My cross-country GHB (Page 8 of 14)
|
Finally made it thru all 15 pages....this is a great thread, and I've been taking notes.
One question: Has anyone actually had experience with the Primatine mist=epipen? I need to carry an epi, but this would be much better if it checks out. Awesome thread, and awesome pics Thanks! |
|
I'm in the ME right now so I’ve changed it some to make it mission specific, but no major changes. Dropped some of the electronics, added a few small things. I'm not carrying the water filter regularly.
One of the things added is a large rat trap painted dark brown to match trees and with a large hole in it to hang it off a broken stub of a branch or nail and secure it with wire. A buddy has experimented and can get at least one squirrel a day in urban environments with it. He uses peanut butter for bait (one squeeze tube of MRE peanut butter lasts a long time for this purpose) My smart phone died, ended up with an i-phone for a while, and then I killed it and came over here so I did not replace it. Looking to do a GPS enabled smart phone when I get back, probably with no sim card and just keep it off the grid and use all the other functions, wi-fi, camera, etc. Just keep it in the pack. Then I can have a phone also. One thing I was trying to do was keep all my abilities while dropping of the grid. If you require a cell connecting then of course if the cell system in down you’re out of luck; and if you don’t want to show up on the cell network out of luck again. I picked up the smart phone no sim card idea on another thread. Looking forward to implementing it. (if someone has the thread link it for me I lost it) Also going to be playing with more info security on thumb drives and micro SD cards. Also importing mapping data into the smart phone. I can of course do it with micro SDs but I was thinking a thumb drive with the right connectors would give a ton more data for a lot less money. I’m not carrying the radio anymore. If I can get a really little radio I may add it back in. Also still experimenting and thinking about power options. Been looking at wi-fi cameras and a handheld four camera viewer for fun. Guy on ebay sells old cell phones converted to wi-fi cameras, uses the cell phone body and battery/charger. Kind of cool. I’ll try to get back to this thread a little this month. |
|
Originally Posted By _RAGNAR_:
Also going to be playing with more info security on thumb drives and micro SD cards. Also importing mapping data into the smart phone. I can of course do it with micro SDs but I was thinking a thumb drive with the right connectors would give a ton more data for a lot less money. I use a SanDisk Titanium and TrueCrypt to fill that need. The Titanium is more crush resistant than the plastic drives out there, and TrueCrypt runs (with the proper binary) on Windows, Mac, or Linux. |
"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both." - Benjamin Franklin
“Be polite, be professional and have a plan to kill everyone you meet." - U.S. Military in Baghdad
“Be polite, be professional and have a plan to kill everyone you meet." - U.S. Military in Baghdad
|
Ubuntu on a thumb with OpenOffice and a bunch of 'tools' goes everywhere with me. Of course I do pen testing and vuln assessments for a living so it's a dual use thing :-) But essentially, you can carry a LOT of computing power and storage with you on a thumb drive. That titanium one is a great suggestion. Between that and an off-the-grid GPS'd smart phone, you've covered the electronic needs pretty well.
|
"Al-taqiyya" means that no non-Muslim can believe anything told to them by any Muslim. For that Muslim to lie to you counts as a 'good work' to gain salvation.
Originally Posted By Subnet:
At this point, I'd take one from StonerStudent
Originally Posted By Subnet:
At this point, I'd take one from StonerStudent
|
Have any of you thought about a glass punch or a small packet of spark plug fragments?
The kind of survival items you can find inside most cars (even if you cant steal them) would be quite usefull if you could get at the car without getting shot. Most cars have tools, jacks (uesful for opening door frames) gas cans road flares and sometime a firearm or other weapon. |
|
Originally Posted By BeFrankLin:
I haven't seen this asked yet, what is your full size towel and what bag is it in? It looks almost like a Kifaru Woobie. Thanks and love your setup and pics. It’s just a REI camp towel, large enough to wrap around my waist. The bag is just what it came in, some kind of mesh so it can dry in the bag. I also use it as a shemagh when it’s cold (just the other day in a help ride it kept me warmer than I would have been)and can wear it when sleeping to get a few more degrees out of my sleep system. |
|
from a post I made in another thread:
The obvious goal is warm and dry. The reality is wet and cold for most people. Extreme sports people have learned wet and warm is the best you can do sometimes. A lot of people dry and warm gear fails catastrophically when wet. My gear is set up to keep me dry and warm, but still warm when completely wet. I don’t own any cold weather gear that will fail me when wet. I try to keep dry but the mission or bad luck may necessitate getting wet. You cold weather system MUST work when wet or you are setting yourself up for death, pure and simple. No gortex or other breathable fabric will keep you dry in all conditions, there must be a significant humidity differential for it to work. Weather conditions staying the same you work load changes said differential. If you must truly keep the water outside your clothing for hours use real old fashioned rubber rain suits. $40 and you will keep the rain out. Depending on temperature and work load you will not be dry but that is sweat not rain. Your clothes under the rubber gear must still insulate when wet. Carhart make plenty of good working rubber rain gear. (a roll of good duct tape on hand is suggested to patch rips) I still use breathable fabrics, I use single layer only as they take the least humidity differential to work and they are the lightest. All the fabric on the inside of your raincoat is usually more than worthless it is actually very counterproductive to staying dry or warm, when instead I could be using proper insulating and moisture moving fabrics under my breathable layer. Wool, wool, and more wool, then puffy clothes (no down for me) then single layer breathable hardshell. If you are doing work that will damage the hardshell or its really pouring get a good cheap rubber rainsuit. (I won’t be chainsawing with a $300-400 jacket) |
|
The humidity differential I am speaking of is between the outside air and inside your hardshell. There needs to be a “push” from inside, if not push from inside there will be one from outside to in!
I use primaloft for my puffy layer. I live in western WA and am coastal a lot. Most the places I am are high humidity and high rainfall. I can’t afford wet down. Primaloft appears to be the next best insulator to down when dry and retains much of its abilities when wet. (Unlike down) |
| I hate this weather. I was actually down to one bag for 3 day trips; a 5.11 Side Trip Briefcase with a clothes folder inside. With what I carried I could withstand weather down to about 50 degrees and raining. Now I find myself loading up my CamelBak motherlode with my extra (warm) clothing. |
"Al-taqiyya" means that no non-Muslim can believe anything told to them by any Muslim.
'The real destroyer of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations and benefits.' Plutarch
'The real destroyer of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations and benefits.' Plutarch
|
Originally Posted By _RAGNAR_:
a winter addition http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a183/greghamilton/DSC08014.jpg I've used the standard model before and always eventually broke them I'm hoping the pro model stand up better. if those dont work out for you, you might want to look at these. i've had mine for two years and they grip extremely well clomping around construction sites. the metal cleats are replaceable (it comes with a little bag with replacements cleats) and wear life on the cleats are pretty good. mine are still going strong after two years. |
Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.....
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.....
|
Originally Posted By beetee73: Your ghetto-rigged personal alarms = Brilliant. My life is about urban survival. VERY different than the woodland variety. Those would come in very handy, indeed. I bought 2 for this purpose they have the GE personal alarms on ebay for about $4. I used a sewing bobbin to put some spiderwire fishing line on. A couple of eyelets with the self tapping type screw you can get at the Ace hardware store for like .27 a piece. Doesnt take up hardly any room. Good stuff.  |
| Hey Ragner, great thread I have learned a lot from your insight. It's funny to see how many people post questions that have already been answered. I guess they just don't want to dig through all 16 pages to find the answer. As a frequent cross crountry and occassional world traveller myself I have started trying to round up some of the items you carry, so that if I am stranded away from home I can make it safely back to my family. I do carry more stuff than most of my co workers but I am not nearly as ready as you are, Yet; but I am making improvements to my preps daily. Thanks for the insight and motivation. Stay safe brother. I'll keep an eye out for you during my travels. |
|
Kudos to Ragnar for posting, and I didn't read all 16 pages but:
I estimate the equipment in the original post, with bag, to be at least 26 lbs. with the bladder filled with water. The water means its not carry-on for a plane. No food or change of clothes? What if checked baggage is lost or inaccessible? Not even a change of socks? Never been doused with fuel or soaked below 60 degrees? A person will either suffering from chemical burns or hypothermia without a change of clothes. Okay, OP retrieves checked baggage, so how much are we carrying around now? The OP doesn't state what's stowed in the SAW pouches checked. It better be all those homemade wiring kits, cook kit and the meds in bags or else he's missing his flight. Gear doesn't exist if luggage can't be retrieved. C'mon 4 knives on person for plane travel? Okay maybe transferred to checked luggage but non-existent if luggage is lost. 4 knives on person for EDC? A small Leatherman MAY make it through in a carry-on, but its better than nothing if no access to checked baggage. Not even a candy bar or gum? Gum promotes saliva and buys a little time for hydration needs. Water, food and shelter (clothing) are the primary concerns in an emergency situation. The OP cites numerous "threat scenarios" during 2 of which my cell phone was useless. The OP is the baddest mofo on the planet. 3 weeks without food? How long w/o water? I'd be eating grass after 3 days if I didn't kit some foodstuffs. The 2 hardest commodities to attain after the fact in an emergency or disaster are food and water. The third is fuel. All-out devastation doesn't need to happen to require a good GHB or BOB. During 9/11 I was downtown D.C. Right out of the disaster movies. No planes or trains available. Rental cars were gone by noon. Foodstuffs were scarce due to stores being closed. Cell phones didn't work due to overload. Just missing zombies. Long story but it took a week to get home from an overnight business trip. I was not prepared by today's standards but made do. I bugged out for hurricanes the first few years I lived in NOLA. What a pain in the ass. Fuel, shelter, food and water was even hard to come by when bugging out. Live, learn and prepare. Katrina was a true disaster. I was fortunate to bug-in but not an option with 4-13 feet of water in your home. A bag with food & water is a necessity or you wait 10 days to eat or drink. I respect the OP for posting but the bag is a FAIL. |
Defend New Orleans!
|
Originally Posted By conman:
Kudos to Ragnar for posting, and I didn't read all 16 pages but: I estimate the equipment in the original post, with bag, to be at least 26 lbs. with the bladder filled with water. The water means its not carry-on for a plane. No food or change of clothes? What if checked baggage is lost or inaccessible? Not even a change of socks? Never been doused with fuel or soaked below 60 degrees? A person will either suffering from chemical burns or hypothermia without a change of clothes. Okay, OP retrieves checked baggage, so how much are we carrying around now? The OP doesn't state what's stowed in the SAW pouches checked. It better be all those homemade wiring kits, cook kit and the meds in bags or else he's missing his flight. Gear doesn't exist if luggage can't be retrieved. C'mon 4 knives on person for plane travel? Okay maybe transferred to checked luggage but non-existent if luggage is lost. 4 knives on person for EDC? A small Leatherman MAY make it through in a carry-on, but its better than nothing if no access to checked baggage. Not even a candy bar or gum? Gum promotes saliva and buys a little time for hydration needs. Water, food and shelter (clothing) are the primary concerns in an emergency situation. The OP cites numerous "threat scenarios" during 2 of which my cell phone was useless. The OP is the baddest mofo on the planet. 3 weeks without food? How long w/o water? I'd be eating grass after 3 days if I didn't kit some foodstuffs. The 2 hardest commodities to attain after the fact in an emergency or disaster are food and water. The third is fuel. All-out devastation doesn't need to happen to require a good GHB or BOB. During 9/11 I was downtown D.C. Right out of the disaster movies. No planes or trains available. Rental cars were gone by noon. Foodstuffs were scarce due to stores being closed. Cell phones didn't work due to overload. Just missing zombies. Long story but it took a week to get home from an overnight business trip. I was not prepared by today's standards but made do. I bugged out for hurricanes the first few years I lived in NOLA. What a pain in the ass. Fuel, shelter, food and water was even hard to come by when bugging out. Live, learn and prepare. Katrina was a true disaster. I was fortunate to bug-in but not an option with 4-13 feet of water in your home. A bag with food & water is a necessity or you wait 10 days to eat or drink. I respect the OP for posting but the bag is a FAIL. Hey––no disrespect, but your post is FAIL. Suck it up and read the 16 pages before you bash the OP's set up. He's answered most of the above questions that you've posed, many months ago. If OP's bag sucked, do you think this thread would be 16 pages long and still around after 2 and a half years!? |
|
Anyone can add on after the fact. It's what you have before the fact that counts. My opinion has to do with the original post and the contention that the original setup was the bomb for an air traveler. It's not and I alluded to the fact that I didn't read the whole thread. I still don't have the time to read all 16 pages but I stick to my opinion, the original GHB is lacking for getting home 50 miles let alone cross country as the OP states in the title.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I commend the OP for putting his gear plan up for criticism. If, in the 14 pages I didn't read, the OP has completely altered the kit, I'm glad. But I commented on the original post and said so. If you have specific points of contention, bring it on as I have. |
Defend New Orleans!
|
Originally Posted By conman:
Anyone can add on after the fact. It's what you have before the fact that counts. My opinion has to do with the original post and the contention that the original setup was the bomb for an air traveler. It's not and I alluded to the fact that I didn't read the whole thread. I still don't have the time to read all 16 pages but I stick to my opinion, the original GHB is lacking for getting home 50 miles let alone cross country as the OP states in the title. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I commend the OP for putting his gear plan up for criticism. If, in the 14 pages I didn't read, the OP has completely altered the kit, I'm glad. But I commented on the original post and said so. If you have specific points of contention, bring it on as I have. Air travel sucks –– I avoid it as much as I can but still necessary more than I'd like. I have a hard time dragging anything useful through an airport, let alone a fully equipped BOB/GHB on a business trip. We'd all love to hear what you do/don't have, do differently, how often you travel, etc. This is a relevant topic for a lot of folks here and I would encourage you to read the whole thing if its relevant for you. Please don't end this thread w/ a pissing match and lock –– this ain't GD. Constructive criticism welcome, else would you mind starting a new thread and filling us in? Thanks, -Slice |
|
I would hope we're nowhere near a lock and trust everyone is open to discussion and debate.
I used to fly regularly for business but now avoid it as much as possible. I'm not P.C. when it comes to survival as I have experienced being cold, wet and hungry and was able to do something about it. I was brought up to make do before there were survivalists and preppers. The cavalry doesn't always arrive in time and I've seen alot of death due to lack of skills, preparation and natural resources. We have come so far in the last 100 years but a traveler 100 years ago was better equipped than most of the GHB/BOB stuff I see people post here. I applaud the creativity but deride the lack of basics. You can only count on the water, food, shelter and fire you have on your back, everything else is good fortune. I am not a minimalist but I pay strict attention to the weight of gear. The less each component weighs, the more I can carry. I limit my pack to 30 lbs. (15 food & water) and am self-sustaining for at least a week with a supplemental water source. If I were to fly with my pack, I would have to make other arrangements for the quart of alcohol, fixed and folding knives, matches and lighters to be approved for carry-on. I enjoy big city life to a certain extent but don't forget my roots. Urban living presents additional challenges in the event of emergency or disaster. A different form of survival is practiced by many. I limit my pack to 30 lbs. so I can carry an additional 30 lbs. in firearms and ammo concealed. I see alot of gear setups on here that are tactical in nature (molle & alice packs) with exposed firearms. Its been my experience that law enforcement confiscates all firearms they see (Katrina 2005). People can argue the legalities but it will be another time in a court of law. The gear in my bag is dedicated, meaning it doesn't rotate in and out. The pack lives in the toolbox of my truck. Most of the stuff is vacuum sealed to save space and be moisture resistant. I have a new Kelty pack I want to switch over to mid-April so I'll do a pic post then. |
Defend New Orleans!
|
Originally Posted By conman:
I would hope we're nowhere near a lock and trust everyone is open to discussion and debate. While you have many good points and have certainly ridden out some "interesting times", you should skim the thread for Ragnar's posts. Debating them without first knowing the source material is less than useful. Since you specifically brought up the issue of food, I will say that the longest I've gone without food has been 4 days, with very, very little food for periods up to 9, and I found Ragnar's experiences with caloric deficiency to match my own. Water, sleep and thermoregulation are a lot more important in the short run, and Ragnar's plan to get into a "pipeline" and get himself home via various social networks seems pretty well thought out. I'd like to read more of what you have to say on this subject, but think it should be in its own thread...unless you actually read this one. |
|
Originally Posted By _RAGNAR_:
Looking to do a GPS enabled smart phone when I get back, probably with no sim card and just keep it off the grid and use all the other functions, wi-fi, camera, etc. Just keep it in the pack. Then I can have a phone also. Now that Nokia has released its Ovi maps navigation software for free, I think that may be the best way to have real offline navigation as the maps can be loaded into the cell phone so that it doesn't require a connection while navigating. Works like a charm on my Nokia 5800- as do WLAN, UMTS/HSDPA internet access. I chose the option that it always asks before it goes online to prevent any "accidental costs". I have dozens of survival/medical pdf files on it as well as some survivorman videos (converted with XMedia recode). |
|
Originally Posted By Cato:
I have dozens of survival/medical pdf files on it That's brilliant. I was thinking of using my Dell mini for that purpose (which I probably still will), but having them on a phone as a backup is a great idea. |
“Be polite, be professional and have a plan to kill everyone you meet." - U.S. Military in Baghdad
|
Originally Posted By Xterra:
Those sporks are the shit arn't they  I've got a few and love them!They are not real good as either a spoon or a fork so I am uninterested. I'd just as soon carry a real fork and a real spoon. Or skip the spoon altogether. Wow! We managed to resurrect a 3 YO thread! I knew a number of people who were traveling on 9/11. Those that traveled by automobile had no real issues. Those that relied on air travel were at the mercy of others. Most of the people I knew who were out of town on 9/11 ended up driving home, either because they drove there in the first place, or they were able to get a one way rental (a couple guys I knew were in Toronto and got a one way rental back to Illinois). The people who were totally screwed were those who were overseas when the airports were closed indefinitely. They just had to wait it out. They were all in more or less civilized places, so it was just a matter of waiting. I am not convinced it is realistic to expect to get home after some end of the world type event, no matter how much gear you have with you if you do not have your own transportation. Walking home is not really an option if you are 1000 miles away. Its just not possible to carry the food and water you would need for any kind of extended period of time. At a gallon a day, a weeks worth of water is 60+ pounds. Somehow you are going to have to resupply your food and water. Going without food for a few weeks is not impossible. Most of us have a fair amount of stored reserves around our butts and waistlines. For most people a few days without food is a mental and emotional issue more than a physical problem.
But after a few weeks, its likely that lack of food will start to have a very serious effect on everyone. You can only tough it out so long before your body just gives up physically. |
|
Originally Posted By conman:
Kudos to Ragnar for posting, and I didn't read all 16 pages but: I Not even a candy bar or gum? Gum promotes saliva and buys a little time for hydration needs. Water, food and shelter (clothing) are the primary concerns in an emergency situation. The OP cites numerous "threat scenarios" during 2 of which my cell phone was useless. The OP is the baddest mofo on the planet. 3 weeks without food? How long w/o water? I'd be eating grass after 3 days if I didn't kit some foodstuffs. The 2 hardest commodities to attain after the fact in an emergency or disaster are food and water. The third is fuel. I respect the OP for posting but the bag is a FAIL. The OP has been to schools were they starve and beat the students to get them to understand how long they can go without food and water (further than you think if you have the will). Also if you cant get food and water with all the gear in that bag you are retarded (which RAGNAR is not) specifically there is enough gear in that bag to catch and cook fish and snare birds and squirrels in rural environment. If he had to "forage" in urban environment then all the other gear (lock picks etc) will allow a capable operator to gather food and supplies without a draw down. Any chance you can go out to your truck and show us what your bug out bag looks like for the win? |
|
Originally Posted By ilbob:
Wow! We managed to resurrect a 3 YO thread! I'm not particularly worried about resurrecting threads. I'd rather that people did that and could access opinions and ideas already expressed, than trying to reinvent the wheel. |
*post contains personal opinion only and should not be considered information released in an official capacity*
|
Been both gone and uninterested in posting for a while.
The food issue is just a math problem (not considering the mental issues of being hungry, as I said before step one: stop being a pussy) How many calories per day do you burn when you are doing basically nothing and your shelter is correct for the environment (i.e. temperature, convention, conduction, humidity, etc, etc.) That would be dependant on your weight, muscle to fat ratios, etc etc. There are calculators available online. Say 1800cal for maintenance with no exercise, 3000 at max exercise. When you are in really good shape you could burn more than 5000 a day but most of us cannot. Now you add in the lack of shelter and you could burn thousands more each day trying to keep warm. Every pound of fat can be converted to maybe 3500 cals. I’m carrying 20 pounds extra above the levels I need. 70,000 cals. That’s over 35-40 days of calories at basic metabolic rate without getting into eating muscle or getting fat levels below the safe levels. That’s IF I don’t exercise very hard and IF I control my shelter correctly. 3 minutes without air, 3 hours without shelter, 3 day without water, and 3 weeks without food are not just make believe numbers they are basic starting points that are true. They are also close to worst case scenarios, not THE worst case but close. There are many places where lack of shelter will basically never kill you and places (in the water in the arctic) that lack of shelter will kill you faster than 3 hours, (death valley) lack of water less than 3 days, etc. etc. But in a normal (if there is such a case) scenario almost ANY human, being bad ass or pussy, can go 3 weeks without food. That is just historical and scientific fact. Historically you can find many cases of 3 months without food, IF the shelter was good, they had water, etc. The pussy will just whine more. If you survival plan is to be realistic, scientific, and based on historical fact, step one is you MUST make sure lack of breathable air doesn’t kill you, then make sure lack of shelter won’t kill you, then make sure lack of water won’t kill you. Obviously if you CANNOT control your shelter correctly, then you better either have more calories to input or accept losing more of you onboard calories quicker (al la Chris Ryan…) Now if you can supplement your calories with even 500 a day you extend your useful days even more. Simple math, If you could go 35 days before (2000cals per day with 20 pounds fat) and you can somehow get 500 cals a day you get basically an extra 9 day. Now one BIG problem in survival is burning cals to get cals. That 500 needs to be basically for free for it to help. Add 1000 cals a day and your looking pretty damn good. Figure out how to get 1500 cals a day and you might be able to live forever. Not eating sucks, but it won’t kill you for quite a while. |
|
Don’t take my last post to infer I mean you can go months in a survival situation without food. In many if not most emergencies you will NOT have good shelter, and you WILL be exerting yourself physically.
As I mentioned earlier Chris Ryan lost something like 35 pounds in less than 10 days, which means he burned over 12,000cal a day with basically zero intake. Of course he was in top physical condition; most people couldn’t exert themselves to that level. A few days without food even in horrible weather/shelter conditions shouldn’t hurt anyone of even moderate condition. Sick, old, etc might obviously fare as well. In my experience after 5 days with no food I would get light headed and two times I had short (1-2 second0 “blackouts” when standing up. That was with really bad shelter in a desert with 90-100 degrees in the day and below freezing at night. Water may also have been an issue as I wasn’t able to do a truly scientific experiment to see if dehydration or lack of food was the culprit
|
|
Originally Posted By conman:
Kudos to Ragnar for posting, and I didn't read all 16 pages but: I estimate the equipment in the original post, with bag, to be at least 26 lbs. with the bladder filled with water. The water means its not carry-on for a plane. No food or change of clothes? What if checked baggage is lost or inaccessible? Not even a change of socks? Never been doused with fuel or soaked below 60 degrees? A person will either suffering from chemical burns or hypothermia without a change of clothes. Okay, OP retrieves checked baggage, so how much are we carrying around now? The OP doesn't state what's stowed in the SAW pouches checked. It better be all those homemade wiring kits, cook kit and the meds in bags or else he's missing his flight. Gear doesn't exist if luggage can't be retrieved. C'mon 4 knives on person for plane travel? Okay maybe transferred to checked luggage but non-existent if luggage is lost. 4 knives on person for EDC? A small Leatherman MAY make it through in a carry-on, but its better than nothing if no access to checked baggage. Not even a candy bar or gum? Gum promotes saliva and buys a little time for hydration needs. Water, food and shelter (clothing) are the primary concerns in an emergency situation. The OP cites numerous "threat scenarios" during 2 of which my cell phone was useless. The OP is the baddest mofo on the planet. 3 weeks without food? How long w/o water? I'd be eating grass after 3 days if I didn't kit some foodstuffs. The 2 hardest commodities to attain after the fact in an emergency or disaster are food and water. The third is fuel. All-out devastation doesn't need to happen to require a good GHB or BOB. During 9/11 I was downtown D.C. Right out of the disaster movies. No planes or trains available. Rental cars were gone by noon. Foodstuffs were scarce due to stores being closed. Cell phones didn't work due to overload. Just missing zombies. Long story but it took a week to get home from an overnight business trip. I was not prepared by today's standards but made do. I bugged out for hurricanes the first few years I lived in NOLA. What a pain in the ass. Fuel, shelter, food and water was even hard to come by when bugging out. Live, learn and prepare. Katrina was a true disaster. I was fortunate to bug-in but not an option with 4-13 feet of water in your home. A bag with food & water is a necessity or you wait 10 days to eat or drink. I respect the OP for posting but the bag is a FAIL. Serious reading FAIL, not to mention serious knowledge fail. Water CAN be carried on a plane, it just can’t be carried through security. Once again there IS food in the bag if you read. It’s nearly irrelevant IMO for real emergencies but nice to have for basic problems that hold you up. There are also socks and underwear, once again though NOT very important overall. If I get soaked with fuel I bet I am in civilization, or the remnants of it, not in the wilderness; therefore all kinds of shit can become clothes, in fact amazingly clothes are all over the place! Tried to carry leathermans without blades through security but they didn’t like it, somebody even makes one for air travel but I don’t think it will get through 99% of the time. Gum for saliva for hydration? What book did you reads that in? The cell phone is NOT critical, neither is ANY piece of equipment. Its all nice to have and makes life easier. As stated if you had read the thread at all, the bag is not for just all out devastation. In fact the strength of my stuff is its good for all situations not just big problems. Once again if the situation was leaving my home because of flood this would not be the bag! This is a bag specifically for air travel to get home. My vehicle and home gear is much different. Reading, it’s a skill. |
|
Ragnar, I seriously enjoyed and learned from your posting. I have even implemented many of your suggestions and equipment in to my preps.
Kudos to you for having the courage to post your bag. It's easy for others to sit back, examine you gear under a microscope and then snipe at you. Keep up the posts and don't be discouraged. |
| I learned alot also Ragner. I think the bag is pretty awesome and modeled my urban bag after some of the things you have in yours. And you are absolutely right on the food aspect. I have been without adequate caloric intake and in the field same as you and its not the end of the world. It sucks but you manage. Cold feet/Hands/dehydration...a whole other story |
At my challenge, by the ancient laws of combat, we are met at this chosen ground, to settle for good and all who holds sway over the five points: us natives, born rightwise to this fine land, or the foreign hordes defiling it.
|
Just got back from Europe (Netherlands and the UK) and carried a Swiss Tech Utili-key and peanut lighter through security at all locations in my carry on. I have found them both to be handy to have.
My basic everyday carry bag (which I carried on the plane and every day in Europe) is a 5.11 Push Pack. I like the 5.11 because it has two pockets for water bottles. I always carry two 1000ml Nalgene type bottles. I also carry a number of survival items, some influenced by the OP. One thing I took this time to try out was powdered energy drink called ZipFizz. They come in single serving hard plastic tubes (which are reusable and handy for other things like sewing kits, asprin etc) . You mix them with water as needed. Not sure if it does anything a cup of coffee doesn't do. I did drink one after a 9.5 hour all night flight and then a 3 hour drive with no sleep for over 30 hours. While I was tired I didn't have a problem with dozing off so I guess the jury is still out on whether it works or not. http://www.swisstechtools.com/productdetail.aspx?PID=VZ75GDTdP68A http://www.zipfizz.com |