The One Thing
-
The MajGuest
Besides a firearm or knife, what is the one thing that you would not bugout without?
Just to be clear, your list is currently:
1. Firearm of choice with ammo.
2. Knife of Blade of Choice
3. ?????
And to make it interesting, those are the ONLY three things.
JGuest
Quality, environment-appropriate footgear. I think this would be a #2 for me, personally, possibly a close #1. In a “run or fight” situation, you can’t run in bad shoes!
PJKeymaster
I’m assuming clothing would be taken into account (although I value good shoes as J has said). If i’m bugging out that means I’m going somewhere and since I’ll be going somewhere I won’t want to get lost. I would like to have a map (MGRS) and compass but if it could only be one: compass.
I could find shelter and probably source a way to make fire, but through any sort of thick forest the only way I’d keep from walking in circles would be to watch my azimuth.
The MajGuest
Ok, point of clarification. You are clothed and wearing your shoes of choice.
My choice would be a pot. With the right pot, I can dig, gather/carry stuff, cook, and boil water.
JGuest
Given the clarification, I would go with about a 6′ square section of canvas. It is light and can be wrapped around you to serve as a slicker in rain and also be used as a blanket or even as a shelter, if necessary. It was one of my main accessories when my friends and I went camping as a kid; we used to take pride in how little we had to take to get by.
BrandonGuest
You guys have picked some good ones. Personally, I’d take a ferro rod (with a striker, of course). Unlike you, PJ, I don’t think I’d be able to get a fire started without some type of man-made device. (Hence why I want to learn to make fire via bow drill!) 🙂
For me, a close second would be food, so that I have enough energy during the first few days to get setup (build shelter, find water, etc.).
Echo5charlieGuest
Laugh all you want but T.P. is always my first grab. Sure it could help start a fire etc, but I don’t even care about that. I just like having my T.P.
JGuest
Echo5charlie,
good one, it beats trusting to leaves!
MuleskinnerGuest
Well, for me it has to be my 550 paracord. I can set traps, build a raft or shelter.
PJKeymaster
Brandon – I should clarify that by “source fire” I mean scavenging something which will allow me to NOT have to use primitive methods.
I really like the choice of a pot and the canvas, both good items which have value. I guess for me while the compass might not be a popular choice, having been out there in the dark with a sinking feeling (where am I?) I just hate being lost. I was on a land nav course once which happened to be much larger than most I had ever attempted. While the points where not that far apart by some standards, 5 – 7 clicks between points including swamps wasn’t exactly fun (in the dark). I made the mistake of getting ahead of myself and relying on terrain association, I ended up doing clover leafs for WAY too long trying to find a point that wasn’t there. I got lucky somehow and passed but only barely.
I’m not sure how much that could apply to a real world bugout / survival situation, but there is something about a compass which gives me comfort. 🙂
PJKeymaster
E5C
I keep an extra roll of TP in my car, besides the one in my BOB. I have had to use it…in places where there were no restrooms. Driving along some desolate road for miles and nature calls, what other options does one really have?
The MajGuest
Some really good thoughts and honestly, there is no wrong answer IMHO – others might argue that something doesn’t make sense to them, but does it really matter as long as it makes sense to the person that selected it?
I was laying out, weighing and repacking my bugout bag when I thought about it and started laying things out in order of priority (my perceived priority). There is only so much cube in a bag and you can only realistically carry so much weight, so with those two limiting factors most people will have to pare down to make the cube/weight numbers work out.
PJKeymaster
Maj
It’s funny you should mention laying out your BoB, I do it a few times a year for all 3 of ours and every time things change. It seems as if there is never a 100% correct formula.
BrandonGuest
Yeah, BOBs are always a work in progress. There’s always something that can be added, removed, or upgraded, and you can spend all the time you want figuring out the best way to pack it.
bigpaulGuest
water filter….probably a Sawyer mini, but also have a Lifestraw and a LifeSaver bottle.
- The forum ‘General Discussion Forum’ is closed to new topics and replies.
.
