When Will first moved to Colorado, he was hell bent on getting me back outside for winter camping. I had tried the activity in the past during my college years, but always ended up frozen and shivering in a tent, suffering through the long night hours while desperately anticipating the dawn. I felt euphoric when the faint rays of sunshine would thaw my icicle toes!
Of course, this was before I knew anything and trial and error have taught me how to stay cozy while winter camping. Warm gear? Check. Nalgene full of hot water in my sleeping bag? Check. A thermos full of hot cocoa or a flask full of whiskey? Double check. And this, my friends, is why I was so excited to receive a gaggle of gifts from the folks over at Stanley!
Stanley’s most recent gift package included three items: the One-Hand Vacuum Mug, the Adventure Flask, and the Classic Vacuum Pint. And while the Vaccum Pint won’t be making our winters trips, it sure will go great with our car-camping extravaganzas next summer!
The One-Handed Vacuum Mug is–in a word–awesome. It holds 16-ounces of liquid with a push-button lid that’s easy to open with one hand. However, I’m more psyched about the vacuum seal capabilities. If you’re not familiar with that terminology, here’s the important takeaway: it keeps hot liquids toasty for up to six hours. I was dragging this past Sunday before heading to my CrossFit clinic {which you may remember from yesterday’s post!}, so I made a bonus cup of coffee before leaving the house. It went inside my Stanley Vacuum Mug, and I can report that it was still hot after my clinic, hours later.
Another bonus on the mug? It’s legitimately leakproof. I own a few vacuum sealed thermoses and while I like them, they do leak through the lid if they tip over in my car. My car is where thermoses and waterbottles go to die, so leaking bottles isn’t going to work for me!
The other component of this Stanely trifecta of goodness was the alcohol-related duo: the Adventure Flask and the Vacuum Pint. Y’all, I’ve always wanted a flask for the backcountry but for some reason, I have never owned one! And truthfully, I’m not huge on whiskey in real life, but there is something about the solitude of a snow-covered wilderness that sparks an interest in whiskey. Maybe I’ve seen too many movies?!
Regardless, I enjoy sipping on the golden liquor while trekking into the backcountry on skis or even if we’re sitting outside on a snowy porch during one of our many winter hut trips. The Adventure Flask is perfect in this regard: it’s nothing elaborate or fancy, but the stainless steel container holds 8 ounces of liquid….which is probably more whiskey than I should drink anyway!
‘Tis the season for holiday gift guides, right?! While I haven’t decided if I’m going to go that route, I can say that all three of these Stanley products would be fun gifts for an outdoor adventurer in your life. The most pricey is the One-Hand Mug, but even that’s on sale for $27 through Eddie Bauer; not too shabby. Even better? Eddie Bauer is offering Just A Colorado Gal readers free shipping if they spend more than $49. {If that’s not code for “go shopping,” I don’t know what is!}
In short? Go buy some of these fun toys for you or someone else in your life…and then let’s take them winter camping together!
In case it’s not obvious, Stanley is sponsoring this post. But, the need to try ALL THE ADVENTURE GIFTS is all my own!
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5 Comments
drives me crazy when bottles leak, good to know this one really and truly won’t!
Have always been a big fan of Stanley – used a thermos for many years working construction. Glad they are branching out successfully.
WANT. If only for cross-country skiing fuelled by hot coffee…
I love Colorado Winter Adventures!
I’m the queen of spilled coffee – usually on one of my children, sigh, so a container that doesn’t leak? Sign me up!