Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.
The weather changes pretty quickly around here. More than once Ive left home in the morning to fifty degrees and sunny weather and come home at night in about 8″ of snow and high winds. Since I usually have my Tactical Tailor pack with me when Im running around, heres what I carry to make things a bit easier:
Case is a Blackhawk Accessory Pouch. Weighs about 6 oz, has two zipper pulls, two compression straps and loops at either end for attachments. Not a bad product but I try not to by Made-In-Vietnam Blackhawk gear if I can help it. The compression straps, in addition to helping keep the overall footprint fairly small, also act as attachment points for looping through ALICE or PALS webbing.
Contents:
- 1 pair wool trigger mitt inserts
- 1 pair trigger mitt shells
- 1 military wool scarf
- 1 Brigade Quartermaster polypro neck gaiter
- 1 Thinsulate superthick watch cap
Trigger mitt inserts – If Im riding my bike and it isnt too cold I'll wear these by themselves to keep my hands warm. They are dirt cheap when purchased in bulk as surplus and Ive about a dozen pair in storage.
Trigger mitt shells – By themselves are pretty warm and great for cutting the bite from the wind. Coupled with the liner they are quite warm and do an excellent job of keeping me from losing fingers.
Military wool scarf – I dont use this very often since its function is easily equalled by the neck gaiter, but if Im using the neck gaiter as a hat or a face mask then the scarf comes in handy to cover my neck. Wound loosely in wraps around the neck and face it provides lotsa warmth. It can also be worn over the head under a hat to give the Lawrence of Arabia look.
BG neck gaiter – one of the best purchases you can make. I bought my first one almost twenty years ago and still use it today. It can be worn as a neck gaiter, hat, earband, facemask and several other ways. It can be stuffed into a small package and carried anywhere (I usually just fold it through my belt so it hangs like a towel on a towel bar..keeps it secure, out of the way, and handy.) I think theyre around $10 and definitely worth it. I just recently bought a spare.
Watch Cap – I posted about this earlier. Found this at WalMart for $4…its made from several layers of material instead of just one and is far superior to the military watch cap. So good, and so cheap, that I went back and bought four more for storage and spares. Best of all they come in the subdued colors I like so much and are made in the USA.
This isnt a winter survival kit, mind you. Its just a 'module' that I add or remove to my pack seasonally to help out in case the weather suddenly gets cold/snowy. The nice thing is that everything is in one place and when May rolls around I can pull the pack out of my bag and stuff it in a closet until September when it goes back into my pack.
