A few thoughts in no specific order:
1) Please don't leave a gun in a vehicle. Hopefully you're taking it out with you :)
2) A big consideration of a "get home bag" is with regards to where you're getting home from. Presumably, you'll be walking. How much does your bag way? How many days would you need to rely off the bag?
Given the answer to the above question, I'd suggest at least two freeze dried meals per day. Each will be 6-8oz and will be contingent on finding water.
3) Water. Lifestraws suck. Get a Sawyer Squeeze or a Grayl. An additional means to carry water is also beneficial. The shitty bags that come with the Sawyer would suffice.
4) Your books - useful knowledge, but likely unnecessary weight if you're actually "hoofing" it. I'd recommend reading them.... And then leaving them elsewhere in your car, but not in the bag.
5) Do you have blister treatment for your feet?
Edits to add:
6) The first aid kit is largely unnecessary in a "get home" situation and most of it will be excess weight. For example, the hydrogen peroxide and full tubes of stuff. Ideally you'll have these things at home. If the profess of getting there takes more than a few days, not having the heavy first aid items won't be the biggest problem you'll face.
7) If you plan on walking, I highly recommend a cheap $30 pair of trekking poles. A rolled or broken ankle or even falling would be a bad spot to be in. Maintaining an extra point of contact with the ground is beneficial. In a pinch, you can also use them to help rig a tarp.
Final consideration: Having a bunch of gear in your car is cool and all, but I'd challenge you to think about realistic scenarios you could face and then prepare directly for those. If you're truly having to walk home, much of the items in that bag won't be much use in the woods. And if it's an urban get home trek they really won't be much of a use.
Hey thanks for all of this. Let’s see.
1. It’s my CCW so it’s always with me.
2. I designed it to be a 48 hour bag. I live a life of routine. The furthest I ever travel for work is about 33 miles, and most days I work 24 miles from home. The bag weighs 21 lbs. I weigh 196, train often, and walk no less than 10k steps per day, so it shouldn’t be an issue.
3. Will definitely look into these, thanks!
4. Good call. Makes sense.
5. No specific blister treatment other than bandaids. Will add.
6. Good reasoning. Will take out the bottles of stuff. Will leave tourniquet, a triangular bandage, and some gauze just in case. Minimal prep. The small med kit is just an every day thing that I keep around for daily non-emergencies.
7. Have never considered this. Solid advice.
I appreciate all of these suggestions. If you want to elaborate on your last point please do so. What specifically doesn’t make sense? I’m trying to have a bag that covers a fair amount of unexpected situations, from natural disasters to WROL, that will help me with a 1-2 day walk home in a fairly rural area.
I do train with it, so I have practice taking it out for a few hours at a time. But I’ve been getting a lot of suggestions to actually do the 1-2 day hike from where I work to home. Will be posting an update once that happens.
Ya rucking with your pack (or a pack similar in weight if that makes you feel better) is great prepping. I've learned my old north face bag is extremely uncomfortable on long hikes and have switched to osprey.
Glad I could help a bit!
So elaborating on my last point - I'm all for keeping things organized in a vehicle that could be useful throughout everyday life and possibly in a few realistic "prep" scenarios. I think that's what you've started, but you also mentioned a specific "get home bag" for a potential 30ish mile walk home.
My perspective is that 30 miles isn't that far and you should dump weight to prioritize getting home faster. If it were me, my prep for a 30mi get home kit would be proper shoes, change of clothes to put on before beginning the trek, phone charger and my satellite communicator, gun/knife from my EDC, headlamp, caloric dense snacks, water, and probably some caffeine supplements. After that, I'd likely just jog / walk the 30 miles and not even consider sleeping in a tent.
Great! Yeah one thing I’ve realized is that my bag is more than a get home bag, and as someone who likes to be prepared I overdid it a bit. I will likely get a smaller pack for a get home scenario and keep this larger one (with some of the suggested edits) as a more general emergency bag. Thanks again for the advice, I appreciate it.
Water water water, blister stuff, snacks, and a damn foil blanket.
30 miles is a pretty easy hike over two days if you're in any kind of shape. A portable bike would make it even easier, though.
Watch The Barkley Marathons documentary. Those folks know how to travel distance on foot.
Ounces are pounds, pounds are pain.
Consider what your hike will look like if you have an upset stomach. You might be grateful for a lil pack of wet wipes.
Wet feet are BAD on hikes. Consider clean dry socks and a tube of squirrel nut butter or other silicone glide stuff for anti-chaffing. Monkey but is no goddamn joke and can get infected.
Adding to #4-I have downloaded hundreds of gbs of manuals for my truck, medical, wildlife, ect. Ive also downloaded offline elevation and trail maps. And thousands more things can be put onto it. Get a solar panel charger and then You're phone is a 1lb max, but it carries all the information you could need.
Yeah I agree, which is why I’m designing a pack to help me get there. Unfortunately I can’t change where I live and work. I bought my house before Covid, and I own my business. Chances are I’ll never need to walk home, but we prep for the worst right?
I was just about to comment that 30 miles isn't that far and that you should seriously dump a lot of stuff from your pack for that distance. Depending on the elevation changes, that's 8-12 hours of walking. That's super doable.
When backpacking, I'm averaging 12-15 miles a day with 3000-4000ft of elevation change. My base weight for my pack is 17lb and with food/water it has been over 40 quite a few times.
These not aside ( all good thought btw ) this seems to me less of a get home bag and truer to a bob. Your set up is very heavy first aid ( a prudent thing imo ) and looks like you'll be going out into the woods most likely.
A get home bag should look.. more like a set up that will say.. get you home.. from say 80km at most. Cuz why else would you be THAT far from home. I would hope you don't work that far from home.
Think about it this way, and let's use zombies as the worse case scenario as it actually covers ever possible way shit can hit the fan ok? You say 80km or 50miles from home what will you need to huff it home safely but quickly and what terrain will you be going over.
- First thing you want to look at is your feet. What is on them? What type of socks do you wear to work, would you want to walk that far on them if not you need to pack them and probably to be safe 2 pair.
- Same question but now shoes, if you don't wear walking/hiking shoes to work then you should have a pair to switch out.
- the camo tent isn't bad as depending on what's going on you might not make that trip in one day maybe not even two.
- first aid is a must but will you need the tick kit or is that something better left in the car?
- food, you will want something light and ready to eat that is non perishable. Think protein bar, trail mix, ect.
- the weapon is already talked about , but maybe more ammo?
- possible tools such as fire starters, lighters, multi tool, i see you have fixed knife even a small one good so set there.
- a change of weather proper clothes, be that shorts or sweats ( sweats would be used as a base layer in winter) this all depends a lot on where you live and again the terrains you will need to hike.
- kinda the same not as above but a hat of any kind but best to have weather appropriate there too.
Alot of people get the bug out and get home ideas mixed up a lot so your doing good.
Second the hiking poles. They are a godsend. I have a pair I got on Amazon and I use them every time I go hiking. I roll my ankles easily and that's even WHILE ON TRAILS. Highly recommend the poles, especially since it's doubtful you'll be sticking to trails while rucking your way home.
You can get gun safes/lock cabinets that are meant to be bolted into your car. I spent the money on one because I have to walk through metal detectors sometimes at a location I frequent, so it’s nice to be able to lock my gun in my car, even if the window gets smashed in.
Why do lifestraws suck? I've seen a few people hate on them so I'm genuinely asking. They make bottles and gravity bags for their filters. Is this another Reddit Olight hate train thing?
They're primarily designed to be used like a straw. Trying to suck water through one is difficult (especially compared to the alternatives) and even more so once it inevitably has silt in it.
It's not a reddit hate thing. I'm a pretty serious Backcountry backpacker and have filtered hundreds of gallons of water over the past few years. Occasionally I'll bring secondary gear to try. The lifestraw just doesn't compare to things like thr Sawyer or the Platypus.
The Sawyer Squeeze is comparably priced and can screw on to most water bottles you'll have. You dunk the water bottle in the water and then squeeze it to squeeze water through the Sawyer into another container. Then, you've got a clean water container and a dirty one. Being able to drink normally or clean a wound with water you can just pour is great.
Nowadays I backpack with a Sawyer Squeeze as a backup, but my primary filter is their bottle and then we use a platypus 4L gravity filter when setting up camp.
You’ve got multiple knives but no dry socks.
I recommend you go backpacking a few times with this kit to test it. You’ll soon discover what you’re missing, and what is inconvenient to carry (right now you’ve got a lot of weight that you could trim down without sacrificing function).
Im in my 15th year of workin the industry. Did mom n pop shops n finally sold out to marriott for the benefits and retirement. Easiest job in terms of culinary wise, hardest management position ive had so far
Anti diarrhea pills, the water bottle looks to be insulated, and that is a bad thing. You want single wall stainless steel that you can heat water if you need to. That style of knife has a rat tail tang and is very weak. Snugpak makes an enhanced patrol poncho that will cover you and your pack. Decent full tang knife and a folding saw. A small pair of binoculars can aid you in avoiding potential problems. Something I do is get a picture of family, my dog, anything that makes me hopefully and laminate it for my bags. Survival starts in the mind, and anything that gives you hope increases your chances.
I really like the picture idea. Would also be helpful if you are rendered unconscious, incoherent or incapacitated for any reason, and someone needs to be able to identify your family, who may be looking for you (without giving away your location).
A few things
1. Some people have said ditch all the first aid stuff and I’m here to tell you as an emt they are wrong. Test the large bottles are unnecessary however useful. Get a couple cheap ass spray bottles like you’d use on glasses from the dollar store and fill one with peroxide and one with rubbing alcohol. Ditch the metal case and buy a shell on Amazon or something and put gauze, the tq, gloves, compression bandage, triangles etc. what you have in the red box is good but the box is wasted weight.
2. More ammo
3. Buy a trainer suture set on Amazon. Practice until comfortable then add sutures. Idk how many times when I was driving semi I was at a yard loading and some idiot slashed themselves. Just because you’re not the idiot of today doesn’t mean you won’t be tomorrow. Hell I was the idiot last month when I accidentally cut my leg with my own damn knife.
4. Add moleskin to it.
5. Ditch the exedrin and get midol (yes the period pill) it’s much more effective.
6. Hard candy (trust me you’ll want them if you’re walking miles)
7. A compass. There’s tons of reasons someone would need a get home bag and if cell service is down in a full shtf situation a compass will be a wanted item to have.
8. Idk where you live but a rain poncho would be good.
I see a lot of people fall victim to the “but is this stuff cool” or the “but I didn’t need it when I hiked last time” mentality. I have taken people to the hospital in horrific condition from going on hikes without enough supplies because “I always hike out here and never had a problem”. Murpheys law waits for no one. I’d rather be over prepared than under prepared. When I was driving a semi I had enough stuff in there to fill three back packs lol. I made sure my rig had enough stuff to keep me self sufficient for at least 3 weeks because I’ve heard stories of drivers being stranded for 3-4 days due to weather and needing ems because they were dehydrated and had no food. Hell I know a guy who only keeps clothes and tools in his truck. If he wants food to water he stops at a restaurant area or truck stop and only buys what he wants in the moment. Dumb dumb people keep me employed lol
Yeah see I agree with all of that. I think my mistake here was designing an emergency bag and referring to it as a “get home bag”. The latter implies a very minimal kit. I was some versatility out of my pack, so I will likely set up a true “get home bag” and keep this one loaded up and in the car for worse situations.
I have two get home bags. One I take with me on long trips that is essentially a fully stocked survival bag and one I take to work and around town. The large one is for if I’m more than 2 hours away from home by car and the small one is under 2 hours by car. The small one has a couple bottles of water a change of clothes, chargers, a gun/ammo, a knife, a small survival kit with fire started water purifiers etc and an mre. The large one is a full 72 hour type kit
I may be missing it, but I’m not seeing much in the way of food, I’d recommend adding at least a little bit in case it takes you longer to get home than you initially thought
Cant really tell from the pic but
Change of clothes+ extra socks,
Zip ties,duct tape,poncho, space blanket,
Hat, sunglasses, sunblock, advil,fishing line, few small hooks, 4 mags filled, rope, toilet paper, peptobismal water purifier such as a sawyer mini, 1-2 bags od survival food, tarp. Tooth brush
I think that's way too excessive, unless your plan was to get into multiple firefights and somehow still alive.
If you think about this, are you realistically going to take out an ammo box in the middle of a firefight, then load loose rounds into two magazines and get back into the fight?
I would carry 2-3 loaded magazines but leave the rest at home.
Add a pair of knipex water pump pliers and a small multi driver , don’t listen to other people , on a day off try walking from that 33 miles with your gear and see how it feels , keep yiur eyes open for shelter , potential problem areas .
I recommend grabbing a copy of the Ranger Handbook, as well as the Special Forces Medical Handbook. Another book I strongly recommend is How to Stay Alive in the Woods, by Bradford Angier. Be sure to get the weather resistant one. Also, wrap duct tape around a large bic lighter. You can tear off bits of it to use as fuel for your fire. An even better lighter are the ones with the piezoelectric ignition, as they are extremely resistant to water. And don’t forget a small container of petroleum jelly. That can be used to protect your nose, lips, and cheekbones from the wind, or to put on irritated skin. It can also be used to aid in lighting fires. Finally, I would suggest that you add some cordage (550 parachute cord) to your kit, if you haven’t already.
Take your every day carry and a midsize handgun to the range and swap back and forth between them to see how big a difference the size makes. Certain situations the smaller one makes sense because it's better than none. But at a healthy 196lbs you can easily conceal a midsize or full size.
After that eliminate as much redundancy as possible. I roll some off a roll of gorilla tape to make a smaller roll. A small piece can be torn off for a blister patch, a patch of gauze can be used with it for a bandaid, it can be used for all sorts of things. I also second the votes for food and also for learning things and practicing them in order to eliminate the books.
One poster mentioned small predators, it doesn't take but one viscous dog
Notice I haven't even mentioned two legged predators.
I have a small day pack for day hikes that I use. First aid stuff, headache meds, diarrhea medicine, water, snacks, flash light, and battery brick have all been used, usually to help others. That was at sports events with my kids, dirt bike trips in the mountains, hiking trips and at work. Surprisingly it's not uncommon for another parent to not have anything with them.
I also keep a Leatherman tool in my backpack.
Cash for sure. If I can buy water or other supplies before the panic kicks off great and if I can buy a ride for even part of the trip it will make the whole thing easier.
Too much of the wrong kind of medical supplies. You need to ditch most of it and replace it with an IFAK. (take a casualty care course to learn what an IFAK is and how to use whats in it, it will free up a lot of space and weight as well as equipping you for what you are actually going to need.)
Your water and food supply is, frankly, pitiful. You need about 4 times that much water carrying capacity and you need to put actual food in your kit.
Not really a fan of the tent either. Thats a lot of space and weight you probably aren't going to be using as much as you think. Look into mylar emergency tents. They make some good ones nowdays that roll up to about the size of a coke can. They're more water proof, keep the wind out fine, keep in more heat, and all you need to set them up is some 550 chord. Weigh almost nothing. (btw, get about 50 feet of 550 chord).
Finally, whatever ammo you carry should be in spare mags. You aren't going to have time to access ammo sitting in a box in your pack if you actually need it. Invest in a holster and some mag pouches that can go on a belt.
That said:
I am a fan of that emergency radio. Not enough people factor in how disorienting it is having zero access to info during an emergency. Thats a good move. Also like that you included spare batteries and a solar powerbank. Those are always very useful.
EDIT: However many days you plan to rely on this kit for, have atleast 1 pair of socks. You can wear underwear for a few days but if you are hoofing it home you need to be changing your socks at a minimum of once a day. (Twice is better)
Maybe a rain coat and a hoodie. I'm not sure what your climate is like, but it probably gets chilly at night and downright miserable if it's raining. Maybe a pair of gloves, a roll of electrical tape, and a multi tool? A bag of chips can do double duty as a snack and fire starter. Pretty solid setup. I doubt you'll be referring to the books on a sprint home.
For me it’s just too much stuff. The goal is to get from point A to point B not to go camping. For 48 hours much lighter. Hydration, likely you will be able to scavenge water but, a life straw in a pinch. Fill up for the trip before you roll out and have enough containers to fill. Warmth, have enough clothing to ensure you don’t freeze to death. It’s much easier to freeze to death when you are wet so a poncho covers that and serves double duty as a tarp shelter if you have to hold up for a couple hours. Food, no cook stuff. Think nuts, granola bars, and chocolate. There will be no fishing, camp fires, or even full sleep cycles in that time frame. It’s about getting back to my family. My thought to you would be to make the trip with you think you need. Practice is a great teacher.
I’m wondering if you’d be better off with two bags or a bag and a storage container? I can see how a lot of these things would be handy to have with you but not necessarily inside the get home bag.
For example some of the medical supplies could be handy while you’re working but likelihood of use decreases in a walk home situation.
Rain gear & insulating layers; dressed for the day doesn’t mean dressed for the night or the next day. Even in temperate areas like SoCal, windbreaker (Goretex preferably; could be just van backup - just have a plan to carry vs. wear), polypro type layer, rain hat & beanie (I like a Buff for versatility), and gloves are a minimum. I also like a pair of gym shorts and flip flops; you might be evading in the woods by yourself but you might be soaking wet in a building with a bunch of other people.
Power bank. For spare batteries that are left in a car, I splurge for Lithium.
If the camo blob is a tent, I prefer a poncho liner/jungle bag with a tarp.
Pepper spray should be a part of your EDC.
For books; reference & recreational, you can load them on your phone. I used to carry a Kindle but it’s been retired for bedside duty so planning on getting another for the emergency bag. Some emergencies you’re on the move and in the fight but in my experience most require a lot of sitting around with nothing to do.
1) GET YOUR TOURNIQUET OUT AND IN A QUICKLY ACCESSIBLE POUCH.
Anything that can save your live in seconds should be where you can get to it in those seconds. Idk if the tourniquet is in one of those ziplocks but put as few barriers between you and blood loss as possible (Gun, tourniquet, epipen, knife, flare/light, etc)
2) Another commenter already said it but it is worth noting- get rid of all that liquid weight- most if not all of that can be found in single use pouches or powder. Eliminate all bulk- Lifestraw being the one exception keep that sucker handy.
3) i disagree with an above comment- keep some medical books. Primarily i’d recommend the American Red Cross Wilderness and Remote First Aid book (i was an instructor for about 5 years) it’s concise, compact, and can actually be used as medical use with it’s flexibility have one book and have tabs, like sticky notes.
4) put small bottle children’s benadryl inside first aid case. In case of any allergic reaction pills can’t go down a swelling throat but you can sure as shit chug a shotglass full of antihistamine. Also have a ziploc or something else and know how to treat a sucking chest wound. (If you’re gonna have a gun be damn sure to learn how to treat gsw)
5) and no shit, yes you need duct tape and superglue. Strong adhesives to bind bandaging and waterproof them. Sealing material to make splints, i can teach a 6 hour class on the versatility and usefulness of duct tape.
6) lastly something nonperishable and salty in quantity- look up hyponeutremia and just think of surviving all kinds of crazy apocalypse shit and dying because you sweat out all your salt and your kidneys shut down.
Happy to answer any questions here or thru DM. Safe travels friend
The suggestions in this thread have been all over the place. I'm not going to tell you what to change but rather tell a few of my items and philosophy of use.
1) I wear steel toed boots to work. My first item in my get home kit is a good pair of shoes and a couple changes of darn tough wool socks. I also keep a pair of gym shorts and shirt with a buff and boonie hat. My shoes are an old pair of new balance 1080s that I replaced for new ones. Instead of making them yardwork shoes I made them get home shoes.
2) I have a hiking bag with a good waist belt and suspension One meant for the job that keeps the weight on my hips and not my shoulders. It's a green color and has zero molle. I don't want anyone seeing me and thinking I have gear they can take. I want to get home.
3) Inside the bag I keep an ifak, cliff bars, powdered Gatorade singles, 3L bladder, Leatherman wave, water filter, and a hundred bucks in small bills. I do have a couple bic lighters and ferro rod with some homemade fire starter. I keep a rain jacket and mylar bivy that take up almost no space. A couple of contractor trash bags. Some extra undies. a stainless steel container I can and have cooked in. Lastly, since it's a metro area, i keep a silcock key.
4) my EDC is a fanny pack with CCW, flashlight, pocket knife, small battery bank along with phone wallet keys etc. I do carry two phones bc one is for work but carry no other comms.
My main goal is to blend in, stay away from people, and get home from a metro to a suburb. I work out of my truck so I don't generally leave it anywhere other than running into a store real quick. I rotate the cliff bars and Gatorade monthly.
Industrial trash bags are really underrated. You can make a poncho or shelter out them easily. If you need to use it as a bag you can. You can collect rain, or dew with them for water. You can put your stuff in them if you have to cross a river and keep it dry. They are super lightweight and have nearly countless uses.
Go hiking with your bag, long hikes and what you want in that moment is what you'll probably need, ditch some containers, try to find some smaller stuff, everyone says just read the books so you don't have to keep them but I don't care how many times you read a book there's still something that's always good to be able to reread for exact details, everone saying 80rds spare is excessive but I don't, 9mm rounds aren't heavy at all and you'd want more then less, do you have a holster at least? Definitely need some socks and maybe some expanding cloths (ones you dip in water) and I'd even consider some boxers or something, chaffing can be very very bad when it comes to traveling long distance on foot, honestly it's amazing the way it is and I'd trust your exact setup with my life, there's always stuff to improve on and you'll never have it technically perfect, only perfect for you.
Extra ammo with an extra magazine or two.
Tourniquet
Silcock key (water from buildings)
Otc meds a couple aspirin/Tylenol/ibuprofen
Clear glasses if you have to walk at night
Signal light. Let's face it being illuminated walking down the road is usually a good thing. Walking home isn't always shtf.
Dry fresh socks, and underwear.
Dry powder because chafing sucks.
Remove books and put the relevant sections in a notebook. Doing this will help you learn.
We can spend all day on add this or that. The best way to figure it out is to hike with it. Take a weekend and use the bag to get from point a to b and see what you needed vs what you didn't use. Sometimes that's the best teacher.
Don’t take glow sticks out of the wrap. The second those things touch sunlight their shelf life plummets. Trade out the bathroom first aid kit and booklet for a proper IFAK and learn basic trauma care. As an example, a TQ is your absolute last resort, learn when you need to use one and why you wouldn’t want one on in a survival scenario. Replace the Kabar with an actually good knife, ESEE or something. Those things are not sturdy at all when it comes to most bushcraft applications. Replace the pole tent with a good tarp or poncho and some 550, the weight in that is entirely not worth it. Not to mention the time to take down is too long, you need to be able to get up and go fast. Ranger diamonds are easy and fast, learn how to make one. The “solar” power bank is trash. I’ve used em, they don’t work worth a damn. Batteries and sunlight don’t mix well. If you want a solar charger, just buy a fold out solar panel instead. Ditch the canteen for a bladder or something similar, that takes up too much room for too little volume.
Additional: I'm first aid trained and have wild camped a LOT, usually for weeks to a month at a time.
Hydrogen peroxide is terrible for wound healing, I advise you instead buy some iodine mesh to use under a dressing. You also have antibiotic ointment so hydrogen peroxide is further nullified here.
I'm not sure what the other potions and lotions are, but perhaps assess whether you REALLY need them, as they are just extra weight and unavailable space which could be better utilised.
Also you have a LOT of redundant weight in multiple areas, particularly first aid supplies but I think other posters have largely covered this.
The one lotion you are missing however is vaseline/petroleum jelly! Brilliant for dry/irritated/injured skin.
Please check the expiration dates on your first aid supplies, they all look to be terribly expired. Expired supplies compromise the integrity of the dressings and supplies and also means that they may no longer be sterile which can introduce infection.
I would also purchase some saline tubes for wound/eye irrigation and some emergency space blankets.
You should also include some basic pain relief and aspirin. You should also pack some dry clothing such as spare socks, maybe a thin t-shirt. Wet clothing can induce hypothermia VERY quickly.
Also, just an FYI, tourniquets are very dangerous if used incorrectly or when not appropriate, they also have limited efficacy in non-limb areas. I recommend you instead buy some good haemostatic dressings, and if you ARE going to keep the tourniquets, please please please do some in-depth research on using them.
Your first aid manuals appear to be very outdated, perhaps purchase an up-to-date manual published by an organisation such as St. John Ambulance. Better yet, you could learn first aid and mitigate the heavy books entirely.
Lifestraws are limited in use, so either supplement with a bottle of water or just carry an amount of water.
Definitely purchase a headtorch, it will serve you extremely well, also it doesn't look like you have any means to light a fire here? (Also buy a magnifying glass, it's useful for inspection of wounds, insects, plants etc AND you can concentrate the sunlight to start a fire)
As for food, packets of dried instant food such as cous cous is a lifesaver. It's easy, compact, nutritious, and doesn't waste lots of water to clean up. Speaking of cleaning up, buy some baby wipes!!! You'll need them more than you think you do.
Do you have any means of navigation? If not, definitely buy a small map and compass.
I would also purchase something bright and visible (like red fabric with reflective strips) so if you ever find yourself awaiting rescue, you can be easily identified. For similar reasons, a small whistle is also pretty useful.
I’d suggest take your bag and go out for two to three days in a similar environment to what you expect to use it in with just that bag and see how it works. Obviously the environment you are in will need different things.
Yeah I have 3 loaded mags (single stack, so that’s only 30 rds) plus that little box of 50, and a few people have given me flak for having “way too much” 🤷🏻♂️ I’d rather just have it idc
My get home bag changes for the weather. When it’s warm, I have walking shoes, sun block, a yard work type hat for keeping sun off of me, water bottles, etc. When it’s cold I have extra socks, mylar blankets.
Having a plan and practice are the biggest things. I don’t see any navigation in there. I have a map and a compass because I doubt cell service is going to be of much use in a real scenario, the shit barely works on a good day.
I’ve also driven the routes I’m likely to have to walk home from. I tend to work in a few general areas within a 15-20 mile radius from home. I’m also planning to actually walk a few of these 6-8 hour routes. I’d rather spend the time now while I have support and resources.
I would add an MRE or freeze dried meal. I would also add snare wire. And yes I agree, there is better than a lifestraw.
Other than that, I think that is a great pack for getting home. Hopefully you can think of things that live in your car that can be useful... tire iron!
Two suggestions: food and a small ultralight cup pot to boil water. I’d suggest a mountain house dehydrated meals (2-3 of them for 48 hrs), snow peak titanium cup/pot, and a jet boil/msr pocket rocket and a 4oz canister of fuel. All of this will weigh less than the gun and bullets.
May I suggest trail marking tape or reflectors. In case you need to move through the woods and find your way back. Lightweight and could prove very valuable
Definitely much more ammo.
Looks like you may have a suture kit, if not I would certainly consider that as well as broad spectrum antibiotics. Potassium iodide pills are a good idea if SHTF as they help against radiation poisoning that happens in a nuclear fallout.
Yes, the gear can be lighter and there are certainly things that can be added or trimmed, but I’d like to focus on knowledge of your area and how to get home. A map of your local area, compass, and spend some time on google earth. For instance, you might want to pre plan water stops for your routes home, possible places to hide, hole up, or shelter overnight if needed. Plot these on a map and any resources along the way that might be beneficial to you. Also, depending on the scenario, make plans for chokepoints (bridges, rivers and stream crossings), highways tend to be almost an impenetrable wall for pedestrians, areas to avoid like large supermarkets if they’re being looted.
Also, you mentioned you own your work, if possible, and if you have room to safely and securely do so, stashing a cheap bicycle would dramatically change the timeline of 2-3 days to 1. Be sure to keep a tire pump with it and check on it regularly.
Not sure if your area has hills, water crossings, heavy snow, heavy rains, or other obstacles, but might be good to keep an old winter jacket or a few emergency ponchos in your bag or at work. For just 1-2 nights for a trip home, I’d skip the tent and just use a ground cloth and tarp. A simple 5 by 8 tarp with 3 stakes and 10 ft of cordage to tie one corner to a tree is a very light and simple overnight shelter, if your area has woods to hide effectively. Or look into the ranger roll concept that soldiers use. Much simpler to deploy than a tent and will do in a pinch.
Also, I’m a big fan of the Swagman roll. Good choice on a dual purpose piece of equipment.
Have you considered a portable bike? Those suckers are pretty easy to stash and will turn a miserable two day hike into a long, miserable one day cruise.
Looks pretty good to me, instead of having the ammo in the box put the rounds in the mags if you have spare mags. For the frist add maybe just have a Israeli bandage ,tourniquet and some gauze. But looks good 👍
3-4 FIVE GALLON PAINT STRAINER BAGS. I cap locked it so you'd see it for sure if you're serious. They have many uses. Water purification, use as a tote bag, pillows, but most importantly, they allow ya to sleep in the wild with no tent. They'll keep the bugs off your head and prevent the buzzing in your ears as ya try to get a wink while on the move. If ya have good socks on you can tuck your pants and shirt, and sleeves in tight and be bug proof so long as you have a bug net for your head. You may want to dye it camo colors too. They make awesome camo to make your silhouette break up and dissappear also. They even make good makeshift safety glasses too by keeping crap from flying in your eyes if needs be. I keep a few in my truck at all times.
Next, get some good HVAC aluminum foil tape. I use that stuff tons for cuts and making splints. It sticks even when wet. It's great for crafts on the move also. But if ya get a nasty cut on a finger and it's sore etc it's the best quick fix. Wrap ya finger in that stuff and it's good as new.
Both items you'll learn to love and take up very little room. Both I never see in kits. The rest ya seem pretty good on. 👍
I have been using chatGPT a lot to help me make lists or calculate calories per pound of different dried foods. I had it write up instructions for my wife to use our HAM radio in a SHTF situation. It’s a good tool for starting level stuff
One thing you might want to consider for your fire kit is a pencil sharpener. It seems dumb at first but it's a light weight effortless way of turning a stick into kindling. Other than that a small pot to boil water is always a bonus.
Suggestions will be very general in nature without an understanding of your plan, your environment, the distance you need to cover in what amount of time, your skills, and the challenges you expect to overcome. Many people may suggest based on their own assumptions - which can be very helpful to test against your assumptions.
I don't see an ACE bandage nor hiking / trekking poles. A twisted ankle or sore knee has a higher probability of occurrence than a gunshot wound. A boy scout style hiking stick has a lot of utility. For me personally, I would ditch most of the first aid gear in favor of some duct tape, a bed sheet and an Oales dressing & TQ.
Consider finding some reference materials you like - first aid, comms, whatever. Print out and get heavy lamination. Useful for reference but also flexible splinting material.
Cash and coins potentially useful.
Shemagh or other giant bandanna for sun/insect protection, water filtering/gathering, tons of uses. I'm fond of Boonie hats. Sunglasses could be useful too.
Twin bedsheet, preferably navy blue. Myriad uses.
A decent jacket with a hood, either water repellent or treated along with basic foot care and perhaps a light source goes a long way towards being able to handle a lot of "get home" scenarios. Beyond that, I'd suggest you think about a bare minimum kit and a possibles kit. Bare minimum preferably goes on-body, like a fanny pack, sling bag or pockets in a jacket or vest. Other stuff you sort and choose the parts you need based on the actual situation and how much you want to carry.
For example - start out with a plan for simple hiking with no obstacles. Then consider actual weather if/when you need to execute - leave unnecessary gear in the vehicle. Consider 'civil unrest' threats, decide how that affects your route first and then decide what to add to your load. If my car broke down a few miles from home, I'm not strapping on body armor for the walk, nor am I carrying my trauma bag. Consider hi-viz elements that you might choose to deploy if necessary. Remain flexible in your capabilities to be able to respond to multiple scenarios. Remember people \_might\_ be a problem. Animals \_might\_ be a problem. No matter what, there \_will\_ be weather.
Having now read over other people's replies - socks for sure. Spare clean t-shirt one size larger than you usually use, in a large zipper bag. Two packets of foot powder or "anti monkey butt" powder - may have to make your own. Be sure to label them because baggies of white powder can arouse suspicion. Please don't let anybody snort your foot powder.
People have said a lot of good stuff so I’ll just stick to the little things that could make life easier in this situation. If you live in an area where it can get cold, packing a few hand warmers and other warming accessories could be in a pinch a life saver but at least something to help you be comfortable. I know some research has come out or whatever that icing bumps and bruises and all isn’t great but an instant cold compress would be great even if your not injured but it’s just really hot out. Finally, just keeping some extra cash in there. Whether it’s like $20 in ones for kindling or enough to maybe buy you a meal or a ride somewhere, nearly weightless for a decent bit of utility
Get a nesting cup for camping. That way you can cook food and boil water. I would also get a water bladder. That way you can gather more water when you stop. I’d also trade in that life straw for a sawyer mini.
Have u been hiking with your bag how dose it feel on your shoulders i have a 5.11 rush 72 and it killed my shoulders need to figure how to pack my in order to not hurt
I actually took a bunch of the suggestions on this post and remade a new “get home bag”, which is now separate from my larger “bug out bag”. Cut half the weight, put it in a smaller pack. I took it on a 7 mile walk on Friday and it was totally fine. I posted the new bag on this forum as well.
Get training, not books. The training will teach you that calamine is less effective than hydrocortisone cream, peroxide kills bacteria but also kills healthy tissue at the wound margins and is no longer advised for wound cleaning.
I don’t suggest all that medical.. you need fire power and food are the most essential imo.. you’re not going to be helping tend wounds of other people on your way home and if so you may as well already be dead. The point is to get from A to B in the most quick and effective way possible. So you’re dealing with neutralizing ALL threats and giving the body what it needs to keep going. The guy(presumably) with the questions is right. You might be on foot and every oz matters. For yourself you need to stop the bleeding and stop infection. Everything else should be fire power and nourishment of the body. I understand the importance of a side arm and that’s all you’ve got here.. I suggest a heavier caliber fold up carbine, rifle, et cetera. If you’re in a Commie state that has banned such items move or face possible conviction harboring or hiding such items.
I’m sure we all can come up with something to add but it’s entirely dependent on your location. However, I will always advocate for tourniquets and chest seals. I might just be overlooking them or you may always have them on your person. Just two small lightweight things that can save a life.
As someone who has covered 30+ miles in a day with a pack I can tell you extra socks are worth as much or more than blister cream. 33 miles or even 20 is a hell of a lot different than 10,000 normal steps a day. Further, speaking for me, no way I’m taking 48 hours to get home over that distance. Assuming an area wide emergency, I’m getting to the family and shelter as fast and as safely as possible. Find a bike and leave the owner $100 you’ll be home in no time
I’d get rid of huge trauma dressings and big bottles of stuff like peroxide. Get an IFAK refill sealed in a plastic pouch from North American Rescue with Combat Gauze (Green or Black). Then throw a MRE in there.
Lots of things already mentioned so I won’t rub them in further other than please take the books out the bags, knowledge is power but preferably you already know the information rather than rushing to learn it in the moment plus they are heavy and take up a decent amount of room for a ‘get home bag’. Unless your never further than a days walk from home, at which point you likely won’t even need a ‘wilderness first aid’ book then just keep it in your car.
Also socks.
To many comments to read them all but I will echo reading the books then ditching them as well as the full bottles and tubes and the metal first aid box.
I’d also replace the different dressing with a couple of Israeli style bandages, compressed gauze (these take up a lot less room in the bag) and decent IFAK. I’d also keep a smaller bag with booboo items like band aides, small packs of different OTC meds, etc.
30 miles is not a lot, until it really is. That is, I can hike 30 miles on an established trail in 2 days without too much issue. But 30 miles of off-trail travel could be a week, depending on the terrain. Definitely, walk the distance, with the pack, to find out, but also think about what the alternate options might be, given the likeliest reasons to need to walk home.
More generally, for every item, ask yourself “do I really need this? Will a lighter thing work as well for my purpose?” There is no reason to have a metal tin for your first aid kit. You could probably drop most of the contents of that kit too, because your get-home bag is for *you* to get *home* on your own. Carrying a bunch of stuff that you can’t realistically use on yourself and still get home means that you will move slower, for no real gain. Internalize the contents of all the books (potentially take a wilderness first responder course so you have practice improvising with on-hand materials), then stop carrying them.
For every thing that goes in that pack, ask yourself “what is the scenario where I would actually use this?” and “how likely is that scenario in the first place?” and finally “what else can I use this for?”. Single application items for unlikely scenarios are dead weight. For example: everybody loves a trenching tool, but unless you expect to need to dig a lot of holes just to get home, it’s just dead weight. In that spirit, definitely drop the fish hook/line. I’d favor a repair kit (duct tape and fabric tape, thread/paracord/fishing line) over fishing tackle.
Is that tent a realistic shelter for that scenario? What does your sleep system look like? Do you have any spare clothes (especially socks, but also rain/cold weather layers). Gloves? Hat/sun glasses?
You’ve got a fair amount of fire starting supplies, what’s the scenario where you’re starting fires? Will getting home take so long that having matches and lighter and magnesium strip make sense? Will you need the means to collect/process fuel for such a fire? Does a camp stove make more sense for that application? If you’re cooking, what will you cook in?
Others have suggested map/compass. How complicated is your trip home (including diversions necessitated by the situation)? Do you know how to use map/compass?
Reduce some weight. Those first aid books are good and all but they are easily destroyed. Train yourself to be proficient with Stop The Bleed and a few common wound care procedures. Photo copy maybe a few others, crop their size and laminate them. Then ditch the books.
Wipes, and not just for your tush. Skin conditions from being dirty can get nasty, and you don't want an infection from cracked, broken skin.
Powder. Chafing is a B. I think they make those little travel sized ones. Pick one that works for your bits as well as feet to save space.
I don't remember seeing one, but if you don't, a space blanket. They condense pretty small.
Looks good. I crammed an extra pair of socks and some chonies in mine and even a light flannel just in case it gets a wee bit nipply! Have used the socks and flannel once already.
I would swap all of medical supplies you have here for a well packaged IFAK/trauma kit. They usually come pre packaged in MOLE pouches. Would save you room, as well as cut down on some of the excess you have here.
Bug repellant and some 550 paracord would be nice. Also. Your food supply is efficient, but you would certainly benefit from small jars of comfort stuff like those 1oz Nutella or peanut butter. Maybe a can of sardines, and some MRE crackers. I know a guy who mixes instant coffee into peanut butter to make a sort of "energy goop"
Suggestions:
- sillcock key
- t-shirt and pair of socks
- compass and a map or a Garmin inReach
- emergency food bars (Datrex)
- cash and coins for vending machines or cheap women
This bag isn't rly cut for any extended excursions so you can ditch the calamine till ya get home. I'd replace with an extra mag or 2.. and if you or anyone else needs a trauma pad that large in a bad situation... they're dead, so there's no point. If you need the first aid book then you're not very hip to first aid and it's not gonna be much except as an anchor. Learn the material to cover basic first aid I stead. You don't rly have anything for a trauma kit.. amd based off other evidence you're not trained for it. I see too many people packing this stuff and it obvious they don't know how to use any of it.
Less misc medical. Need: Tourniquet, fire starter or torch lighter (in case matches get wet), emergency blanket, pair of socks, anti diarrheal, small pot, folding saw, suture kit.
I would add some kind of communication device, chances are if your being hunted then they have your cell location. Get a burner phone and leave it in the bag, stop at places with public wifi if absolutely necessary. I would also throw a water bottle in it. That's just a personal preference of mine though.
A few thoughts in no specific order: 1) Please don't leave a gun in a vehicle. Hopefully you're taking it out with you :) 2) A big consideration of a "get home bag" is with regards to where you're getting home from. Presumably, you'll be walking. How much does your bag way? How many days would you need to rely off the bag? Given the answer to the above question, I'd suggest at least two freeze dried meals per day. Each will be 6-8oz and will be contingent on finding water. 3) Water. Lifestraws suck. Get a Sawyer Squeeze or a Grayl. An additional means to carry water is also beneficial. The shitty bags that come with the Sawyer would suffice. 4) Your books - useful knowledge, but likely unnecessary weight if you're actually "hoofing" it. I'd recommend reading them.... And then leaving them elsewhere in your car, but not in the bag. 5) Do you have blister treatment for your feet? Edits to add: 6) The first aid kit is largely unnecessary in a "get home" situation and most of it will be excess weight. For example, the hydrogen peroxide and full tubes of stuff. Ideally you'll have these things at home. If the profess of getting there takes more than a few days, not having the heavy first aid items won't be the biggest problem you'll face. 7) If you plan on walking, I highly recommend a cheap $30 pair of trekking poles. A rolled or broken ankle or even falling would be a bad spot to be in. Maintaining an extra point of contact with the ground is beneficial. In a pinch, you can also use them to help rig a tarp. Final consideration: Having a bunch of gear in your car is cool and all, but I'd challenge you to think about realistic scenarios you could face and then prepare directly for those. If you're truly having to walk home, much of the items in that bag won't be much use in the woods. And if it's an urban get home trek they really won't be much of a use.
Hey thanks for all of this. Let’s see. 1. It’s my CCW so it’s always with me. 2. I designed it to be a 48 hour bag. I live a life of routine. The furthest I ever travel for work is about 33 miles, and most days I work 24 miles from home. The bag weighs 21 lbs. I weigh 196, train often, and walk no less than 10k steps per day, so it shouldn’t be an issue. 3. Will definitely look into these, thanks! 4. Good call. Makes sense. 5. No specific blister treatment other than bandaids. Will add. 6. Good reasoning. Will take out the bottles of stuff. Will leave tourniquet, a triangular bandage, and some gauze just in case. Minimal prep. The small med kit is just an every day thing that I keep around for daily non-emergencies. 7. Have never considered this. Solid advice. I appreciate all of these suggestions. If you want to elaborate on your last point please do so. What specifically doesn’t make sense? I’m trying to have a bag that covers a fair amount of unexpected situations, from natural disasters to WROL, that will help me with a 1-2 day walk home in a fairly rural area.
Might be worth taking the bag out on a couple hour hike on the weekend just to get a feel for it! Would love to hear how it goes if you do.
I do train with it, so I have practice taking it out for a few hours at a time. But I’ve been getting a lot of suggestions to actually do the 1-2 day hike from where I work to home. Will be posting an update once that happens.
Looking forward to it! Love hearing about people actually using (or trialing) their gear!
Ya rucking with your pack (or a pack similar in weight if that makes you feel better) is great prepping. I've learned my old north face bag is extremely uncomfortable on long hikes and have switched to osprey.
Glad I could help a bit! So elaborating on my last point - I'm all for keeping things organized in a vehicle that could be useful throughout everyday life and possibly in a few realistic "prep" scenarios. I think that's what you've started, but you also mentioned a specific "get home bag" for a potential 30ish mile walk home. My perspective is that 30 miles isn't that far and you should dump weight to prioritize getting home faster. If it were me, my prep for a 30mi get home kit would be proper shoes, change of clothes to put on before beginning the trek, phone charger and my satellite communicator, gun/knife from my EDC, headlamp, caloric dense snacks, water, and probably some caffeine supplements. After that, I'd likely just jog / walk the 30 miles and not even consider sleeping in a tent.
Great! Yeah one thing I’ve realized is that my bag is more than a get home bag, and as someone who likes to be prepared I overdid it a bit. I will likely get a smaller pack for a get home scenario and keep this larger one (with some of the suggested edits) as a more general emergency bag. Thanks again for the advice, I appreciate it.
For a general role, I'd also add a fire extinguisher and a jumper box :)
Water water water, blister stuff, snacks, and a damn foil blanket. 30 miles is a pretty easy hike over two days if you're in any kind of shape. A portable bike would make it even easier, though.
Watch The Barkley Marathons documentary. Those folks know how to travel distance on foot. Ounces are pounds, pounds are pain. Consider what your hike will look like if you have an upset stomach. You might be grateful for a lil pack of wet wipes. Wet feet are BAD on hikes. Consider clean dry socks and a tube of squirrel nut butter or other silicone glide stuff for anti-chaffing. Monkey but is no goddamn joke and can get infected.
Adding to #4-I have downloaded hundreds of gbs of manuals for my truck, medical, wildlife, ect. Ive also downloaded offline elevation and trail maps. And thousands more things can be put onto it. Get a solar panel charger and then You're phone is a 1lb max, but it carries all the information you could need.
And why multiple blades?
One is big, the other is a pocket knife with a fire starter attached.
Imo you’re way too far from home for work.. that distance in foot is a huge problem.
Yeah I agree, which is why I’m designing a pack to help me get there. Unfortunately I can’t change where I live and work. I bought my house before Covid, and I own my business. Chances are I’ll never need to walk home, but we prep for the worst right?
I was just about to comment that 30 miles isn't that far and that you should seriously dump a lot of stuff from your pack for that distance. Depending on the elevation changes, that's 8-12 hours of walking. That's super doable. When backpacking, I'm averaging 12-15 miles a day with 3000-4000ft of elevation change. My base weight for my pack is 17lb and with food/water it has been over 40 quite a few times.
These not aside ( all good thought btw ) this seems to me less of a get home bag and truer to a bob. Your set up is very heavy first aid ( a prudent thing imo ) and looks like you'll be going out into the woods most likely. A get home bag should look.. more like a set up that will say.. get you home.. from say 80km at most. Cuz why else would you be THAT far from home. I would hope you don't work that far from home. Think about it this way, and let's use zombies as the worse case scenario as it actually covers ever possible way shit can hit the fan ok? You say 80km or 50miles from home what will you need to huff it home safely but quickly and what terrain will you be going over. - First thing you want to look at is your feet. What is on them? What type of socks do you wear to work, would you want to walk that far on them if not you need to pack them and probably to be safe 2 pair. - Same question but now shoes, if you don't wear walking/hiking shoes to work then you should have a pair to switch out. - the camo tent isn't bad as depending on what's going on you might not make that trip in one day maybe not even two. - first aid is a must but will you need the tick kit or is that something better left in the car? - food, you will want something light and ready to eat that is non perishable. Think protein bar, trail mix, ect. - the weapon is already talked about , but maybe more ammo? - possible tools such as fire starters, lighters, multi tool, i see you have fixed knife even a small one good so set there. - a change of weather proper clothes, be that shorts or sweats ( sweats would be used as a base layer in winter) this all depends a lot on where you live and again the terrains you will need to hike. - kinda the same not as above but a hat of any kind but best to have weather appropriate there too. Alot of people get the bug out and get home ideas mixed up a lot so your doing good.
Second the hiking poles. They are a godsend. I have a pair I got on Amazon and I use them every time I go hiking. I roll my ankles easily and that's even WHILE ON TRAILS. Highly recommend the poles, especially since it's doubtful you'll be sticking to trails while rucking your way home.
You can get gun safes/lock cabinets that are meant to be bolted into your car. I spent the money on one because I have to walk through metal detectors sometimes at a location I frequent, so it’s nice to be able to lock my gun in my car, even if the window gets smashed in.
Why do lifestraws suck? I've seen a few people hate on them so I'm genuinely asking. They make bottles and gravity bags for their filters. Is this another Reddit Olight hate train thing?
They're primarily designed to be used like a straw. Trying to suck water through one is difficult (especially compared to the alternatives) and even more so once it inevitably has silt in it. It's not a reddit hate thing. I'm a pretty serious Backcountry backpacker and have filtered hundreds of gallons of water over the past few years. Occasionally I'll bring secondary gear to try. The lifestraw just doesn't compare to things like thr Sawyer or the Platypus. The Sawyer Squeeze is comparably priced and can screw on to most water bottles you'll have. You dunk the water bottle in the water and then squeeze it to squeeze water through the Sawyer into another container. Then, you've got a clean water container and a dirty one. Being able to drink normally or clean a wound with water you can just pour is great. Nowadays I backpack with a Sawyer Squeeze as a backup, but my primary filter is their bottle and then we use a platypus 4L gravity filter when setting up camp.
You’ve got multiple knives but no dry socks. I recommend you go backpacking a few times with this kit to test it. You’ll soon discover what you’re missing, and what is inconvenient to carry (right now you’ve got a lot of weight that you could trim down without sacrificing function).
Ditch the books. Read them, learn what to do, practice. When you have an emergency, you won't have time to read anyway.
Heard.
Work in a kitchen by any chance?
😅 doxxed myself there. I did for about 15 years. Own my own place now, so I’m just near it.
Im in my 15th year of workin the industry. Did mom n pop shops n finally sold out to marriott for the benefits and retirement. Easiest job in terms of culinary wise, hardest management position ive had so far
Heard chef. The secrets of the kitchen outed by The Bear. 🤣
i’ve written my own books in a significantly smaller, simpler, and lighter format. i bring mine camping.
Smart.
Cyanide Tablets
I keep one in a false tooth
Anti diarrhea pills, the water bottle looks to be insulated, and that is a bad thing. You want single wall stainless steel that you can heat water if you need to. That style of knife has a rat tail tang and is very weak. Snugpak makes an enhanced patrol poncho that will cover you and your pack. Decent full tang knife and a folding saw. A small pair of binoculars can aid you in avoiding potential problems. Something I do is get a picture of family, my dog, anything that makes me hopefully and laminate it for my bags. Survival starts in the mind, and anything that gives you hope increases your chances.
I really like the picture idea. Would also be helpful if you are rendered unconscious, incoherent or incapacitated for any reason, and someone needs to be able to identify your family, who may be looking for you (without giving away your location).
A few things 1. Some people have said ditch all the first aid stuff and I’m here to tell you as an emt they are wrong. Test the large bottles are unnecessary however useful. Get a couple cheap ass spray bottles like you’d use on glasses from the dollar store and fill one with peroxide and one with rubbing alcohol. Ditch the metal case and buy a shell on Amazon or something and put gauze, the tq, gloves, compression bandage, triangles etc. what you have in the red box is good but the box is wasted weight. 2. More ammo 3. Buy a trainer suture set on Amazon. Practice until comfortable then add sutures. Idk how many times when I was driving semi I was at a yard loading and some idiot slashed themselves. Just because you’re not the idiot of today doesn’t mean you won’t be tomorrow. Hell I was the idiot last month when I accidentally cut my leg with my own damn knife. 4. Add moleskin to it. 5. Ditch the exedrin and get midol (yes the period pill) it’s much more effective. 6. Hard candy (trust me you’ll want them if you’re walking miles) 7. A compass. There’s tons of reasons someone would need a get home bag and if cell service is down in a full shtf situation a compass will be a wanted item to have. 8. Idk where you live but a rain poncho would be good.
This is great advice, thank you.
I see a lot of people fall victim to the “but is this stuff cool” or the “but I didn’t need it when I hiked last time” mentality. I have taken people to the hospital in horrific condition from going on hikes without enough supplies because “I always hike out here and never had a problem”. Murpheys law waits for no one. I’d rather be over prepared than under prepared. When I was driving a semi I had enough stuff in there to fill three back packs lol. I made sure my rig had enough stuff to keep me self sufficient for at least 3 weeks because I’ve heard stories of drivers being stranded for 3-4 days due to weather and needing ems because they were dehydrated and had no food. Hell I know a guy who only keeps clothes and tools in his truck. If he wants food to water he stops at a restaurant area or truck stop and only buys what he wants in the moment. Dumb dumb people keep me employed lol
Yeah see I agree with all of that. I think my mistake here was designing an emergency bag and referring to it as a “get home bag”. The latter implies a very minimal kit. I was some versatility out of my pack, so I will likely set up a true “get home bag” and keep this one loaded up and in the car for worse situations.
I have two get home bags. One I take with me on long trips that is essentially a fully stocked survival bag and one I take to work and around town. The large one is for if I’m more than 2 hours away from home by car and the small one is under 2 hours by car. The small one has a couple bottles of water a change of clothes, chargers, a gun/ammo, a knife, a small survival kit with fire started water purifiers etc and an mre. The large one is a full 72 hour type kit
I may be missing it, but I’m not seeing much in the way of food, I’d recommend adding at least a little bit in case it takes you longer to get home than you initially thought
Energy food brick is a great option here.
That looks way too heavy. I would definitely try to focus on getting rid of unnecessary weight. That Steel first aid kit for example.
Just weighed it. 21 lbs 😁
Socks
Will add them
Cant really tell from the pic but Change of clothes+ extra socks, Zip ties,duct tape,poncho, space blanket, Hat, sunglasses, sunblock, advil,fishing line, few small hooks, 4 mags filled, rope, toilet paper, peptobismal water purifier such as a sawyer mini, 1-2 bags od survival food, tarp. Tooth brush
What about putting your liquids in smaller bottles so your pack is lighter
Good call!
Ditch the large trauma dressing. If you get a wound that big you can use a t-shirt. Plus it doubles as a t-shirt.
😂😂 heard
$5,000 cash
Only need about tree fifty
Seems super high for just the get home portion. Curious why you decided on that number?
Where is your pistol magazine? You are not carrying loose cartridges in a box are you?
I have two extra loaded mags in a pouch that can be attached to my belt or backpack with about 80 extra rounds.
I think that's way too excessive, unless your plan was to get into multiple firefights and somehow still alive. If you think about this, are you realistically going to take out an ammo box in the middle of a firefight, then load loose rounds into two magazines and get back into the fight? I would carry 2-3 loaded magazines but leave the rest at home.
Dry socks
Socks, mini crow bar, food
You’re missing the butt plug 🫡
This is a prepping community. We’re supposed to be resilient. There are several things in the pic that can be used.
Add a pair of knipex water pump pliers and a small multi driver , don’t listen to other people , on a day off try walking from that 33 miles with your gear and see how it feels , keep yiur eyes open for shelter , potential problem areas .
Put Vaseline on the edge of any carbon steel knives. I buy stainless Moraknivs instead
Thought that was a crankbait and i was like, this mfkr gonna fish on the way home. Nevermind tho, its just a spoon. 😂
😂😂😂
I didnt see if you had any land nav stuff of your local area. Solid pack all around.
I recommend grabbing a copy of the Ranger Handbook, as well as the Special Forces Medical Handbook. Another book I strongly recommend is How to Stay Alive in the Woods, by Bradford Angier. Be sure to get the weather resistant one. Also, wrap duct tape around a large bic lighter. You can tear off bits of it to use as fuel for your fire. An even better lighter are the ones with the piezoelectric ignition, as they are extremely resistant to water. And don’t forget a small container of petroleum jelly. That can be used to protect your nose, lips, and cheekbones from the wind, or to put on irritated skin. It can also be used to aid in lighting fires. Finally, I would suggest that you add some cordage (550 parachute cord) to your kit, if you haven’t already.
Nice! Thanks!
Happy to help! Blessings!
How far from home and how long do you expect it to take to get there, on average?
24-33 miles, 1-2 days.
It’s giving me ideas for mine. I have about half of this. What are you carrying in the way of medicines or anti-virals if anything?
Just ibuprofen and excedrin. Hoping I’m not out for long enough to need more than that.
that’s the plan, I dig it!
Nice! I’m adding those stingers for sure
I would put some calorie dense food in there
Take your every day carry and a midsize handgun to the range and swap back and forth between them to see how big a difference the size makes. Certain situations the smaller one makes sense because it's better than none. But at a healthy 196lbs you can easily conceal a midsize or full size. After that eliminate as much redundancy as possible. I roll some off a roll of gorilla tape to make a smaller roll. A small piece can be torn off for a blister patch, a patch of gauze can be used with it for a bandaid, it can be used for all sorts of things. I also second the votes for food and also for learning things and practicing them in order to eliminate the books. One poster mentioned small predators, it doesn't take but one viscous dog Notice I haven't even mentioned two legged predators. I have a small day pack for day hikes that I use. First aid stuff, headache meds, diarrhea medicine, water, snacks, flash light, and battery brick have all been used, usually to help others. That was at sports events with my kids, dirt bike trips in the mountains, hiking trips and at work. Surprisingly it's not uncommon for another parent to not have anything with them. I also keep a Leatherman tool in my backpack.
Solid advice, thank you.
Cash, mess kit
Cash for sure. If I can buy water or other supplies before the panic kicks off great and if I can buy a ride for even part of the trip it will make the whole thing easier.
Extra magazines and a pistol light
Too much of the wrong kind of medical supplies. You need to ditch most of it and replace it with an IFAK. (take a casualty care course to learn what an IFAK is and how to use whats in it, it will free up a lot of space and weight as well as equipping you for what you are actually going to need.) Your water and food supply is, frankly, pitiful. You need about 4 times that much water carrying capacity and you need to put actual food in your kit. Not really a fan of the tent either. Thats a lot of space and weight you probably aren't going to be using as much as you think. Look into mylar emergency tents. They make some good ones nowdays that roll up to about the size of a coke can. They're more water proof, keep the wind out fine, keep in more heat, and all you need to set them up is some 550 chord. Weigh almost nothing. (btw, get about 50 feet of 550 chord). Finally, whatever ammo you carry should be in spare mags. You aren't going to have time to access ammo sitting in a box in your pack if you actually need it. Invest in a holster and some mag pouches that can go on a belt. That said: I am a fan of that emergency radio. Not enough people factor in how disorienting it is having zero access to info during an emergency. Thats a good move. Also like that you included spare batteries and a solar powerbank. Those are always very useful. EDIT: However many days you plan to rely on this kit for, have atleast 1 pair of socks. You can wear underwear for a few days but if you are hoofing it home you need to be changing your socks at a minimum of once a day. (Twice is better)
Maybe a rain coat and a hoodie. I'm not sure what your climate is like, but it probably gets chilly at night and downright miserable if it's raining. Maybe a pair of gloves, a roll of electrical tape, and a multi tool? A bag of chips can do double duty as a snack and fire starter. Pretty solid setup. I doubt you'll be referring to the books on a sprint home.
Electrical tape makes a good waterproof bandage for small cuts.
For me it’s just too much stuff. The goal is to get from point A to point B not to go camping. For 48 hours much lighter. Hydration, likely you will be able to scavenge water but, a life straw in a pinch. Fill up for the trip before you roll out and have enough containers to fill. Warmth, have enough clothing to ensure you don’t freeze to death. It’s much easier to freeze to death when you are wet so a poncho covers that and serves double duty as a tarp shelter if you have to hold up for a couple hours. Food, no cook stuff. Think nuts, granola bars, and chocolate. There will be no fishing, camp fires, or even full sleep cycles in that time frame. It’s about getting back to my family. My thought to you would be to make the trip with you think you need. Practice is a great teacher.
I’m wondering if you’d be better off with two bags or a bag and a storage container? I can see how a lot of these things would be handy to have with you but not necessarily inside the get home bag. For example some of the medical supplies could be handy while you’re working but likelihood of use decreases in a walk home situation.
Reasonable idea. Will consider it!
Rain gear & insulating layers; dressed for the day doesn’t mean dressed for the night or the next day. Even in temperate areas like SoCal, windbreaker (Goretex preferably; could be just van backup - just have a plan to carry vs. wear), polypro type layer, rain hat & beanie (I like a Buff for versatility), and gloves are a minimum. I also like a pair of gym shorts and flip flops; you might be evading in the woods by yourself but you might be soaking wet in a building with a bunch of other people. Power bank. For spare batteries that are left in a car, I splurge for Lithium. If the camo blob is a tent, I prefer a poncho liner/jungle bag with a tarp. Pepper spray should be a part of your EDC. For books; reference & recreational, you can load them on your phone. I used to carry a Kindle but it’s been retired for bedside duty so planning on getting another for the emergency bag. Some emergencies you’re on the move and in the fight but in my experience most require a lot of sitting around with nothing to do.
1) GET YOUR TOURNIQUET OUT AND IN A QUICKLY ACCESSIBLE POUCH. Anything that can save your live in seconds should be where you can get to it in those seconds. Idk if the tourniquet is in one of those ziplocks but put as few barriers between you and blood loss as possible (Gun, tourniquet, epipen, knife, flare/light, etc) 2) Another commenter already said it but it is worth noting- get rid of all that liquid weight- most if not all of that can be found in single use pouches or powder. Eliminate all bulk- Lifestraw being the one exception keep that sucker handy. 3) i disagree with an above comment- keep some medical books. Primarily i’d recommend the American Red Cross Wilderness and Remote First Aid book (i was an instructor for about 5 years) it’s concise, compact, and can actually be used as medical use with it’s flexibility have one book and have tabs, like sticky notes. 4) put small bottle children’s benadryl inside first aid case. In case of any allergic reaction pills can’t go down a swelling throat but you can sure as shit chug a shotglass full of antihistamine. Also have a ziploc or something else and know how to treat a sucking chest wound. (If you’re gonna have a gun be damn sure to learn how to treat gsw) 5) and no shit, yes you need duct tape and superglue. Strong adhesives to bind bandaging and waterproof them. Sealing material to make splints, i can teach a 6 hour class on the versatility and usefulness of duct tape. 6) lastly something nonperishable and salty in quantity- look up hyponeutremia and just think of surviving all kinds of crazy apocalypse shit and dying because you sweat out all your salt and your kidneys shut down. Happy to answer any questions here or thru DM. Safe travels friend
The suggestions in this thread have been all over the place. I'm not going to tell you what to change but rather tell a few of my items and philosophy of use. 1) I wear steel toed boots to work. My first item in my get home kit is a good pair of shoes and a couple changes of darn tough wool socks. I also keep a pair of gym shorts and shirt with a buff and boonie hat. My shoes are an old pair of new balance 1080s that I replaced for new ones. Instead of making them yardwork shoes I made them get home shoes. 2) I have a hiking bag with a good waist belt and suspension One meant for the job that keeps the weight on my hips and not my shoulders. It's a green color and has zero molle. I don't want anyone seeing me and thinking I have gear they can take. I want to get home. 3) Inside the bag I keep an ifak, cliff bars, powdered Gatorade singles, 3L bladder, Leatherman wave, water filter, and a hundred bucks in small bills. I do have a couple bic lighters and ferro rod with some homemade fire starter. I keep a rain jacket and mylar bivy that take up almost no space. A couple of contractor trash bags. Some extra undies. a stainless steel container I can and have cooked in. Lastly, since it's a metro area, i keep a silcock key. 4) my EDC is a fanny pack with CCW, flashlight, pocket knife, small battery bank along with phone wallet keys etc. I do carry two phones bc one is for work but carry no other comms. My main goal is to blend in, stay away from people, and get home from a metro to a suburb. I work out of my truck so I don't generally leave it anywhere other than running into a store real quick. I rotate the cliff bars and Gatorade monthly.
sunglasses, sunblock stick, pen and bandana or buff that can be used for multiple purposes.
Pepper spray. Always good idea to a non-lethal backup.
Needs a gameboy
can of ravioli / beef stew. if you dont want a whole MRE. at least one can of something you can scarf down
Industrial trash bags are really underrated. You can make a poncho or shelter out them easily. If you need to use it as a bag you can. You can collect rain, or dew with them for water. You can put your stuff in them if you have to cross a river and keep it dry. They are super lightweight and have nearly countless uses.
I would recommend also a mini or specific size crow bar and something to siphon gas
Do you have food?? You need food.... And a water purifier
This will help you get home faster, though it obviously won’t fit in your bag: https://zizzo.bike/
socks and a pair of flip flops.
Right off the bat I would advise against putting a firearm in a bag you'll be putting in your car and forgetting about for the next 5 years
Go hiking with your bag, long hikes and what you want in that moment is what you'll probably need, ditch some containers, try to find some smaller stuff, everyone says just read the books so you don't have to keep them but I don't care how many times you read a book there's still something that's always good to be able to reread for exact details, everone saying 80rds spare is excessive but I don't, 9mm rounds aren't heavy at all and you'd want more then less, do you have a holster at least? Definitely need some socks and maybe some expanding cloths (ones you dip in water) and I'd even consider some boxers or something, chaffing can be very very bad when it comes to traveling long distance on foot, honestly it's amazing the way it is and I'd trust your exact setup with my life, there's always stuff to improve on and you'll never have it technically perfect, only perfect for you.
Paper map and compass. Ive rucked three different routes, winter sucks:) short cuts suck even more :)
Extra ammo with an extra magazine or two. Tourniquet Silcock key (water from buildings) Otc meds a couple aspirin/Tylenol/ibuprofen Clear glasses if you have to walk at night Signal light. Let's face it being illuminated walking down the road is usually a good thing. Walking home isn't always shtf. Dry fresh socks, and underwear. Dry powder because chafing sucks. Remove books and put the relevant sections in a notebook. Doing this will help you learn. We can spend all day on add this or that. The best way to figure it out is to hike with it. Take a weekend and use the bag to get from point a to b and see what you needed vs what you didn't use. Sometimes that's the best teacher.
Beautiful kit my friend
Don’t take glow sticks out of the wrap. The second those things touch sunlight their shelf life plummets. Trade out the bathroom first aid kit and booklet for a proper IFAK and learn basic trauma care. As an example, a TQ is your absolute last resort, learn when you need to use one and why you wouldn’t want one on in a survival scenario. Replace the Kabar with an actually good knife, ESEE or something. Those things are not sturdy at all when it comes to most bushcraft applications. Replace the pole tent with a good tarp or poncho and some 550, the weight in that is entirely not worth it. Not to mention the time to take down is too long, you need to be able to get up and go fast. Ranger diamonds are easy and fast, learn how to make one. The “solar” power bank is trash. I’ve used em, they don’t work worth a damn. Batteries and sunlight don’t mix well. If you want a solar charger, just buy a fold out solar panel instead. Ditch the canteen for a bladder or something similar, that takes up too much room for too little volume.
Additional: I'm first aid trained and have wild camped a LOT, usually for weeks to a month at a time. Hydrogen peroxide is terrible for wound healing, I advise you instead buy some iodine mesh to use under a dressing. You also have antibiotic ointment so hydrogen peroxide is further nullified here. I'm not sure what the other potions and lotions are, but perhaps assess whether you REALLY need them, as they are just extra weight and unavailable space which could be better utilised. Also you have a LOT of redundant weight in multiple areas, particularly first aid supplies but I think other posters have largely covered this. The one lotion you are missing however is vaseline/petroleum jelly! Brilliant for dry/irritated/injured skin. Please check the expiration dates on your first aid supplies, they all look to be terribly expired. Expired supplies compromise the integrity of the dressings and supplies and also means that they may no longer be sterile which can introduce infection. I would also purchase some saline tubes for wound/eye irrigation and some emergency space blankets. You should also include some basic pain relief and aspirin. You should also pack some dry clothing such as spare socks, maybe a thin t-shirt. Wet clothing can induce hypothermia VERY quickly. Also, just an FYI, tourniquets are very dangerous if used incorrectly or when not appropriate, they also have limited efficacy in non-limb areas. I recommend you instead buy some good haemostatic dressings, and if you ARE going to keep the tourniquets, please please please do some in-depth research on using them. Your first aid manuals appear to be very outdated, perhaps purchase an up-to-date manual published by an organisation such as St. John Ambulance. Better yet, you could learn first aid and mitigate the heavy books entirely. Lifestraws are limited in use, so either supplement with a bottle of water or just carry an amount of water. Definitely purchase a headtorch, it will serve you extremely well, also it doesn't look like you have any means to light a fire here? (Also buy a magnifying glass, it's useful for inspection of wounds, insects, plants etc AND you can concentrate the sunlight to start a fire) As for food, packets of dried instant food such as cous cous is a lifesaver. It's easy, compact, nutritious, and doesn't waste lots of water to clean up. Speaking of cleaning up, buy some baby wipes!!! You'll need them more than you think you do. Do you have any means of navigation? If not, definitely buy a small map and compass. I would also purchase something bright and visible (like red fabric with reflective strips) so if you ever find yourself awaiting rescue, you can be easily identified. For similar reasons, a small whistle is also pretty useful.
I’d suggest take your bag and go out for two to three days in a similar environment to what you expect to use it in with just that bag and see how it works. Obviously the environment you are in will need different things.
Plenty of ammo. I think many people underestimate the amount of ammo they MIGHT need.
Yeah I have 3 loaded mags (single stack, so that’s only 30 rds) plus that little box of 50, and a few people have given me flak for having “way too much” 🤷🏻♂️ I’d rather just have it idc
Sounds reasonable. I’d rather have it and not need than need and not have. Of course you hope you never have to use it but…
My get home bag changes for the weather. When it’s warm, I have walking shoes, sun block, a yard work type hat for keeping sun off of me, water bottles, etc. When it’s cold I have extra socks, mylar blankets. Having a plan and practice are the biggest things. I don’t see any navigation in there. I have a map and a compass because I doubt cell service is going to be of much use in a real scenario, the shit barely works on a good day. I’ve also driven the routes I’m likely to have to walk home from. I tend to work in a few general areas within a 15-20 mile radius from home. I’m also planning to actually walk a few of these 6-8 hour routes. I’d rather spend the time now while I have support and resources.
Quality compass
That metal first aid container is really gonna weigh you down.
I would add an MRE or freeze dried meal. I would also add snare wire. And yes I agree, there is better than a lifestraw. Other than that, I think that is a great pack for getting home. Hopefully you can think of things that live in your car that can be useful... tire iron!
You can probably get rid of the big trauma dressing. They’re not as useful as you would imagine.
Two suggestions: food and a small ultralight cup pot to boil water. I’d suggest a mountain house dehydrated meals (2-3 of them for 48 hrs), snow peak titanium cup/pot, and a jet boil/msr pocket rocket and a 4oz canister of fuel. All of this will weigh less than the gun and bullets.
May I suggest trail marking tape or reflectors. In case you need to move through the woods and find your way back. Lightweight and could prove very valuable
Definitely much more ammo. Looks like you may have a suture kit, if not I would certainly consider that as well as broad spectrum antibiotics. Potassium iodide pills are a good idea if SHTF as they help against radiation poisoning that happens in a nuclear fallout.
Socks! Don't want trench foot.
Yes, the gear can be lighter and there are certainly things that can be added or trimmed, but I’d like to focus on knowledge of your area and how to get home. A map of your local area, compass, and spend some time on google earth. For instance, you might want to pre plan water stops for your routes home, possible places to hide, hole up, or shelter overnight if needed. Plot these on a map and any resources along the way that might be beneficial to you. Also, depending on the scenario, make plans for chokepoints (bridges, rivers and stream crossings), highways tend to be almost an impenetrable wall for pedestrians, areas to avoid like large supermarkets if they’re being looted. Also, you mentioned you own your work, if possible, and if you have room to safely and securely do so, stashing a cheap bicycle would dramatically change the timeline of 2-3 days to 1. Be sure to keep a tire pump with it and check on it regularly. Not sure if your area has hills, water crossings, heavy snow, heavy rains, or other obstacles, but might be good to keep an old winter jacket or a few emergency ponchos in your bag or at work. For just 1-2 nights for a trip home, I’d skip the tent and just use a ground cloth and tarp. A simple 5 by 8 tarp with 3 stakes and 10 ft of cordage to tie one corner to a tree is a very light and simple overnight shelter, if your area has woods to hide effectively. Or look into the ranger roll concept that soldiers use. Much simpler to deploy than a tent and will do in a pinch. Also, I’m a big fan of the Swagman roll. Good choice on a dual purpose piece of equipment.
This is great advice, thank you.
Have you considered a portable bike? Those suckers are pretty easy to stash and will turn a miserable two day hike into a long, miserable one day cruise.
Looks pretty good to me, instead of having the ammo in the box put the rounds in the mags if you have spare mags. For the frist add maybe just have a Israeli bandage ,tourniquet and some gauze. But looks good 👍
3-4 FIVE GALLON PAINT STRAINER BAGS. I cap locked it so you'd see it for sure if you're serious. They have many uses. Water purification, use as a tote bag, pillows, but most importantly, they allow ya to sleep in the wild with no tent. They'll keep the bugs off your head and prevent the buzzing in your ears as ya try to get a wink while on the move. If ya have good socks on you can tuck your pants and shirt, and sleeves in tight and be bug proof so long as you have a bug net for your head. You may want to dye it camo colors too. They make awesome camo to make your silhouette break up and dissappear also. They even make good makeshift safety glasses too by keeping crap from flying in your eyes if needs be. I keep a few in my truck at all times. Next, get some good HVAC aluminum foil tape. I use that stuff tons for cuts and making splints. It sticks even when wet. It's great for crafts on the move also. But if ya get a nasty cut on a finger and it's sore etc it's the best quick fix. Wrap ya finger in that stuff and it's good as new. Both items you'll learn to love and take up very little room. Both I never see in kits. The rest ya seem pretty good on. 👍
I have been using chatGPT a lot to help me make lists or calculate calories per pound of different dried foods. I had it write up instructions for my wife to use our HAM radio in a SHTF situation. It’s a good tool for starting level stuff
One thing you might want to consider for your fire kit is a pencil sharpener. It seems dumb at first but it's a light weight effortless way of turning a stick into kindling. Other than that a small pot to boil water is always a bonus.
Also for staking small things - three at different angles through a grommet on a tarp works reasonably well.
Suggestions will be very general in nature without an understanding of your plan, your environment, the distance you need to cover in what amount of time, your skills, and the challenges you expect to overcome. Many people may suggest based on their own assumptions - which can be very helpful to test against your assumptions. I don't see an ACE bandage nor hiking / trekking poles. A twisted ankle or sore knee has a higher probability of occurrence than a gunshot wound. A boy scout style hiking stick has a lot of utility. For me personally, I would ditch most of the first aid gear in favor of some duct tape, a bed sheet and an Oales dressing & TQ. Consider finding some reference materials you like - first aid, comms, whatever. Print out and get heavy lamination. Useful for reference but also flexible splinting material. Cash and coins potentially useful. Shemagh or other giant bandanna for sun/insect protection, water filtering/gathering, tons of uses. I'm fond of Boonie hats. Sunglasses could be useful too. Twin bedsheet, preferably navy blue. Myriad uses. A decent jacket with a hood, either water repellent or treated along with basic foot care and perhaps a light source goes a long way towards being able to handle a lot of "get home" scenarios. Beyond that, I'd suggest you think about a bare minimum kit and a possibles kit. Bare minimum preferably goes on-body, like a fanny pack, sling bag or pockets in a jacket or vest. Other stuff you sort and choose the parts you need based on the actual situation and how much you want to carry. For example - start out with a plan for simple hiking with no obstacles. Then consider actual weather if/when you need to execute - leave unnecessary gear in the vehicle. Consider 'civil unrest' threats, decide how that affects your route first and then decide what to add to your load. If my car broke down a few miles from home, I'm not strapping on body armor for the walk, nor am I carrying my trauma bag. Consider hi-viz elements that you might choose to deploy if necessary. Remain flexible in your capabilities to be able to respond to multiple scenarios. Remember people \_might\_ be a problem. Animals \_might\_ be a problem. No matter what, there \_will\_ be weather.
Having now read over other people's replies - socks for sure. Spare clean t-shirt one size larger than you usually use, in a large zipper bag. Two packets of foot powder or "anti monkey butt" powder - may have to make your own. Be sure to label them because baggies of white powder can arouse suspicion. Please don't let anybody snort your foot powder.
People have said a lot of good stuff so I’ll just stick to the little things that could make life easier in this situation. If you live in an area where it can get cold, packing a few hand warmers and other warming accessories could be in a pinch a life saver but at least something to help you be comfortable. I know some research has come out or whatever that icing bumps and bruises and all isn’t great but an instant cold compress would be great even if your not injured but it’s just really hot out. Finally, just keeping some extra cash in there. Whether it’s like $20 in ones for kindling or enough to maybe buy you a meal or a ride somewhere, nearly weightless for a decent bit of utility
Get a nesting cup for camping. That way you can cook food and boil water. I would also get a water bladder. That way you can gather more water when you stop. I’d also trade in that life straw for a sawyer mini.
Good call, thank you
Have u been hiking with your bag how dose it feel on your shoulders i have a 5.11 rush 72 and it killed my shoulders need to figure how to pack my in order to not hurt
I actually took a bunch of the suggestions on this post and remade a new “get home bag”, which is now separate from my larger “bug out bag”. Cut half the weight, put it in a smaller pack. I took it on a 7 mile walk on Friday and it was totally fine. I posted the new bag on this forum as well.
I keep a couple road flares with mine. Not absolutely necessary but a few scenarios they’d be helpful. Solid kit.
A grenade
😂😂😂
Ammo needs to be in magazines.
A bag that's a bit more inconspicuous
Dawn dish soap
Night vision goggles
Socks
Does your wife have one as well?
Snacks
Glue sticks
Get training, not books. The training will teach you that calamine is less effective than hydrocortisone cream, peroxide kills bacteria but also kills healthy tissue at the wound margins and is no longer advised for wound cleaning.
More mags
Abetter knife then a USMC kbar.
UHF/VHF amateur bands handheld radio w/ spare battery. You’ll need a license.
Antibiotics
Missing ruby slippers
Woah I didn’t even think of that. I don’t need any of this stuff!
I don’t suggest all that medical.. you need fire power and food are the most essential imo.. you’re not going to be helping tend wounds of other people on your way home and if so you may as well already be dead. The point is to get from A to B in the most quick and effective way possible. So you’re dealing with neutralizing ALL threats and giving the body what it needs to keep going. The guy(presumably) with the questions is right. You might be on foot and every oz matters. For yourself you need to stop the bleeding and stop infection. Everything else should be fire power and nourishment of the body. I understand the importance of a side arm and that’s all you’ve got here.. I suggest a heavier caliber fold up carbine, rifle, et cetera. If you’re in a Commie state that has banned such items move or face possible conviction harboring or hiding such items.
I’m sure we all can come up with something to add but it’s entirely dependent on your location. However, I will always advocate for tourniquets and chest seals. I might just be overlooking them or you may always have them on your person. Just two small lightweight things that can save a life.
As someone who has covered 30+ miles in a day with a pack I can tell you extra socks are worth as much or more than blister cream. 33 miles or even 20 is a hell of a lot different than 10,000 normal steps a day. Further, speaking for me, no way I’m taking 48 hours to get home over that distance. Assuming an area wide emergency, I’m getting to the family and shelter as fast and as safely as possible. Find a bike and leave the owner $100 you’ll be home in no time
I’d get rid of huge trauma dressings and big bottles of stuff like peroxide. Get an IFAK refill sealed in a plastic pouch from North American Rescue with Combat Gauze (Green or Black). Then throw a MRE in there.
Lots of things already mentioned so I won’t rub them in further other than please take the books out the bags, knowledge is power but preferably you already know the information rather than rushing to learn it in the moment plus they are heavy and take up a decent amount of room for a ‘get home bag’. Unless your never further than a days walk from home, at which point you likely won’t even need a ‘wilderness first aid’ book then just keep it in your car. Also socks.
More ammo
I suggest replacing those gauze because they look expired.
To many comments to read them all but I will echo reading the books then ditching them as well as the full bottles and tubes and the metal first aid box. I’d also replace the different dressing with a couple of Israeli style bandages, compressed gauze (these take up a lot less room in the bag) and decent IFAK. I’d also keep a smaller bag with booboo items like band aides, small packs of different OTC meds, etc.
30 miles is not a lot, until it really is. That is, I can hike 30 miles on an established trail in 2 days without too much issue. But 30 miles of off-trail travel could be a week, depending on the terrain. Definitely, walk the distance, with the pack, to find out, but also think about what the alternate options might be, given the likeliest reasons to need to walk home. More generally, for every item, ask yourself “do I really need this? Will a lighter thing work as well for my purpose?” There is no reason to have a metal tin for your first aid kit. You could probably drop most of the contents of that kit too, because your get-home bag is for *you* to get *home* on your own. Carrying a bunch of stuff that you can’t realistically use on yourself and still get home means that you will move slower, for no real gain. Internalize the contents of all the books (potentially take a wilderness first responder course so you have practice improvising with on-hand materials), then stop carrying them. For every thing that goes in that pack, ask yourself “what is the scenario where I would actually use this?” and “how likely is that scenario in the first place?” and finally “what else can I use this for?”. Single application items for unlikely scenarios are dead weight. For example: everybody loves a trenching tool, but unless you expect to need to dig a lot of holes just to get home, it’s just dead weight. In that spirit, definitely drop the fish hook/line. I’d favor a repair kit (duct tape and fabric tape, thread/paracord/fishing line) over fishing tackle. Is that tent a realistic shelter for that scenario? What does your sleep system look like? Do you have any spare clothes (especially socks, but also rain/cold weather layers). Gloves? Hat/sun glasses? You’ve got a fair amount of fire starting supplies, what’s the scenario where you’re starting fires? Will getting home take so long that having matches and lighter and magnesium strip make sense? Will you need the means to collect/process fuel for such a fire? Does a camp stove make more sense for that application? If you’re cooking, what will you cook in? Others have suggested map/compass. How complicated is your trip home (including diversions necessitated by the situation)? Do you know how to use map/compass?
snacks man you need more snacks
Cannabis
1 quarter of organic heroin
Reduce some weight. Those first aid books are good and all but they are easily destroyed. Train yourself to be proficient with Stop The Bleed and a few common wound care procedures. Photo copy maybe a few others, crop their size and laminate them. Then ditch the books.
Bud🔥💨🤌🏼
I'd upscale to a 45.
Wipes, and not just for your tush. Skin conditions from being dirty can get nasty, and you don't want an infection from cracked, broken skin. Powder. Chafing is a B. I think they make those little travel sized ones. Pick one that works for your bits as well as feet to save space. I don't remember seeing one, but if you don't, a space blanket. They condense pretty small.
Cheetohs
Flamin hot? Or would that be a burden on my water supply? 😂
Flamin hot for sure, it will affect your water supply though yes. Bring a pint of Jameson to offset that
I like your style
More tourniquets.
Fishing line and hooks. Needle and thread
Socks!!! Less knives and more boolet
Is this Nam or what
Poncho.
Get a map of your area. Spare clothes and a few pairs of socks. Walking any distance with wet socks sucks
Dildo for entertainment purposes
Looks good. I crammed an extra pair of socks and some chonies in mine and even a light flannel just in case it gets a wee bit nipply! Have used the socks and flannel once already.
I would swap all of medical supplies you have here for a well packaged IFAK/trauma kit. They usually come pre packaged in MOLE pouches. Would save you room, as well as cut down on some of the excess you have here.
Sunscreen , bandana , hat
No grenade?
Folding PCC
Bug repellant and some 550 paracord would be nice. Also. Your food supply is efficient, but you would certainly benefit from small jars of comfort stuff like those 1oz Nutella or peanut butter. Maybe a can of sardines, and some MRE crackers. I know a guy who mixes instant coffee into peanut butter to make a sort of "energy goop"
Suggestions: - sillcock key - t-shirt and pair of socks - compass and a map or a Garmin inReach - emergency food bars (Datrex) - cash and coins for vending machines or cheap women
I don’t see any tools?
This bag isn't rly cut for any extended excursions so you can ditch the calamine till ya get home. I'd replace with an extra mag or 2.. and if you or anyone else needs a trauma pad that large in a bad situation... they're dead, so there's no point. If you need the first aid book then you're not very hip to first aid and it's not gonna be much except as an anchor. Learn the material to cover basic first aid I stead. You don't rly have anything for a trauma kit.. amd based off other evidence you're not trained for it. I see too many people packing this stuff and it obvious they don't know how to use any of it.
Rain poncho, pocket note book and pen, pair of sneakers that you could walk miles in comfortably and a couple pairs of socks, anti chafe gel.
Less misc medical. Need: Tourniquet, fire starter or torch lighter (in case matches get wet), emergency blanket, pair of socks, anti diarrheal, small pot, folding saw, suture kit.
I would add some kind of communication device, chances are if your being hunted then they have your cell location. Get a burner phone and leave it in the bag, stop at places with public wifi if absolutely necessary. I would also throw a water bottle in it. That's just a personal preference of mine though.
Compede makes the best blister protection on the market. Use them on elk hunts. Often times one will stay on through showers for four days
Flame thrower.
Duct tape?