Is a psk really needed in the UK?

[Tengu]

I know direction because I can see the sun; some days of course, you cannot see the sun.

But then I am fairly observant, many people seem oblivious, hence the compass, which is foolproof (provided you keep it away from metal...)

You talk about local weather conditions; here in GB we have a lot of microclimates.

Nice to see yo back; Have you had many adventures in the outdoors?

 

[Herman30]

My take on a (landbased as I don´t do watersports) survival kit; One has to stay dry to avoid hypothermia so a poncho is my choice. Then something to keep energy levels up like energybars. And a litre of water is always good to have. All these fit in a small satchel/shoulderbag. And a compass and a general map where the nearest civilization can be seen.

 

[Ystranc]

The advice to carry a compass (assuming a person knows how to use it) can be a life saver for those who expect to be able to navigate the wilder parts of Britain using an app on their mobile phone. (Moronic but it does happen)
11 miles is just the daily dog walk for me so obviously I don’t require maps and compass for familiar surroundings but (if I’m unfamiliar with my destination I like to cover all bases and so) I don’t feel any disdain for those visitors who carry compass, maps or GPS when they come to my area for the first time.
Earlier in the thread it was mentioned that some landscapes can be featureless or deceptive...true, but maps and compass can also be necessary to show us the acceptable path through a landscape stuffed with a confusion of features, threading between the patchwork of private properties that make up most of the UK. We have a network of footpaths, bridal ways, highways and open access that maps and compass will guide us through.

 

[Broch]

I have spent a fair bit of time in my younger days walking hills, moors, and mountains in mist and fog - something that is quite common here in the UK. It can be very rewarding, the countryside takes on a mystical feel; but at the same time it can be very dangerous. I will usually use a compass in these conditions to make sure I'm not walking off the edge of a precipice Natural navigation is a set of guidelines not rules so, in life risking conditions, cannot be relied on. I can show you two oak trees in my wood only 20metres apart, one with moss on the Northern side, one on the Southern side.

But, as mentioned above, all of the UK is owned by someone and most of our rights of way are just narrow paths through it - a compass helps ensure I'm not trespassing.

Clearly, I don't need one when walking in familiar terrain.

 

[Danceswithhelicopters]

All this chat about PSKs made me get out my well travelled one.

A bit ancient is all that I can say... Crumbled matches, rusty scalpel, damp damaged pill packets. I'd recommend everyone has a check up!

 

[Minotaur]

All this chat about PSKs made me get out my well travelled one.

A bit ancient is all that I can say... Crumbled matches, rusty scalpel, damp damaged pill packets. I'd recommend everyone has a check up!

Lol that was one of my big problem with them and that when I needed something in one I had forgot I used it.

I would echo what has been said about our wonderful climate in that you just never know what you are going to get. I have seen flooding rain in June, gales in February and snow in April and that is just off the top of my head.

I am not sure that 11 miles means what you think it does. That place is the only place in the UK you cannot get to by road. I would think there must be places in the UK that are much further from roads. Mid-Wales springs to mind or maybe the Highlands. Also just because you get to a road does not mean good things because you need someone to drive down it and stop.

 

[Ystranc]

Lol that was one of my big problem with them and that when I needed something in one I had forgot I used it.

I would echo what has been said about our wonderful climate in that you just never know what you are going to get. I have seen flooding rain in June, gales in February and snow in April and that is just off the top of my head.

I am not sure that 11 miles means what you think it does. That place is the only place in the UK you cannot get to by road. I would think there must be places in the UK that are much further from roads. Mid-Wales springs to mind or maybe the Highlands. Also just because you get to a road does not mean good things because you need someone to drive down it and stop.

True, 11 miles as the crow flys is impossible here in my part of mid Wales and there are large areas of the uplands that are waiting to ensnare you in a bog or stymie you with a steep gorge or a sneaky convex grassy slope that gets steadily steeper and turns into a sheer drop into a lake. It’s all good fun. You learn to really pay attention to contour lines.

 

[chip_y2kuk]

I have a "possibles pouch" that i've urbanised it lives in my EDC rucksack (15 litre sling backpack) it has paracord, sewing kit, canvas sit mat, canvas organiser tray, and an "ouch pouch" ... im going to put some "brew stuff" in it

Anyone else any other good urban "possibles" ideas?

 

[Ozmundo]

I’d like Batman’s grapple gun but I’d probably spill my tea.

I have a fold up sit mat, just for those hurry up and wait situations. I am thinking of a non-camo poncho for similar reasons.
I don’t go into big conurbations that often but the number of times that public transport has been held up lately it may be useful.

 

[neoaliphant]

you just never know what you are going to get. I have seen flooding rain in June, gales in February and snow in April and that is just off the top of my head.

I may have said this in an earlier post, but i remember cycling in May years ago, sunny in morning and I was wearing short, by the afternoon it was snowing.....
missing last bus and walking home, sudden downpour, weather is a big issue even in urban environments

 

[neoaliphant]

I’d like Batman’s grapple gun but I’d probably spill my tea.

Well ive got a grappling hook in a pouch on my belt!

when im working or cycling, i have a belt with various molle pouches, its undergone loads of changes, lots of posts in ealrier pages of this thread.

so it is a bit of a batman utility belt!

 

[neoaliphant]

Anyone else any other good urban "possibles" ideas?

i wouldnt bother with a batetry bank, if you have a torch that acts as one ( sofirn IF23 is what i use) , but there are also now usefull battery banks that are also pocket warmers, and also sometimes rape alarms....

one of those shopping bags that folds up on itself, very handy to have in urban setting

N95 mask, more for dust than covid, which is more of an urban hazard, with a buff to keep it in place
buff is essential as hat, facemask, and keeping cool when soaked and evaporating..

one of those keychain window breaker/seatbelt cutter, or perhaps a tactical pen that has a glassbreaker tip, technically self defense tool as well..

small foldable water bottle, that you can fill up in a bathroom, or at someones house.....

 

[Watch-keeper]

Personally, I don't carry a specific PSK 24/7 but when I'm out and about the kit I do take fulfills that role. For me the PSK is more of a military thing where you might get caught out "on the run" with nothing else other than PSK. Of course, if you spend a lot of time in wild places you should have certain emergency items about your person, I consider that normal preparation. Any emergency items you do carry should reflect your knowledge level, where/what you are doing. I don't see anything wrong with carrying a PSK if that's how you have prepared yourself for emergencies.

 

[Ozmundo]

small foldable water bottle, that you can fill up in a bathroom, or at someones house.....

Just in case one is stuck on a ship with Baldric going around and around the Isle of Wight…

 

[Minotaur]

I agree with a lot that has been said in that I think a PSK and EDC are the minimum you can survive with and that does change with location most of the time.

 

[MikeLA]

Short answer, no but they were fun to make up

 

[GNJC]

Interesting thread... I think that a 'survival kit' became a bit of a fetish thing here in the 80s, probably all down to Lofty Wiseman. The necessity for compactness is obvious when you have to carry everything to live and fight with in webbing and a bergen, and a bit in your pockets.

Putting an 'extra' WB pouch, or maybe two, on webbing was about as much as most in the military could do to customise things until the advent of commercial pouches and the very posh new webbing 'systems', but even that allowed for a fair deal more convenience.

A lot of the stuff carried here in the civvy field was - and probably still is - barking; catering for things that were either impossible or so unlikely to happen as to make them effectively impossible. For a civvy here in the UK, the 'EDC' thing is a far more sensible alternative, adjusted as appropriate to cater for any given day; but it is still a definitely fetishistic thing for some, including a friend of mine who lurks on here sometimes... you know who you are!

I typically spend >70% of my working day outdoors, much more at lambing, much less when it's horrible and I don't have to be outside. I always have a pocket knife with me, a small pouch of toilet paper and a 'phone - no reception on >95% of the place, but it's useful for recording, pics, reminders and it has a torch. And that's it, nothing else unless I think it will be needed. If I work from a vehicle, a Mechron, it allows for an awful lot to be carried to cater for realistic contingencies.

 

[neoaliphant]

For a civvy here in the UK, the 'EDC' thing is a far more sensible alternative, adjusted as appropriate to cater for any given day;

EDC i tend to assume as you dont want to buy extra/walk a long distance to get.

So i never edc at home
but my belt edc, could definitely be considered a survival kit....

Poncho....if im 20 mins walk from my car and it suddenly rains, i dont always have a coat on, sits in small pouch on belt....this isnt always carried....

Lighter...mostly for use with hot glue sticks

small repair pouch, zipties, ducttape, hotglue sticks, wire etc, used every day while working....

leatherman, torch obviously tools you need constantly....led on phone wont do.....

FAK, leatherman is sharp, but this also has things like wetwipes, hand sanitozer, caffeine pills, all usefull everyday stuff. if im on a job im not going to walk/drive to chemist to get ibuprofen, just because some people say carrying things isnt neccesary thats ridiculous....

whistle, actually used on a job on golf coarse to signal a colleague, no wifi or signal...

snacks, again why buy new from shop when you can carry...

canteen ( 38 year old fisher price canteen featured earlier in thread) again why buy a drink when you can carry, especially if up on a ladder on hot day....

grappling hook and paracord.....to retrieve dropped tools on a roof once, and as a cable throw in an attic with spikes removed....

theres a lot more but just an example

interesting how EDC and bushcraft/survival items can overlap.....


the canteen/poncho/food tend to come off and on depending on season etc....

 

[chimpy leon]

I guess it depends where you are and what you do.

If you work in an inner city office in London then the chances of you needing one are significantly less than someone who works the Forests in Scotland.

If owning one makes you happy then go for it. Always better to have one and not need it, than to need it and not have one.

 

[neoaliphant]

I guess it depends where you are and what you do.

If you work in an inner city office in London then the chances of you needing one are significantly less than someone who works the Forests in Scotland.

If owning one makes you happy then go for it. Always better to have one and not need it, than to need it and not have one.

True

but it does annoy me when people ( not here) dis on EDC , perhaps because in america EDC often means your concealed pistol,,
and yet the same people would happily spend loads of money on a starbucks or a premade sandwich, the argument that anything you need you can get froma shop seems ridiculous....and wastefull....