Go bag for beginners

[tombogan03884]

I posted elsewhere, flour, ashes even cobwebs can be used to aid clotting. UNCOOKED honey has been proven to act as an antibacterial and speed healing noticeably.

[JC5123]

One piece of advise. Whatever goes into your go bag needs to be multiuse, and VERY robust. In a survival situation you are probably going to use this equipment harder than you would for say a weekend camping trip. If something breaks on your camping trip, it becomes an annoyance, at worst you have to pack up and go home early. In a survival situation it could mean your life. Your equipment is going to get bounced around, beat on, cussed at, and if it's not sound to begin with, get set to cry a river when it breaks. Also, look for items that can perform several different tasks. This will mean less that you need to carry.

Lastly, know how to use EVERY piece of kit that you put into your Go Bag. This includes even that odd pair of tweezers in your first aid kit. I don't disagree with having items that you may not know how to use. In a long term situation you may very well find someone who does have the required knowledge. But we are talking about a 72 hour bag here, and you cannot reasonably expect to meet the jedi master of the suture kit in that amount of time. Better to set up your go bag to YOUR knowledge, than to hope you run into the right people. Chances are you are going to want to avoid people at this point of disaster anyway.

Just my .02, I rambled a bit, but you get the idea.

[Badgersmilk]

http://www.redcross.org/portal/site/en/menuitem.d8aaecf214c576bf971e4cfe43181aa0/?vgnextoid=58d51a53f1c37110VgnVCM1000003481a10aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default

Enter your zip code.  There is probably a place offering free training (or SUPER low cost) within a few minutes of you!  May be the most valuable training you ever take!

[twyacht]

Tobacco products, for those that use them , work for stings, bites, and lacerations.  Not the first choice if one has a good first aid kit, but seems pouring whiskey on a open wound was as close to Hydrogen Peroxide as possible, I think I would prefer Vodka...

For me and a wound.  There are also books that have regional foliage and native plants that are medicinal in nature.

http://www.liveandfeel.com/

http://images.google.com/images?q=medicinal+plants&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=GGUYS-b9CZKV8AaHssHhAw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CCgQsAQwAw

The ultimate tip is being able to adapt to one's surroundings. Cold, hot, swamp, arid, etc,.... Doing things that domestic metrosexual, Birkenstock wearing, weekend warrior wannabe's won't do.

They'll be the first to cave in, rat out your position for a shower and a hot meal,  and couldn't field dress any critter unless it came from the supermarket.

[Badgersmilk]

Tobacco products, for those that use them , work for stings, bites, and lacerations.  Not the first choice if one has a good first aid kit, but seems pouring whiskey on a open wound was as close to Hydrogen Peroxide as possible, I think I would prefer Vodka...

For me and a wound.  There are also books that have regional foliage and native plants that are medicinal in nature.

http://www.liveandfeel.com/

http://images.google.com/images?q=medicinal+plants&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=GGUYS-b9CZKV8AaHssHhAw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CCgQsAQwAw

The ultimate tip is being able to adapt to one's surroundings. Cold, hot, swamp, arid, etc,.... Doing things that domestic metrosexual, Birkenstock wearing, weekend warrior wannabe's won't do.

They'll be the first to cave in, rat out your position for a shower and a hot meal,  and couldn't field dress any critter unless it came from the supermarket.

+1, A good idea is to keep these (usually small in size) books in your pack to.  No matter how good you memory, a LOT of the good plants have equally bad counterparts that look VERY similar. 

[Sponsor]

[MikeBjerum]

+1, A good idea is to keep these (usually small in size) books in your pack to.  No matter how good you memory, a LOT of the good plants have equally bad counterparts that look VERY similar. 

Many book stores carry the Army Survival Guide.

[Timothy]

This may have been mentioned but since this thread started as a "Beginners" thread, it might need mentioning.

I've lived and hunted all over the country and have always had an innate sense of direction, however, knowing where you are and being able to navigate through your community is very important.  We all know the main roads rather well but remember, these will be the roads that are going to be gridlocked when something really catastrophic occurs.  Knowing all the back roads, trails, two-tracks and any other travel route will go a long ways in making your trek to safety easier.  There are great map and compass courses all over the country, you don't need celestial navigation skills, just the basics of compass navigation and interpretation of topographical maps.

The urban centers are where the masses of people unable to fend for them selves will be headed, we all want to head the other direction.  Up here, the mountains of Vermont and NH will be emptying south, only the locals will be hanging around.  That leaves thousands of empty ski resort chalets to occupy until things settle down.  Knowing where the shelter is and people interested in survival and maybe we find a community sharing our same values of self sufficiency.

[fightingquaker13]

This may have been mentioned but since this thread started as a "Beginners" thread, it might need mentioning.

I've lived and hunted all over the country and have always had an innate sense of direction, however, knowing where you are and being able to navigate through your community is very important.  We all know the main roads rather well but remember, these will be the roads that are going to be gridlocked when something really catastrophic occurs.  Knowing all the back roads, trails, two-tracks and any other travel route will go a long ways in making your trek to safety easier.  There are great map and compass courses all over the country, you don't need celestial navigation skills, just the basics of compass navigation and interpretation of topographical maps.

The urban centers are where the masses of people unable to fend for them selves will be headed, we all want to head the other direction.  Up here, the mountains of Vermont and NH will be emptying south, only the locals will be hanging around.  That leaves thousands of empty ski resort chalets to occupy until things settle down.  Knowing where the shelter is and people interested in survival and maybe we find a community sharing our same values of self sufficiency.

I'd kind of think it would be the opposite. When the food riots start day 3, everyone will want out and say "Hey, rember those unused cabins"? The hills are where  I'd be, but expect company.
FQ13

[Timothy]

Good luck finding a hill in Florida.........

I'd still rather be where I am, just south of the mountains than anywhere close to a coastline.

You had better know where TW's hidden bunker is, you FL boys have masses of dimwits that have left the north.  Those of us that enjoy the north, at least me, would never consider moving south.

[fightingquaker13]

Good luck finding a hill in Florida.........

I'd still rather be where I am, just south of the mountains than anywhere close to a coastline.

You had better know where TW's hidden bunker is, you FL boys have masses of dimwits that have left the north.  Those of us that enjoy the north, at least me, would never consider moving south.

TW will 10 miles off shore. Me, I'll be in a hammock in the swamp. A 28 gauge for mosquitos, and python on the grill. But NO SNOW!
FQ13