[john_jcb]

I was in the Pacific Northwest this past week during the search for James Kim and his family. It was sad to hear of his or anyones loss. For those of you that have never been in the Northwest woods it is easy to get lost and disoriented and the nights are pitch black when there is cloud cover. Every year day hikers and even those experienced in the outdoors succumb to hypothermia. One of the primary reasons often cited is that the weather changed, they got wet and were unable to warm up. Puget Sound and its 54 degree water can also be a killer.

This got me thinking about what I carry in my car or truck in my case as a survival kit. I must admit that I am somewhat, not fully, prepared for survival in case of a problem. I have a fanny pack that I carry hunting but I keep it with me in the truck. Trudging through the woods can be hard work and I carry as little as possible. The longest any of the hunting group has been lost was 12 hours in a snowstorm. My fixed blade hunting knife is on the belt so I guess that counts. Here is my list, share yours.

Fanny Pack
Seal Pup fixed blade knife
Leather-man multi tool
small flashlight
Magnesium fire starter
compass
emergency space bag
compact Bushnell binoculars
couple of candy bars (replenished daily while hunting as they are always eaten)
12 oz bottle of water

 

[spaceman]

Yes and no. If I'm in an unfamiliar area, yes. I hike and spend a lot of time in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, so I usually have a well stocked pack in my vehicle. I have seen a lot of folks who rely on their cell or GPS.

I hope they have learned something from the recent tragedy in the Pacific NW. Cell phones/GPS units lose battery power very fast when it is cold. Cell phones are pretty much useless in the mountains. None of these are adequate as a sole piece of survival equipment, and one should always carry a compass, and learn the basics of navigation. Not too hard. Just take a bearing before you venture in, remember it, and return. Maybe off some, but it will get you close to where you started from.

 

[JahJahBinks]

These items can also be helpful at times:

http://www.galatiinternational.com/M..._Code=flaregun

http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/st...uctId=39166963

http://www.midnightpass.com/sosemresaha.html

plus a shovel, a roll of aluminum foil, nails and ropes, some batteries, a compass, a surgical knife and blade, a set of fishing tools, a shotgun, WD-40, a mask, water proof matches, emergency bandage kit, a lighter, a whistle, a helmet, a spare heavy jacket and a swiss knife.

 

[pds6]

Kinda:

Extra Clothing;
Flashlight;
Tools;
Money; and,
12 v Battery Pack with Cables (best thing I every bought)

EDIT:
As a general rule, I never stray more than a mile from a Starbucks.

 

[3x331m]

Don't laugh!

Expanded Trekker first-aid kit
Ice axe
Powder shovel
Recue beacon
Long range and short range waterproof flash lights
pair of 2-way radio
Fire/Thermal sheet
Airforce survival knife
SOG folding knife
Leatherman tools
2 compasses
Fire starter kit
Mountaineering sleeping bag
Climbing rope 30'
Food bars
Water decontamination kit
Jetboil systems and fuel
Maps
extra batteries
Waterproof clothing (Full skiing outfit)
Fleece jacket
Winter/snow boots

All of the above are specialty equipment and packed in a mountaineering backpack, except for the boots. I might have a few more misc. items but not on top of my mind at this moment.

Extra water and food are loosely kept in trunk.

 

[feh1325]

cellphone
wind up flashlight that can also power my cell phone

i'm not going anywhere that i couldn't spit on a building

 

[Dimitris]

Cellphone and a flashlight is the more adventurous I can get.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Good lists so far, but there are a few more things that you should include. Always carry one of those space blankets/instant shelter things. They're a few dollars at a sporting goods store, and they save lives. Really. Always have one in the car. Water purification is also necessary. You can pick up packs of straws with filters and tablets, too. They're cheap and necessary. Keep a compass around, and a GPS if you can. Also, *always* have a map of where you're going. That is incredibly important. Have a means of starting a fire, too. A butane lighter is OK, but one of the microtorches is much better for starting fires in somewhat damp conditions.

If any of you really like to get off the beaten path, I highly suggest you pick up your technician amateur radio license. (More info here: http://www.arrl.org) The technician license is relatively easy to get and the fee is only about $12. No Morse Code required, either. Then, you can get a 2 meter handheld or car-mounted radio for about $130. Even the lowest powered unit is 20 times as powerful as a cellphone. Those *will* reach out from areas without cell coverage (more common than you may think) and local amateurs are almost always listening. They will contact authorities and, many times, another amateur has personally come to the rescue. It's a good group of people.

 

[JahJahBinks]

With all that being said, if you add another AK47 and body armor you are ready for Iraq.

 

[Bob_McBob]

I don't ever go far from civilization even on long drives, so I don't keep an emergency kit in the car. I do make sure I have plenty of warm clothes (including scarf and gloves) in the Winter even if I'm going for a short drive, because you never know what might happen (that is mainly for short-term comfort though, obviously). I usually have some water and such in the car, but it's frozen in the Winter

If I were driving out in the boonies I would definitely take precautions.

 

[discord]

I'm too cool to have a survival kit. I don't even wear a shirt most of the time.


Quote:

Originally Posted by john_jcb /img/forum/go_quote.gif 12 oz bottle of water

For a bird?

 

[KYTGuy]

Just today, sent out my old pickup truck to a friend who will drive it across country to my daughter who is in the USAF.

Here is what I put in the truck for her;

1man-three day pack that is put out by a local power co-op - it has a small First aid pack with latex gloves, antiseptic towelettes, band-aids, asperins, two iodine packets, a regular two-cell flashlight, plus a spare set of batteries (D cells), toilet paper roll, 48 oz of water in sterile four oz packetts, a toothbrush and paste, six cyalumes 12hr, a brick of long-lasting foodstuff - icky to just eat it, but fine for three days of food, when you are really hungry, to which I added a fishing kit, a sewing kit, some dental floss, a mini-leatherman, a compass, and a 1-liter superfiltering waterbottle (good for 50-150 liters, depending on the input water), and a colorful folding umbrella, a pack of playing cards, and hard candy to fill all the empty spaces.
Not bad for $35 (before my additions).

In the truck, I put a five foot long oak staff for walking stick/weapon/splint/handle for a brush saw attachment also included, a hatchet, small sharpening stone, a large pair of cotton coveralls that would go over nything she might be wearing to change a tire, (stuff with leaves/spaceblanket to stay warm), four space blankets for use inside the car - they are not very useful outside - a canvas hat, a knit cap, six sets of gloves - some leather and some cotton, Magnesium/sparker firestarter, a xmall spray can of WD-40 (helps start fires REAL GOOD, along with its usual properties), a small tube of grease (helps with fires, along with...), eight 16 oz bottles of water, two quarts of oil (helps start fires...), channellocks, screwdrivers, a block of wood to put the jack on in gravel/mud - (helps to have a dry piece of firwood to start fires, along with...), four miniatures of high-proof booze, (for medicinal purposes) six pairs of socks, a disposable groundcloth/tarp/tent, a regular plastic tarp/tent, jumpercables, some marine styel emergency flares (also good for starting wet wood fires), a GREEN LASER pointer - good to 50,000ft, (and the officials come looking for you if you hit a pilot in the front of the plane!), spare tire goo/flatfixer, two AA-battery powered "road flares" - leD type - they go for ten to twenty hours!!, a three cell maglight (good for a weapon,too),a small aircompressor, a small solar cell battery maintainer, some belts and hoses taken out of service but still good, some hoseclamps, some duct tape, a notebook from the riteintherain people (waterproof paper), a pencil and a pen, and a magic marker, a bucket, two folding cups, a handful of various sized ty-raps, a couple hanks of automotive grade wire, various colors, light duty sleepingbag/blanket, 100ft of man-rated rope, and 100 ft of synthetic rope, a broken in pair of outdoor boots of hers (sometimes her footgear isn't the sort of thing you would want to hike in), some tow strap and a ratchet winch with attached chain (like truckers use to secure a load).

All our cars are equipped with 2-meter HAM radio rigs, as we are all hams.

We all carry personal weapons.

Almost everything is in the survival pack, or the trouble box - 12"d X 18"h X 24"w, waterprooof, lockable, can be dragged/skidded.

I think that is about it.

 

[jlo mein]

In the James Kim thread someone mentioned you should have an emergency GPS-SOS unit. I have never heard of this before. What is it? Is it different than regular GPS navigation devices?

 

[Oistrakh]

not really... If we have to go a distance from san francisco to oregon, we would take an AIRPLANE

 

[nelamvr6]

99.99% of the driving I do, I could walk home without too many issues.

I generally don't venture into the wilderness.

I'm pretty sure I could stop into a Cumberland Farms to get warm on the way home.