Posts Tagged gear
Using a GPS and Compass
When on a hiking, hunting or camping trip, it is very important not to get lost. And if the hiker or hunter does find their selves lost, how do they get found again? There are some basic tools that should be included in the wilderness survival tool kit. These include a GPS, compass and the knowledge on how to use them.
Regardless of what items are included in the kit, the most important tool is the knowledge. Only knowledge can empower the person to effectively use the gear in their survival kit.
This video discusses some basic information on how to a TOPO map, compass and GPS.
The mistake that a lot of people when they get their GPS, they do not practice. Before a GPS is taken into a wilderness area, take the GPS, read the instruction manual and get some practice in.
Camping Video Collection
This video is a collection of different types of camping and hiking videos streamed from youtube. To scroll through the videos, click the buttons on the right and left hand side of the player.
If the video player shows an error that the video is no longer available, just click the button on the right hand side of the player to advance to the next video.
Large ALICE Packs
The All-Purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment (also know as “ALICE Pack“), was first introduced by United States Army in 1974. The ALICE pack was intended as a replacement to the aging M-1956 Load-Carrying Equipment [LCE] and M-1967 Modernized Load-Carrying Equipment.
The ALICE pack has become popular with the players of airsoft and paintball. The popularity of the ALICE pack is due to the quality of the materials it is made out of, its easy to customize, and the packs area easy to find in most military surplus stores.
This video gives a description of the large and medium ALICE packs. After watching the video, be sure to visit the forum. More information can be found there on gear like the ALICE pack.
The ALICE pack in the video is about 12 to 13 years old, and has been on more hiking and trips then I care to count. The overall comfort of the pack is a little lacking, but its designed for military service, not the civilian market. If you are looking for a go anywhere and do anything pack, its going to be hard to beat an ALICE pack.
Planning for a long term disaster
While in the chat room dirtyharriett asked about my plans on food. My reply was along the lines of “one day rice and the next day beans.” In reality its a little more complex then that.
My plans are like a flow chart, with a bunch of “ifs” on it. If power, no power, if long term, if short term, if food runs out before life returns back to normal, when will the local community have support from the outside world, is the disaster local, nation wide or world wide. There are 4 major plans – A, B, C, & D.
Food Plan A:
Right now I have about 7 – 9 cases of MRE‘s. Each person in the group should get a single case. This case is to be used for snacks and treats by that person. If we have more then 7 or 9 people, then the MRE’s will be divided up equally. The family unit is going to have to have group meals. No one should be allowed to cook their own meals or eat their meals on their own schedule. We eat at breakfast, dinner and supper. The MRE’s will fill in between those meals. Such as snacks or when the “munchies” set in.
The main course for the first week or so will be meat and anything else in the freezers. The time line for this depends on the generator. If the power goes out, gas = food. For every day we can keep the food in the freezer frozen, or cold, that is an extra day we get to eat out of it. One of my investments has been a 100 quart 5 day cooler. Storing some frozen good in these high quality ice chest could extend their freshness by 5 – days This is the deep freezer. It is full of deer meat, sausage, hamburger and ribs. Each package of ribs has 3 slabs in it. The white packages are full of deer mixed with beef hamburger. Notice the tub in the top right hand corner, we will discuss that in a little bit.
This is the stand up freezer refrigerator, this picture is just of the freezer. Notice the rice, it is in the freezer to kill any weevils in it. The pack of sausage on the bottom is 10 pounds of sausage. The second shelf up from the bottom has another 3 pack of ribs on it.
Survival Gear – Splitting Mauls
Splitting mauls are different from an axe. The maul is heavier and wider then and axe and usually has a dull edge. The back side of the maul is sometimes flat so a sledge hammer can be used to drive it through blocks of wood.
Every survivalist should have a way to cut firewood in their tools. In this case its an axe, machete for cutting small limbs a sledge hammer and a splitting maul.