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What do you folks do for food storage whilst in the woods/dirt/snow/etc? As some may know, I'm making a trip up to the Arctic Circle next summer and scoping out options for food storage. Really looking at a fridge of some sorts since ice doesn't last long in UT in general, and it may be tricky to find up north.

Mainly concerned about having 2000+ pound furry critters going through my truck bed with me on top of it in the tent. Coming from a backpacking background, bear cans or hanging food 100+ feet away is the norm, but I also don't have 2-2.5 weeks of good food tucked in my ruck.

 

A fridge or cooler will get the job done fine. Depending on route you won’t need more than a couple days of food in the truck at a time. The arctic circle is an easy day drive from Fairbanks so there’s no need to worry about carrying two weeks of food around. Most of the roads have pullouts with bear resistant trash cans every so often so take advantage of them to keep your truck clean and less attractive to animals.

 

I did two weeks in the Oregon outback (SE corner of no mans land). Just me and my son to feed. We ended up going without any kind of refrigeration requirements whatsoever. A mixture of canned goods, DIY dried foods, some commercially freeze dried foods and lots of water.

We did just fine and never needed to locate ice for a cooler, or require accessory power for a fridge.

You could supplement your food options with locally gathered goods here and there along the way.

 

Where did you get the hanging organizer?ive been looking for something like this for camp kitchen.
Thanks.

 

We had a route change, and are going to be head up through Whitehorse to Inuvik instead of the Dalton. I suppose your logic still stands though. I'm seriously considering one just for general use anyways. Even with a good RTIC cooler, there is no escaping the Utah sun in a lot of the summer and fall spots I go. This trip would just be a good catalyst to pick one up.

Yeah, that corner gets pretty remote. Honestly, most of Western WA (Family is from Yakima) and OR get pretty out there. We are planning on doing resupply stops along the way, but I also figure that meat and things of that nature will probably be much cheaper in places like Calgary or Whitehorse than further north where the logistics costs would get passed on to the consumer.

 

Good choice on the route change.

 

For us, the fridge was a game changer.

Initially, I thought having a fridge was ridiculous. Ice lasted for a while in the cooler, blocks better than cubes. 2 ice chests, rotate food, don't open, etc., seemed to work OK.

Until what turned out to be a drink opened and polluted all the ice/water in big cooler. We thought it was blood from the meat. Yes, we were using ZipLock bags. We thought everything was contaminated.

Soon thereafter, we got a fridge.

So much more convenient. Once you learn how to play Tetris in the fridge, you can get quite a bit of food in there. As long as you have battery power, you have fresh food.

Yes, they are expensive. But the convenience is worth it.

 

After a particularly rowdy trip to the sand dunes in Knolls, UT, I had the misfortune to discover a dozen cracked eggs and a quart of milk had created quite the concoction in the bottom of my cooler. What fun that was to clean up after being in the sun for a day or so.

 

Same idea.

In the fridge, I pack milk low and eggs at or near the top.

The more you have in your fridge, the less room there is for anything to move. If I have a partially empty load, I usually fill the space with something like a towel, to keep the contents from re-arranging themselves.

 

Well the fact that the cooler came off the truck bed by a good 8 inches and then landed sideways didn't help... But I can attest that the seals on RTIC coolers are legit.

 

If you get a fridge, you ought to bolt it down - tight!

 

@Bell214b @fatfurious2 @Trailbutter How's the Dometic turned out in the bed of your trucks? Looking at picking up a fridge decently soon, and figured I'd see the long term feedback. Gonna be used in the Utah desert sun, sand, and the occasional rain water and snowfall.

 

I have an ARB 50. I want to sell it soon, and get the Dometic that I want. I havent had any issues with mine being out in the elements though.

And I can get some pictures of how I have everything mounted/details of what Im going to be selling.

 

I have 2 friends with that same ARB that leave them in open beds just fine. Glad to hear a 3rd report. How long did you have it back there? With the cover or no?

I'm afraid to know what it would cost to ship that monster to SLC or I'd scoop it up from you. Funny part is I'm gonna be back in Manassas for Christmas but no good way to get it back.

 

Ive had it mounted since May. I take it out after trips to clean the inside. It's currently not mounted.

Breakdown:
ARB 50 with AC & DC power cables
Transit cover
Wireless temp monitor
DFG Offroad aluminum slide

Let me check shipping. If decent, id consider including the shipping cost in my price, or even splitting it with you.

 

How'd the 50 liter size treat you? I've got a 45L RTIC right now that I'm basing my 50L choice off of, but part of me wants to bump to the 65. Granted a lack of ice means a 50L fridge is basically a 65L cooler I suppose when you factor in ice.

Thanks.

 

Im single. The 50 is just right for me, if anything a little big. Id rather have too big, than too small though. I also have a RTIC 65 which is way too big for the types of trips that I currently do.

A fridge is definitely a game changer for me. Not having to get ice is awesome! I would think a bigger dual zone fridge would be even better, but then its more space too.

 

The cans in there are for your reference. They are 12oz Coors. The tan RTIC is a 65L

 

Sounds like you and I are pretty similar use cases. 45L cooler is just a tad small with the ice, but a 65 would prob be too big. I think the 50L fridge size is a winner. Thanks for the pics.

 

Im calling UPS in a few to get a quote for you. I just got home from work