Get Me Home

bearbait

Full Member
Toddy mentioned in another thread [https://bushcraftuk.com/community/t...-advice-on-what-is-needed.160483/post-2005716] that it had been some while since there'd been a Bug-Out-Bag discussion on BCUK. So I thought that I'd start one.

My bag, a small Karrimor 35 litre rucksack, weighing in at 5.9 KG (with the static contents as discussed below - obviously a little more with the final grab items), lives in the car all the time. Its purpose is to Get Me Home (GMH) rather than to Bug Out in the conventional sense. Although it will, of course, enable me to "Bug Out" of wherever I am. It is designed to last me 24 hours and to enable me to get home from elsewhere in the UK if I lose automotive capability, e.g. I've parked it in a ditch, massive breakdown, accident, etc. It would also serve to feed, water and comfort-break me should I, for example, be stuck in a queue on a motorway for several hours while the emergency services remove the wreckage/blockage causing the delay and get everyone moving again. Or, as has happened, waiting several hours for the breakdown truck to come and rescue me.

There are Go Bags / Bug Out Bags / Grab Bags, etc. available off-the-shelf from various retailers but I wanted to put my own together so as to tailor it, and to include some gear that I already have and know and trust, but that is perhaps not so often used by me these days.

As to the contents of your GMH Bag this will be heavily dependent on your likely scenarios: if your daily commute is a 15m cycle ride into your place of work, or you have a 75m commute by bus and train, you will likely need a subset of, and a variation of, my inventory. Therefore you should tailor yours accordingly to the scenarios that are likely to occur, and your goal should disruption happen, e.g. heading for a friend's or relative's place rather than home.

I've included some links where appropriate; no affiliation, just the odd starting point for your own researches. And I'm sure that Mr. Google and Mr. YouTube, inter alia, will no doubt help in any further research you wish to undertake.

First Aid Kit (FAK)
I purchased a simple FAK from EVAQ8 [https://evaq8.co.uk/Travel-First-Aid-Kits/travel-first-aid-kit-in-soft-bag.html] and added a few items. (Note that I keep a slightly more comprehensive FAK in the car anyway, but this one below is in the GMH rucksack ready to go. Other stuff is kept in the car as a matter of course too, e.g. some of my hiking gear, clothing, etc.)

Cleaning Wipes x 6
Eye Pad Dressing x 1
Eye Wash Pod, 20ml x 1
Gloves (pair) x 1
Guidance Leaflet x 1
No 8 Medium Dressings x 2
No 9 Large Dressing x 1
Plasters, Waterproof Assorted x 20
Safety Pins x 4
Scissors x 1
Triangular Bandages x 2

To the kit above I added the following items:
Ibuprofen, 400mg x 3
Dioralyte x 2
Diarrhoea Capsules x 6
Razor Blade x 1
Moleskin x 1
Tick Twister x 1

I use Dioralyte as a general rehydration assistant after hard hikes anyway.

Main Kit
This is the remainder of the gear I keep in the rucksack. There is a Last-minute Grab List in the pack for me to grab other stuff that lives in the car as I depart. That is listed below.

Rucksack
Rucksack Liner
Water, 2 x 500ml
Knife/Fork/Spoon (Spoon in Rat Pack)
Food, 2100 calories Ration-x day ration pack (2 main meals, snacks and a pud)
[http://evaq8.co.uk/Survival-Food-Rations.html]
Flameless Ration Heater
Compass
Map, Ordnance Survey 1:250K Tour Map
Sunrise/Sunset Times (also in GPS, and probably available via phone)
First Aid Kit, as discussed above
Whistle
Toilet Paper
Poo Bags, 3 x Bog In A Bag Portable Toilet Bags; one could use dog poo bags
Hand Sanitiser
Multitool
Paracord
Cable Ties/Zip Ties, 4xL, 6xS
Paper & Pencil
Glow Stick/Light Stick, 1 x 8 hr white
Orange Flag
Covid Facemasks x 5 (perhaps not so mandatory now?)
Blizzard 3 Layer Survival Jacket, green
[https://www.blizzardsurvival.com/shop/blizzard-3-layer-survival-jacket/]
Hat/Woolly Hat
Gloves, Silk
Baseball Cap/Sun Hat
Neck Gaiter
Buffalo Gilet
Reflective/Hi Vis Jacket/Gilet
Gloves, Rubber x 4
Blanket, Small
Grab List, Last-minute

The Flameless Ration Heater is so that I can have at least one hot meal. Both the meals in the rat pack are cooked and ready to eat but hot food is a morale booster, and helps significantly if the weather is cold and/or wet. And you can warm your hands while it heats the meal.

The map in the pack is an OS 1:250K of the my most frequented area. I have 3 equivalent maps in the car of my less frequented areas of which I can do a last-minute grab if necessary. Obviously I can, and will, use my hand-held GPS or phone but they require battery power, and signals! Anyway, it's much easier to get an overall picture of the "domain" using a paper map. If necessary I could always tear a few pages out of the car's Road Atlas to help with nav.

Other things to consider including could be
Sit Mat;
Any mandatory meds. that you may need in a 24 hour or so period;
Useful Addresses and Phone Numbers: family / friends / breakdown truck companies / etc.;
Water Filter, Purification Tablets.

Final Grab List
This items on this list are categorised into Mandatory, Nice To Have, and Luxury.

Mandatory
GPS(s), Hand-held
GPS, Spare Batteries
Head Torch
Head Torch, Spare Batteries
Map(s)
Pee Bottle (A 1L wide-mouthed Nalgene bottle, indelibly marked with a P, lives in the car permanently!)
Spectacles
Money
Credit Cards & Debit Cards
PIN Numbers
Keys, Car
Keys, House
Phone(s), Mobile
Phone(s), Chargers for

Nice To Have
Torch
Torch, Spare Batteries
Sunscreen/Sun Block
Trousers, Waterproof
Hiking Pole(s)
Polaroid Spectacles (prescription)
Buffalo Special 6 Mountain Shirt

Luxury
Binoculars
Cagoule, Short or...
Cagoule, Long

Of course I can grab anything else from the car I feel may be useful at the time, e.g. sleeping bag, folding shovel, etc.

Anecdote Time
A few years ago, one morning whilst driving in a remote part of western Canada I came across a vehicle in a bad state a little way off the road. I went over to offer help, with some understandable trepidation, but it seemed that all was (reasonably?) OK and that they had been "rescued" before my arrival. Rather than bale out it appeared that they had sat and waited for some other vehicle to come along as they'd built a fire for warmth, comfort, bear protection, and possibly signalling to the road in the dark. So trying to make one's own way out is perhaps not always the best solution, depending on circumstances. Your call...
 

knowledge=gain

Sent off- not allowed to play
Jun 25, 2022
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england
nice well thought out and very knowledgeable thank you for sharing

i am starting to get my bag and contents together and thus far i have got

ruck sack i think is around the 50l - 55l range
two man tent
3m x 3m tarp
various cooking gas paraffin and multi-fuel gassifier
head-torch rechargeable
solar charging multi radio powerbank torch
gas-lighter
gas and oil lanterns
foraging pocket book
pocket book of over 100 knots
spare guy rope
first-aid kit
lifesaver water straw
3 x emergency blankets
folding solar charger
powerbank
small multitool plyers knife bottle-opener saw screwdriver
single wall stainless steel water bottle which can be used for heating water
wet-wipes and tissues

edit: forgot to add

orange emergency survival-bag - seat
yellow rain-cover 65l - 85l
mini sewing-kit
ferro-rod fire starter kit

i know there are stuff i need to get though
 
Last edited:
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TeeDee

Full Member
Nov 6, 2008
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nice well thought out and very knowledgeable thank you for sharing

i am starting to get my bag and contents together and thus far i have got

ruck sack i think is around the 50l - 55l range
two man tent
3m x 3m tarp
various cooking gas paraffin and multi-fuel gassifier
head-torch rechargeable
solar charging multi radio powerbank torch
gas-lighter
gas and oil lanterns
foraging pocket book
pocket book of over 100 knots
spare guy rope
first-aid kit
lifesaver water straw
3 x emergency blankets
folding solar charger
powerbank
small multitool plyers knife bottle-opener saw screwdriver
single wall stainless steel water bottle which can be used for heating water
wet-wipes and tissues

i know there are stuff i need to get though
I'm interested in how far you think you may need to 'get home' in terms of mileage / distance / time?

This answer may vary from person to person but what would be your anticipated answer please?
 

knowledge=gain

Sent off- not allowed to play
Jun 25, 2022
544
77
england
I'm interested in how far you think you may need to 'get home' in terms of mileage / distance / time?

This answer may vary from person to person but what would be your anticipated answer please?
it could vary anywhere between 1 or 50 miles and i have no need to rush home unless i get phone call from family friends or neighbours that there be some sort of emergency

it could also depend on any disaster whereby one may need to leave home, least likely in UK as opposed to the US yet better be prepared

what distance in how far you are planning for " in terms of mileage / distance / time?"
 

TeeDee

Full Member
Nov 6, 2008
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Exeter
it could vary anywhere between 1 or 50 miles and i have no need to rush home unless i get phone call from family friends or neighbours that there be some sort of emergency

it could also depend on any disaster whereby one may need to leave home, least likely in UK as opposed to the US yet better be prepared

what distance in how far you are planning for " in terms of mileage / distance / time?"

So what weight do you think your bag will come in at ?
 

knowledge=gain

Sent off- not allowed to play
Jun 25, 2022
544
77
england
So what weight do you think your bag will come in at ?
i only have a 5kg scales and it has maxed that out thus far and not all the stoves and lamps are in there

at a guess i think somewhere between 6kg and 10kg when all gear has been purchased

i swap stoves out depending on a few factors such as weather temperatures distance likely terrain
 
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C_Claycomb

Moderator staff
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Oct 6, 2003
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Bedfordshire
Bathroom scales. Weigh you, with and without pack. That, or weigh all the components on the kitchen scales and add up the result.
 

grizzlyj

Full Member
Nov 10, 2016
181
126
NW UK
The Grey Bearded Green Beret has good content, he's recently been talking about caches locally to him so his BOB doesn't have to be so big.
There's plenty of water round here so I have a water filter in the car to add to the bottles ready to go. Nalgene type bottles that are orange to avoid a mix up for pee. An UCO candle lantern to suspend from a string between car roof area grab handles.
My wife got stuck in a car with an error code that said do not drive. Quiet country lane, son in the car, no mobile signal, no traffic, no code reader/clearer. Since then I have considered a Garmin in reach type device to send a text message in an emergency. After a while she just turned it off and on again a few times :)
I got stuck in about 2005 for maybe 8 hours where the A14 goes over the A11 just west of Newmarket UK. A slight snow fall (an inch?) made the slight rise as the A14 goes up over the flyover too slippy. Lorries couldn't get up and had tried to squeeze past each other and blocked the road for everyone, Friday evening rush hour backed up. Snow is not something the SE UK mostly does well. Despite only a few miles from a lot of civilisation staying put in the dark seemed sensible until the Police cleared it at about 2am.
 

Scottieoutdoors

Settler
Oct 22, 2020
889
635
Devon
bathroom scales i do not have tbh

weigh all components then add up total an kitchen scales is a great option thank you
One thing I did a while ago is weigh most now my stuff then write it into an excel spreadsheet...

That way you can "make up" a bag and see how much it weighs without even having to move...
 
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C_Claycomb

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Mod
Oct 6, 2003
7,657
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One thing I did a while ago is weigh most now my stuff then write it into an excel spreadsheet...

That way you can "make up" a bag and see how much it weighs without even having to move...
Glad to hear I am not the only one.:lmao:

I have a master list, then make copies on new sheets for different trips. After the trip, I go back and mark up what items were used a lot, what wasn't used much, and what was a total waste of space on that trip.
 

Laurentius

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 13, 2009
2,540
705
Knowhere
My bug out bag is not bushcraft oriented at all, it is based on the experience of having been rescued from my flat with nothing but the clothes I was standing up in, and what was in my pockets (fortunately my mobile phone and wallet) My most immediate need was a change of clothes. I would also throw in my laptop and external hard drive containing my memories. I also have a smaller hospital ready bag, again based on experience, spare underwear, pajamas, footwear and waterproof/warm anorak in case I am discharged in the middle of the night. Also a wash bag with the usual essentials, which you would want for both the evacuation bag and the hospital bag.

As for abandoning my car, I would not want more than I would need to take me to the nearest station or bus stop safely, and that would be weather dependent. I do take ordnance survey maps and a compass, but I cannot think of the last time I actually needed them. Here in Blighty you are never far from civilisation. I can remember a time before mobile phones when my scooter broke down in the wilds of Shropshire. I just walked to the nearest farm house and knocked on the door. Farmer put my scooter in the back of his pickup and transported me to the station, and good old British Rail put it in the guards van and I took it home that way.
 
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Woody girl

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Mar 31, 2018
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Exmoor
It's amazing how we all coped in the old days before you could ring the rac from the comfort of your car and get rescued and taken home, warm and dry within a few hours.
Being a motorcyclist, I've had a few moments where I've had to walk or even hitch home and go back to rescue my bike later, or push it several miles (much smaller bike in those days!)
Nowadays, I have free recovery on my insurance for the bike. Bliss!
Only needed it once in 10 years tho.

My hospital bag is part bug out/get home bag, as I live a long way from the hospital, and have had several experiences of being discharged and there being no bus home as either the last one had gone hours ago, or no buses on a sunday/bank Holiday.
Not always easy to ask someone to turn out in the middle of the night and do a 50 mile round journey to rescue you!
Taxi home is about £60- £90 depending on time of day or night.
Grab bag is my hospital bag plus a few bedside items, and a folder with copies of essential details kept in my bedside draw.
My 64 Yr old teddy is coming too! :)
 
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