Max Velocity on Patrol Loads and Packs

Max dropped some truth bombs in a post today over at the MVT blog - check it out.

A few quotes, but the whole write up is worth a read:

You have to figure out what you think it is sensible to carry, and what you can carry, and how it applies to your task. I tell people to pack smart. You need what you need, but you should try and cut down. Prepper mindset can lead you to try and pack a whole bunch of stuff, ‘just in case.’ Well, unless it is absolutely essential, like your weapon, then don’t take it! Be smart about it. Concentrate on ammo, water and food, shelter (as applicable) with items to support that WITHIN REASON.

You have to get away from the idea that you can operate in some sort of self contained way indefinitely. So you pack a weeks’ worth of rations and all your camping gear. Now you can hardly move, and are no longer alert on patrolling. After a week you run out of rations. Perhaps pack 2 weeks? NO. You need a base and you need logistics. If you are operating out there for an extended period, you need a team and a logistics plan. You cannot operate on your own indefinitely. How about someone resupplies a cache by some means? ATV, vehicle, whatever? Use your brain to figure it out so you can move lighter and smarter. If you are planning on some sort of extended forward patrol base operation, see what means you can use to get supplies in there without having to hump them, or at least cache them close?

If you are conducting security patrolling, you may be patrolling light at relatively close range to your base, in your standard loadout, like my light battle belt/ CUTT chest rig configuration as an example. Ballistic plates or not, pick your poison. I recommend a light hydration pack so you have water and the ability to carry a small amount of other gear, such as night vision, some food , extra mags etc. Camelbak MULE type item. That loadout will probably have at least 8 or 9 x 5.56 magazines on it (including your rifle). If you are going on an extended patrol and need to take the patrol pack, then you need that ‘second line ammo scale’ on the patrol pack, which would be another 8 mags. See how this is never going to be light anyway, so you need to cut it down where you can.


I will carry the least amount of gear that I can get away with, but there are basics that will always be present. Here are some examples, not an ultimate list, just what pops to mind mentally going through gear:

First Line: Light Battle belt / CUTT Chest Rig / hydration pack:

• Rifle
• Rifle magazines (9)
• Handgun
• Handgun magazines (3)
• Small IFAK
• 2 x TQ
• Radio – if using.
• Leatherman Tool
• Knife
• FLIR Scout
• PVS-14 / Crye Nightcap
• Map/Compass
• Basic rations – energy bars
• Water bladder
• Water purification tablets / straw
• Lighters
• Smoke
• Batteries for all above.
• (Ballistic Plate carrier – if applicable)

Add Patrol Pack:

• Magazines (8)
• Water (either stow the hydration pack as a mini ‘grab bag’ or carry a separate bladder in the patrol pack)
• Rations (3 days stripped down)
• Light jungle sleeping bag / blanket (upgraded for winter)
• Goretex bivvy bag
• Thermal sleeping mat
• MVT SHIELD (use as tarp shelter)
• Spare socks
• Spare clothing / cold weather gear
• Foot care kit / first aid / medications
• Lightweight rocket /solid fuel stove with pot
• Helmet – if applicable / night vision
• Folding saw
• Paracord
• Add misc. items such as batteries and misc. gear.
• Add special to task gear as appropriate.

From Alex: Again, read the whole write up, it's good advice.

I've been writing about keeping bug out bag/patrol packs/go to hell bags (I prefer the latter term personally, but whatevs) as light as possible for a while. That doesn't mean ditching the essentials, it means packing what you need and trimming weight where you can. Your pack might not be an ultralight one, especially if you're conducting some variety of post apocalyptic patrol/operation, but it shouldn't be heavier than it needs to be.

Example - you don't need a stove, but you might want to have one for convenience/comfort. But if you are going to pack one around on foot, it'd better be pretty lightweight.

My personal pack lists is fairly similar to what Max details above -- certainly some nuances; I don't have a stove or a bivvy bag, have 5 mags versus 8, I do have a weapons cleaning kit, that kind of thing. Max didn't intend his lists to be exhaustive and all encompassing, just a starting point for a total collapse, armed citizen's patrol pack.

Trimming Pack Weight

I just finished reading an excellent book called the Mission, the Men and Me, written by former Delta Force officer Pete Blaber. Highly recommended to anyone, it largely focuses on key themes and lessons that Blaber learned during his time in the Unit. Great stories and great lessons.

One of Blaber's stories is about a training mission that he took his team on into the mountains of the Bob Marshall Wilderness. He talks in-depth about how all of the guys became obsessed with their pack weight and hitting the goal of what they felt was the optimal maximum weight for a man to carry.

Now, these guys were from friggin' Delta Force and all tip-top athletes who had done a lot of time carrying heavy packs during the military careers leading up to that point. So how much do you think they wanted to carry up into the vast, snow-covered mountains? 70 pounds? 80 pounds? More?

Zyon Systems Patrol Pack

Image via Zyon Systems

I have zero affiliation with these guys, but came across them the other day and wanted to pass this along.

Most ready-made kits are made with cheap Chinese-made dollar store stuff that will fall apart sitting in a closet, let alone being put to any real world use.

This ready-to-rock patrol pack, on the other hand, is built around solid quality, brand name stuff. It comes at an accordingly higher price, but you get really good stuff--a Camelbak HAWG, Leatherman Wave, Fenix Headlamp, QuickClot, Mechanix gloves, etc. Lots of personal favorites there. Impressive.

Maybe a bit light on shelter (comes with a nice Snugpak poncho, though) and you'd probably want to add some ancillaries like gorilla tape, canteen cup, water filter, but if you are in the market for an off-the-shelf bag, this is the best of I've seen.

One of these would be a great foundation for a cache, too.

Check out the Zyon Systems Patrol Pack >

Edited to add:

Got an e-mail from Zyon Systems regarding some of the discussion in the comments:

In regards to the pricing on our Patrol Pack, I ensured that we were beating Amazon's price, which is very hard to do as a reseller. If you tally up the complete cost of the contents of the bag right down to the travel tooth brush its roughly $100 cheaper than buying everything on Amazon. The multicam HAWG is expensive. I can build the kit with other colors to bring the cost down a bit.

The real value of this kit is that we will replace any of the consumable items if used in a real world emergency or operation. Batteries, food, toiletries, camo paint etc. That way your kit is always stocked and ready to roll!

Our Professional Pack will be online in the next few weeks. It's our version of a 72 hour bag, using only the highest quality products. We think its the best designed turnkey emergency kit on the market. I'm just wrapping up doing some evaluation scenarios with it to make sure all of the equipment is up to snuff.

BugOut Maps

Via Black Scout Survival:


Cool product - gets you a really nice custom lightweight map for your bug out needs.

Never hurts to have a map on hand, even just as a backup.

Available on eBay.

Bug out bag discussion continued

Continuing from the previous post. Comments generated some good discussion, responses started getting long so I broken them out here.

Contractor-style "Go Bags" - maybe a bad example
I used these as an example of a lighter weight, purpose-driven kit, but may have taken the conversation sideways a bit

For some context, an example from Bubba over at DVM of a go bag (he calls it a red zone bug out bag) he carried as a backup:  http://www.deathvalleymag.com/2010/03/16/civilian-contractors-red-zone-bug-out-bag-part-1/

A man purse with mags and tactical gear isn't something I'd make an across the board recommendation on, especially for a civvy survivalist. In fact, it's tough to make any kind of across the board recommendations. Why?

A really good quote from the DVM article:

It’s all about defining the threat environment you operate in, the problems you will most likely face, and sorting out the tools that are the best fit for you and your mission, as well as what you can reasonably expect to carry.

The contractor go bag is an example of a solution for the problems those guys were facing in Iraq. They were almost exclusively operating out of vehicles in a quasi-urban environment, and were primarily concerned with attacks from heavily armed insurgents, IEDs or a combination of the two. If the bag needed to be employed, it'd need to be grabbed quickly, and would be used to retreat under fire and either get to safety or survive until help showed up.

Your threat environment, the problems you will most likely face, and the problem solving tools that will work for you will likely be different from a contractor in Iraq circa 2009.

Bug out bag or Ruck
These are two terms that are tossed around a lot in the same discussion--I'll define them in terms of capacity and weight and discuss.

Bug out bags and vehicles

When plans have gone to hell, when your commandeered short bus is going up in flames...that's when you need a bug out bag.

As popular as bug out bags are, their role in survival/preparedness plans is often misunderstood.

You'll often hear stuff like "Man, bugging out is crazy! I'm going to bug in and stay home!" or "Why would I choose to be a refugee with nothing but a backpack on my back?"

And then on the other hand, you'll have others who for some reason plan to start marching off into the woods with a giant pack to pitch a tent, hang out and start bush crafting.

It's all too common, and unfortunately both are completely missing the point.



I agree - bugging out shouldn't be your primary plan. Or even your secondary. Yep, you'll want to bug in...at least as long as it is safe to do so.

If you're forced to leave your bug in location and retreat to safety, you'll want to load up your truck/SUV with every possible thing that you can for that journey. Gear, food, water, fuel...heck, hook up that bug out trailer, too.

There are of course various things that can go wrong or draw you away from your vehicle. Crash, break downs, getting stuck, running out of fuel, getting hopelessly stuck in traffic, floods, impassable roads, attacks on your vehicle...or, even just heading out on foot for a scout/patrol of an area.

That's when you want your bug out bag.

In the Walking Dead screen grab from above, they crashed their short bus and it burst into flames. Crap - there goes their transportation as well as the majority of food and weaponry they appeared to have brought along for their journey.

In You Took Away Tomorrow, the characters first attempt to bug in at Jack Rourke's home. Then, when their home is compromised, they try to bug out via their vehicles. When the group's makeshift convoy falls under attack from machine gun wielding neo nazi bikers, they resort to a bug out on foot.

Soldiers and especially contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan have been well known to carry 'go bags' in their armored SUVs - small bags that they can grab during an attack. They pack them with spare mags, medical gear, radios, smoke grenades and other assorted cool guy stuff to help them get back to safety or hold out until rescue arrives.

An example of a 'worst case' for this in action. This was shared by a recent Haley Strategic class participant - think instead of just grabbing long guns, they'd be throwing on bug out bags as well.

Post by Ryan Smith.

In my opinion, a bug out bag should work in this kind of environment and scenario. You should be able to move quickly, even move and shoot while wearing it. It should also be of a size 'works' around a vehicle and can be retrieved and donned quickly if needed...not some giant hiking pack that you can barely lift.

If you had gunfire (or quickly rising flood waters, or fire, or whatever) coming in your direction, how long would you spend screwing around with a pack? Be able to grab and move - that's the point.

Thoughts?

Review: Bushcraft Outfitters Ultralight Multicam MEST

A 5x7 Multicam tarp that weighs in at under 1/2 a pound? And can fit inside a canteen pouch or cargo pocket?

Yes, such a thing does exist. Behold, with a .38 special for size comparison:

 It's the Ultralight Multicam MEST (Multipurporse Emergency Survival Tarp). And, in a game of "ounces equals pounds, pounds equals pain" it gives you an excellent way to shave off critical weight or carry a functional shelter when you otherwise would not.

Rucks vs. Bug Out Bags

Here's something that I've noticed come up fairly frequently in the survival community, that again showed up in the question post from yesterday - the notion that a bug out bag has to be a large multi-day backpacking pack. 

A large ruck, framed pack or any other big arse 40-70+ pound pack have their place, but they are different from a conventional bug out bag. Two different purposes. 

Bug out bags got their start in military special operations circles. These dudes carry really heavy rucks to support themselves off-grid in a war zone. Radios, batteries, explosives, lots of ammo, heavy MREs to last a week or two...gets heavy fast. 

They also know that if/when they make contact with the enemy, they will be unable to move quickly and make a hasty retreat with those giant rucks. So, what do they have to do? Ditch 'em. Leave them behind.

This is when the bug out bag - also called a 'go to hell' bag in some circles - comes into play. The plan has gone to hell and they need to ditch their ruck and get out of dodge. It is a smaller, lighter bag that has survival necessities. It's something they can move quickly with and even fight while wearing. And it allows the special operations guy to ditch his ruck, break contact and still have the critical essentials to either continue with his mission or make it to friendly territory.

Will they be comfortable, warm and cozy? Not likely. BUT, they will have enough to scrape through, not freeze to death or die of dehydtration.

SO - that is a 'real' bug out bag and its original intention - a smaller kit to take with you as a last ditch when retreating from danger. 

At this point, we may need to come up with a different name for bug out bags in this context, since the name has been adopted for any variety of emergency backpack, big arse 80+ pounders on down. I'm certainly guilty of this. "Go to hell bag" might work.

So - a 'real' bug out bag is not something that you're going to want to take on a 5-day backpacking trip for funsies. It's not something you're going to have room to carry pots and pans and grills and three changes of clothes in. It will be small-ish, light and packed with the bare necessities.

Obviously, large rucks for supporting extended operations in the field have their place. No argument there. But, a ruck and a bug out bag are different things, at least originally - different tools for different jobs. 

If you're starting out, start with a bug out bag. If you decide that you need a ruck, you'll still want to have the BOB anyways.

Good read on EDC bags

Found these older posts on Straightforward in a Crooked World - some good thoughts on EDC bags vs. bug out bags and keeping plans based in reality.

• The Bugout Bag vs. The Go Bag - Pt 1
• The Bugout Bag vs. The Go Bag - Pt 2

"Loadout" Bags for your Bug Out Gear

The system shown here by James Yaeger is similar to what we use (big black duffel bags at the moment for us...the rolling REI bags would be preferable) to contain, organize and conceal gear. Lets you carry potentially eyebrow raising stuff in a totally innocuous manner. I mean, everyone has big bags for travel, right?

In military circles, this would be termed a loadout bag - one giant bag where you chuck all your mission gear to transit. Military dudes would obviously not care about the low profile look, but same general idea here.

This kind of system also gives you some spare cubic inches for useful, but not critical stuff. Clothes, toiletries, comfort items, more consumables, redundant gear, etc. If you've gotta leave the pavement behind, then that stuff probably gets ditched - but at that point, oh well.

Lots of bags to choose from out there, too - from duffels to rolling bags to backpacks to various hybrids (duffel/backpacks!) - to fit your mission. If you like luggage, eBags is the best place I've found - and their house brand is really good for the price. For cheap, durable and functional, the Northstar brand on Amazon are a pretty good choice for big, simple duffels.

James Yaeger's Bug Out Bag Experiment

Yaeger is opinionated as heck, but more often than not, I agree with him. I've been digging his new series on the "bug out bag experiment" - in part, because he's reading the comments and responding to suggestions for gear to include in his bag.

He's got three installments up now,  and gets progressively more fed up with stupid comments as the videos progress. There's some good rants around toilet paper, cookware, bugging out versus bushcrafting, setting up camp and more.

Anker Backup Battery

I've had this little powerhouse for a few months now and have been pretty happy with its performance. Unlike many backup batteries, it actually works and keeps on working, too!
 
This particular model is the Anker Astro - 5600 mAH of power in a 4.25 ounce package. Has a built in LED light, too. 5600 mAH will re-charge most smart phones 2-4 times - enough to keep your phone charged through a short term emergency.

Testing this unit out, I've used it as the sole power source for my everyday iPhone. I run my iPhone down to 40% per day on average--checking e-mail, listening to music and audio books, and some web surfing and YouTube. The Anker was able to keep it topped up for 3 days, no problemo.

Camelbak Mil Tac HAWG

I love CamelBak's military line of packs and recently added the new, 2013 Mil Tac HAWG to the stable. If you're in the market for a hydration/daypack sized bag, it's an excellent option. Bomb-proof construction, excellent materials, great layout of pockets and organization, good integration of the hydration carrier--really solid pack all around.

At 1400 cubic inches, it has enough space to carry mission essentials, EDC gear or equipment for a light overnighter.

This HAWG is currently serving as a summer-weight bail out bag, and I'm really pretty thrilled with it. I've gone through a lot of packs and bags, and this is one of my favorites. Reportedly, the HAWG is well liked by SEALs and other high speed military types.

At around the $150 price point, it's right in that price range with other top quality packs, and includes the new, very nice CamelBak Antidote reservoir.

Only complaint - the available colors does not include any camo patterns other than ACU and ABU. They should at least offer a multicam.

Available on Amazon and at other retailers of Camelbak's Maximum Gear line.

The Good Idea Fairy: Super-Sized Bug Out Bag Hygiene Kits

Here's a visit from the Good Idea Fairy, the pudgy gal who enjoys waving her wand and encouraging you to waste money and load your kits down with crap you don't need. If you missed the original post on her exploits, check it out here.

I'm going to try to turn this into a quasi-recurring series where we discuss ideas that sound good but really aren't.

First up are bursting-from-the-seams hygiene kits many carry in their bug out bags. The Good Idea Fairy comes along, waves her wand and the "hygiene is important" idea takes over and, before you know it, you've added a bunch of silly crap to your kit.

Now I'm all for having some very basic stuff - I carry a travel size pack of wipes in my kits and not much else. They're multipurpose and don't weigh much.

You could make an argument for hand sanitizer or soap, and maybe a toothbrush and a travel size of toothpaste as a comfort item. A small container of bug spray or sun screen, potentially, based on your environment. Maybe a tube of lip balm.

But beyond that, you move into the "I'm packing for a vacation" mode versus the "I am running for my life" mode that a bug out bag should be built for.

The Good Idea Fairy

Enemy #1: The Good Idea Fairy

Many of you have probably read No Easy Day, the firsthand account of the raid to kill Osama/Usama Bin Laden. Great read. One of the things that stuck with me was the SEAL Team 6s constant struggle with the "Good Idea Fairy."

All sorts of experts and Brass are involved in the planning phases of the team's missions, and probably deservedly so. These are critical, life-or-death, high profile missions. There are numerous contingencies to plan for, and that's where the Good Idea Fairy flies her chubby little self in and starts waving her wand. With each new possible contingency, the Team has to battle having to carry more gear or running the mission differently.

One example from the book, if I remember right: the mission planners were concerned about getting undue attention from the locals outside the compound. The plan was to have the team's interpreter warn the locals off with the ol' "police operation, move along, nothing to see here" act. But, in order to do that well, the interpreter would need a megaphone, right?

Of course, bringing a megaphone along would mean that someone on the team would need to carry a frickin' megaphone along with them. 60 pounds of gear--explosives, tools, armor, mags, smoke grenades, quad tube NVGs, pistol, suppressed M4, and now you've also gotta somehow carry and fast rope with a megaphone, too? And for what added advantage?

The Team shut that idea down pretty quickly.

While I don't think many of my readers are SEAL team members, high-speed operators aren't the only ones who have to contend with the Good Idea Fairy. Heck, anyone who has tried to plan for next to anything has probably dealt with her. It's very easy to get into paralysis by analysis, bog things down in endless rounds of decision making, over pack and over spend.

Of course, there's certainly consequences to not being prepared and not having the tools you need to accomplish your mission or task at hand. So, there's a balancing act to be done--having what you need and not much excess.

Survivalism has to be one of the Good Idea Fairy's favorite topics. It is exceedingly easy to lose focus and get caught up in the what ifs. The Good Idea Fairy waves her wand and POOF, you've end up with a 100 pound pack you can hardly lift, a house overflowing with excess gear and an empty bank account.

So, how do we battle the nefarious fairy? First and foremost is experience. The SEALs can spot this kind of stuff a mile away because they've got experience and know exactly what tools they need on hand to perform a mission. Very few of us will ever have that level of experience, but the more that we use our gear, the more familiar we will become with the tools that we need. So, every day carry it, get outside and use it, take classes and use it, whatever.

Second, before you give into what seems like a good idea at the team, take a step back and think about it. Ask yourself questions like "What will this do for me?" and "What are the costs of adding this? The consequences of not?" When examining costs, think about the obvious monetary costs, but also the weight, bulk and space required.

Finally, evaluate your preparations and yourself on a regular basis. Look at what you've used and what is just excess. What works and what doesn't work. Bust out the scale and trim weight. Look at what you've bought that was a good idea the time, but has since lost its luster.

What run-ins have you had with the Good Idea Fairy? What have you bought that felt like a good idea at the time, but turned out to be a waste? Do you feel like you over do it with gear or pack just enough?

Go Bag vs. Bug out Bag

We often tend to use the terms "bug out bag" and "go bag" synonymously, when you get down to it, they're slightly different ways to solve similar problems.

If you actually Google "go bag", you'll actually come up with a bunch of messenger/shoulder type bags, with some smaller backpacks thrown in for good measure.

Soldiers, spec ops and especially contractors operating out of vehicles often like to have a bag of gear with them in case they need to ditch the vehicle and E&E back to safety. The size of the kit is obviously limited - it needs to fit in the nooks and crannies of a vehicle and it needs to be a manageable enough size to grab out of a burning vehicle in the middle of a gun fight and run for the hills.

A go bag's gear is usually a supplement to the operator's on-person gear--more mags, smoke grenades, IFAK stuff, comms, some spare batteries and E&E gear with snivel gear mixed in.

There's not much of a focus on wilderness survival stuff - ain't much bush crafting to do in Iraq or Afghanistan, and the cavalry will probably show up fairly quickly. Instead, the focus is on breaking contact with the enemy, evading back to safety and/or signalling for rescue.

Here's one example of what I'm talking about: NOLATAC: Operational Go Bag.

In contrast, bug out bags, as least amongst typical survivalist circles, are typically larger, multi-day packs, with a focus on food, water, shelter, fire starting and similar. They're usually more geared towards wilderness survival and heavier in weight. 72 hour kit type stuff.

Which kit is going to be more useful to you will depend on your area, plans and the particular disastrous situation you find yourself in. Like most, the best answer is probably to have both - more options.

Thoughts? Which makes more sense to you - go bag or bug out bag? Regardless of what you call it, has anyone gone down the path and built what they would call a "go bag" like we're talking here?

Bug Out Bag Shelter Discussion

Shelter is a pretty good idea for the ol' go bag. Importance is going to vary a bit depending on your environment - urban sprawl is very different from rural Montana. And season will play a role too - more important in cold weather, less so in warm weather. Freezing to death is no fun, and exposure can kill you pretty darn quickly. So, we generally want to look at including some kind of shelter option in our kits.

Before we dive in, it's important to cover off on an idea that many people miss out on: a bug out bag should be built for fast movement towards an area of safety, with capabilities to overcome any obstacles in your way.

An evac is not a camping trip or a backpacking trip--it's not a happy, leisurely thing. You're running for your life. If it's safe for you to be moving, and you have the physical ability to do so, then you should be getting out of dodge, not hanging out bushcrafting or whatever. A lot of people get confused here.

We also often overlook our primary form of transportation - the ol' family bug out vehicle. The BOV will to get us to our safe location faster than on foot, and should only be ditched if absolutely necessary - ambush, utterly impassable roads, out of fuel with no hope of refueling or broken down with no hope of repair. These are the kinds of dire situations that would push us to abandon our vehicles, extra gear and bail out on foot.

This all helps shape our choices for shelter. We should attempt to have something that is:

• Light and compact enough to allow for fast movement
• Quick to set up/take down
• Multipurpose if possible
• Robust enough to provide life saving shelter in killer weather conditions
• Subdued color or camouflage pattern

For these reasons, most of us survivalist types tend towards tarps, poncho tarps, and, to a lesser extent bivy bags. You're not going to beat one of these shelters in terms of size/weight, which is an essential.

Setup and take down times on these kinds of shelter can vary, and improve with practice. Bivy bags are mostly just roll out and jump into. Tarps can be a bit trickier. I would not hesitate to add shortcuts like bungie cords to help ease setup - yes, you should know the knots, but if you can save time/effort for a minimal weight savings. Worry more about set up times than about how fancy or perfect of a shelter you can pitch. From packed to under shelter in 5 minutes is a good baseline.

Robustness on tarps and bivy bags is going to vary fairly greatly - I would be cautious about going with too thin/lightweight of material. But, you probably don't need the item to last for months of use - it needs to hold the weather at bay for as long as it takes you to move from your point of danger to your targeted safe zone.

The old USGI poncho used to be the no-brain option, but they are getting scarce and running up in price. Many use the bivy bag from the military sleep system. There are numerous tarp, poncho tarps and bivy bags on the market, though - Go Lite, Seek Outside, Kifaru, SnugPak, Dave Canterbury's Patherfinder School, Bushcraft Outfitters USA and others all have solid options in their product lineups. A green, brown or tan hardware store tarp can work in a pinch, too. Not ideal, but not much money, either.

Unconventional Options
A tarps, poncho tarps or bivy bags are the common answer to the survival shelter problem, and it's a good one. If you need to go really fast and light or find yourself without your kit, here are a couple options to consider:

Go Primitive
Having the tools and know-how to build primitive shelter, ala the Discovery survival TV shows. A fixed blade knife, saw and cordage are go bag staples, and they're all you need to build a variety of primitive shelters that will keep you alive in nasty weather. Throw in an axe and you can do even more. And, these tools are useful for more than just shelter building, too.

This "Bear Grylls" approach has a major downside to it - shelter building is time and calorie intensive, and your time and energy would probably be better spent moving to your final destination. It also exposes you to greater risk of going without shelter - if you're injured, don't have adequate materials, run out of time in the day, etc.

Use Existing Shelter
Most areas of the U.S. are populated and developed - lots of existing buildings and other hidey holes. In a bug out level disaster scenario, a large number of buildings are likely to be completely abandoned -- office buildings, unimportant stores (not many people shop for furniture during the apocalypse), barns and utility buildings and so on. All certainly potential options.

Private residences will be hit-or-miss--hard to determine if they're actually abandoned, potentially deadly if you barge into someone's occupied home by accident. Certainly risky.

The home of a friend or acquaintance would be another matter - if they are home, you may be able to hunker down in the basement or garage for an evening. If they aren't, well, at least they might not shoot you if they show up while you're riding out the storm in their living room.

And, of course, lots of other options - access tunnels, bridges and overpasses, etc. 

Either of the above - primitive shelter or leveraging existing shelter - can also of course be combined with any shelter that you have with you. For example - a tarp can do a considerable amount to reinforce a debris hut or lean-to.

Anyways, quick overview of some of the options that are out there and how to think about your selection when packing shelter for your bail out bag.

What shelter do you carry in your bug out bag? Let us know!

Repacking Pt. 2

Good comment from Day Tripper posted on the original Repacking post that I think has some excellent discussion points:

Day Tripper:
I try to clean out and repack my stuff every couple of months. Different seasons bring different needs. Plus when it comes to EDC stuff, if I haven't used an item in a few months it probably doesn't need to be in there anyway. I used to carry around a full fire starting kit complete with tinder in my EDC but never used it. Eventually it slimmed down to now being just a Bic lighter, magnesium rod for backup, and my boo boo kit has hand sanitizer (fuel) and plenty of bandage stuff (tender) that could be improvised if needed. In many years of carrying my EDC bag to and from work I can confidently say that I've never had to start a fire, build a shelter, boil water, trap food, etc. That being said, I seem to become much more equipped and redundant when hiking in the woods.

Me: 
I do the same thing with reducing unused items - if it doesn't get used, it is up for removal.

Part of the challenge, though, is balancing the oft used daily items with the "I hope I never need this" disaster/emergency stuff.

Personally, if it is a "just in case" emergency item, really, it's probably not going to get used, so I am especially conscientious of the weight and bulk. I look to balance the likelihood of needing the item and the consequences of not having the item on hand when needed with the size/weight penalty for adding it to my pack.

Fire is one of those largely "emergency" capabilities--I need a lighter for the occasional melting of paracord ends and not much else. I unfortunately spend most of my time trapped within suburbia, so the consequences of not having fire starting gear, even in a disaster, would be fairly minimal. But, simple fire starting gear is compact enough and important enough that I make sure to have some. My EDC bag has a regular sized Bic and a pocket survival kit that, amongst other things, contains a mini Bic, a small fire steel and some TinderQuik.

And, as you noted, many of the bag's other contents could be used for fire starting. Gauze in the blow out kit, hand sanitizer, alcohol-based lens cleaner, alcohol swabs, travel pack of kleenex, 100% cotton shemagh and so on. Lots of options.

Another example: water filtration is another one of those capabilities that I'm really only going to need in a bad situation. Again, I run light there--a 1 ounce water filtration straw and some chlorine dioxide tablets. Less than 2 ounces total and takes up very minimal bulk. Probably won't be needed, but a capability that I want to have none-the-less, so I ensure that it's light, compact and doesn't really get in the way.

My Blow Out/Gunshot Wound kit is the same way--I sure do not plan to every need a tourniquet, Combat Gauze and so on, but it doesn't weigh much, and if I really needed it, I would not want to be without it.

So, while some of the gear in my daily carry bag doesn't see a lot of use, if it performs a critical enough task and isn't too bulky, I make sure to include it where I can. Certainly, evaluate your situation and your potential scenarios and tailor as you see fit.

What "emergency-only" gear do you carry in your daily carry gear? How conscientious are you about the size/weight of said gear? Has it ever saved your bacon from trouble?

Repacking

Took some time after work to adjust my daily carry bag for my adjusted daily circumstances. Mostly shifting stuff out - it was in need of a slim down - some of which will end up in a vehicle bag, others I will try living without and see what happens. The pack may get further trimmed down, but I was able to cut 2 or 3 pounds, which ain't bad for a bag that weighs under 10 to begin with.

At the same time, I also took some time to repack my go bag - shifted placement of items, added a few things from my EDC bag and removed a few things that had been shoved in for the move. I'm going to trim a bit further here and want to re-do some areas. Example: somehow, my go bag ended up with a crappy fire kit, and the good stuff got put into storage. Yarg.

I find that there's something calming and a bit soothing about repacking. Focus in on the task, bust out the scale, trim the excess and zone in on what you need. It's fairly rewarding too - you end up with a pile of unneeded gear and tactile weight cut from the pack in question.

If you haven't repacked one of your bags or kits lately, I highly recommend it.

Review: Eberlestock Gunslinger 2

Eberlestock developed their original Gunslinger pack for military SOF groups, and it was an immediate hit. The Gunslinger 2 (GS2) is a refinement of that original's design, adding a full barn door front opening and more compression straps to the mix.

Eberlestock offers a great mix of packs -- so many, that it can be difficult to choose exactly which pack to buy. After much back and forth, I went with the GS2 for a variety of reasons:

• Big but not too big--Eberlestock says 2700 cubic inches; I'd prefer maybe 500-1000 more cubic inches, but hey, it helps keep you from over packing (mostly).
• Integrated rifle scabbard - cost, weight savings and greater durability than the "add-on" scabbards. More on why I like the scabbard later.
• Available in black--more on this later.
• Compression straps allow for expansion and overflow, strapping excess gear to the exterior.
• Lighter weight than comparable, more feature-packed Eberlestock offerings--which are all on the heavy side. The GS2 weighs in at an advertised 6 pounds.
• Lower comparative cost--at a little under $300, the GS2 ain't cheap, but it's not the $500-$600 that some of the bigger/more feature packed Eberlestock packs are.