Fieldcraft Finally started a survival kit

[B3dlam]

As I said I finally started really looking at a survival kit to carry hunting, hiking, etc while here in Alaska. This is what I have come up with so far:
Gerber infantry knife
Folding saw
Sol emergency bivvvy
Whistle
Flare,smoke signal, shootable flare
Lighter
Flint/steel with Vaseline soaked cotton balls
Para cord
Signal mirror
Foldable 2l water container
Water treatment tablets
Wet naps for cleaning hands etc
Food items (more meal and some granola bars)
Head lamp w/ spare batteries
Duct tape(haven't added it yet I need to decide how I want to store it.)

It's around 3.5 lbs without the knife but I don't mind carrying a little extra as things like the flares make a huge difference in being found as I know from experience looking for someone from a helicopter can be quite difficult. The food is also not necessary for short term survival but it's a great morale item and when it gets really cold you do burn a lot of calories.

Let me know if you think I am missing anything.


Sent from my iPad autocorrect at your own risk.

 

[Gunfighting Inc]

--Compass
--Beanie in ziplock baggie
--Mechanix or leather gloves
--Wrap duct tape around the plastic bottle/tube you keep the fire starters in
--Extra wool socks in ziplock baggie
--Snares/fishing line/gear
--Hatchet
--First-aid kit w/tourniquet
--Emergency meds, ie. anti-nausea, anti-diareaha, antibiotics, antihistamine
--Sunscreen and lip balm and DEET

 

[kraigWY]

Get a space blanket. It will direct heat from your fire. If set up right, you can use it to bake bread setting on a rock.

 

[Jig Stick]

copenhagen

 

[Hairball]

Add a SPOT satellite GPS messenger

 

[HighGroundMan]

Assuming you are also carrying a gun and ammo either in your survival pack, in a holster, or shouldered via a sling. Seeing as this is a shooting forum, I wouldn't want to presume something so obvious is missing from your list.

 

[barrelsgosmoke]

What bag is that? Looks pretty nice!

 

[B3dlam]

I will always have a firearm with me either a pistol while hiking or whatever rifle I am hunting with.

I ended up just rolling the duct tape around itself into a couple small bundles.

I definitely need to add an extra pair of socks and beanie.


Sent from my iPad autocorrect at your own risk.

 

[45.308]

As I said I finally started really looking at a survival kit to carry hunting, hiking, etc while here in Alaska. This is what I have come up with so far:
Gerber infantry knife
Folding saw
Sol emergency bivvvy
Whistle
Flare,smoke signal, shootable flare
Lighter
Flint/steel with Vaseline soaked cotton balls
Para cord
Signal mirror
Foldable 2l water container
Water treatment tablets
Wet naps for cleaning hands etc
Food items (more meal and some granola bars)
Head lamp w/ spare batteries
Duct tape(haven't added it yet I need to decide how I want to store it.)

It's around 3.5 lbs without the knife but I don't mind carrying a little extra as things like the flares make a huge difference in being found as I know from experience looking for someone from a helicopter can be quite difficult. The food is also not necessary for short term survival but it's a great morale item and when it gets really cold you do burn a lot of calories.

Let me know if you think I am missing anything.


Sent from my iPad autocorrect at your own risk.

Ultimate blast match with fire tinder, best thing I have used for fire starter, dip and hold underwater for minutes then strikes a fire.
2 contractors trash bags, these are extra thick and tuff, use one to line your pack and the other as a spare, bivy sack, rain parka, shelter, etc, repair when needed with duct tape
zip lock freezer bags
Integral Designs silstarp, while many things work I just prefer this, I actuall have silshelter, never leave home without one in my pack, best 12 ounces there is
nothing wool, takes too long to dry in wet AK, synthetic will dry overnight just with body heat as long as you are protected with shelter
I am not fishing or snare user, use tree limbs and build a funnel in the stream to force fish into a small pool, same with game, like a crab pot or shrimp pot, one way in, this can be done for small game too if its big enough and done correctly, a snare is good if you know how to use it, kind of the same principle to force game into the snare
Take your pack to a seamstress and have a long bivy sleeve sewn to the top so you can get down inside your pack and use the sleeve up to your neck as a bivy sack.
Water purify tabs, not really needed in the cold moving water of Ak
Wrap duct trap around hiking pole, water bottle, anything, I tape my emergency space blanket bivy sack to the bottom of pack inside of course with duct tape in every pack I use
Cut closed cell foam for a back back panel to fit inside your hydro pocket
Dr peppermint soap, used for everything; teeth, body, clothes, dishes, it comes in 1oz bottle
I throw candy bars in, last a long time and just as good as high cost energy bars
I always carry rocket fuel, chocolate covered coffee beans, make sure you rotate
triangle bandage or similar
broad spectrum antibiotics
pepto bismal, I prefer this because it slows down the digestive track so some of the viral can still be expelled but not so quickly to help guard against dehydration
epi pen, benedryl or similar
superglue
I prefer an Icomm VHF radio, get on guard and there is always someone to answer
Learn to build shelters with minimal effort, simple things like a sink hole can add warmth while saving calories
Learn to read the weather of AK
Learn plant life, plenty to eat in AK
Not a fan of a compass for pure survival, root, save energy, most lost people wonder around looking for help making it harder for SAR to find, as long as you have an Icomm and batteries, help is quite close
Trip plan to more than one person, give a hard date and time to call safety by whom ever has your plan, leave a map
Wear/use/have bright colors like safety orange, I know camo and all but a quick SAR story, a friend of mine got into trouble wearing dark subdued clothing, SAR walked right by him as he laid there fighting for survival injured, a week later when his body was found

 

[B3dlam]

Ultimate blast match with fire tinder, best thing I have used for fire starter, dip and hold underwater for minutes then strikes a fire.
2 contractors trash bags, these are extra thick and tuff, use one to line your pack and the other as a spare, bivy sack, rain parka, shelter, etc, repair when needed with duct tape
zip lock freezer bags
Integral Designs silstarp, while many things work I just prefer this, I actuall have silshelter, never leave home without one in my pack, best 12 ounces there is
nothing wool, takes too long to dry in wet AK, synthetic will dry overnight just with body heat as long as you are protected with shelter
I am not fishing or snare user, use tree limbs and build a funnel in the stream to force fish into a small pool, same with game, like a crab pot or shrimp pot, one way in, this can be done for small game too if its big enough and done correctly, a snare is good if you know how to use it, kind of the same principle to force game into the snare
Take your pack to a seamstress and have a long bivy sleeve sewn to the top so you can get down inside your pack and use the sleeve up to your neck as a bivy sack.
Water purify tabs, not really needed in the cold moving water of Ak
Wrap duct trap around hiking pole, water bottle, anything, I tape my emergency space blanket bivy sack to the bottom of pack inside of course with duct tape in every pack I use
Cut closed cell foam for a back back panel to fit inside your hydro pocket
Dr peppermint soap, used for everything; teeth, body, clothes, dishes, it comes in 1oz bottle
I throw candy bars in, last a long time and just as good as high cost energy bars
I always carry rocket fuel, chocolate covered coffee beans, make sure you rotate
triangle bandage or similar
broad spectrum antibiotics
pepto bismal, I prefer this because it slows down the digestive track so some of the viral can still be expelled but not so quickly to help guard against dehydration
epi pen, benedryl or similar
superglue
I prefer an Icomm VHF radio, get on guard and there is always someone to answer
Learn to build shelters with minimal effort, simple things like a sink hole can add warmth while saving calories
Learn to read the weather of AK
Learn plant life, plenty to eat in AK
Not a fan of a compass for pure survival, root, save energy, most lost people wonder around looking for help making it harder for SAR to find, as long as you have an Icomm and batteries, help is quite close
Trip plan to more than one person, give a hard date and time to call safety by whom ever has your plan, leave a map
Wear/use/have bright colors like safety orange, I know camo and all but a quick SAR story, a friend of mine got into trouble wearing dark subdued clothing, SAR walked right by him as he laid there fighting for survival injured, a week later when his body was found

I am quite familar with the difficulty of finding someone lost thats why I dont mind the extra weight for the flares/smoke. The SOL emergency bivvy is also bright orange. Luckily all service members in the CG up here are required to go through survival training so I am familar with survival shelter construction. In my current location a compass is relatively low on my priority list as generally speaking where I am if you go down hill you reach a river/stream follow that you get to the ocean and it doesnt take long once you reach the ocean to find people here for most of the areas I intend to use this kit in. Trip planning is another of those skills I learned the importance of long ago. Generally speaking i have a friend who I let know the general area I will be in (down to a few square miles depending on the situation) and a drop dead time to start worrying. My general goal with this kit was to have something I could attach to a belt or something of that nature as chances are my back will have better gear for any overnight stay this kit was just intended to be the mins to get through an unexpected night due to foul weather etc and give myself the best chance of getting rescued in short order when my friend calls in the calvalry. I may consider tossing some snare wire into the kit as snowshoe hares are rampant on this island although I would so much be relying on it as a food source so much as just something to do if I had to spend more then a day out there I know I can easily get by for a few days on just the food thats in the kit. Here in Kodiak we are relatively limited on the edible plant life unless you get down to the coast or happen to catch it during the right season.

Thanks again for the input though I have seen you around the forums and you definitely know your stuff when it comes to survival in the wilderness. I may end up looking into a marine band radio or a PLB of some sort. Garbage bags are the other thing I definitely need to I plan to get 2-3 fold them up as tight as possible then vac seal to get nice and small as it is right now everything in the kit is vac sealed so I could submerge it in water and all my gear will be nice and dry when I pull it out. I actually have a blast match sitting around in my stack of gear. I definitely like the cotton ball and vaseline tinder as it seems to burn no mater what you do to it.

 

[Savage308FP]

copenhagen

x2 HAHAHAHA couple logs if you plan on being lost awhile.

Serious note though, mylar blanket. they are very light and can be used to multiple purposes. Bright and shiny for a visual, wrap yourself, build shelter, reflect heat from a fire, etc.

 

[threetrees]

use (cotton ball soaked in hot wax) over (cotton+vaseline).

i submerged (cotton+vaseline) in water, and it's damn hard to light it.
i did the same with (cotton+wax) and it burns as good as dry. all you have to do is tear up the cotton a bit to get to the inside. at least for me, that works notably better in wet conditions than the valine.

 

[45.308]

I am quite familar with the difficulty of finding someone lost thats why I dont mind the extra weight for the flares/smoke. The SOL emergency bivvy is also bright orange. Luckily all service members in the CG up here are required to go through survival training so I am familar with survival shelter construction. In my current location a compass is relatively low on my priority list as generally speaking where I am if you go down hill you reach a river/stream follow that you get to the ocean and it doesnt take long once you reach the ocean to find people here for most of the areas I intend to use this kit in. Trip planning is another of those skills I learned the importance of long ago. Generally speaking i have a friend who I let know the general area I will be in (down to a few square miles depending on the situation) and a drop dead time to start worrying. My general goal with this kit was to have something I could attach to a belt or something of that nature as chances are my back will have better gear for any overnight stay this kit was just intended to be the mins to get through an unexpected night due to foul weather etc and give myself the best chance of getting rescued in short order when my friend calls in the calvalry. I may consider tossing some snare wire into the kit as snowshoe hares are rampant on this island although I would so much be relying on it as a food source so much as just something to do if I had to spend more then a day out there I know I can easily get by for a few days on just the food thats in the kit. Here in Kodiak we are relatively limited on the edible plant life unless you get down to the coast or happen to catch it during the right season.

Thanks again for the input though I have seen you around the forums and you definitely know your stuff when it comes to survival in the wilderness. I may end up looking into a marine band radio or a PLB of some sort. Garbage bags are the other thing I definitely need to I plan to get 2-3 fold them up as tight as possible then vac seal to get nice and small as it is right now everything in the kit is vac sealed so I could submerge it in water and all my gear will be nice and dry when I pull it out. I actually have a blast match sitting around in my stack of gear. I definitely like the cotton ball and vaseline tinder as it seems to burn no mater what you do to it.

Fire starting is about all you need in a survival with shelter a bonus but if you can build or find a shelter in the natural no need to take it along. In the alpine like Kodiak, have to get out of the wind.
Snaring a hare or small game is a lot harder than anyone who has not tried it to do is. This can burn or waste body core energy.
I spent a night or two, not really a survival but just because it happened in a trash bag with my head poking out and my feet inside my day pack and it snowed.

Of course AK weather can dictate time crunch but when my buds had a safety in the deep mountains, a quick squawk on the Icomm was heard by a passing Delta/NW jet who contacted center who contacted the commode post who gen'd up the 212th helo/130 and the troopers who contacted their bush pilot who flew to their base camp in around 90 mins from their squawk. Granted is was good weather but its the time of technology.

 

[SquidHC]

Have you ever seen the Henry U.S. Survival Rifle? Cabela's: Henry US Survival Rimfire Rifle

 

[bassani]

ruger takedown would work nicely.
mossberg pistol grip shotgun (JIC) in waterproof tube

 

[fireEMT5]

Another option to consider for storing duct tape and paracord. Take an old credit card and wrap tape around the long side. You can get 10 - 15 ft. wrapped and the profile ends up around an inch thick. From here, if you wish, using a paper punch, punch a hole close to each corner. Now you can slip some para cord through a hole, tie a knot, then wrap the paracord and tie off when done. You end up with a nice compact bundle of tape and cord which you can stow out of the way, safe, dry and secure until you need some. Just another option.

 

[Ratz]

A lightweight portable collapsible stove like a vargo (titanium) with titanium cook gear is something I haven't seen listed yet.

 

[Exo]

use (cotton ball soaked in hot wax) over (cotton+vaseline).

i submerged (cotton+vaseline) in water, and it's damn hard to light it.
i did the same with (cotton+wax) and it burns as good as dry. all you have to do is tear up the cotton a bit to get to the inside. at least for me, that works notably better in wet conditions than the valine.

Women's personal hygiene items work better. (read: tampons). They have the little string to dip the cotton part into the hot wax, you get more cotton plus you dont need to worry about burning yourself. I think those things grow like 7x (??) their starting size once you start fluffing them out.

 

[Jig Stick]

EPIRB if weight isn't an issue. Personally, I would go off grid without one.

 

[Hairball]

UPS just dropped off my new compass today. I collect compasses like my wife collects shoes for some reason and I always wanted an M73. Going to put this in my bag in place of my old 3H. If I run out of ammo I can always drop this in a sock and beat somebody with it (weighs 8 oz.)

 

[hankpac]

I started a survival kit, and it got out of hand. I either have to buy an M-113 to carry it all, or we drive two pickups out of here.
I'm thinking of going back to a toothpick and a tea bag. That's all you REALLy need.

 

[para72]

Where's the mountain money?

 

[H_Talon]

I carry one of these ..

KUM Artists Pencil Sharpeners - JerrysArtarama.com

the blade is removable to sharpen, can sharpen sticks, shavings make great tinder two different
size sticks/twigs and you can find plastic ones if the metal ones are to heavy for you