Do you really think................

[Andy B]

Hi,

I was just wondering who here thinks they will ever actually find themselves in a survival situation?

And secondly who carries a survival kit?

Personally I think the idea of a true survival situation is completely romantic. And I think survival kits are incredibly usefull things if you have one in your pocket and are trapped in the wilderness with nothing (very unlikly scenarios in my opinion).

To me a survival kit is whats in your pockets at the time. Do you really think you could bring a survival kit on a plane these days?

To that end, if your practise survival techniques. Shouldnt you be practising them with a knife that you would find on a plane or an inprovisved knife make from materials you might find in the wild or in wreckage etc.

Just wondering about peoples opinions.

Cheers

 

[Highbinder]

Well the more you know the less you need to carry. Which means I'm screwed, naturally LOL

 

[John Fenna]

When expeditioning in remote places I always carried a small survival tin (custom made selection of contents).
I never actually had to use it - but then I have never made a claim on my house insurance either!

 

[Hoodoo]

Stick to lawncrafting, stay on the sidewalk, and you'll be ok.

 

[Limaed]

Hi Andy

I think it depends on how you define 'Survival Situation'. I had a fall and broke my jaw whilst on a climbing expedition to Jordan, I was pretty incapacited and was rescued by my collegues. On a later trip to the Himalaya one of the Team members got High Altitude Pulmonary Odema, we effected a lower down to 5500m where a helicopter flew in and got him out of what was a life threatening situation. Im also a Mountain Rescue volunteer and regulary go to the aid of people in the hills, often the outcome of these callouts is tragic.
What im getting at is that all the above examples are survival situations for those involved though maybe not in the classic genre of a plane crash or being stuck on a desert island.
Its worth reading some of the stories of people who have been involved in survival situations to see how they got there, what went wrong and how they made it out.
Appropriate clothing and footwear are far more important than wire saws and razor blades and are youre first line of defence.

 

[British Red]

My "survival kit" is my possibles pouch. I use almost all the contents regularly - from the SAK to the first aid kit, the lighter, the ferro rod, the ziplock bags etc.

 

[Wayland]

I have "fix it" pockets.

I could do most things I would need in a "survival" situation in the clothes I stand up in, especially if I have a jacket on. Not that that is why I carry these things.

It just turns out that in my daily life I use the contents of my pockets for anything from trimming my fingernails, checking the direction of light for a picture or lighting the candles in the living room.

I do not see any separation between my life indoors or out.

 

[Front Room Woodlander]

When I was working in Scotland I had a box of stuff in the boot of the car in case I got stuck somewhere and had to overnight. Though I only actually got really stuck twice, the box had everything I needed to overnight comforatbly whenever I felt like it.

Now I have 'a bag of answers' which goes with us when we go out. Its called this because the kids ask so many questions...

 

[Thecarotidpulse]

I carry a survival kit, and perhaps half of the guys at work do.

This being -> on their person <-

Most everyone here carries an axe and some rope, perhaps a shovel in their trunk.
The likelyhood of your car getting stuck in the snow in the winter is almost certain. Late enough at night and far enough away from civilisation you're talking about self reliance / self rescue.

Do I think I'm going to be in a survival situation? Probably. Except with all the stuff I lug around "survival" will hopefully be a variant of simple camping!

 

[Wayland]

Ah.. If you're including the vehicle...

I carry enough in the van for a few days out so that I can just chuck in the camera gear and go on a landscape trip if I want to. It does also serve if I get stranded somewhere of course.

Again, no separation.

 

[Retired Member southey]

Yes when in the army i have, as many have, been in places like on exercise in Guyana or Norway where if the vehicle broke down we would be in a survival type scenario and would have to have relied on the kit we had specific to those environments, but now as civi intending to go into these places what would have been a survival kit Is now spread through out the standard kit list when i pack to go to an area and accomplish some kind of bushy task, I think the relevant skills you would need if you were to survive a crash landing in some remote place would not be dependant on kit,

 

[vizsla]

i like to think,like most bushcrafters i bet,that i could survive most survival situations as long as your not too injured for me thats part of the hobby.
i recently went to the lakedistrict for a week with about 20 lads,on the first day we walked up the old man(mountain)the long way i was the only person who had enough water and food for the trip plus a bit extra which i had to give out,i also had my usual bits in my pack knife small stove,lighter,first aid kit wooly hat extra clothing. when we set off it was t shirt weather but when we got to the top it was freezing.
later when we got back people were telling how theyd bin up there in winter on there own in knee deep snow,if thats true i can safely say if they had a fall got lost they wouldnt last 2 min in winter. yet all i hurd was wot the hell u got in ya rucksack the answer being food for all you lot
cheers

 

[Laurentius]

Does being trapped on the fourth floor of a burning building count?

Nomex overalls and breathing apparatus, or a climbing harness and rope would have been useful.

Not the sort of things one usually has around, survival strategy, get out on the balcony and wait for the fire brigade.

Survival situation can mean anything, trapped in train wreck, confronted by an armed mugger, falling off a mountain, each demands a different set of equipment.

One thing I make a point of carrying everywhere these days is at least 500ml of water, it's not exactly survival but it can make some situations more tolerable.

Realistically I don't ever anticipate being out on my own in a classical TV survival type situation, my life is just not that eventful or adventurous.

Survival skills go far beyond "bushcraft" skills.

 

[ex-member Raikey]

you cant be ready for everything,..

but to be honest, in the lives we are living now,

the situation is likely to be an urban one and sadly the best tool to have would more than likely be a credit card.

 

[John Fenna]

My van always has a full set of camping gear/food for 24hrs
If I get stuck it is just relax until rescued

 

[lucan]

In the car we always have the usual stuff for days out, Just in case, Water, Spare clothes, energy bars, a brew kit Portable energy pack/jump starter etc.

But on my person, nothing much really, a lighter, A bunch keys with a small multi tool, Thats about it.

 

[malente]

I don't carry a classic survival kit, though I make a point of always having a knife (SAK and F1) and some fire starting device (mostl of the time a ferro rod) on my person (laptop bag).

I work in an urban office setting with a lot of travelling (car, cab, train, plane). So I always have an array of clothing, communication (mobile, blackberry, laptop), monetary (like three different credit cards and a wad of cash), and utilities stuff on me. Aahh the life of a management consultant.

To be honest, often, I'd rather go fishing (I'd have a survival kit on me then).

I am considering upgrading my SAK to a multitool (Leatherman Charge).

PS on the plane the non-carry ons have to go into the checked luggage grrr

 

[Tiley]

I don't really know how I'd cope in a full-on survival situation. Previous little dramas involving mountain rescue and/or other emergency services have seen me behave in an abnormally calm and rational manner though whether that would be the case in a more sustained emergency, I just don't know.

I did 'do' survival kits once, both bought and customised, and I discovered that the bits and pieces were so flimsy they were nearly worse than useless because they gave you a false sense of security/preparedness. I have all I need in a Kifaru E&E pack thing that comes with me everywhere and, if not actually on me, is only ever a few seconds away. I suppose that if things did become really gnarly then yes, I could just about make do with the contents of my pockets but I'd still love my Crusader mug thing with me.

By its definition, I don't think that a true survival situation - and I'm sure that they do genuinely exist - could ever be described as 'romantic'; bushcraft, however, gives us an opportunity to romanticise what might otherwise be a life-or-death situation by being equipped, albeit lightly, to cope with living outdoors.

 

[SouthernCross]

G'day Andy

....I was just wondering who here thinks they will ever actually find themselves in a survival situation?

And secondly who carries a survival kit?
.................

As much as I hate the term "survival situation", I guess there is a possibility that I may encounter something other than an inconvenience.

Considering the wilderness areas I venture into (in nearly 30 + years, I have yet to see any sign of anyone else having been through the areas I frequent), there is a chance I may experience a medically related incident (especially a snake bite).

The survival kit I take is a FAK (with compression bandages) that has a small fishing kit, a mini Bic lighter & some paraffin soaked 3 ply cardboard added to it.



Kind regards
Mick

 

[Andy B]

I have been on the wrong side of a full blown mountain rescue situation. A traditional survival kit would have been useless. My survival kit is my clothes, my torch, food, and bivvy bag.

I can understand people in true wilderness areas carrying something loosly resembling a survival kit which they keep strapped to their person at all times.

A survival kit should match the situation as others here have said. Urban-water food, phone money etc.

The classic military survival kit shown in the likes of SAS survival handbook is in my opinion suited to a escape and evasion exercise in a wilderness area, which personally I will never be in. So I am not sure what some people are carrying it into the hills on a hike in britain.

ANdy