just a quick comparison to see what people carry in their survival kits/ B.O.B's/ what ever you call them
whats in your survival kit?
- Thread starter alan3i6
- Start date
I don't have a survival kit any more. Back in my mis-spent youth, when I was in the services, I did have one, a 58 pattern water bottle pouch kitted out with all the kit that was recommended at the time, but as a bushcrafter, I don't see the need for one. Bushcraft is supposed to be about living in the wild not just surviving so if you're doing it properly, you shouldn't need a survival kit. People who are native to remote places don't need survival kits, so if you copy the locals in whatever environment you are in, neither will you.
The spirit of Samuel Hearne lives on!
Alan
The spirit of Samuel Hearne lives on!
Alan
"Survival kit contents check. In them you'll find:
Good enough for Major Kong its good enough for me.
- One forty-five caliber automatic
- Two boxes of ammunition
- Four days' concentrated emergency rations
- One drug issue containing antibiotics, morphine,
vitamin pills, pep pills, sleeping pills, tranquilizer pills
- One miniature combination Russian phrase book and Bible
- One hundred dollars in rubles
- One hundred dollars in gold
- Nine packs of chewing gum
- One issue of prophylactics
- Three lipsticks
- Three pair of nylon stockings.
Shoot, a fella' could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff."- Two boxes of ammunition
- Four days' concentrated emergency rations
- One drug issue containing antibiotics, morphine,
vitamin pills, pep pills, sleeping pills, tranquilizer pills
- One miniature combination Russian phrase book and Bible
- One hundred dollars in rubles
- One hundred dollars in gold
- Nine packs of chewing gum
- One issue of prophylactics
- Three lipsticks
- Three pair of nylon stockings.
Good enough for Major Kong its good enough for me.
That reference will be lost on most of the young uns, so here you go...[video=youtube;F5qqfsQGYus]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5qqfsQGYus[/video]
I don't have a survival kit, but I usually carry various bits and bobs that I might need to repair various things, string, glue, band aids etc.
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I remember a ray mears world of survival episode that showed one of the kalahari bushmen with a survival kit, i think it was a quiver and arrows, his knife and hand firedrill set and string, i may be wrong on exact contents, so while technologically less advanced, still a survival kit
In my opinion a survival kit is something that contains items that could be useful in both emergency, and every days situations to reduce unnecessary expense. Items that have a high use/weight(knife, multitool, paracord) or have a high importance to weight(firesteel, compass) and kept in a portable container or kept on you.
i even have a callout survival kit when doing jobs, basic mini tools, zip ties, basic first aid ( computer cases can give nasty cuts and it doesn't look professional to leave blood on their carpet) torch and a mini brolly small water bottle ( why on a hot day walking from one client to another go to the expense of buying a canned drink from a newsagents when you can carry it with you after all)
I don't agree with the idea that a survival kit should be sealed up and never opened.
Al
I have a 'Go' bag at the ready under the stairs. Its one of them big berghaus Bergens. It has in it food that would last me and my family about a week and water for 3 or 4 days (all I can reasonably carry on my back). I figure whatever emergency it was that forced me to 'bug out' would have to be sorted by at most about a week anyway. If its not we're looking at a lot more serious situation which would require a different mindset.
My 'survival kit' ie the kit such as shelter, cooking equipment would just be my normal camping overnight bag which my wife would carry.
It is my worst nightmare if there was to be some kind of emergency/disaster that I find myself in a similar situation to what happened to those people in the stadium in New Orleans. I don't like crowds at the best of times but to be trapped in a place like that with thousands of desperate people waiting for help and living in squalor would probably finish me off.
I've encouraged a few of my friends to prepare in the same way so that we can have safety in numbers. Some saw the sense in it while others just gave me a funny blank look. I'd just rather look after my own myself rather than have to depend on strangers.
Sent from my phone.
My 'survival kit' ie the kit such as shelter, cooking equipment would just be my normal camping overnight bag which my wife would carry.
It is my worst nightmare if there was to be some kind of emergency/disaster that I find myself in a similar situation to what happened to those people in the stadium in New Orleans. I don't like crowds at the best of times but to be trapped in a place like that with thousands of desperate people waiting for help and living in squalor would probably finish me off.
I've encouraged a few of my friends to prepare in the same way so that we can have safety in numbers. Some saw the sense in it while others just gave me a funny blank look. I'd just rather look after my own myself rather than have to depend on strangers.
Sent from my phone.
In the UK in particular I dont think there is a massive need for a survival kit - you are never going to be that far from civilisation, or at least a road!
I like the idea someone posted here (will look for the link) about fitting some essentials a neck knife sheath, so I emulated it - rectangular sheath with a bit of inner tube containing a whistle, a small LED, button compas, mini firesteel and some wax paper as tinder, then of course thereis the knife which I have a paracord handle on. I think that would help you get by if you fell down a hill into some unknown area of britain losing your pack in the process and had to spend a night out before finding civilisation.
I like the idea someone posted here (will look for the link) about fitting some essentials a neck knife sheath, so I emulated it - rectangular sheath with a bit of inner tube containing a whistle, a small LED, button compas, mini firesteel and some wax paper as tinder, then of course thereis the knife which I have a paracord handle on. I think that would help you get by if you fell down a hill into some unknown area of britain losing your pack in the process and had to spend a night out before finding civilisation.
Well said Tompole, also clothing is the big thing to worry about in the UK, good clothing fit for the environment your in will be of far greater value than some fishing line and hooks.
That was Pict.
[video=youtube;9BwUydd2JKo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BwUydd2JKo[/video]
Pict also quite sensibly suggested keeping a needle and thread in there so that you can repair ripped or damaged clothes, your clothing being every bit as important a survival item as the odds 'n' ends you might have in your pockets or wherever.
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That it was - thank you sir! Needle and thread and ductape - thats all I need to finnish it off.
Your both very right regarding the clothing - there is no such thing as bad weather, just a poor choice of clothing.
I've always wondered that survival kits don't have a pot, or at least some sort of container you can boil water in.
However I think my priorities would be, based on what I think I would need first:
1. Rescue - If I can get outta there quick... if not a continuous effort
2. First Aid - If I am unfortunate enough to have to do this myself (i.e. no rescue and in need of attention!)
3. Shelter - Since I'm pretty sure I could die of exposure before dehydration
4. Fire - The universal multitool, although not so sure what my alternative is if I were at sea
5. Water - Hopefully, I would have been hydrated before hand so I can perform the above (Water purification tablets don't tackle salinity? Fire is useless at sea... What can you do for water if you are stuck at sea? Hopefully some wreckage around, since how did you get there... bodge up some sort of distiller)
6. Food - So, maybe I have been there long enough and I am still alive so now I really need food.
And so, perhaps my needs in survival really are not too far off my needs in bushcraft.... Knowledge over equipment. That'll do me. So the last 4, with the knowledge perhaps you need carry nothing (either collected from the natural world, or tearing apart the man-made/mechanical beast that got you in the sticky situation in the first place. Surely that will contain the wires, sharp pointy things, etc you need for food, etc). So if I were to take any survival kit it'd be aimed more towards rescue and aid.
Whistle, Mirror, Compass, Light, FAK.... And for the last 4 maybe I would never criticise my decision to carry a knife, ferro rod and metal bottle (to boil water, carry water).
Although, with kit like that, I wouldn't go far wrong for a day's worth of bushcraft!
So essentially it's 1 and 2 that would be important to me, although ideally I'd prefer to be found by rescuers chillaxing in the wilderness by a fire, chowing down on some nice wild animal and nice foraged greens not wanting to go home!
However I think my priorities would be, based on what I think I would need first:
1. Rescue - If I can get outta there quick... if not a continuous effort
2. First Aid - If I am unfortunate enough to have to do this myself (i.e. no rescue and in need of attention!)
3. Shelter - Since I'm pretty sure I could die of exposure before dehydration
4. Fire - The universal multitool, although not so sure what my alternative is if I were at sea
5. Water - Hopefully, I would have been hydrated before hand so I can perform the above (Water purification tablets don't tackle salinity? Fire is useless at sea... What can you do for water if you are stuck at sea? Hopefully some wreckage around, since how did you get there... bodge up some sort of distiller)
6. Food - So, maybe I have been there long enough and I am still alive so now I really need food.
And so, perhaps my needs in survival really are not too far off my needs in bushcraft.... Knowledge over equipment. That'll do me. So the last 4, with the knowledge perhaps you need carry nothing (either collected from the natural world, or tearing apart the man-made/mechanical beast that got you in the sticky situation in the first place. Surely that will contain the wires, sharp pointy things, etc you need for food, etc). So if I were to take any survival kit it'd be aimed more towards rescue and aid.
Whistle, Mirror, Compass, Light, FAK.... And for the last 4 maybe I would never criticise my decision to carry a knife, ferro rod and metal bottle (to boil water, carry water).
Although, with kit like that, I wouldn't go far wrong for a day's worth of bushcraft!
So essentially it's 1 and 2 that would be important to me, although ideally I'd prefer to be found by rescuers chillaxing in the wilderness by a fire, chowing down on some nice wild animal and nice foraged greens not wanting to go home!
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I don't do cotton/Ventile so Duct Tape is better for me
I have both options covered...
...and some wire for boot/pack repairs.
Haven't had one since I lived in Canada. I made one years back in the UK but it never saw the light of day so I stopped packing it.
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