Good point, Dagny, about having to wait it out sometimes. When a whiteout rolls through these parts, for example, I don't care who you are, what you drive or what self rescue supplies you carry, you,re going to have to wait it out or risk a serious accident.

In my corner of the world, it is 7:25 am now this minute.
I should be on my way to work ( in fact I should be AT work already). However, I got out and was faced with dense fog. OK. Started the car and drove for one block, realized how bad it was, took a right turn, then another right turn, and ... reached the house ....

So, I am now sitting at the computer till the fog clears.

No work is important enough for me to have an accident !!

And if the boss is at work - which I doubt - and needs me, he knows my phone number.

To some extent, most of us probably do. But replacing a battery, or replacing an alternator, isn't exactly the type of thing most people pack for. Sure, jumper cables, but sometimes you really do need to tow it somewhere, either for parts, or a mechanic. Notice that Dangy lives in D.C., she's not off-roading in the boonies somewhere.

Now, if she had a long rural commute, or was out in the Mojave, you'd have a point. She'd also probably be traveling with another friend in another vehicle (at least, if she was off-roading). How often do you drive with a wingman in your daily commute?

Nugget Hoarder wrote:
>I see a lot of "I'm helpless come save me" type thinking going on here.
TeacherRO is the only one so far who touched on the right direction... snow shovel, jumper cables, flashy light, etc
Doesn't anyone prep for self-rescue anymore?

The opposite is true. People are providing lists of stuff to use outside the car, or if stuck in it all night. But the question was.
'Are you ready to spend a few hours, or more, in the car on a bitter cold day?'
Keeping warm is all you need. Only insulation is going to be of use. A cheap winter duvet (synthetic since you asked Dagny )will make all the difference. You have no wind, or rain, in a car and plenty of 'groud' insulation in the seats. I wouldn't be on ETS if I thought the rescue organisations could reach everyone in 10 minutes. But I'm prepared to NOT break the golden rule of a stranded vehicle. 'Don't leave the vehicle unless you KNOW you won't be found'.
qjs

I'm at least as well prepared for self-rescue as I am for waiting it out. I have a snow shovel, a dirt shovel, jumper cables, tow strap, jumpstarter (with compressor), Rescue Tape, a variety of tools, Gorilla Tape, an amateur radio HT, and so on. My understanding, though, was that this thread was about being prepared for sheltering in place.

Maybe a bit of elaboration will help folks better understand the scenario that I have experienced, and that IMO you are considering.

You have a 4 lane limited access parkway/highway. It is filled with bumper to bumber traffic. Little or no shoulder to pull off the road. Exits are a good distance apart. Cold winter day. It snows, and the road ices up. Traffic stops and doesn't move for hours, maybe many hours or overnight.

Sanding/gritting vehicles can't do anything because the road is filled with stopped vehicles. They can't get where they need to be because they need to use the same road. The only way to clear things is to try to free up the exits, and get the cars off the highway via the newly opened exits. This can be made much harder if: 1) people abandon the vehicle, leaving it blocking the cars behind it or 2) running out of gas because they stayed with the engine running to stay warm, again blocking the cars behind them. These cars need to be removed by tow trucks.

So, if you are in the center of the mass of cars, you are there for the duration, without a way to know how long. If you lock and abandon your vehicle, no telling how long it will take to get it back and in what shape. Also, your actions slowed down the rescue efforts of other folks.

So, you thought you were on your normal commute home from your office or a business meeting, and now you face a cold night in the car. What should you have with you?

Excellent summation, BWS. No one anticipated the nightmare that day became for thousands of people stranded up to twelve hours on major roads -- inside the Beltway.

I was blessed to be cozy at home during what was an otherwise unmemorable snow. Friends were calling from Virginia and Maryland where they were stuck on highways they could not escape and watching their fuel gauge go lower and lower.

The George Washington Parkway on the Virginia side of the Potomac River was the worst. There's a recap at this link:

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Traffic-and-Transit-Update-12-Hour-Commute-114710519.html


Spurred by this thread, last night I ordered a new 20-degree sleeping bag that will go directly into the car and will stay there until summer. (I have other sleeping bags but they are in storage with my teardrop trailer 80 miles from DC.) Along with the two fleece sleeping bag liners and the winter clothing gear and chemical warmers in the car, I and one or two other passengers would be in pretty good shape for the worst we are likely to face around here.

Having escaped DC to avoid the Inaugural mess, today I have to drive back -- about 70 miles. Daytime temps are in the 20s and I will hope that it is an uneventful drive with no cause to brood over having neglected to keep a sleeping bag in the car.

Be safe everyone. Looks like two-thirds of the U.S. is in the deep freeze. Apparently it can be attributed to the "polar vortex:"

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/stats-arctic-air-brings-low-te/4651671

Good idea going with a 20°F bag. I have a summer weight bag in my truck with the idea of layering with blankets. But I've been rethinking past East Coast and PNW winters, and then visualizing the mountain passes of NOCAL and Southern Oregon. A down bag may be more appropriate -- not cheap but they do look comfy. For indoor/in-car use, down should not be a problem.

One should be ready to sit it out if necessary. Gethomeitus can be fatal. In the winter I never leave town without a very warm Wiggy's sleeping bag.

I very much doubt it for £20.
Almost certainly polyester or other false material.
For use indoors on a bed I would consider down to be preferable, but for emergency use in a car polyester is probably better.
A down filled duvet is not only expensive but vulnerable to damp or becoming torn.
Polyester duvets are sold everywhere at low prices and are a good prep for a car, but too to bulky to carry on foot.