is it a woods kit or a survival kit?

[Cpl Punishment]

Good point on rotating items in an "Oh sh*t" kit.

BUT, my advice is, when you take something out, immediately replace it with something new. Too often I've seen even experienced people look for something in their kit that they thought they replaced, but hadn't.

 

[valcas1]

I have several different woods kits and a AMK kit that remains unopened in my pocket when ever I go out. I guess it would be my last ditch kit.

Most times I am out and about I have duplicate items in my bag or on my person, which is never a bad thing. I practice with what is in my bag this way I can replace it as needed.

 

[cuphead]

mine's a woods kit also.. Bunch of gear collected over the years.

I do have a small survival kit that I keep on me as well. but I never use it. as a matter a fact I don't think I'll ever need it considering I have established kits (fishing, fire, medical) each are in my med Alice pack that I keep in the trunk of the car with my fiskars axe.

I have a friend that randomly likes to do overnights every now and then.. so when I get off work fridays sometimes I just head to the woods with him. and I have everything I need.

 

[mdauben]

I have a few, very specific exceptions- but the rule is that EVERYTHING needs to get used. especially a lot of the consumables, as they have the shortest storage lives.

I just address that by rotating my "emergency" food out on a regular basis. For example, if I'm going for a day hike, I bring what I plan on eating that day (sandwich, trail snacks, fruit, whatever) plus my emergency stash of less parishable stuff like Cliff bars, jerky, etc. If I don't get stuck out in the woods overnigth, I don't touch my emergency stash of food. Every one and a while I just replace the emergency stash with fresh stuff, and eat the older food. Same thing with longer trips.

I prevent myself from getting into a hoarding mentality where I end up not using gear in a survival situation because I need to save it for some possible greater need.

That's a good thing to keep in mind, I think. However, I don't think you should plan on consuming what are supposed to be your emergency supplies on routine day to day needs.

 

[kgd]

There's a psychology to this- I remember very specifically in one of our desert survival classes being told over and over again that if you are thirsty, drink. hoarding your water is not going to help, and forcing yourself into heat exhaustion or clinical dehydration to save water for later isn't a good thing. I feel the same way about my gear- beyond just using it to keep the items and my skills/habits fresh, I prevent myself from getting into a hoarding mentality where I end up not using gear in a survival situation because I need to save it for some possible greater need.

I was sort of formulating a like response in my head before I came across Koyote's post which states it out right. As soon as you delineate your wood kit from survival kit, then you have to define - when is it a survival situation? If you cut yourself and you've ran out of bandaids in your woods kit - you are still going to dip into your survival kit to clean and treat it. It would be better to treat now then suffer the consequence of an infection later with an unused alcohol swab and bandaide stowed away somewhere.

Even though the above might seem an extreme example, I really can't think of any reason why you wouldn't use your survival kit contents if the need should arrive. In essence, if you exhausted the gear in your woods kit and need the contents of your survival kit, then your situation has redefined itself into a survival situation. With this mindset you should be thinking, okay - perhaps it is time to bail on this trip, or at least think about mitigating your risk factors for the rest of the duration.

Under these circumstances I can see easily justifying the woods kit and survival kit as a single unit. You know when you are getting low on medical supplies because of usage than you really should be thinking that your situation has an escalated risk associated with it. Maybe you need to get out of dodge or find civilization to replenish what you need. So I follow the philosophy of simply knowing my inventory, and being constantly aware of it, as being good enough to serve as both wood/survival kit. Like everybody else, I have items that are used frequently and other items that are stuck in there that don't really have much use unless unusual circumstances dictate their need.

Its never good to run on empty!

 

[Shotgun]

I feel the same way about my gear- beyond just using it to keep the items and my skills/habits fresh, I prevent myself from getting into a hoarding mentality where I end up not using gear in a survival situation because I need to save it for some possible greater need.

This is how I feel. Plus, the more I use it the more familiar I am with how much of everything I have and if it's expired or not. My friend and I pulled a first aid kit out of his dad's truck and it had tylenol that expired about 10 years ago.

 

[koyote]

However, I don't think you should plan on consuming what are supposed to be your emergency supplies on routine day to day needs.

That one I disagree with- respectfully but firmly- on the basis that I carry more than I need for daily use.*(see note) That means I have enogh iodine for regular cuts and scrapes as well as disinfecting gallons of water. Enough bandages for a day on a jobsite, plus enough for a second day - though that's a bit less definable. Is that 10 bandaids or 20? 40?

I did mention a few exceptions- I have space blankets that don't get used unless there is an emergency, a few backup sealed pouches of pills and medications that just get tossed and replaced periodically as a unit because they aren't something I can use unless there is an emergency. But I have inventory and a notebook where I write down what I use, and I do replace it.


Here's a couple mundane examples from my past:

my EDC vic sak is part of my survival gear. But I don't keep it pristine, I use it- and it's worth doing. I am running Koyote Girl through a basic SAK course right now- opening cans and bottles, wine and just using the tool. Once upon a time, being left handed, I had a hard time using the SAK can opener. I made myself use it for EVERY can for a month, and I got good at it. I still use it out of preference over most can openers (helps keep me honest about having my sak on me ALL THE TIME.) - point is you have to use some of your gear to know how to use it well. Opening cans is not a huge time binding survival issue, but it is a goodd simple example of a basic presupposed skill.

Another one is bandages. Bandages, like condoms, go bad over time. I keep mine fresh by using them and replinishing from the medicine cabinet. Since I have them in my EDC gear, there's no point duplicating them n a special sealed PSK only bag. It is less effort to restock than to keep track of the age of the supplies in this case.




* (there's an exception for food, but I don't keep emergency food on ym person at all times, there's "sudden impulse" camping kits in vehicles that serve that purpose)

 

[iBlade]

I waver on this one.
An instructor I once had, a SAR guy, showed us his kit, consisted of a pouch that went on the side of his pack belt, in it he has an army surplus cup, a cooker, a big (Really BIG) plastic tube and a length of string, a lighter, a pile of tea bags and some scroggin (nuts and barley sugar), and toilet paper.
In his pack he of course had a full set of stuff.
His theory was that during the day he would stop and have a brew fairly often, he would use his pouch stuff for this, at night he would restock it.
If he had to dump his pack he would still carry the pouch wherever he went, and if he was lost this would help him out, he figured that the food and tea, the plastic bag to sleep in would keep him going (note: staying put till he was found) long enough to survive.
Also by dipping into it regularly he would keep it rotating and not have stuff go off. And he knew how to use it. Made a lot of sense.

I prefer a different approach, my psk is a Doug Ritter type kit - extremely mimimal - which means I can carry it with me all the time, even if I just pop off to the bush toilet, at dusk, in an area I am unfamilier with..., with me I also have normal everyday stuff which is enougth for my trip plus a couple of days, before I go i check it, when i get back it all gets cleaned and restocked, I do not do impropto very often - wish i could.

So which camp am I in, the one that works for me. Works for ME. Might not be best for you but I am not preaching, just sharing.

Although a very quick preach - do not take can camping, heavy!!

 

[newadventure]

To me, a PSK is what you have on your person when your pack and all else is lost or not available. Might be in your pockets, neck chain, pouch on your belt, etc. I like to keep certain items on me at all times, that don't weight me down, but would have some of the basics needed for the situation.

Some of this might be redundant with what is in my main bag, but I would have no compunction about using any of it. To me the PSK is a "layer", albeit a minimal one, that provides for basic needs and should be on your person at all times. Contents will of course vary depending on where/when you are, but to me the main thing is that it is always with you. To me it's not that it is "reserved" for emergency use, but rather that it is always "available" for emergency use. So use and replenish as needed.

 

[newadventure]

sorry double post!

 

[Bushman5]

yup i'm pretty much the same way. I use my kit all the time on hikes/walks etd, (thats why its full size gear and not small stuff crammed into a little tin)

I do keep backup PJCB though

 

[shangchi108]

I've always thought of a "survival" kit as a woods kit that you have to use to survive, rather than a kit that you choose to use for recreation. But, same difference.

 

[Joezilla]

I normally keep stuff in different pockets myself. Having it all in one tin sometimes makes me loathe going through it to get just one item. I still haven't really got a method though.

 

[LupaWolf]

I admit it, I have more than one kit.
I have more than two...
I have everyday kit... you know the stuff for everyday everywhere goes with me where and when i do kit, the small day hike in familiar places bag, the Sabercat if i get my sorry butt lost bag (also known as the overnighter)...
i rotate gear and supplies in them... its fun.

 

[HikingMano]

Survival Kit for me. I carry the essentials spread throughout my pockets, and some duplicates in my pack that get used for normal activities or get used first in a bad situation (a full FAK is always in the pack as well).

I don't make fires when I hike (my location). I don't sterilize water, because I bring water in a bladder or canteen. I don't have to use my space blanket, because I'm clothed and dry or it's warm out. I don't have to signal anyone unless something has gone wrong. I have a basic full sized compass with the map of the area, and don't need the button compass in my kit. Nothing I carry in my PSK would be used first for serious injuries (though I could improvise if I didn't have the full FAK in my pack).

I don't normally use these things when out hiking; and even when practicing using the items, I have duplicates. However, I do keep track of items with short shelf lives and replace them when necessary. That doesn't mean I don't know how to use the items in my kit. The things that go in my PSK, only go in there because I've used them (or their duplicates) and trust them.

Typically, I walk, eat a sandwich, drink water, see the sights, maybe do some carving, maybe rig up a temporary sun shade, maybe put a bandaid or moleskin on a small cut or blister. My normal hiking activities don't require the use of the items in my PSK. I can see how the kit melds together though, for people who do make fires on every outing, or sterilize water from streams during the hike, or want to trim weight by carrying one do-it-all kit. Or perhaps for the SAR guys, that have to pull this stuff out all the time for people in bad situations. But for me, they're separate. The woods kit encompasses the few items in my pack that are used in normal activities, while the survival kit is the stuff on me at all times that is reserved for emergencies.

I also like keeping a distinct PSK because it's something that becomes routine. No matter if it's a long trip or a short jaunt through a known area, it's a habit to put the defined PSK in my pockets. That way, I never fall prey to "oh, it's only a short lil walk through the woods." I know for sure I have what I need if things ever turned ugly, and I can be sure I didn't leave something behind because I thought nothing could possibly go wrong or because I would have no need for so-and-so item that day.


ETA: I have to say that I'm making more time for "skills practice" while hiking nowadays (not in the neighbors yard or kitchen/living room)...so maybe things may change.

 

[go2ndAmend]

Good thread which came up recently in another context. For me, I carry a dedicated PSK which is NEVER used save an emergency. Yes, this means I carry duplicates of some items and yes I carry a bit more weight and bulk as a result. The positives for me far outweight those disadvantages. I KNOW wherever I go that I have EVERYTHING (hopefully) I need if something very unexpected arises. Every couple of years I repack my PSK and change out a few of the items. I'm not saying this is "the best" way to do things as I very much respect all of the knowlegeable folks here, this is just the best for me.

 

[Diomedes Industries]

I have two kits. I have a SHTF bag (fairly large) and a woods kit (fairly small). I never dip into the SHTF bag (unless I need some medication or a bandaid) other than that - it just sits there - HAPPY it never gets used.

TF

 

[RoyalM]

I fall into the 'always have certain bits of kit in my pockets' group. I usually have 10 or so bits of kit such as lighters, kindling/candle, a couple of flapjacks, a knife, some para-cord/ 550 cord, water bottle, some puri-tabs, waterproof bag etc. This stuff is always on me if I am going anywhere outside of the city. I do have a few extras in the car to boost this kit list should I need to.

I don't usually vary much from having this on me I just change my clothes depending on where i'm going the weather etc. In this way i'm usually prepared for most situations (I hope).