Below Zero Adventure
Patrick Warren
Patrick has always had many passions, including the outdoors and aftermarket vehicle modifications. At an early age growing up on the farm, Warren has fond memories of being outside finding ways to create his own fun on the farm. He was an avid Boy Scout and spent many nights under the stars and weekends earning badges. Warren worked in the vehicle aftermarket industry and he currently works at local Jeep aftermarket manufacture, Iron Rock Offroad in Shakopee, Minnesota.
He describes his 2008 Wrangler Unlimited Jeep as “average”, but as I would have suspected, he has a build sheet which includes a 3.5” Iron Rock Offroad lift, 35” tires, a re-geared front axle with a Torq Masters locker, aftermarket bumpers and rock sliders.
Combining Hobbies
For some people, they just camp, they just off-road, or they only camp when they are at an all weekend off-roading event. Warren enjoys both hobbies and loves when he can combine them both. He recently took a trip with Leslie Morrison and local club “Beyond Borders Overland’’ to Salona State forest, just north of Mora, Minnesota for some camping and off-roading. Most of the group arrived Saturday morning. They wanted to make the most of the daylight, so they made a quick breakfast and they hit the forest roads that were open this time of year, only stopping for a brief lunch break.
“This time of year you need to make sure you are aware of what areas of the park are groomed for only snowmobiles and, that even in the summertime, most of what the State Forest has to offer is for ATVs. It had been snowing all afternoon, and there was, at times, 6-8 inches of snow on the ground,” he said.
On this trip, the roads wouldn’t have typically been challenging for four-wheel drive, but were more difficult and fun with snow. There were a couple of stock vehicles in the group that, from time to time, would need to back up and then go forward to get unstuck from the snow reaching the underbelly of their vehicles, but no recovery was needed the entire day.
“It always amazes me how capable our vehicles are without any modifications,” Warren said.
Fajita’s and Apple Crisp
This time of year, with the sun setting so early in the day, they headed back to setup camp around 4:00pm.
“With the elements and temperature, you want to ensure that your camp is set up and ready before the sun goes down and temperatures drop,” he said.
Everyone brought an ingredient to make fajitas for a group dinner with apple crisp for dessert. They each had their own unique methods of cooking, from propane Coleman grills to Blackstone griddles. One of the campers brought a Tembo Tusk Skottle which is a unique seasoned portable cooking pan. From the sounds of it, one of the comforts they did not sacrifice while out in the wilderness was convenient cooking.
A Good Night’s Rest
Amongst the five vehicles, there were many methods of shelter including trailer roof top tents, Jeep roof top tents and ground pop-up tents. For the first time, Warren opted to sleep in the passenger seat of his Jeep with the seat fully reclined.
“I turned the Jeep on for heat right as I got in for bed, and then turned it on again early in the morning when I got out, and outside of that I relied on my sleeping bag to keep me warm,” Warren explained.
Many of the other campers had Chinese Diesel Heaters in their tents that they used overnight to help with the freezing temperatures.
When asked how sleeping in the passenger seat was, Warren responded, “that was one lesson I learned, sleeping in your passenger seat is not very comfortable and I will not be doing that again”.
Don’t Just Survive the Cold, Enjoy the Cold
Warren described camping and off-roading in winter really no different than any other time of year.
He went on to say that, “if you are prepared and you keep your body comfortable, then you’ll end up having a great time”.
He recommends a couple of things to help enjoy your outdoor hobbies comfortably. First, when you are off-roading, keep your vehicle heat on, but not full blast. Always take some of your winter gear off when you get back into your heated vehicle. This will help with the acclamation of the temperature differences when you are inside and outside of your vehicle. Next, he said to do your research on sleeping bags and tents. Understand the ratings and choose products that are rated for the coldest weather you could expect. But remember, just because something says it is rated for 20 below zero, doesn’t mean you are going to be comfortable and toasty warm; it just means you likely won’t die of hypothermia. Finally, surround yourself with like-minded people that you can share your passions with. Enjoying camping and off-roading with people that have the same appreciation for the experience that you do, will be your favorite part of the adventure.
