Gear Review: Yeti Coolers Tundra 50
I’ve finally had a chance to really put this cooler to work. To say the least, it performs flawlessly. So far this piece of equipment has been used as a thermal camera case in subzero temps up in the Colorado Rockies, beverage cooler while 5′ – 8′ seas in the Gulf Stream and a casting platform while searching out Redfish on the flats.
I’m not a small guy, so I had a little doubt about standing on this cooler all day while sight fishing the flats. Well, with a solid 10 hours of me standing on the cooler, I haven’t felt a budge, creak or crack. The Yeti Tundra Sea Deck keeps you on the cooler and provides quite a bit of comfort as well. Not to mention it looks pretty cool as well.
As for ice retention, on a recent Gulf Stream fishing trip, I loaded 20lb of ice, drinks and food into the cooler late Thursday night. When I got back home on Sunday afternoon, the majority of the ice was still there and that is after 3 days of opening the cooler a couple times per hour. Certainly excellent ice retention in the Miami heat.
Size wise, this cooler is perfect for drinks with a group of 3 – 4 people over a couple days. I was able to store some sandwiches in the rack and laid on the ice. If I needed a long days worth of beverages for a small group, this cooler works perfectly.It’s a bit on the heavy side, but that is great when it’s laid on the bow of a boat bouncing along chop going from spot to spot. The rubber grips did a good job of keeping the cooler in place, even as we pounded through some short 1′ chop.
Product Specs (from www.yeticoolers.com)
Overall, I’m a big fan of the Yeti cooler series. In fact I just picked up a Yeti Roadie 20 for the Hobie Kayak. A review on that cooler will be coming soon!
