AWOL Bag

Originally posted by stanstheman
How about a woman's point of view? I'd add unscented baby wipes (in a travel pack), chapstick, hair elastics, and advil!

Ok, so I think I'm fair enough, but I understand everything but the hair elastics. If you're working off of survival, couldn't you live with short hair? Like I said, I understand everything else, but the hair elastics?

I can see the feminists screaming at me already...

[edit on 10/25/06 by niteboy82]

Originally posted by niteboy82
Ok, so I think I'm fair enough, but I understand everything but the hair elastics. If you're working off of survival, couldn't you live with short hair? Like I said, I understand everything else, but the hair elastics?

I can see the feminists screaming at me already...

Well I'd be with three young girls, and since no one has mentioned scissors, I figured I'd need them to hold our hair back. Plus the tiny clear ones we use are pretty strong and could hold other stuff together. Besides they weigh less than an ounce! I'm bringing the darn elastics! Do you have daughters? Ever try to brush their hair under perfect circumstances? Try it, I dare ya!

See that's why you need us girls!

Originally posted by stanstheman
Do you have daughters? Ever try to brush their hair under perfect circumstances?

Try it, I dare ya!

See that's why you need us girls!

That's why you have the knife...to 'trim' their hair. Yeah, that's it. I still don't get the chapstick. Everything you listed are small, so there's no reason to leave them behind, except for a potential space issue.

Where the tampons at, women?

Thinking about that in combination with disasters makes me even happier to own a fine pair of testicles.

DE

Here's a good one.

How to tell time by the stars

We actually talked about this a while back. It started as a martial law thread, but went through alot of 72 hour bag stuff as well as radiation protection and the like.

this is the thread if you want to read it :

www.abovetopsecret.com...

-DT

Some form of salt/mineral supplement. With out a/c you literally can't drink enough water and fluids from May thru Sept anywhere south of Dallas/Forth Worth. Muscle cramps will make your rest/sleep cycle miserable.

I cycle a lot and tend to use salt liquorice for this, I don't know whether you can get it in America, it tends to be something more common on the continent, and in the Netherlands in particular.

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned a pint bottle of bleach. It can be used as a disinfectant (wash dishes in cold water), it is useful with some insect bites and in a pinch can be used to purify water. I'd also take a ziploc bag with some activated charcoal. In a pinch you can clean some sand with the bleach and make a workable water filter. I have also seen some 1 and 5 gallon plastic water bags. Carry the bags folded without water until you reach your destination and then fill them with potable water for an emergency supply.

Originally posted by RubberJohnny
I cycle a lot and tend to use salt liquorice for this, I don't know whether you can get it in America, it tends to be something more common on the continent, and in the Netherlands in particular.

Is this anything like saltwater taffy?

Originally posted by JIMC5499
I'm surprised that no one has mentioned a pint bottle of bleach. It can be used as a disinfectant (wash dishes in cold water), it is useful with some insect bites and in a pinch can be used to purify water.

Bleach? Really? As far as I knew, bleach was a horrible poison. To my knowledge, drinking even a little of it will give you the runs and if left on the skin it will result in chemical burn. I mean, I could be wrong because I've never tried either of these for obvious fear of the runs and chemical burn, but it's what I've heard my whole life.

Iodine tablets would, imho, be a much better choice for water purification. Baking soda, bacon, and toothpaste are all really good for insect bites for some reason if you have to improvise, but that does remind me of two things that will never leave my bug-out-bag again.

Chigger-X (red and white twisty plastic jar thingy with white cream) - If you get bit by chiggers, or any other insect, this acts as a seriously great local anesthetic, lasts for several hours. Chiggers, for those who've never been to southern USA, are the world's most horrible thing to get bitten by. Your legs feel like they are on fire for WEEKS, and they always attack in swarms, and you never know they're even on you till it's too late. Spend any time in the woods in the South and you will come to know chiggers very well...

...unless you also get powdered sulpher. The other thing that will never leave my bug-out bag. For some reason chiggers and similar insectoid demonds of pain have an aversion to sulpher, and it doubles as a nice foot powder. Put some in an old sock, bat your feet and ankles with it before you go out in the woods, and no chiggers will ruin your life.

Originally posted by thelibra
Bleach? Really? As far as I knew, bleach was a horrible poison. To my knowledge, drinking even a little of it will give you the runs and if left on the skin it will result in chemical burn. I mean, I could be wrong because I've never tried either of these for obvious fear of the runs and chemical burn, but it's what I've heard my whole life.

I drank bleached water before and I've not died. To remove the bad taste let the water sit for at least 48 hours.

You instilled a little doubt in me, so I did a quick search online just to make sure I was not being a Darwin candidate by poisoning myself with dangerous mix. Confirmed it is indeed okay to clean water with bleach, if you do it the proper way.

www.epa.gov...

If you can’t boil water, you can disinfect it using household bleach. Bleach will kill some, but not all, types of disease-causing organisms that may be in the water.

You can use a non-scented, household chlorine bleach that contains a chlorine compound to disinfect water. Do not use non-chlorine bleach to disinfect water. Typically, household chlorine bleaches will be 5.25% available chlorine.

Chlorine (in the form of unscented bleach) and iodine are the two chemicals commonly used to treat water.

Interesting. I'll have to remember that, thanks!

Looks like I've got a new item to add to the lot. I'd still prefer the iodine tablets, but bleach is going in my gearbox.

Oh, since it's related, I figured I'd toss the "gearbox" out there. It's basically for the Class 1 and Class 2 emergencies where you're lucky enough to get home with no problem, but looks like the next day or three is going to be rough. Or if you had time for a calm city-wide evacuation plan where you might only need or be able to transport the very important things. Basically stuff that would be nice to pack in your BOB but due to weight or bulk, would be likely candidates not included in it.

Of course the bug-out bag would be among them, but in the gearbox would be more like the gear for a camping trip (coleman lantern, propane stove, mini-propane tanks, tent, etc).

The more we discuss these things, the more I realize the different tiers of readiness and preparedness there are. There's the short term BOB of just trying to survive the next few hours or days, there's the medium term gearbox for getting through a bad time for a while, and then there's the lifelong preparations for the collapse of civilzation. Each has their own merits, and need for being ready before Situation X, but it's interesting now to see some of the dividing lines between these states of readiness.

Great thread Deus Ex.....

The idea of a personal survival bag is an excellent one. I think that everyone should have one. But, if you think about it, everyone needs several!

The biggest problem about a survival bag is actually having the bag with you or near you when a disaster or survival situation occurs. That's why it's a good idea to plan on having several kits; one for the office or work, one for the car (naturally a winter survival kit is always a good idea) and a small kit just to have with you but one that can easily be carried at all times. Of course, every home should have a survival bag -- ideally one for each family member.

When planning a survival bag, we should, perhaps, differentiate between these places; work, home and for casually carrying -- you know, the items that we should always have on our person.

A great place to find information on survival in every setting is from Rant Media's Patrolling with Sean Kennedy. Sean Kennedy is a former Canadian trooper who, besides being vocal, opinionated and, well, entertaining, he is very informative on everything survival.

Sean Kennedy offers bit torrent downloads of his half hour shows dealing with everything from day-to-day survival kits to high energy survival foods and individual pieces of gear; survival packs, battle axes and personal gear that you can easily carry in your pockets. Sean Kennedy even goes in-depth about what socks to wear. This is certainly "must see" material for anyone interested in survival -- urban or otherwise.


Screenshots from the first season of Patrolling with Sean Kennedy. Also a show by show listing of topics covered; from shining your boots to tactical underwear.

[edit on 10/27/2006 by benevolent tyrant]

Want to know what to put in a bob?

Go on a 3 day hike.

start with a day hike with a day bag and move to a 3 day, maybe a week if your up for it.

that will tell you just about EVERYTHING your going to need for a small period of time.

That will also tell you how your going to feel toting 50 pound on your back for a few days as well as how that fold up cooler was a bad idea and the moleskin was a great idea. You can make lists all day long, but until you are actually out there looking for gear, you don't know. Toilet paper is left out...every TRY wiping with leaves or snow? better try it out. you really don't want swamp ass on day 1. Gardia Lamblia? better know what that is kids....or you'll need more than leaves.....

Learn by trying things out. Get out there in the woods.

if you can do a 7 or 14 day hike, you won't even have to ask what you need for a bob besides guns.

-DT

appologies if anyone has " gloves " in a prior post .

if you really are in " situation " cold wet hands , are incapable of gripping - if you cut your finger off or hammer your thumb flat . then you really have made an already bad situation far worse -

your hands are yoyr life - and need all the protection they can get - even getting an infected abcess from a splinter generated using the axe / machete cited by several people to chop wood - can leave your hand almost useless if your access to medical technology is limited

protect your hands

and rope / cordage has been mentioned - if weaight / space is at a premium the even para cord / 550 cord - what ever it is called in your country

can in an emergency - [ ie the concequences of not using it are equal to / wose than what will happen if it breaks ] be used as a rope subsitute

do NOT attempt to abseil with it - but you can pull a companion out of a hole with it [ its IIRC 150kg capacity ]

but you need gloves to handle rope without injuring your hands .

also latext or nitrilee gloves are vital for hygine / medical aid - esp if you are giving medical aid to a stranger - you do not want to become infected with what they have

so gloves :

latex " barrier " type

leather protection / working

insulated / water proof .

obviously - your work and weather glove choice will depend on the local envoronment - and are to a degree intergangable

Good thread!

Gloves

If you have some thin work gloves they can be made waterproof by using a latex/rubber glove over it, or wear the glove over the rubber gloved hand (if you have small hands and large rubber gloves). I use latex gloves as liners under motocross gloves and it kept my hands warm riding 70mph at night in 15-20deg f temps on snowboard trips. Rubber gloves can also be used as condoms can, for water carrying, spring triggers, etc. and if you cut a finger that won't stop bleeding, a finger cut off the glove and taped over the injured finger will keep you from bleeding all over the place and can be riged up in seconds. I work in the kitchen, cuts and burns are commonplace, and by far the most widely used method of securing a bloody finger on the fly in a hygenic manner that'll last until the rush is over. If you're being tracked, the last thing you want to do is leave a blood trail, so slipping on a glove and taping the whole wrist can keep a bleeding hand from giving you away. It's not proper first aid, just a quick fix, but it works well.

Modular Survival

First, i go nowhere without my camelback. I'm never more thana few steps from it at work or at home, and it contians what i consider the most essential items in my existence. I use everythign in the bag and don't have anything i don't use. I've got enough stuff in there to cover te basics of what i find i need on the daily. I keep my wallet, checkbook, keys, lighter, waterproof matches, large needles kept inside a sharpie pen with the guts removed which doubles as an emergency straw, a roll of waxed sinew, a cheap pocket knife, superglue, some duct tape, a section of bicycle innertube rolled and folded over itself. If i need a rubber band i cut one off, if i need a wide rubber band i cut one off, if i need the whole strip, it's there. I could also tie an end and hold a small amount of whatever, if needed, or for a tourniquet. It'll work as a replacement for a bungee if it's long enough to tie the ends. I've got some spare change in the bottom,in a pinch a coin can be used as a screwdriver if you'vw got tough hands. I also carry a GPS with some charged up batteries, and a larger foldng knife/mess kit with a fork, spoon, can opener, and corkscrew. I've got my passport in the bottom inside a shielded pouch just in case there's an RFID in it. I also have my knife case for cooking,, with an assortment of chefs knives, a santoku, paring knife, boning knife, bone cleaver, another cheap folding pocketknife,and a few other random items. If i'm bailing out, i'm grabbing that also, as it's with me a lot of the time. My 8" chefs knife is set up to go inside a pocket and quickdraw at the flick of a wrist. I can go from completely concealed to wielding a razor sharp 8" blade like a little katana in the blink of an eye. I made the quickdraw sheath out of some 5 gallon buckets cut to sheet stock, and then welded together with precisely applied heat.



If i'm at home and plan on bailing for an indefinite period, i've got an 85 liter internal frame pack ready for whatever, i can got to the equater or the arctic with it on a moment's notice. I'd prefer to hit the arctic though, and i pack a camo poncho liner, 40deg bag, fleece liner, ultralight tent (wenzel Starlite, I love it!) heavy fleece, top and bottom, a 10x12 tarp, 75' of 1/4" line, 50' of 3/8" line, inflatable pad, or i can grab a selection of foam pads at the ready next to the door, that way i can pick a pad on the fly for the conditons i'll be expecting. I've got 6 heavy duty aluminium stakes for whatever, a hatchet/hammer, soda can alcohol burner stove, 1qt fuel (Heet brand gasoline additive is pure alcohol and burns hot with no soot) a coffee can for a cooking pot, a bread pan, lots of bandannas, and that entire rig hangs at the ready surrounded by a HUGE duffle that i can pack more stuff into, or juat grab the frame pacj and run. I've got gloves and some other assorted but useful crap in there too.

My bug duffle holds my entire frame pack ready to rock, with lots of room to spare and extra pockets. I could toss quite a bunch more stuff around the pack if i'm buging out for good, and want to quick pack some additional stuff. I can even toss my camelback inside that whole setup, zip it shut, and have one huge bag to carry, which i can sling on my back and tote, even if it's 100lbs of crap, i'm a big dude so toting that huge thing is no big deal.

I also have my "pro" bag, or my protection gear setup. I've got elbow, knee, elbow and forearm pads, a few sets of different types of gloves, a few extra camelbacks of different sizes, and my bike/skate/snowboard/climbing helmet hanging there with it.

I keep a bag at the ready not because of social upheaval or disaster, but because today, tomorow, or next week, whenever, a friend might come by and say "let's go!" and i'll be ready to leave in 5 minutes, be it for an hour or a season.

This winter I'm reducing all my possessions to what i can transport with my survival vehicle, possibly pulling a trailer:



Mainly, i've had enough of being a slave to material things, so i'm reducing. Aside from this computer, and my survival stuff I'm down to about 6 milk crates worth of stuff, half of that which still needs getting rid of. Once I'm free of all my crap i'll probably just bug out for good anyways and find a remote location somewhere where i can live primitively, hunter gatherer style, and eventually return completely to nature.

I don't have any hygeine products because, i don't use 'em. Toothpaste and brushing teeth is a dental conspiracy to keep us coming back, that's why dentists reccomend scrubbing your grill with abrasive chemicals and bristle brushes, scrub that protective layer of crap right off and expose bare enamel to the elements. I haven't brushed my teeth in 20 years, i have every tooth, not a cavity, never had a toothache, ever, never been to a dentist, i just clean my teeth with a rag and gargle/swish with plain ol' water. If we were meant to scrub our teeth like that there'd be toothpaste trees in nature. When i'm out, i don't bother washing either, if i smell, i smell, like the trees and rocks care. If i really need some soap i'll yank up a piece of yucca root or other soap bearing plant.

Hair

One word, dreadlocks.

no maintenanace necessary, just follow the rastafari rules, let your hair do what it wants, no combing, no cutting, just let it grow like caveman and wear a beanie, a tam, or a turban like most haircare ignoring peoples do. I recently shaved my melon, but probably for the last time, as this time my hair is just gonna grow however it grows. Dreads can act as camo also, think ghillie suit, break up the outline a bit, and look more like an animal in the brush.

At one time i had half my head dreaded up, and the other half groomed, and the dreaded side stayed cleaner, and didn't get as oily and nasty as the "hygenic" side.

Your milegae may vary, i'm part neanderthal i think, i'm rugged, and have no standards when it comes down to it, so i believe i've got the ultimate survival advantage. I wear shorts and a tank top year round, rain, snow, sun, and i'm pretty oblivious to cold, if it drops below freezing i might get a little bit of a chill and consider long sleeves. I welcome a good challenge of body and will to let me know i'm still alive. When it comes down to it, if you're prepared to survive mentally and emotionally, then the physical part is easy.

Physically, i'm made out of a thick layer of scar tissue and mended bone. What don't kill you makes you stronger, and i'm pretty damn tuff and alive. My hands can reach into boiling water, handle glowing coals, i even can dunk a finger in 400deg fryer oil without a mark. Most of my nerve endings are desensitized in all the commonly injured areas, like lower legs, and arms, hands and feet, taking a baseball bat to the shin would be no big deal, and simple fractures are mild annoyances anymore, hell, i was snowboarding last season with a broken shin, i could feel the bone moving, but i just kept riding and it healed up. It's the delicate dainty insecure inconfident weak willed city slicker gringos who break a pinky finger 10 miles from help and die from it, i'm not that guy.

So, that's how i roll. Like i said, most of you probably have some standards but drop me butt nekkid in the middle of nowhere blindfolded at night, and I'll be alright, happy even, that i'm getting a vacation from this twisted thing we call civilization..

Hi Dezertskies,

Mind if i ask how long you have been living this way?

Also, and no offence meant with this question, are you single? I'm serious when i ask that, i'd reckon that many a woman out there would find it hard to be with someone who lives this way. I'd have also thought that your "look" would kind of conflict with the typical snowboarders image?

Actualy thats something i don't seem to have seen a lot of here, mention of the partners. It's ok you knowing everything that will keep you alive when the fit hits the shan, being able to move at a moments notice but won't ya missus be a bit pissed as you head off across country forgetting that she's still sorting the kids out?

Anyway, Dezertskies, you seem to have everything in order so best of luck with all that. I'm especially fascinated why on earth you'd stick your fingers in boiling oil, i find the traditional method of a basket less painfull to get my fries out with!

CX.

Over the past several years i've been practicing minimalist living, and yes, i'm single. I don't know any women whow would put up with my kind of craziness, and i enjoy the freedom more than i would the companionship. I've got no wife, no whip, no kids, no property/houses, no car, and a few select toys like snowboard, skateboards, and this thing:



My biketrials rig. I can break it down and strap it to my bike. I'm considering getting a trailer to pull with the KLR to haul the toys wherever, the only major thing i need to either get rid of or find a way to transport is my motocross bike, a YZ250. I could pull the MX machine on a trailer, but i wouldn't have much load capacity left over for anything else. Fine if i'm just toting it to the track but it won't be getting towed to alaska like that.

Snowboarder image? I don't do image unless i'm on stage or screen for live theater or movies/shows. I've been on BBC, in some movies, and on lots of international channels that i never heard of or remember, and that's when i do image Otherwise i'm just me and anybody who don't like it can,, well you get my point.

As for fryer oil, it keeps the fingertips tough. Just last night i was dicing an onion on the fly with my razor sharp santoku, and the board slipped a bit, i nailed my thumb and the razor sharp blade barely penetrated my first layer of rawhide before stopping the blade. Soembody else said "your hands are your life" which is true, and to me tht means i want the toughest most rugged hands that can be had. That means no pain no gain conditioning, it means 1/4" thick calluses over the entire surface, can touch glowing metal, handle boiling oil,and resist punctures and cuts like good leather.

It's also for mental conditioning. You guys can call me a nut, but using your mind you can minimize damage. One day I was carrying 5 gallons of 400deg fryer oil to the tallow box and had it splash up my forearm and the rag flipped over on it. I felt the skin sizzling, but i quicky visualized a barrier beteween my skin and the oil. When i finally got to lift the rag, there wasn't so much as severe rednesss, and no blisters. It got on some fairly uncalloused skin on my wrist and didn't leave a mark. Practicing dealing with pain and not panicking goes a long way towards being useful when it really matters.

Also, i don't live in the city, the small town where i can walk anywhere i need to go and my front door is past the trailhead, with a view of the entire part of town i live in directly below. I've got the high ground, or as sun tzu woud say, "maneuvering in the heights of the sky". If the NWO nato troops do come to my town, I'm a 30 second sprint into rugged harsh mountians that i can navigate blindfolded if necessary, or have several "lost" mineshafts and stuff to dodge the flirgun should the global ghetto birds be looking to dartgun me with a tracking chip. From here, i could work my way out of the region travelling in no-mans-land for quite some distance unless they've got a guy behind every bush and rock in places that are barely noted on even detailed maps.

My family has a canyon a few miles and canyons over, off the grid, with water, solar, and shelter in a place with lots of game. I can get there from the trail that i live on now.

The reason i'm looking at the worst case scenario is because that's what it's gonna take to happen in order for police state to come to my hood, if there's NWO thugs here, that means the rest of the outland has already fallen to them anyway, so it'd be time to survive or die.

Even if nothing at all like that happens, i still want to be completely self sufficient and mobile, so i can just go where i want. When my bail out bike is all set, i want to go chase the good snow during winter, and spend a summer above the arctic circle without being obligated to return to anywhere or anyone.

I just don't have any motivation to be rich, famous or to be accepted by a society that i refuse to accept in the first place, that's all the stuff we're programmed to lust for and fight over to keep us occupied with slavery instead of actually living. Blingin ride, a pimpin castle, fresh gear, and a fly girl (or hot guy for you ladies) is selling yourself to corporate slavery, where the ultimate powers that be control you financially, or doing dirt, slingin' dope for the CIA, scamming, embezzling, robbing, doing whatever to get to "the top" (which is basically becoming the top guy of the bottom class, you may have tons of shiny fancy crap, but you're a slave to it, and therefore just a slave to your material crap, being kept in denial with slick dicrete advertising tactics, poisons in the food to keep the mind and body weak (Impairing health by forcing the slave class to buy the foods with the chemicals is mind control, the "remote control human" idea is disinfo, it's much more subtle) and to keep us all struggling for nothing that's going to matter in 100 years anyways. Every monkey wants the shiniest rock and he'll kill all the other monkeys to get it, that's how society is being trianed to operate and i'll have no part of it other than speaking against the staged facade that is our entire "civilized" existence.

You have voted DezertSkies for the Way Above Top Secret award. You have two more votes this month.

Thanks for the reply Dezertskies Your post shows what people who are interested in surviving may have to resort to one day. It's ok planning and living the survivalist life from the comfort of your central heated semi, but it's another thing actualy living it!

Well i take my hat off to you for living this way and whilst i may find some of your methods extreme or even amusing, i certainly would'nt ever call you a nut for it. I think we all get enough of that by just talking about conspiracies!

It must be quite comforting knowing that you could look after yourself anywhere, many people can't even look after themselves in the environment they live in every day let alone an unfamiliar one that they may one day be thrown to.

Anyway, as i said before, best of luck with everything.

CX.

Hey Cx, thanks! Yeah, it's comforting knowing that no matter what happens, i'm ready, even if it's just a case of boredom and a want for change in scenery.