You’ve got to escape the day-to-day concerns that consume your mind. Thankfully, it’s not necessary to go out there weighed down with a collection of unnecessary gear.
Today, we’re going to teach you how to go light, but still be ready for anything nature throws at you.
This is the Propper Mission Kit: Cold-Weather Rescue.
Propper EdgeTec Tactical Pants (.99) & Polo (.99)
It all starts with your Propper EdgeTec Pants and Polo. The shirt is quick-drying and breathable, and the pants are water-repelling and come equipped with reinforced pockets and knees. They’re the kind of duds you could wear to work or to brunch, but you’ll want to wear into nature.
And those six reinforced pockets are going to come in handy, because this guide will arm you with more tricks than you can hide in your sleeves alone.
That being said, if you wanted to hide a few tricks up your sleeves, try out the…
Propper 3-in-1 Hardshell Parka – (9.99)
Lightweight and waterproof, the Propper 3-in-1 Hardshell Parka is perfect for excursions out into nature, no matter the season. The removable fleece liner makes for perfectly fine wear on its own, but attaches to the hardshell parka to brave even the fiercest winters.
So, now you can go marching out into the woods, surrounded by tall trees, warmed and dry top and bottom, and smiling. But this is nature we’re talking about, so you better be prepared for what comes next.
Garmin fenix® 5S Plus – (9.99)
You’re hiking, hiking, hiking when, blammo, a snowstorm comes from out of nowhere. Sure, it was cold, but the grey clouds must’ve been hiding behind all the fir and pine needles. The trees will hold the worst of it off your head for a while, but you need to be ready in case the snow keeps coming.
Best first step is to prepare a shelter and a fire. And you need a good location. So, you look to pocket one where, for some reason, you were keeping your fēnix® 5S Plus. You can wear it right on your wrist, man. Shoulda been there all along. Anyway, strap it on, check the color topographical maps, and look for an area nearby with a good slope but no dangerous dropoffs.
Got it? Good. Now follow the GPS to get there, because the snow is really coming down, and it takes time to gather kindling and sticks and wood. You could use that old standby of packed dryer lint, but with space age clothes like these, your dryer won’t have much lint. So, grab handfuls of pine straw, tear bark to tiny shreds, and get it all packed loosely into a bundle of small sticks, branches, and even some broken limbs.
You’ve got a great start to a fire, but you gotta get it going.
Sparkie™ Fire Starter – (.73)
Pocket number two, boss. The Sparkie™ Fire Starter weighs less than an ounce but can get 100 strikes per flint-based bar. Before you know it, your cozy little fire is ready to go.
But there’s still snow. So, you’re going to want to improvise some sort of shelter. The frame is easy enough. Just lash together some good branches with more of that bark you’ve been peeling. Feel free to use some 550-cord if you’ve got it handy, but you still need something to stretch between the frame to hold the heat in.
Mylar Men’s Emergency Thermal Blankets (.05 / 10-pack)
You’ve got a few options out in Mother Nature to wrap your shelter, but the best one is something that reflects a little heat. You know, something like a Mylar Men’s Emergency Thermal Blankets or 10. You get the drill: pocket number three.
Use one or two of them as a backdrop for the shelter, setting it so it reflects the light from the fire onto you or onto the ground where you might be laying soon. Where the light is reflecting, the infrared light is reflecting, and that’ll help you stay warm. And that leaves eight more blankets that you can cover yourself with, or give to wandering woodland animals you’d like to make friends with.
Stanley GO Bottle with Ceramivac 36oz – (.00)
While you’re at it, this is a good time to refill that ceramic vacuum GO Bottle from Stanley that’s bulging in pocket four. Pack the slowly accumulating snow into the bottle and leave it in the reflection from the blanket. Melt it down. Get it as hot or leave it as cold as you like. Once it’s where you want it, cap it and tuck it away. The vacuum-insulation is going to keep it at that temperature for hours.
Goal Zero NOMAD 7 Solar Panel – (.95)
Before you drift off, you should unpack your NOMAD 7 Solar Panel from pocket five. That fēnix has the battery to go for hours, but you don’t want to risk running out of battery way out here.
We know, we know; you got out into nature to forget about all those flashing lights and digital beeps, but the fact is, there are some tools that make survival a heck of a lot easier that need juice to keep on giving. There aren’t any outlets out here among the pines, so it’s time to borrow a little assistance from that big ball of radiation in the sky.
BONUS: 10th Mountain Rye Whiskey – (.00)
When you wake up, all toasty from the fire, watch charged, safely ensconced in thermal blankets, you can take a quick sip from pocket six before making your way back to civilization. Just remember to sip in moderation; 10th Mountain Whiskey has the flavor and punch you’d expect from a distillery that shares its name with the 10th Mountain Division and donates some proceeds from every bottle to America’s veterans, but you need to keep a clear enough head to get back safely.
So, pack your adventure back up into all six pockets of your Propper EdgeTec Pants and carry it back down to the city. You’re sure to find more time to come out to nature again, and you can wear the pants that made it so comfortable every day until you do.
This article is sponsored by Propper, the guys dedicated to equipping those who commit their lives to serving others.
To make sure you’re prepared for any mission, check out the other Propper Mission Kits.