What to Carry in Your 4Runner for the Trail (and Where to Put It)
The gear that gets you home is no use if it is buried under camp chairs when you need it. A good trail kit is two things: the right gear, and a place for it that you can reach without unpacking the truck.
The kit
Recovery
- Traction boards, for getting yourself out without a second truck. How to use them: how to use traction boards.
- A recovery strap and rated shackles, for when someone else is pulling.
- A shovel.
Air and tires
- A tire deflator kit, to air down at the trailhead.
- A compressor to air back up. Options on the air & recovery page.
- A tire plug kit. How to use one: how to plug a tire on the trail.
- A tire pressure gauge, and a spare that actually has air in it.
Light
- A headlamp, so both hands are free.
- Auxiliary lights for the ditches and camp. See white vs amber pod lights.
Everything else
- A first aid kit.
- Water, more than you think.
- Basic tools, zip ties, tape, and the fuses your truck uses.
- Gloves.
Where it goes
Heavy, rarely used gear (the boards, the shovel, the compressor) rides in the back, strapped down so it cannot move in a hard stop. The things you reach for often, or need fast, go where you can reach them from a seat.
That is what the back of the front seat is for. The SAO MOLLE seat-back organizer has seven pockets: one wide pocket across the top and two rows of three below, with a MOLLE panel and D-rings for your own pouches. First aid, the plug kit, the gauge, gloves and a headlamp all fit, and all stay in the same place every trip, so you are not hunting for them in the dark.
It hangs from an adjustable strap around the headrest posts, buckles around the bottom of the seat, and the top handle comes off so you can carry it like a bag. It is about 18.1 in wide and 23.2 in tall, and comes in black, coyote tan, black camo, green camo or olive green.
Check it before every trip
Air in the spare. Cement in the plug kit that has not dried out. Batteries in the headlamp. A kit that has sat in the truck for a year is not the same kit you packed.
What should I carry in my 4Runner for off-roading?
Recovery gear, a way to air down and back up, a tire plug kit, light, first aid, water and basic tools.
Where should I keep trail gear in the truck?
Heavy, rarely used gear strapped down in the back. Things you need fast within reach of a seat, like a seat-back organizer.
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