Every time I store water in a bladder, even in the fridge, it go's bad. Be careful and check your bladder is my unasked for advice Les.

Snake_Doctor... thanks for the advice.. the bag in question is a Blackhawk Hydro Storm from the prize table at Ft Benning, and supposedly has antimicrobial properties... I used a CamelBak Rogue for half a dozen seasons for USPSA, but pull a little wheeled cooler with bottled water now...there is a Sawyer filter bottle in the outer pocket..

Wish I had a picture,I bought a thing that looks like a milk crate,twice as long,with rubber like coating on the metal wire its made of.Very nice,and it doesnt slide around on the truck bed liner.
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I just plain do not understand people who live in snow country that do not have 4WD or AWD. The gas mileage penalty is not that much. Having an appropriate vehicle for the conditions you will likely face is part of adequate preparations IMO.

I can understand that.

Some folks just dont have to leave home in bad weather.Others can wait for plowed roads and put on chains.Cancel work.

In my case,we lived here a season or 2 when the Chevy S-10 died.At the time we spent more time away from home than here with job.So we bought a car with zippy handling that cruised at 75MPH (we had a LOT of driving to do) and ate up the mtn roads 10 months of the year. Problem,job situation changed,and new job meant being home,and MUST show,no excuses but blizzard-ed in.So thats when I learned 4x4 lesson.Though I did have a baja bug that was usually good in snow if not high centered.Not ideal...Brrrrr!

So yeah,I can see where some folks,and newbies moving in,can have wrong vehicle for conditions.A lot of renters from flatlands with flatland vehicles,a new vehicle may not be doable for many and they had no idea what snow really means.Lots of situations can happen to folks.

No way can I see anything short of 4x4 now,there are few cons (cant drive 75,slight decrease in MPG) but nothing has stopped us yet,pretty amazing for snow country.Havent even had to chain up once yet,blows my mind.

Spuds.. the #1 reason I don't get good gas mileage...with the Swiss Ranger stove and a can of sterno, but without any water the pack is very manageable, but I still don't plan on a walkout.. it's a convenient way to organize and store articles and still gives me some options ... I forgot I used the real crate for my 3 gun cart, and substituted one of my Staples crates from school.. orange box is FAK that stays in car.. I have a separate trauma bag for the range

Cheaper than dirt has a bladder with a tiny inline filter also Les. Sorry I can't remember the price on it.

The people here aren't used to snow' Get half an inch and they're slidin around playin bumper cars. An inch and they close the schools.

Nice set up les

I have a trauma kit in my range gear. Too many idiots go there with no safety training. And I carry a res Q pac in my cargo pocket.

I carry a roll of quarters that are now meant for vending machines instead of pay phones.

living fairly remotely, we carry more in our vehicles than we'd likely need.

its diverse gear to cover as many situations as possible (wet/dry, summer/winter, long/short-term, safe/violent, healthy/injuried, etc) but we do so using a layered technique (a modification of rowe's first-second-last-line kit concept) of having the most important things always on the body or in pockets, then belt/coat-pocket items, then small pouchs, then vests, then packs, then vehicle-only gear/tools.

if not used in place, depending on the need, the necessary equipment likely to be needed can be chosen and carried away very quickly. and if its later discovered that too much has been taken (due to distance/speed of foot travel), less important items can be pitched/hidden.

knowledge and flexibility is the key.