Gear review: YETI Tundra 65 Cooler

Sure, your days at the pool or the beach might be over for the season, but the Yeti Tundra 65 Hard Cooler is an all-weather, year-round, badass piece of equipment that you need in your life, stat.

Full disclosure: I loved the look of the Yeti long before I was asked to review it. It’s *slightly* hard to be objective in a review going into it knowing you’re about to test out the Mercedes of coolers. I channeled all of my inner skepticism in hopes that it wouldn’t live up to the hype.

But. It. Did.

The basics:

The Tundra 65 is Yeti’s most versatile cooler. According to Yeti, their Tundra Coolers were born out of frustration. From their website, “We were tired of cooler lids bowing when we used them as a casting platform and leaking because they couldn’t hold ice on triple-digit days. We needed something better — so we created one. The Tundra 65 Hard Cooler is designed with the wild in mind. It’s why they’re bear-resistant.”

Me? I just wanted it to keep my food and drinks cold.

And, oh, did it.

First of all, the cooler can hold 42 cans of beer using a 2:1 drink to ice ratio which made me very popular at the tailgate I attended using it . I did a nice hybrid of all the drinks and ribs and I was ecstatic that everything stayed cold and the ice stayed frozen. There’s nothing worse than reaching into a cooler full of tepid water where ice and hope used to be.

• FATWALL DESIGN – Extra-thick walls hold up to two inches of insulation for unmatched ice retention.
• PERMAFROST INSULATION – Pressure-injected commercial-grade polyurethane foam in the walls and lid makes sure your ice stays ice.
• ROTOMOLDED CONSTRUCTION – Makes it armored to the core and virtually indestructible.

Dimensions:

• Outside – 17 1/4″ x 16″ x 30 5/8″
• Inside – 105/8″ x 11 1/8″ x 23 1/8″
• Empty Weight – 29 lbs
• Capacity – 42 cans or 52 lbs of ice

Additional features:

• T-REX LID LATCHES – Heavy-duty rubber latches are made with patented technology so you’ll never see another busted latch.
• ANCHORPOINT TIE-DOWN SLOTS – Molded tie-down slots for easy mounting to your boat, trailer, or truck bed.
• NEVERFAIL HINGE SYSTEM – Two hinge pins and interlocking design prevent the hinge from ever breaking.
• INTERLOCK LID SYSTEM – Creates a form-fitting barrier against the heat.
• COLDLOCK GASKET – A freezer-quality gasket circles the length of the lid to block out the heat and lock in the cold.
• LIPGRIP HANDLES – Stay out of the way and make carrying your catch seem less of a chore.
• DOUBLEHAUL HANDLES – Military-grade polyester rope for extra durability.
• VORTEX DRAIN SYSTEM – Leakproof, rugged, and designed for quick and easy draining.
• BEARFOOT NON-SLIP FEET – Prevent sliding to keep your YETI in place.

Style:

Simply put, this cooler is sexy. With color options of white, seafoam green or desert tan, you can’t go wrong. Seafoam green is my fave but you do you.

Price:

The price tag on the Tundra 65 is a little hefty (as is a 29 pound empty cooler…), but as one five-star reviewer said, “We could all use a little more exercise.” Stretch your wallet a little bit; this is one splurge that comes with a five year warranty and zero buyer’s remorse.

This post was sponsored by GovX.