What would you put in your Bug out Bag?

[Name_not_found]

Ruleryak you may like these, same idea as the large one housil showed

Plugs in the wall

auto night light when dark

auto main light on power failure, (can also use as flashlight when ever needed)

[housil]

I like that light

[Ruleryak]

Ruleryak you may like these, same idea as the large one housil showed

I do indeed - might have to order one or two of those. I was in CostCo the other day and they had a pack of three headlamps with batteries for sale for $9.99 so I picked up two of those. Gotta stay up on the batteries of course, but for now I have half a dozen spare lights spread out around the house.

[Name_not_found]

Basics for Short term egress (meaning your coming back)

First aid kit: Bandaids, butterflys, AB ointment, ace bandage, Visine, aspirin, Imodium,trauma bandage, tape, scissors, space blanket

Photo copies of important papers, licence, permits,meds, maps,

Water bladder and a water filter and chem pills

extra socks and undies

rain poncho and poncho liner

flashlight and batteries

fire kit

some rope and a tarp

cash in small bills

knife

small battery radio

a few large heavy trash bags

Depending on the situation this set is added to

Edit:
Just looked through the base kit and found some more items to list

toothbrush

super calorie trail mix

misc kit: tiny sewing kit, safety pins, keychain thermometer, multi tool, glowstick

[RLT]

Well FEMA has placed Ads telling people to have them.

http://www.ready.gov/today interesting interactive map on days when we needed a plan.

Fema recommendations http://www.ready.gov/document/family-supply-list

[Treesuit]

RLT,

I have seen those websites and to me they just offer the basics to people who don't take prepardness seriously or are too lazy. Just my observation mind you. I've been through many natural and un-natural disasters in my life and it to a certain extent forces you to change your lifestyle and thinking. I necessarily don't expect the government to come help me until days after the disaster, such as we are seeing with people in NJ and NY with Hurricane Sandy. For me, I'd rather be a little prepared and be better off than the rest of society. As we saw during Hurricane Katrina, usually the worst is after the storm hit.

NNF,

Thanks for the list. I have to ask do you normally put a sleeping bag in your kit for short term? I do, just because here in WA state we have all four seasons and not having a bag is the difference between staying alive and winding up dead even in the summer. So with reagards to your post do you put more emphasis on comfort or practicality?

[Name_not_found]

NNF,

Thanks for the list. I have to ask do you normally put a sleeping bag in your kit for short term? I do, just because here in WA state we have all four seasons and not having a bag is the difference between staying alive and winding up dead even in the summer. So with reagards to your post do you put more emphasis on comfort or practicality?

No too heavy, bugging out for me has been a move move move event, never really stop and sleep for long whiles, and if my poncho space blanket, liner and a fire cant keep me warm i had better keep moving anyway.

Bug out bags must be practical in my opinion to make the event comfortable, if that makes sense.

That said, if im hitting the woods for a week i do take a sleeping bag and more luxury items.

[Bobby]

When it comes to lighting I keep a few sets of these around 20-Light LED Warm White C3 Battery Operated Light Set ...These will light up a room so at least you can see everything..These are clear Christmas lights..Not so sure it would be better than a headlamp..They are great in the house tho. It uses two or three AA batteries..I bought the lights at Home Depot..

[RLT]

Treesuit my comments were for the guy putting the idea down.

In between summer and winter storms we avg 10 months with power a year. I'm big on non perishable items and old tech solutions.

In a bail out situation the snivel gear is one of the first things dropped. I like MREs and have them around for the power outages. But the weight adds up fast. Water is fairly easy to find here so a good hiking filter and canteen is all you usually need.
Freeze dried and dehydrated weigh so much less and take up a lot less room.

Clothing , at least a full change. Damp clothes and cold equals deadly hypothermia. Also expect major weight loss. The current dietary rules go out the window in disaster situations. There is a reason the old farm meals contained so much fats.

BOBs are a lot of personal choice. I like sweets and trail mixes easily reached in an outside pocket. The FSRs look nice and handy as well.

Eating gear is another personal choice. A spoon and chopsticks do wonders for me. If I'm on the move I don't use a fork at all.

Clothing? Something like the Duluth Traders Fire Hose canvas pants and Coats wear forever it seems. Not a big fan of the cammie stuff when in that kind of a situation, media has used too broader a brush on it.

In boots I'm a fan of the military ones last long time work fine.

[Treesuit]

RLT,

When you mention military boots, which ones do you like the best? I've had great success with the cotton canvas/nylon, jungle boot and the newer all nylon version. I've found even in weather down to the teens with snow those boots paired with some real wool socks kept my feet warm, more so than the Mickey Mouse Extreme Cold Weather Boots. Also I've had mixed success with the Danner boots. Whether it be the Matterhorns or a civilian pair. Both are pretty durable.

Also have you tried using the spoon, fork, knife combo by Trangia (Light my Fire)? I found one for $1.95 made out of stainless steel. It's virtually indestructable.

For FEMA comments, no offense taken.

Lastly, you mentioned in a Bail Out situation you would drop snivel gear (i.e. cold weather, rain gear, etc) any reason why? Are you just getting rid of it because of weight issues? Or do you intend to get somwhere quick and have supplies cached? I saw over at AR15.com that some people have a Bug Out Location (BOL) that is preplanned to where a person could wait out a disaster and have more supplies waiting there.