Guys that drive a long ways to hunt, what are your less common(but important) pieces of gear/tools you're sure to keep in the truck?

[wyodog]

A winch if you have it, if not, a handyman jack, chain and some sort of deadman. I use car axels for a dead man. A sledge hammer to drive in the axels.
A good fist aid kit, lights, work gloves.
On Star or a Garmin in-reach if everything else fails.
Everything else I would take has already been mentioned.

 

[fngTony]

A large sheet of cardboard (keeps the heat of asphalt off you) tarp (keeps you dry) to lay on if you need to get under the truck/trailer for some reason.
Extra set of wheel chocks because most cars don’t come with any and flat tires like to happen on a grade.

Any solutions for push to start and keeping a spare fob at the vehicle? My pickup automatically unlocks if the fob is close and someone could just drive off.

What kind of car? Should be a setting you can adjust.

 

[midwestcowboy]

winch would be ideal but a kinetic recovery rope can work if you have a buddy
ratchet straps and/or rope, gloves, first aid, emergency blanket, and water filter. I also keep a couple gallons of water in the truck.

 

[rodney482]

 

[Thebigbaby]

Spare hidden key. Gloves.

 

[Bugger]

Any solutions for push to start and keeping a spare fob at the vehicle? My pickup automatically unlocks if the fob is close and someone could just drive off.

You should be able to turn that feature off in the settings menu. Or just take the battery out of the spare while it’s in the truck, probably smart to do that anyway.

 

[Bugger]

Never leave for a road trip without a good pee bottle!

 

[Orlando]

a few things I carry all the time.
Tow bag with recovery strap AND clevises is with me all the time. Also carry Milwaukee 1/2" impact wrench, inflator (handier than a pocket on a shirt), tire plug kit, stik light, and extra battery or two. 3 gallon bucket on the floor in the back seat for trashcan and comes in very handy for other uses. Usually have extra bottles of drinking water in the bucket to keep handy. Roll of blue shop towels. Extra phone charger.
On the subject of key fobs - flew into Wichita at midnight on a return trip and found out my fob had somehow apparently came out of my carry-on on the plane. I had no spare fob. That sucked.

 

[TimberRunner]

That and a floor jack are always in my truck.

1/2 inch impact and socket set are SOP. Also, a smallish, 1x1 piece of 3/4 inch plywood in case I have to jack up vehicle on soft ground. Gives you a platform. Also, a small tool bag gets used all the time. Had to beat out a fender on a trailer recently and the estwing hammer was invaluable.

 

[Weldor]

Any solutions for push to start and keeping a spare fob at the vehicle? My pickup automatically unlocks if the fob is close and someone could just drive off.

Kill switch

 

[Weldor]

AAA service plan for paved roads. With all these lists, why not just bring a service truck with you? LOL . When ever you think you have it covered, something will pop up that we all did not think of. That's just the way it is. One thing to rember is a good tow service in your hunting area. I know where I hunt in AZ, AAA won't operate off a paved road. No dirt road tows in this area. I'm sure it is different by area or operator. Call ahead to find out just in case. Enjoy your hunts, no tags this year for me.

 

[saskhunter]

Gear aside, I don't go on a road trip without Spitz

 

[Weldor]

The dog or the food?

 

[saskhunter]

The dog or the food?

The food that makes up my only food group during ball season and on long road trips!

 

[doc holiday13]

Been doing it for the last 30 years, Western Pa to Idaho 2200 miles on way. For years we pulled old trailers, always took spare hub assembly's and lots of tires

Man, I just rebuilt my trailer. Put on new hubs and hub bearings. never done it before. Took trailer on 300 mile round trip. checked heat on the hubs on my way back, not hot, so I guess I did good. I'm about to take said trailer to ID. I should pull the hub cover and check one of the hubs for wear. Again, just cuz I've never done it before 2 months ago

 

[Finch]

Man, I just rebuilt my trailer. Put on new hubs and hub bearings. never done it before. Took trailer on 300 mile round trip. checked heat on the hubs on my way back, not hot, so I guess I did good. I'm about to take said trailer to ID. I should pull the hub cover and check one of the hubs for wear. Again, just cuz I've never done it before 2 months ago

Why second guess yourself though? If it's got plenty of grease in there, I'd leave it be but I'm no expert. Do you have the bearing buddy type deal where you can remove the rubber plug to add grease?

 

[JDPAPA]

A come-a-long would be useful and pretty versatile and not dependent on a battery to use.

 

[Boarmaster]

I keep
1) NECO Boost.
2) floor jack
3) lug wrench
4) fuse assortment
5) tool box
6) extra oil
7) funnel
8) windshield washer concentrate.
9) shop rags
10) tow strap
11) first aid kit
12) air compressor
13) tire plug kit
14) Gorilla duct tape
15) wiring repair kit
16) A ziplock with toilet paper, moist wipes and hand soap.( under drivers seat for quick access)
Note:
I keep most all this other than the floorjack in a rubbermaid Brute bin in the rear of the truck bed.
I don't want to be digging for it in the bed or under the rear seat when I am needing it on the highway.
There is probably a set of jumper cables under the rear seat with the NECO boost I havent used cables in years.

 

[JR Greenhorn]

A roll of TP for emergencies and a pack of hand cleaner wipes. It really sucks changing a tire or bearing, then trying to clean the grime and grease off using the grass on the ditch. It ends up all over the inside of your pickup.

A trick I learned years ago that has worked surprisingly well:
When your hands end up covered in grease, oil or fuel when you're on the road, go find the finest, siltiest patch of sand or gravel you can. Often you don't have to walk very far along the shoulder of most roads to find some. Scrape together a couple handfuls, and use it to scrub that stuff off your hands. Then when your hands are as clean as you can get them with silt, use your wet wipes (or gas station restroom soap) to get them the rest of the way clean. Your hands end up much cleaner, more easily.


I rode 2-stroke dirt bikes for years, and gas station soap never really got the odor of spilled gas off my hands, but the silt trick usually worked much better.

 

[buffybr]

Spare hidden key. Gloves.

My GF lives in Colorado, I live in Montana. A number of years ago we met in Green River to camp, explore, and float the River in my canoe. The day before we floated, we left her truck at the takeout point a good hours drive below where we put in.

About an hour into the float, my GF got a panic look on her face and said that she had left her truck keys back at our camp. We paddled to shore, and I started to climb a hill to see how far I would have to walk back to get her keys.

Just then a pickup with a load of hay appeared on a two-track road just across the river from us. We waved at him to stop, and we paddled over to him. I explained our situation to him and asked if he was going back to town and asked him for a ride.

That two-track road ended at that hayfield, and there were not any other roads by the river until the take out point.

He gave me a ride to my truck, and I drove back with her keys, so we were able to finish our float.

She has had a hidden key in her truck ever since.


Two years ago, I went on a moose hunt in northern Alberta. It was a 2-day drive from my house in Montana to Fort McMurray where I met my outfitter.

Many Canadian roads go from divided 4 lanes to 2 lanes then back to 4 lanes. Gas prices also vary a lot depending on the size of the towns.

Google maps on my cell phone helped me get "un-lost" in several cities and towns along my trip north.

After my hunt, I remembered that gas was cheaper in one of the towns south of Ft McMurray, so I thought I would save a buck and get gas there. An hour or two into my drive south I passed a sign showing the kilometers to the next town. That got me thinking so pulled over and used my phone to kilometers to miles and discovered that I didn't have enough gas to get to the next town.

I then asked Google where the nearest gas station was and had to go back north to a country road, then 5 miles on it to a gas station.

Moral of my story was that I should have filled up with gas before I left Ft McMurray, and to keep my cell phone with me on trips.





ll up with gas