Posted on 05/14/2009 6:13:12 PM PDT by appleseed
It pays to peek inside Anthony Hardwick’s pricey survival ‘bug-out’ bag
Back when I first got interested in survival preparedness, I’d have long discussions with friends about the necessity of always having a pack ready in case you ever had to make a quick evacuation. We discussed all the contents of our survival packs, and considered both short-term and long-term survival needs away from home.
Knives, tools, water, seeds, clothes, fire, shelter, light. We agreed that the ideal survival pack — also referred to as a “bug-out bag” — would be lightweight and not a burden. We would bring these packs on our desert outings and test how well the items did in field conditions.
We learned that the more you knew, the less you had to carry. The packs that were best were also the heaviest and the biggest. If you could always put your pack in your car and drive away, then weight and bulk wouldn’t be an issue. But the reality of emergencies is that things happen when you don’t expect them, at a moment not of your choosing, when you’re not necessarily ready.
More recently, I have been interested in finding out what people carry in their packs and why they made those choices. Outdoorsman Pascal Baudar recently held an event where everyone showed and talked about the contents of their bug-out bags, and I asked Pasadena resident Anthony Hardwick about his selections.
“One never knows when a natural or manmade disaster will strike,” says Hardwick.
(Excerpt) Read more at pasadenaweekly.com ...
An LED flashlight that uses a single AAA battery that will burn for 21 hours with 11 of those hours being regulated to give the same brightness as the first minute of fresh battery life, pretty much replaces the glow sticks which only have about a one or two year shelf life in a car.
Motorcycle with a full tank of gas. :)
Thanks for the ping!
Yes Yes. I remember the days of the Y2K survivalist here on FR. There were bunches of people like you who were hording water by the pickup truck load and lacked no shortage of dehydrated beans in their bunkers.
They also told me I was clueless and that I was going to see my property, family and life swept away in the anarchy and violence that would sweep the world on January 1st of 2000.
But that's enough of this thread. Arm-a-geddin outta here (ha ha...funny little play on words).
I’m not even going to read it. I’ve read too many of these “bug out bag” extremists that get too into it. All you need is something to get you by for a few days.
nuts and raisins
pencil and paper
cash
toilet paper
basic necessary meds
flashlight
poncho
comfortable hat
ground cloth(heavy plastic sheet)
bug repellent
socks and underwear
matches, lighter
sunblock
very minimal first aid kit
minimal toiletries
a map
compass(smaller the better, as long as it works)
knife and sharpening stone
very minimal toolkit
very small AM radio(shortwave is nice)
some booze(i’d suggest everclear, it can be used as fuel too, and disinfectant)
cigarettes, even if you don’t smoke
gum
hard candy
sunflower seeds
small stick of hard salami(maybe some slimjims)
crackers
caffeine pills(like no doze)
pain pills
muscle relaxers
small lightweight handgun, any tiny cheap old rimfire revolver, something like the one used to shoot ronald reagan
duct tape
tie wire
fish line
Para cord
P-38 canopener
lots of heavy duty plastic ziploc bags
a plastic garbage bag
large enameled metal coffee cup
razor blades
a hacksaw blade
a couple dust masks
sun glasses
a couple large bandannas.
rubber bands
a couple candles(short fat ones)
emergency handheld CB radio
Maybe a few other items...stuff that suits your expertise. For instance, if you are an electrician, pack a pair of needlenose plyers, multi screwdriver, and a tiny multimeter. If you are a locksmith, bring lockpicks and such. If you are a chef, bring a tiny assortment of herbs and spices, maybe olive oil.
Pack light and travel fast. choose stuff that can be traded easily as if cash, or offered as a token of friendship.
I don’t even know for sure what’s in my B.O.B. anymore. It’s been packed up for ten years or more. But it’s basically what I listed above. Maybe I’ll check the batteries before i go to bed tonight.
Tent, sleeping bag, tarp, blanket, food, stove, first aid. What I always carry.
Never heard of QuikClot?
Hadn't heard about cat litter for severe bleeding, but I have used Lamb's Ear while out hiking. The leaves are fuzzy and absorbent. Works great!
Phew! A stinker! lol
Thanks, that’s good to know.
In order of importance:
Firearms and ammo.
Water or water purification equipment.
Shelter (tent, poncho, ground cloth, etc).
Blankets or poncho liner.
Food (goes higher if you have small children)
Thanks for the link to the pocket chainsaw....Sounds like a good lightweight idea.
“$1,587?? That’s a Thurston Howell III bug-out bag.”
You got that right - for a 3 hour tour!!
Apparently the dogs got on the computer and saw this before I did... they brought in some sort of decomposed animal carcass and deposited it on the living room floor!!! Sorry guys, but that isn’t going in the backpack.
Who has $1,587 for a bug out bag anyway? Best to convert those dollars to small currency and pack it in your own garage sale/found items bag.
Those firesteels from firesteel.com work great. I got the 5 pack and found that the larger ones are the best. Also, the scrapers they sell last a long time and only cost $.89.
You seem insecure about something, there isn’t any reason a thread about preparedness should set you off.
Many of us here at FR carried BOBs in the military especially LRRPS, many of us here are outdoors-men and hunters that learned to carry survival kits and BOB in our cars when we are visiting remote areas where car trouble can mean a long, even overnight journey on foot.
Many of us here have been awakened by an earthquake and had to flee our homes, or had to flee fire when a BOB is a very good thing to have.
Personally I grew up in hurricane country and thought that preparedness was a way of life, even now in Sol. Cal. when the fires get close to my home I grab my BOB and set it by the door, I always refuse the voluntary evacuations so having a BOB is a sensible precaution for me as it is for anyone else.
Some people are just independent and in the American tradition of old we like to be ready for whatever life throws at us.
I have a customer that lives about 15 miles from her office where she had her office wear and shoes and nothing else, I’m glad that she now keeps a BOB that has the stuff in it that she will need if she ever has to walk that 15 miles home under unpleasant conditions during an emergency, or even if she just has to spend a night or two at the office instead of getting home.
I have 3 Pelican suitcases and one large pelican rifle case in my Liberty Gunsafe. I can open that and be loaded an out of the house in less than a minute with all we need for 72 hours if we are forced to leave due a incident that would make such necessary. We live a mile from a major rail line and all it takes is one chlorine car derailed etc .
I also keep our motorhome in the next town south of us if / in case our small ville gets greensburged by a tornado etc .....
Primary residence is always the best plan if power fails for a few weeks which has happened before. We’re snug as bugs where we are at .
People who live day to day die tomorrow......don’t worry about em !........:o)
Get one of these for your key chain and/or kits, they use regular alkaline, and lithium (ten year shelf life, below zero operation) batteries.
https://www.fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_69_49&products_id=435
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