Do I really need...

O

OmegaJuicebox

Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
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a survival kit? This may seem like a no-brainer, but I don't want to lug around my survival kit along with my daypack stuff. I'm going to be going camping during spring break with some church folk at a park and was wondering if I really needed one. I also think hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. I'm not only asking this because I'm going camping, but hopefully hiking as well, but not necessarily with other people. (I sometimes like to go out and think by myself if you know what I mean.) I've got a strong feeling all of you are going to say yes. I still can't believe I'm asking this though.
 
Why not put a good kit together and then break it up for carry among the different folk?
If you are in a tight knit group, you might not need a survival kit per se, but your group does need one. Make sure the bases are covered.

Okay - I just gave you a moral imperative. You are now obligated to follow up :)
 
THat depends on you..do you NEED one... Probably not bit if stuff goes south you'll probably wish you had one... I think allot of focus goes on what makes a good kit or a good knife etc etc.. but if you don't practice with your gear the best kit in the world won;t help you.. example if you have 3 space blankets and a small fishing kit in your psk, and never practiced making a shelter, and fishing.. you might have a problem..
ALso how comfortable are you with the environment you'll be in and your skill set??
I don't really carry a psk kit witih me I carry an SPK (skills practice kit) some basic pocketable elements that I can use if an opportunity for me to practice some bushcraft pops up...my kit is small and unoticable and can also deal with a good amount of unforseable emergencies...Allot of people go hiking with out a knife and without a psk or without anything and come back fine...I AM NOT condoning this I'm just pointing out that under controlled circumstances the wilderness is a pleasant place to be..
 
Not an unreasonable question at all.

I often wonder about the merits of carrying a PSK in addition to a full set of gear when I'm hiking / camping etc. It's tempting to think of it as a redundant addition to a pack. On the other hand, I'm always mindful of those situations where you may leave your full pack behind, and that's when having a dedicated PSK on your person is important. I carry mine in a camera case that can be attached to my pack and easily detached for belt carry. This comes in handy for side trips off-trail, short hikes, etc.

I just finished reading Les Stroud's "Survive". He recommends carrying a PSK in addition to a 'complete survival kit', but with a bit of a twist. Instead of advocating a dedicated PSK 'kit', he lists a few items that should be carried about one's person at all times: bandana, compass, flashlight, garbage bags, lighter, matches, mag block, metal cup, multitool, painkillers, paracord, protein bar, belt knife, space blanket, whistle, and ziploc bag. His logic is that while a kit may be lost, it is unlikely that one would lose a range of items distributed throughout a number of pockets. It's an interesting philosophy, but personally, I'm inclined to stick with my PSK + belt knife.

All the best,

- Mike
 
I sort of consider my daypack as my maxi kit. It has everything I need for an unexpected stay in the woods. Carry some essentials, know how to use them, and you'll be good to go.
 
All good advice given :thumbup:

If not a dedicated PSK I would at least carry some basic essentials on a solo hike. You never know.
 
You ~probably~ don't need one at a developed park. But it's good practice. So why not?

It doesn't need to be a separate pack from your daypack, but make sure your daypack includes the Ten Essentials.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Essentials

Obviously customize the Ten Essentials for the environment and season. "Emergency food" and "Extra clothes" mean completely different things in a New York State Park compared to the South Pole. ;)
 
"Do I really need a survival kit?"

No. A resounding no. Absolutely not. You are programmed by evolution to survive with just your shoes. Hell, you probably don't even need shoes.

Besides, the rest of us all like reading those stories about the unprepared hiker who nearly dies from exposure. Makes us feel better prepared 'cuz we do carry a kit.
 
To the OP

Out of curosity, are you intending on taking a First Aid Kit (FAK) ?

Personally I don't carry a PSK as such, but rather a FAK that has a few useful items added to it.

Works for me :thumbup:


Kind regards
Mick
 
A survival kit is like a first aid kit: something that, if all goes well, you never use, but carry anyway, just in case. It doesn't ahve to be big, as it's a survival kit, not a comfort kit.

Here's one I did a while ago:
100_0064.jpg


Top row gives me a triangular bandage, bandanna bug dope, water purification tablets and a signal whistle.

Second row has an AMK heat sheet, fresnel lens (fire), and compass with caribiners.

Last row has two matchsafes, Coleman tinder sticks, Light My Fire firesteel and a Bic.

Couple that with the FAK, knife and water bottle you should have anyway, and you have shelter, fire and water to survive.
 
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I for one am not going to tell you WHAT TO TAKE, and neither will most people here unless you ask them to. :) It's not like that. What someone takes is very much a synergy of self-knowledge, skill levels, gear, physical abilities, and expected challenge level of your environment. On the other hand there are several first hand accounts of guys on this forum who used a multitool or a first aid kit to creatively to assist another member of their group who was, to say the least, less than sensibly prepared.

Along the same lines, every so often around this forum, someone posts a question like, "What if you could only take five things with you into an unknown survival situation?" Old timer's groan, but truth be told, people love to chime in on these kind of threads. A typical answer would be, "knife, metal pot, fire source, canteen, sleeping bag." Alternative answers vary by an item or two, say substituting cordage, a tarp, a first aid kit, a compass, .22 rifle, a bible, a book of edible vegies, etc. for one or two of the previous five. Rarely if ever do any two lists exactly match, if you get my point...

Another random thought. The Native Americans are credited with inventing the concept of the possibles bag, which has more or less morphed into the modern bug out bag (BOB). Point being, even highly skilled woodsmen rarely went empty-handed into the wild places. Oetzi the Iceman was discovered with a little survival kit hidden in his belt which consisted of some flint blades, some tinder fungus, and a bone awl IIRC, thus I believe epitomizing the unoffical bushcraft motto, "The more you know, the less you need to carry."

I personally think the Brits have a very sensible take on PSK's where the whole kit is based on mainly just sitting down, making a little fire, and having a cup of tea/coffee/cocoa. The whole idea is that the process of making a cup of tea involves many survival skills culminating in a moment of calm reflection, so my advice would be to make sensible preparations a way of life, as opposed to a dramatic crash program. Take an approach of moderate change and ongoing self-education. Use some of your wandering time to doing things like practicing identifying useful plants, making wooden spoons, setting traps, creating cordage, and doing other bushcrafty things around your home and backyard as well as during your woodwalks to build up and diversify your skills.

One final note. YouTube.com has a bunch of great videos on everything from fire making, gear and knife reviews, food harvesting, and so forth, some of which have been contributed by active members of this forum. Hopefully you'll find some of this helpful.:)
 
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G'day Cpl Punishment

Cpl Punishment said:
A survival kit is like a first aid kit: something that, if all goes well, you never use, but carry anyway, just in case.
Click to expand...

Yes & no :D

As always the devil is in the detail.

For example:

How would your "survival kit" as listed treat a blister?

How would it go at treating a burn?

How would it treat a case of the trots?

How would it treat a simple cut / scratch to stop infection?

How would it deliver pain and inflamation relief from a sprained joint or a torn muscle?

How would it prevent an alergic reaction?

Apart from wetting the bandanna and fanning it through the air and applying as a cold compress, how would it treat a fever?

In my experience, all the above are realistic occurances when out in the bush.

IMO, A FAK is exactly that, a PSK is a PSK.

IMO a PSK is no substitute for a properly equiped FAK. However a FAK that is modified to add a few useful items is not only a FAk, but also a substitute for a PSK :thumbup:

Bear in mind as usual, YMMV :D



Kind regards
Mick
 
SouthernCross said:
IMO, A FAK is exactly that, a PSK is a PSK.

IMO a PSK is no substitute for a properly equiped FAK. However a FAK that is modified to add a few useful items is not only a FAk, but also a substitute for a PSK :thumbup:

Bear in mind as usual, YMMV :D



Kind regards
Mick
Click to expand...

I don't disagree with most of what you said, but I did not read CP to imply that a PSK is a substitute for a FAK and vice versa. I believe he said that they are similar in that you'd rather not be in the postion of having to deploy either one. Slight difference, as I see it.

BTW, I also cross-equip my PSK's with first aid gear and equip my FAK's with fire starting tools, a multitool, an improviseable shelter, etc.. Injury and survival situations just always seem to go together like peanut butter and jelly. :)
 
SouthernCross said:
IMO a PSK is no substitute for a properly equiped FAK. However a FAK that is modified to add a few useful items is not only a FAk, but also a substitute for a PSK :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Yeah, you misread what I said, or filled in some blanks I left incorrectly.
The PSK is to be in addition to the FAK, not a replacement for it.

I don't believe combining the two into one kit is really a good idea because:
1.) You don't add enough FAK stuff to the PSK to really be useful.
2.) You don't add enough PSK stuff to the FAK to really be useful.
3.) If you do, it's a full kit, not a FAK or PSK.
 
G'day Cpl Punishment

Cpl Punishment said:
Yeah, you misread what I said, or filled in some blanks I left incorrectly.
The PSK is to be in addition to the FAK, not a replacement for it.
Click to expand...
This being the case, my sincere appologies. I agree, a PSK is no substitute for a FAK :thumbup:



Cpl Punishment said:
I don't believe combining the two into one kit is really a good idea because:
1.) You don't add enough FAK stuff to the PSK to really be useful.
2.) You don't add enough PSK stuff to the FAK to really be useful.
3.) If you do, it's a full kit, not a FAK or PSK.
Click to expand...
I will preference my response to this by remembering that the areas in which we get out and about in are different, and that these differences will come with different considerations.

Firstly, since most FAK's come with some form of heat sheet (in a worst case scenario they will keep the rain off) a quickly erected emergency shelter is taken care of with a standard FAK.

Secondly, to give an idea of the few useful items I add to to my FAk, they are:

A mini bic and a square (approx 1'' x 2'') of 3 ply cardboard soaked in parrafin wax as an emergency firestarter.

A very small fishing kit that has not only taken fish, but reptiles and birds as well :thumbup:

These additions give me with the ability to use my FAK to stay dry / warm, get a fire going and get a feed.

If in an area with water that needs treatment before drinking, chemical treatment tabs take up very little room in the FAK.

As I normally wear an analogue watch, during dayligh hours I don't need a backup compass :D

So my FAK gives me not only the ability to address a range of medical issues, but also provides shelter, fire, a feed and drinking water (if in an area with contaminated water) with very little in the way of additional bulk to the standard FAK.

So personally, I've got to disagree that you can't add enough PSK stuff to a FAK to be usefull as this has not been my experience.



Kind regards
Mick
 
OK, I'm still going to disagree a bit.
Note to everyone: I don't mean to argue, but to present an alternative view. Each person needs to make up their own mind on what is needed.

1.) No FAK I've ever bought has had a space blanket, much less the far better Heat Sheet, so it's not a given, and I really never even thought to look for one in a FAK. But then, I buy FAKs because the bags are well laid out the way I want, and usually end up replacing most of the stuff, anyway, so i probably don't look at the contents as much as the container.
2.) You only have one firestarter (although it's probably not the only one you carry). Fire is critical, IMO and with minimal shelter, can mean the difference between living and not. Also can help with water purification should you run out of tablets. Maybe my area is just a lot wetter than yours, and fires are not a sure thing, so multiple methods are called for.
3.) Water tabs. True, they don't take up much room. I prefer army canteens and their carriers have pockets for purification tabs, so I store most of them there. The 4 in the kit are just backups. This is just more of a storage difference.
4.) That's actually my primary compass and gets caribinered to my pants. I keep it in the kit so I don't forget it. That one has been replaced by a Suunto MC-2G
5.) I get accused of carrying a portable hospital, rather than a FAK, so there just isn't much room for extras in mine! ;)

Mostly just differences in perspective, I guess.
 
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