The Only 10 EDC Items You Need On The Road In 2025

I’m going to share with you the only 10 EDC items you need on the road that I keep in the back of my vehicle for those just-in-case moments when you’re enjoying the outdoors. Now, mind you, these aren’t items that are for recovery per se. There’s not a winch in this bag, but these are things I always have for when I hope I never need them if I’m ever stranded or stuck.

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Before I get into all of the items I want to tell you a quick story about why I put this bag together in the first place.

About five years ago I took my family on a road trip down the southern part of the Texas coast to Rockport, but before we settled in for the night I wanted to make a pit stop at the LCRA Matagorda Bay Nature Park.

When we were checking in the lady at the host desk warned us about the water puddle at the entrance to the beach. She said it seemed like it would be shallow, but it’s really deep, and they don’t have rescue services.

I had recently purchased a Subaru Outback, and was just dying for an opportunity to get it dirty, so after enjoying the visitor’s center, we made our way to the beach entrance.

We saw a vehicle head through the water puddle that didn’t seem much higher than mine, so I followed it but kept to the edge. We made it through successfully so, feeling a little confident, we decided to continue on toward the jetty.

There was a road of impacted sand that led to the end of the jetty, but with my new found confidence I decided to take the Subie off of the packed sand and veer into the softer sand to the side.

In an instant of second-guessing my judgment, I paused the Outback and then lost complete control of the tires.

This was before I knew about airing down, and this was before I knew about using my rubber mats to place under the tires.

All I had was an extremely patient wife and daughter, and her plastic kit of beach toys. After breaking my daughter’s plastic shovel to the nub, I gave up and embarrassingly called back to the visitor’s center.

Probably expecting my call, she recommended a Facebook group that would eventually show up and pull me out.

All of that to say, I felt totally unprepared, so I told myself that I would at least keep some things in my vehicle at all times that would give me a little more peace of mind for those random events that happen when you least expect it.

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This video is going to be broken up into four categories: Battery, Tires, Tools & Gadgets, and Odds & Ends.

First, let’s talk about the bag that I keep everything in. I’ve made a first impression video of it already, but all of my gear is kept in the Cotopaxi ALLPA 60-liter gear hauler bag.

It has plenty of storage capacity to hold the clunky items that I’m going to feature but also has plenty of storage space for the smaller items that I may want to keep in a set place in my vehicle.

It’s also made with very durable nylon and has straps to compress it down or leave it a little fuller to grab items easily. I just use a purse hook on my back seat to keep it from sliding around the back of my SUV.

Alright, let’s get into the items I keep in my vehicle.

Battery

My battery is the one thing that I’ve dealt with more than anything else when I’ve least expected it, so two items that work hand in hand are my jumper cables and my Noco boost plus battery jump starter.

The jumper cables are more for when you have other people around, like a parking garage after a major league soccer game, but I tend to always need them when I don’t have them. These are just your standard cables you can pick up online or at an auto store.

The NOCO boost is a 12-volt battery pack that can jump-start your car, charge mobile devices, and even be used as a flashlight.

It features high-discharge lithium battery technology for all-climate operation. You just use the included cables that have reverse polarity protection and hit the charge button.

It has in and out power available, so you can keep it plugged in while you’re driving around to ensure it does stay charged for when you need it.

Speaking of device charging capabilities, when I know I’m heading to go camping, I always bring my Jackery Explore 240 power station. This thing is a little overkill for one person camping, but I love having this in my tent, or my vehicle when I camp in the rig to keep all of my devices charged overnight.

This is one of the first-gen models, but it still works plenty fine, and can also be charged in the vehicle while driving. I’ve used this during a multi-day big bend trip and didn’t come close to using its total battery power capacity.

Like the Noco boost, you can find these devices with different power capabilities, so you can decide if you need more power for longer trips out in the wilderness.

Tires

When heading off road I wanted the ability to inflate and deflate my tires when necessary, so these next two items will help with that.

I use the Boulder Tools Pro Tire Deflator Kit. I use this mostly for quickly checking my tire’s pressure, but included in the kit are the tire pressure gauge, four tire deflators, and valve caps. If I need to drop a ton of air pressure, I can use one of the deflators to soften my tires up quickly.

When I’m done with my off-road adventures, the GSPSCN portable 12-volt air compressor can get my tires back up to my preferred PSI. I use this quite often, so for $60, it’s paid itself back. I recently got my second nail in my tire, so I was able to keep my PSI at the correct level until I could get my tire plugged and repaired.

The air compressor has enough power when hooked up to the battery to inflate my tires, and there’s a PSI gauge at the top of the unit to ensure I’m at the correct pressure. If something breaks on the dial, I always have my tire gauge mentioned previously. The air compressor comes with a cigarette lighter adapter, so if you have some lower PSI items to inflate you can use it for those, but for tires, you want to make sure you’re hooking it up to the battery terminals.

Tools

When it comes to peace of mind when driving around the sand, the main thing I carry in this bag is my collapsible shovel from a brand called Rhino USA.

This shovel packs down into a nice pouch here that can also be mounted onto any molle system you may have set up.

The powder-coated carbon steel expands from its full 23 inches down to a mere nine by six inches and has the shovel and a pick.

I love RHINO USA because if you have any issues with it, they’ll replace it free of charge. For less than 30 bucks, you can’t beat that.

The second tool is more for the campsite, but I keep one in this bag in case I need to hammer something, or chop something. This is the classic Estwing Sportsman’s Axe. Proudly made in the USA since 1923, This 14-inch camping hatchet was one of the first things I bought when I started camping as an adult, and I use this thing a ton.

It has a lacquered leather grip, made from forged steel, and can be stored in this black nylon sheath. Probably needs to be sharpened before I head out again.

Odds & Ends

The remaining items are more for comfort than survival, but you never know when you’re going to need them.

The Grayl Geopress Water Purifier has been with me on every trip. It will hang out at the campsite, or come with me on a hike if I know there’s a water source I can use to fill up my backpack. Read more about the Grayl assortment.

This is the 24-ounce version in their older Covert Black color. I’m not going to go into the full review of this product, but this is not just a filter, it’s a purifier, and my favorite thing about it, is the water you purify can be poured from this container into a jug. I’ve used other bottles where the filter is in the bottle and the water can only come out from the straw, so this is great for adding to your powder drinks or dried foods needing to rehydrate.

The Nemo Equipment Chipper. A reclaimed closed-cell foam seat that I use when I’m eating lunch in a parking lot and don’t have a table nearby. I’ll just unfold this and throw it on my gearbox for a comfy place for my booty.

Great for pitstops or a place to sit in your tent if you didn’t notice how many rocks there are at night before you set up camp. It’s made from reclaimed and remolded PE foam scraps from Nemo’s sleeping pad production. Great for sustainable manufacturing and a great way to spend a twenty-dollar bill.

I also pack two lights I picked up from Harbor Freight that I use to find things in my vehicle or around the campsite.

One has a magnetic bottom that I can also stick to the side of my vehicle if I’m sleeping under my awning. The mini-lantern just pops open, and I can hang it to my vehicle attic for some light when I’m getting settled in for sleeping in the back of the vehicle. Think both of these were less than twenty bucks. Battery-powered, so worth testing before you head out.

And finally a bottle of water, toilet paper, and my window nets.

Spending time in West Texas, I’m super paranoid about either my vehicle or myself overheating. If I ever got stranded on the side of the road, I’ll have some water. I also keep toilet paper in my Yeti cargo box, but you can never have too much toilet paper. I have the space, so just throw in an extra roll. And my window nets. These just go over your door frame, so I can let air in when I sleep in my vehicle, and not the bugs.

Notable Mentions

There were also some items that came up after the fact, not mentioned in the video that I think are important to take with you featured in the links below:

There you have the 10 EDC items you need on the road. What things do you leave in your car always for those just-in-case moments? Let me know in the comments below!

Any purchases made through those links help out the channel, and I really appreciate your support.