Solo hunting survival kit- what's in your bag?

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Mine is the same Solo or group hunting so I don't repack.
1 liter of water, 1 qt Gatorade, box of cliff bars. 2 lighters. A bag of cotton rounds. A small tub of petroleum jelly. 100' of Paracord. Rain gear, socks and gloves. A compass and light with spare batteries. Also a roll of tape.
This pack weighs about 10 lbs and can fit my clothes if I get too warm hiking. Pocket knife and hunting knife are on me instead of in the pack.
 
George P said:
I just got the Spring Cabela's specialty catalog - besides a big section on shooting gear, it also has a LOT of the ultralight gear from hammocks, stoves, etc - you might want to check that out
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Interesting. Cabela's is not known for light weight gear. But I would much rather buy from a company that uses my dollars to support and affirm hunting than a company that uses my dollars to oppose hunting. (I'm looking at you, REI.)
 
Armored farmer said:
I really do have an emergency bag that I take along if I am going to be in unfamiliar territory.View attachment 235794 2 bic lighters
Magnesium fire starter
Tinder
Hand sanitizer
Acetaminophen and ibuprofen
Gauze and tape
Several decent sized zip ties
Good compass
Whistle
Small led flashlight
Spare AA batteries

The bare essentials.
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I would add a small tub of petroleum jelly. It has many uses from fire starter when combined with gauze to wound care. Smear some on a cotton round or gauze pad and anyone can start a fire.
 
Choctaw said:
Using the tourniquet only as a last resort is no longer true. If you are bleeding out you must stop the flow of blood and do so quickly.
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This is absolutely true. The late unpleasantness (2001-NOW) has taught us this. MOST service members who are KIA but not killed immediately die from massive blood loss. The priority of care has even changed to treating massive bleeding FIRST on a casualty- yes, even prior to establishing an airway. To the best of my knowledge, ALL service members are taught how this, taught how to use a tourniquet (on themselves if necessary), and issued at least one.
We each carried 2, and the medic carried several. In addition, they were secured in vehicles and even on pieces of equipment like collapsible litters, ladders, and so on. Is there a possibility of the casualty losing a limb? Sure. But I would rather be treating a person missing a limb than bagging someone up.
 
You mean people hunt with other people? I thought that was most of the point... I fish alone too.

When alone, I carry a backpack. You can call it a bug out bag, a survival bag, whatever. It has basic tools and a few pieces of hardware in it. There is also a few cans of beanie weenies, and gear to do what I'm not doing...If I'm fishing there's a accurate pistol in the bag, if I'm hunting there is a tiny tacklebox in there. Either way it gives me options on food. There is a small stainless bowl for cooking or boiling water, a Zippo and a can of ronsonol. First aid kit is small but thorough. There's a sledgeaxe head, and a nice heavy folding knife with a good edge, and a 6x8 blue tarp. With my kit I am comfortable that I can find food, boil water, and build temporary shelter. I am also confident I can do minor repairs to small engines to get me out of trouble if it's a boat issue. If it's a truck issue it's probably electronic and it's just dead.
 
WestKentucky said:
If it's a truck issue it's probably electronic and it's just dead.
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This is awesome. When I bought my 2012 F150, I had been looking for a couple years for a late 70's early 80s GMC K15, because you can work on them. A Chevy will run bad a long time after most other trucks stop running. But everyone I found was either 10 grand or rotted beyond salvation. So I'm stuck with a truck I would need a laptop just to find out what's wrong. (Then again, I have a lot of airbags around me and better brakes.)
 
The tourniquet can be applied as a stable basis for a splint. Obviously, looser that if used for blood loss.
 
FL-NC said:
This is absolutely true. The late unpleasantness (2001-NOW) has taught us this. MOST service members who are KIA but not killed immediately die from massive blood loss. The priority of care has even changed to treating massive bleeding FIRST on a casualty- yes, even prior to establishing an airway. To the best of my knowledge, ALL service members are taught how this, taught how to use a tourniquet (on themselves if necessary), and issued at least one.
We each carried 2, and the medic carried several. In addition, they were secured in vehicles and even on pieces of equipment like collapsible litters, ladders, and so on. Is there a possibility of the casualty losing a limb? Sure. But I would rather be treating a person missing a limb than bagging someone up.
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I don't know where you got this info from, but the current protocol and current ACLS states ABC's are the most important. Airway, Breathing and then circulation. Immediate life threats are to be treated first. If you have an arterial bleed, that takes priority. Stop the bleeding, secure the airway and breathe for them. In that order. Every time.
My career is in EMS. I do this daily and train often.
 
SoonerMedic said:
I don't know where you got this info from, but the current protocol and current ACLS states ABC's are the most important. Airway, Breathing and then circulation. Immediate life threats are to be treated first. If you have an arterial bleed, that takes priority. Stop the bleeding, secure the airway and breathe for them. In that order. Every time.
My career is in EMS. I do this daily and train often.
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Because he is referring to military medicine. And he is absolutely right.
I am a SOCM by trade, although I fill/filled various other roles. First, even basic CPR is now CAB and it makes sense. If someone has a massive hemmoraghe why are you going to go stick a nasal in him? The reduction of perfusion is the issue, fix that. Different example if it’s a heart attack....it’s the reduction of perfusion that’s the issue, oxygen to the brain... so circulation, then get the airway so you can bag...and maybe an aed, and with a crash cart then your epis and lidos, and vasopressins or whatever your local preferences are.
Second our (military) priority’s are different then civilian medicine as well as triage.
I can carry a lot weight, probably a lot more than the average man, but I’m not carrying a damn hospital on my back.
As EMS you don’t have to worry about carrying half a dude 3 miles down a mountain to an LZ on the Y (rpg zone). Secondly despite movies, you cant just move about the battlefield god blessing everyone to health and expect to not lose THE FIGHT you are currently in. It doesn’t matter how F’d up the person looks, the priority is to get guns back in the fight.
If it’s just one immediate, have at it. Tourniquets policy’s have been changed like 3 times since I’ve been in. It was three inches above the amputation; then it turned to high and tight, then back to three inches to save more limb. High and tight works. Ever watch and artery slip away from you and disappear? Life over limb baby.
For some of the slower guys, I have them follow something I call PMARCH-P to help them remember when stuff gets stressful.
P-patient on the X
M-massive hemorrhage (big pipes little pipies)
A-airway
R-repirations
C-circulation
H-head/hypothermia
P- pain management and zmist to 9 line.
 
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SoonerMedic said:
The alcohol in it can really save you from infection if you were lost in the wilderness for months and months.
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Im not as worried about that, as i am getting the blood and gore off of my hands, arms, and knives asap.
Sitting on your haunches at the edge of a muddy november stream trying to wash anything with your bare hands, in the icy water is folly.
I have even been known to carry a travel size pkg of unscented diaper wipes in my game pouch. They come in handy in all sorts of situations.
 
Yes, I hunt alone, probably as much as I do with friends. The difference is that when I'm solo, I take some additional precautions. First, I let the woman know where I'm going...
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This one is always important, hunting or otherwise.
 
Klint Beastwood said:
Because he is referring to military medicine. And he is absolutely right.
I am a SOCM by trade, although I fill/filled various other roles. First, even basic CPR is now CAB and it makes sense. If someone has a massive hemmoraghe why are you going to go stick a nasal in him? The reduction of perfusion is the issue, fix that. Different example if it’s a heart attack....it’s the reduction of perfusion that’s the issue, oxygen to the brain... so circulation, then get the airway so you can bag...and maybe an aed, and with a crash cart then your epis and lidos, and vasopressins or whatever your local preferences are.
Second our (military) priority’s are different then civilian medicine as well as triage.
I can carry a lot weight, probably a lot more than the average man, but I’m not carrying a damn hospital on my back.
As EMS you don’t have to worry about carrying half a dude 3 miles down a mountain to an LZ on the Y (rpg zone). Secondly despite movies, you cant just move about the battlefield god blessing everyone to health and expect to not lose THE FIGHT you are currently in. It doesn’t matter how F’d up the person looks, the priority is to get guns back in the fight.
If it’s just one immediate, have at it. Tourniquets policy’s have been changed like 3 times since I’ve been in. It was three inches above the amputation; then it turned to high and tight, then back to three inches to save more limb. High and tight works. Ever watch and artery slip away from you and disappear? Life over limb baby.
For some of the slower guys, I have them follow something I call PMARCH-P to help them remember when stuff gets stressful.
P-patient on the X
M-massive hemorrhage (big pipes little pipies)
A-airway
R-repirations
C-circulation
H-head/hypothermia
P- pain management and zmist to 9 line.
Click to expand...


Your protocol for heart attacks are to use Epi? That's interesting. I've heard of services using lidocaine, but we don't. Our basic drill for an MI is to treat with ASA, Nitro, establish a line, and haul ass. Definitive care is never in the field or the back of our truck....

Also, you say that in EMS I don't have to carry half a dude 3 miles blah blah blah. No....not typically. You have to realize that I live in semi-rural Oklahoma and sometimes it can be very rural depending on the call. We don't always have a crew. Sometimes it's me and my partner on scene. That's it. My partner the day before yesterday was a 150 lb 27 year old woman. She's pretty tough. We had each done 2 rounds of CPR, hauled all our crap in, run back and fourth to our truck (we weren't given proper info through dispatch), and then moving a 220lb dead person through a trailer on a LSB to the porch which was 8ft off the ground. So please don't say "you never" if you'e never run calls in EMS. Trust me, I've seen my fair share and put in my time. I might not get shot at when I'm working, but emergency medicine is emergency medicine.

And with that said, military medicine has been proven time and time again to be unreliable....you guys are just guinea pigs that the gov and docs like to play emergency dress up with. Lots of good things have come from. The military, but just as many silly things too.
 
I usually hunt alone when I do go, but I don't carry a lot with me (back issues), so I keep it light. A metal water bottle, lifestraw, and a basic first aid kit (bandaids/antiseptic wipes, etc. ), poncho and emergency blanket and one of those compact umbrellas. Great thing to have when it rains and you can't find any better shelter and makes a great windbreak to start fires.

I'm a smoker so I almost always have a lighter on me, and I stashed another one and some matches in there. I carry a leatherman and a pocketknife all the time anyway, so I don't bother with more than a fresh single edge razor in the first aid kit.
Plus, since all I hunt is small game (squirrels and bunnies), I always have my little .22 Crickett, which has a nice little compartment in the stock I keep 10 spare shells, a magnesium fire starter/compass doohickey and another razor blade.

I don't bother with food other than a couple granola bars, I got lots of reserves on my frame, lol. Water isn't much of an issue where I live (upstate NY ), so I don't go nuts there. Bottle of purifier tabs is all I pack along with the straw.
I also carry hand sanitizer and gloves, the heavy black mechanics nitrile jobs to field dress with, and both can be used for other things. Total weight is around 8-10 pounds, depending on conditions where I hunt. Most of my survival gear is what I'm wearing or carrying on my person.
 
SoonerMedic said:
Your protocol for heart attacks are to use Epi? That's interesting. I've heard of services using lidocaine, but we don't. Our basic drill for an MI is to treat with ASA, Nitro, establish a line, and haul ass. Definitive care is never in the field or the back of our truck....

Also, you say that in EMS I don't have to carry half a dude 3 miles blah blah blah. No....not typically. You have to realize that I live in semi-rural Oklahoma and sometimes it can be very rural depending on the call. We don't always have a crew. Sometimes it's me and my partner on scene. That's it. My partner the day before yesterday was a 150 lb 27 year old woman. She's pretty tough. We had each done 2 rounds of CPR, hauled all our crap in, run back and fourth to our truck (we weren't given proper info through dispatch), and then moving a 220lb dead person through a trailer on a LSB to the porch which was 8ft off the ground. So please don't say "you never" if you'e never run calls in EMS. Trust me, I've seen my fair share and put in my time. I might not get shot at when I'm working, but emergency medicine is emergency medicine.

And with that said, military medicine has been proven time and time again to be unreliable....you guys are just guinea pigs that the gov and docs like to play emergency dress up with. Lots of good things have come from. The military, but just as many silly things too.
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I don’t care.
My point is that you have your scope of practice and local protocols. Stick with it. There’s a different way of doing things in other practices for other environments. I don’t personally care enough to write a paragraph on a thread that has nothing to do with EMS specific techniques to compare every relavent difference. It’s like getting in a argument with a police sniper comparing sniper doctrine from SOC. Not even the same thing.
 
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Klint Beastwood said:
I don’t care.
My point is that you have your scope of practice and local protocols. Stick with it. There’s a different way of doing things in other practices for other environments. I don’t personally care enough to write a paragraph on a thread that has nothing to do with EMS specific techniques to compare every relavent difference. It’s like getting in a argument with a police sniper comparing sniper SOC. Not even the same thing.
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But you did do exactly that....write a paragraph. I forgot, hunting is much more similar to war/battle than typical accidents in the civilian world.

Don't worry, I wouldn't think of getting into a pissing match with an active military man. I won't win, I already know. This is why we've gone through 3 ex military medics at my service in less than 4 years. Lol
 
Your right. I will win the pissing contest if it’s worth my time.

I’m not the one that brought up CAT tourniquets. Talk to your peers on here. I can make a tourniquet out of a shirt sleeve and a stick. I also ain’t worried about dying as much as others. However a gsw is a gsw. A massive bleed is a massive bleed. Field medicine is field medicine. I don’t know why battlefield medicine is less superior to however Oklahoma is doing things. The man mentioned procedures that he knew to work from the military, then you come out with some irrelevant ACLS guideline. Are you a doctor? Do you work around a crash cart? Should people bring a crash cart with them hunting?
I’m trying to figure out the relevancy of your post...

That being said the guys that stopped working for your company proably got sick of being limited to a smaller scope of practice and went and worked for gardaworld or some other DOS sponsored job that pays six figures. Just listening to your little 4 years working there makes me want to leave too.
 
Klint Beastwood said:
Your right. I will win the pissing contest if it’s worth my time.

I’m not the one that brought up CAT tourniquets. Talk to your peers on here. I can make a tourniquet out of a shirt sleeve and a stick. I also ain’t worried about dying as much as others. However a gsw is a gsw. A massive bleed is a massive bleed. Field medicine is field medicine. I don’t know why battlefield medicine is less superior to however Oklahoma is doing things. The man mentioned procedures that he knew to work from the military, then you come out with some irrelevant ACLS guideline. Are you a doctor? Do you work around a crash cart? Should people bring a crash cart with them hunting?
I’m trying to figure out the relevancy of your post...

That being said the guys that stopped working for your company proably got sick of being limited to a smaller scope of practice and went and worked for gardaworld or some other DOS sponsored job that pays six figures. Just listening to your little 4 years working there makes me want to leave too.
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They didn't quit. They were fired as they were not A.) Good at taking criticism (seems the trend with military medics). B.) Had poor bedside manners. C.) Had issues with authority (also seems a trend). And D.) Had paragod complexes (see A. And C. paraphrases).

You sound like such a nice fellow. You must be fun at parties.

Edit: I never claimed any superiority, you assumed this. And we are a privately owned service and are recognized regularly statewide for our strong staff and commitment to our community. I don't need your blessing to feel accomplished. In fact, your attitude and tact is exactly why I want nothing to do with military medics.
 
Ohhh-kay. So now that we've established what's in our kits, I propose we flip this upside down and discuss how to rework that kit to make it lighter. I'll start.

As I mentioned on a previous page, I'm returning to the allure of UL (Ultra-Light) backpacking gear this summer. How can I apply this to my hunt pack this fall?

One thing I've learned is that thru-hikers have completely abandoned Nalgene bottles in favor of disposable water bottles. A 1L Smartwater brand bottle weights 1.3 oz compared to a 1L Nalgene at 6.2 oz. Plus, the Smartwater bottle's sport/squirt cap lets you use your water bottle to back flush a water filter.

Speaking of water filters, looks like the 11 oz Katahdyn pump filters are out in favor of a Sawyer Squeeze at 3.2 oz. or any of the gravity feed filters. (I don't understand that as those weigh as much as the pumps. SImpleer/more reliable perhaps? Chem tabs (iodine or chlorine) are still the lightest weight water treatment option. Looks like the SteriPen is clinging tight to its reputation for poor reliability.

It may be time for me to retire my trusty G.I. canteen cup I've had since basic training. At 12 oz., it's 4x the weight of my Snow Peak Titanium cup. That would coincide with dumping the 1 qt Nalgene canteen that fits inside of the cup as well as the G.I. canteen carrier.

In fact, I may also decrease the amount of water I carry from 3L down to 1L. (save about 4 lbs right there.)
 
D.B. Cooper said:
Ohhh-kay. So now that we've established what's in our kits, I propose we flip this upside down and discuss how to rework that kit to make it lighter. I'll start.

As I mentioned on a previous page, I'm returning to the allure of UL (Ultra-Light) backpacking gear this summer. How can I apply this to my hunt pack this fall?

One thing I've learned is that thru-hikers have completely abandoned Nalgene bottles in favor of disposable water bottles. A 1L Smartwater brand bottle weights 1.3 oz compared to a 1L Nalgene at 6.2 oz. Plus, the Smartwater bottle's sport/squirt cap lets you use your water bottle to back flush a water filter.

Speaking of water filters, looks like the 11 oz Katahdyn pump filters are out in favor of a Sawyer Squeeze at 3.2 oz. or any of the gravity feed filters. (I don't understand that as those weigh as much as the pumps. SImpleer/more reliable perhaps? Chem tabs (iodine or chlorine) are still the lightest weight water treatment option. Looks like the SteriPen is clinging tight to its reputation for poor reliability.

It may be time for me to retire my trusty G.I. canteen cup I've had since basic training. At 12 oz., it's 4x the weight of my Snow Peak Titanium cup. That would coincide with dumping the 1 qt Nalgene canteen that fits inside of the cup as well as the G.I. canteen carrier.

In fact, I may also decrease the amount of water I carry from 3L down to 1L. (save about 4 lbs right there.)
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I'm done offering advice man. Good luck figuring it out.
 
SoonerMedic said:
I'm done offering advice man. Good luck figuring it out.
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Hey. Don't take it personal. I'm sorry if I've offended. I made an attempt to bring the discussion back to focus. "What's in your kit bag?" You and Klint were (are) in a pee-ing match over paramedic stuff that lay people can't understand. For what it's worth, I appreciate your input from posts 27,36, and 42.
 
i hunt with a demo bag over my shoulder. A couple bottles of water, a couple cans of beanie weenies, a granola bar or two and in warm weather,
my snakebite kit. We have world class rattlesnakes in this part of OK.
 
D.B. Cooper said:
Hey. Don't take it personal. I'm sorry if I've offended. I made an attempt to bring the discussion back to focus. "What's in your kit bag?" You and Klint were (are) in a pee-ing match over paramedic stuff that lay people can't understand. For what it's worth, I appreciate your input from posts 27,36, and 42.
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No no no, you weren't the reason why I'm bowing out at all. I assure you. If just rather leave the discussion as I don't want to continue to contribute to the muddling of your thread. If you have any specific questions about anything feel free to PM me and I'll answer them to the best of my abilities.
 
SoonerMedic said:
No no no, you weren't the reason why I'm bowing out at all. I assure you. If just rather leave the discussion as I don't want to continue to contribute to the muddling of your thread. If you have any specific questions about anything feel free to PM me and I'll answer them to the best of my abilities.
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Glad to hear. Although, it's not my thread; I don't know who started it. LOL.
 
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