Saturday, April 2, 2016

AtoZ Challenge: B - Bug Out Bag


One of the basic ways you can prep is by building a bug out bag. This bag contains everything you need to survive for at least 72 hours. What you put in it is entirely up to you depending on your lifestyle and what you need to survive.

I believe there are five major things you need in your bug out bag. These items include food, water, clothes, a knife, and a way to start a campfire. If you have all of these things then I think most people will be able to survive for 72 hours without too much trouble. Can you fit all of this in one bag? Absolutely.

For clothes you only need an extra pair socks and underwear. It's sometimes good to have an extra shirt. If you have room feel free to put in a spare pair of jeans. You want a pair of jeans because when walking through the woods or through rough terrain you want to protect your legs as much as possible.

Food can get expensive and take up a lot of space. You can get creative by buying power bars and MREs. You don't need a lot of food to survive for three days. You can stick a box of pop tarts, three or four cans of beans or Chef Boyardee, a box of power bars, and maybe some hard candy of some sort that will give you that burst of energy when you need it. You're not really worried about nutrition at this point. You just want to survive 72 hours. I'm more worried about fending off the hunger pangs.

You can keep several bottles of water in your bag. Water gets heavy so you want to be careful how much you carry. You also want to have enough to survive. If you don't have water, you can dehydrate really fast especially if you are hiking or climbing. I will keep two bottles of water in the side pouch of my backpack. I will also keep one or two ways to filter or clean water so I don't have to carry gallons of water. If I can keep a water bottle with a biofilter built in then I can drink water from any river, lake or stream. If I can carry chlorine tablets I can clean water pretty easily by adding a tablet to a jug of water.

A knife is an important tool to have with you all the time, not just an emergency. I always keep a pocket knife on my keychain. I use it several times a week. I use it to cut into boxes or wedge something out of my shoe or hundreds of different things that might come up in my life. I try to keep it sharp. There are many types of knives you can carry but a pocketknife is probably the most versatile. It's also one you can keep in your pocket and no one has to know that you're actually carrying it. You can keep a hunting or camping knife in your backpack but if you get caught by the law carrying a knife that's longer than what is legal then you might get in trouble. It's better to carry something that's legal for the public to carry.

I like to keep several different ways to start a campfire in my bug out bag. I keep a lighter and a box of matches in my bag but I also keep a battery and tinfoil or a striker of some sort with cotton balls covered in Vaseline. These are ways you can get a fire started pretty easily and in a pinch. If you can wrap these items up in some kind of container or even just plastic wrap to keep them dry then stuff them in the front pocket of your backpack then you'll be set and you won't have to think about it again. The only time you will need them is if you need to start a campfire.

There are many other things you can put in your bug out bag other than these five items. You can keep a radio or some kind of signaling device so if you were stranded somewhere you can signal far distances. You can keep a compass and a map in your bag so you know your way around the area you live. You can add a first aid kit in case you get hurt. All these things are important but the more things you put in your bug out bag the bigger that pack will have to be and most likely the heavier it will be. My suggestion to you is to pack smart and have that bug out bag ready at all times and in a spot that's easy to grab and go.

1 comment:

  1. This is a timely post! My family is working on our 72-hour kits this weekend. But I have to say "bug out bag" is a much more fun way to label it.

    Lexical Creations

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