I survived, detailed log of my entry for the survival contest

I have one of those Petzl E-lights; I totally recommend it.:thumbup: It comes in a 3" X 1.5" or so storage case, but the light itself is tiny - not much bigger than your key chain light. It has several settings and works great. I got mine to keep with my motorcycle's tool kit, but I use it a lot for camping.
 
E-lights are great. The Photon Proton are awesome and have very long runtimes as well. If ya like handheld .
 
Hi Luke you are welcome. I used the fanny pack thing to but I did not like the way my nalgenes rode to and got rid of it to and went with a different carry system.

yea the mini solo is a real neat set up. Well I think anyways LOL

Bryan
 
These are quickly becoming my favorite threads.

Again with the cold feet. This is becoming a recurring problem on this forum. With the collective knowledge here, we should be able to address this issue.

Naked, what material are your socks?

Should dry socks be a necessary part of a kit?

I always have 2 pairs when hiking/hunting/camping. I like wool or high-wool blends. Wool socks are also excellent for crossing streams - take your boots off, cross in the wools (like fly fishing wading boots), and then dry your feet and put on the dry ones. Tie the others outside your kit/pack to dry - or dry by the fire. Keep rotating/drying and make sure they are dry when retiring for the evening.

What do you guys suggest to help address this recurring and potentially very serious problem?
 
What a terrific post. Your actual practice really cut to the truth about dealing with basic needs out there. Clearly, you have: 1.) mental discipline, and 2) the ability to adapt.
 
I was wearing Thorlo socks, really thick hikers. I usually don't have too much trouble with cold feet, but I wonder if in part it was because my body has trying to keep warmth in its core?

I'm going canoeing right before Christmas for 3 days, so I'll have a chance to test out some ways to keep my feet warm. I took my shoes and socks off several times to re-heat them and dry my socks.

I do have pretty sweaty feet though. When canoeing I wear some thin poly liner socks.

My wife has a terrible time when canoeing with cold feet, but she has some poor circulation in her feet for some reason. We are going to try out some of those electric socks for her.

brians said:
These are quickly becoming my favorite threads.

Again with the cold feet. This is becoming a recurring problem on this forum. With the collective knowledge here, we should be able to address this issue.

Naked, what material are your socks?

Should dry socks be a necessary part of a kit?

I always have 2 pairs when hiking/hunting/camping. I like wool or high-wool blends. Wool socks are also excellent for crossing streams - take your boots off, cross in the wools (like fly fishing wading boots), and then dry your feet and put on the dry ones. Tie the others outside your kit/pack to dry - or dry by the fire. Keep rotating/drying and make sure they are dry when retiring for the evening.

What do you guys suggest to help address this recurring and potentially very serious problem?
Click to expand...
 
Thorlo's are great socks. I use them as well. That moist environment of yours must exacerbate the problem.

What about high-calorie foods? Did you chow down big before trying to sleep?

Although not for canoeing, my wife uses a down sock for sleeping. Integral Designs also make Hot Sox - a primaloft/cordura sock for the campsite. Not exactly the stuff of psk's, but effective.

Great thread Naked - thought provoking. Other suggestions guys?
 
Mike Fitz said:
One thing to remember before you start thinking about ditching stuff you didn't use is it's a survival kit. Just because you didn't need it on this particular overnighter on that night, don't forget you might really need some of those items to survive one day. Just my two pennies.
Click to expand...

I want to reiterate what Mike says above. That was running through my mind as I was reading your excellent report.

I do a bit of hiking and playing in the woods, but I don't start a fire from one month to the next, but it doesn't stop me from carrying more than one effective fire starting tool plus I do bow drill and hand drill.

Once again, excellent report, and I have to add, kind of gutsy, considering your current physical condition. :thumbup: :thumbup:

Doc
 
An absolutely great report.:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
I wonder if putting a plastic bag over your socks would have helped your cold feet.
On very cold hikes I have used liner socks against my skin and then a plastic bag inside of and outside of my regular socks.
These PSK test posts have me thinking about an extra set of socks and 4 plastic bags as part of my cold weather kit.
Anyone else have any ideas to combat cold feet?
 
Hey Naked thats a very well writen report. You come across very clear. Try to use two large trash bags. Cut the bottom open on one and pull it all the way up and the second one use to cover your feet and bottom part of the body... This challange to survive 24 hour is a great idea.. It would be an intresting idea to do it for 48 hours next time. Just need to get over my P.O. Realy good report.

Sasha
 
TedPalmer said:
Mt pisqua? (not sure of the spelling) but looks like that area.
great job!

Ted
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Nice try! It's by the Williamette River north of Beltline. I'm looking for some other local places that are close. This one is hard to beat as it's literally less than 5 minutes away and relatively vacant.
 
naked's remarks about getting smacked in the face by the branch and popping a lens out of his glasses got me thinking about how important vision aids are for some of us. I have poor eyesight, and I wear glasses all the time. Without them, everything is blurry and my depth perception is off. If I were in a survival situation and my glasses broke, I would be pretty SOL.

For those in similar circumstances - do you regularly pack a spare pair of glasses in your PSK or regular wilderness gear setup? A hard-shell glasses case takes up a lot of room - too much for most small PSK containers. But I'm now convinced that I need to revise my setup in order to accommodate this item.

So, thanks again naked! Your report has inspired me to add spare glasses and another light source to my kit.

All the best,

- Mike
 
Great report! Thanks for the tips and the candid journalling. How about a run down of some places to pick up gear like yours?
 
Naked,
I am using a TrueNorth Loadmonster (http://www.truenorthgear.com/product_detail.php?path=5&p_id=60). It is a "fanny pack" with shoulder straps. For me, it is better than either the "fanny pack" (I previously used the same one you have) or the day pack I used to use. The side pockets carry Nalgene 1L bottles with a metal cup, and the metal cups make it easier to get the bottles in and out. Thus I carry two bottles and two cups. I like the Practical Tactical cups (http://www.practicaltactical.net/prostores/servlet/-strse-237/MSR-Stainless-Steel-Nalgene/Detail). If you are upgrading, please give these items some consideration.

Spud
 
naked said:
Here is the clothing that I wore:
IMG_6788.JPG


And here are some non-PSK items that I normally carry, and just a few extra for this special trip:
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_tA6G94kJdZg/STmblBxOqBI/AAAAAAAAOP4/zeeiJ4gCJpM/s512/IMG_6789./QUOTE]

The pad, the item in the Cabelas bag, the fanny pack, and the mittens/gloves.
Click to expand...
 
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