Northern Ireland Outdoors Forum - Hiking, camping and more
General => General Chat => Topic started by: LennyJ1 on August 23, 2012
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Ok so I have bitten from the last tread.
With 2 people losing the torches and not being able to complete there walk I feel we should look at what kit we take and identify where some have gone wrong (including myself).
My kit list is as follows
Waterproof Jacket and Trousers (in Exped bag)
Hat, Gloves & Buff (in Exped bag)
First Aid Kit
Torch & Spare Battries (Spare small maglite penciel torch - 1 AAA Battrey one)
Water
Camera (With Tripod)
Spare mid Layer (in Exped Bag)
Sunglasses & Suncream (If sunny)
Food
Walking poles
Gaiters
Flash of Coffee in cold weather
Map & Compass
Phone (in Exped bag)
Headphones (for the tunes)
Knife
Now I do own a Bivi bag but tend not to take it unless its winter and I am exped to be out at night.
This is all the gear I take on every trip even if the sun is spliting the skys.
I always try to remember something I got taught a long time ago, The 7 p's
Prior, preperation, planing, prevents, piss, poor, performance
Feel free to pick apart my kit if you feel I have missed something.
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Honestly, I bring a coat and not much else. Maybe some light snacks and water. I don't feel I need much else if I'm only going for a walk during the day.
It will obviously change if I was going for an overnighter.
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Honestly, I bring a coat and not much else. Maybe some light snacks and water. I don't feel I need much else if I'm only going for a walk during the day.
It will obviously change if I was going for an overnighter.
Seriously. What would you do if you cut yourself or if you came up against a bear?
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Lenny - your list looks pretty similar to mine...I loose the headphones (only cos I'm not that into music) but add:
Whistle
Small fire starting kit [maya, lighter, striker]
(And only if with a group) Emergency Bothy
Out of interest, do you use 4 drybags inside, or say two with two items in each?
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I don't see a high chance of cutting myself if I was out walking. But if I did I guess I'd try keep it clean and get a plaster or something on it when I got home.
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Lenny - your list looks pretty similar to mine...I loose the headphones (only cos I'm not that into music) but add:
Whistle
Small fire starting kit [maya, lighter, striker]
(And only if with a group) Emergency Bothy
Out of interest, do you use 4 drybags inside, or say two with two items in each?
Yeah each item(s) have there own drybag. I do have a whistle but its on my shest stap on my bag.
never really thought about a fire starter kit.
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I don't see a high chance of cutting myself if I was out walking. But if I did I guess I'd try keep it clean and get a plaster or something on it when I got home.
I really think that you should reconsider you outlook on this when going into the hills. In fact if all you take is a jacket food and water then you are seriouly under prepared and if you did take a fall or have a injury then you would be up sh*t creek without that paddle.
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Have you forgotten the orange survival bag or equivalent? Its a good idea to carry one in the mountains, summer or winter just in case things go wrong and you just cant get down.
fred
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Have you forgotten the orange survival bag or equivalent? Its a good idea to carry one in the mountains, summer or winter just in case things go wrong and you just cant get down.
fred
As I said - Now I do own a Bivi bag but tend not to take it unless its winter and I am exped to be out at night.
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Hmmm the old survival bag - defs take it if I'm with someone, if I'm on my own...bit like Lenny, only if I'm planning to stay out - the extra mid layers, and waterproofs should be enough I believe - but happy to discuss and be proved wrong
One thing I forgot to say - I always have space laces in the First Aid Kit
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Looks like I need to go and do a bit of shopping!
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Depends on a lot, but I mainly subscribe to the alpine philosophy of light is right, and speed is safe...in terms of only taking on risky challenges in good weather windows...it's also a philosophy that relies on knowledge, improvisation, and prepared to put up with a lot of suffering. If I purposely go out in bad weather I'll expect to have to hole up if necessary. If I'm out with slower people I need to wear more to begin with and carry extras for new-comers. You may be a bit stuck with just boulders on the side of Lamagan these days, but generally in the Mournes you're not far from a nice wee hollow of heather to curl up in out of the wind....ask any collie ;)
If I'm going for a run then it's precious little. It's a compromise, but I accept it as part of the activity.
Wear shorts, baselayer, cap.
Waistpack with water bottle, whistle, windshirt or light waterproof, buff, some toilet paper!, compeed & safety pin & ibuprofen, charged phone, lots of gels & carb powder.
Carry map & compass unless on low trails the whole way (like Mourne Way).
If a day trek in the hills I'll additionally always have a waterproof, a bigger FAK (with plasters, steri-strips, crepe bandage etc, alcohol gel +now some spare batteries), hat & gloves, an insulating layer, headtorch, mini pen-knife, RAB survival zone bivvy, camera. Usually just the one drybag for a day walk...camping requires a little more organisation. For a short forest/estate dander a jacket may be all that is required if the sun isn't out.
If it was winter (cold winter, not year-round winter) there'd be a stove, waterproof trousers, extra hat and mitts, beefier insulation (maybe leg insulation).
Of course, letting people know roughly where you are going and when you expect to be back is a bit of safety kit you don't have to carry. I'm more at risk of forgetting something on an overnighter when there are a lot more 'bits' to pack, like recently I've forgotten my hat and gloves, but not exactly life & death when you have a sleeping bag and bivvy. Anything more than an overnighter tends to be meticulously planned. Overnighters are definitely my weak area of preparedness as they are usually last minute or squeezed in with a million other things.
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On my Mountain Leader course I was always told to bring extra clothes, hats, gloves incase of emergency. A dander in the hills can always lead to a what if...
Here is my list of essentials..
Water proof trousers and jacket
Spare pair of trousers/leggins/fleece and socks
2 Hats and 2 pairs of gloves
Whistle
Water
Walking poles
Spare Laces
Phone
Small Flask of hot juice.. Large flask in the winter time
Head torch and batteries
First Aid kit to include Blister plasters
Chocolate, Jelly babies and Digestive biscuits
Bothy/shelter tent
Bivvi Bag
Small sleeping bag
Belay jacket
Map and compass
Tissues and plastic bag
Baby wipes
Duck tape
GPS
I also let home know where I am going and ETA of when I will be back.
I always have a mindset of in case of an emergency
If I am taking a group out onto the hills I would bring extra clothing for them and maybe two flasks.
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1.) What would you have in a first aid kit?
2.) What are the walking poles for? Are they just to help you about generally or is there a survival aspect as well?
3.) Are we talking a pen knife, swiss army knife or full on Rambo?
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I took the basic elements of a first aid kit and stripped it down to what I'd realisitcally use / need. I put it all in a snug pouch that can clip onto any pack I'll use. Basically a bandage, tampons (none better for stemming blood flow & starting fires ::) ) anti-septic gel, scalpel, painkillers, plasters, suture kit, face shield etc. To this I added an emergency foil blanket, compass, a lighter (high polished silver zippo doubles well as a signalling device), small torch, zinc oxide tape, mountain whistle and a bar of Kendal mint cake.
The kit in my pack will have the usual stuff mentioned before but with that small pouch I always feel a little more comfortable.
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I felt the need to comment again explaining a few things. A day's hike to me might not be what it is to others, I don't live particularly close to the Mournes nor do I have a car like lots of you lucky ones. So therefor, a days hike to me could be walking for a few hours through forested land or around the lough shore. This might explain why I carry next to nothing with me, I don't feel I need it, some may disagree, but its me who will learn over time what I need to carry, I'm still technically a teenager. (Can you old ones remember that far back? ;D)
Now I could give you a list of what I would carry for an overnighter just so everyone can see I'm not mad.
What I carry: (In order of what I pick out to put into my rucksack, so this is possibly subconsciously what I feel I need the most)
-Sleeping bag
-Bivvy bag
-Sleeping mat
-Water bottle
-Emergency food supplies (high sugar, long life - never needing to be used)
-Pre-prepared food that doesn't need cooking
-Hat & Gloves (commonly forgotten)
-Small First aid kit (bandage, plasters, iodine, gauze, foil blanket)
Optional extras: ear plugs, buff, spare socks, knife
Thats about all I can think of, which leads to
What should I carry:
-Spare clothes, socks, gloves, fleece I don't feel the need to change my clothes and have not yet needed to change because of clothes becoming wet. Drying them won't always be a possibility, but I'm aware of that. Neither have I lost a glove or hat in high winds
-Spare torch I have a led on my mobile so if worst comes to it this can be used
-Map and compass I've never walked alone and I feel one of these between a group is plenty.
What should I carry but don't because I disagree with them: (Disagree is a strong word, to put it better I just don't see the need for these items)
-Walking Poles - (This could be seen as blasphemy to some but I think they are silly, I would rather have my hands free for balance or to grab onto rocks for descents. And I don't feel any knee pain so these are pointless)
-GPS (Map and compass don't require batteries and signal)
-Music player & headphones (Again, some may disagree, but you go a walk to get outside and away from modern distractions, I don't see why I'd bring them with me)
There we go thats another list to compare, review and discuss.
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-Music player & headphones (Again, some may disagree, but you go a walk to get outside and away from modern distractions, I don't see why I'd bring them with me)
And I'd never go out without mine. Podcasts rather than music usually.
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I made up a small pouch containing my first aid kit, spare bootlace, firelighting kit, miniature sewing kit, whistle, glow stick, small knife, mylar survival bag, compass and a few other things. Whenever i go into the wilderness I always take it and its kept in the bottom of my rucksack, rather than a pocket so that its less likely to get lost. It gives me great peace of mind knowing that I have the resources to deal with a variety of situations.
The contents of a first aid kit will always be the source of debate. My personal one is quite small, mostly plasters, dressings, sterile wipes etc. and a pair of latex gloves. Many of my friends have larger ones but unless you have the expertise to use the stuff, theres no point carrying it. One thing that is useful is asprin. Apart from being a mild pain killer, ut is a good thhing to give a heart attack victim.
Regarding knives, I dont see much need for anything bigger than a small pocket knife like a swiss army one, at least not in the mountains. If I encounter bears in the mournes I may revise that iopinion!
Fred
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This is an old setup picture of my geocaching bag. A lot of the stuff has been changed or upgraded but still essentially the same.
I have a few bags I'll use depending on how long I'm out and if the DSLR comes too ;D but this would be a minimum for me.
It's not so much about survival, etc. but comfort and convenience. If one of the kids trip and scrape their knee a plaster works wonders; same for someone else's kid. Sometimes we'll find something cool but a bit yucky; into the plastic bag it goes.
A lot of the stuff is Geocaching oriented but still equally useful in all situations such as the pen & paper, gloves, etc.
I must do an updated picture.
(http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4117/4880462174_d880332fb6_z.jpg)
1. Maxpedition Fatboy with Nite Ize Clip Case attached that holds my GPS
2. Gloves, nobody likes thorns and nettles
3. Wet Wipes
4. Lucozade Carbo Gel
5. Laser pointer & red spy capsule with some meds
6. Titanium foldable spork
7. Romisen RC-A4 flashlight, for those dark hidey holes
8. Grappling hook, for grappling things obviously and for the fun factor
9. Batteries, CR123A on top for Romisen light and Eneloop AA for camera and GPS
10. Sweet tin, got some hard boiled sweets for me and the kids
11. First aid kit, basic but does the job. Included is sting/bite cream
12. Cable ties
13. Blank geocaching logs
14. Heavy duty zip lock bags
15. Individual wipes
16. Whistles
17. Garmin Dakota 10
18. Leatherman K502 knife
19. Leatherman Juice S2 multitool
20. Leatherman Squirt PS4 multitool
21. Victorinox Compact Swiss Army Knife
22. Duck tape wrapped around a Starbucks card
23. Chewing gum
24. Maglite Solitaire
25. Parker pen
26. Paper, card and business cards
27. Bandana
28. Trash bags
29. Spare SD card for camera
30. Tripod
31. Peanut lighter
32. Stainless steel Sharpie
33. SWAG
34. Geocoin/travel bug
Not shown is a water bottle and point & shoot camera.
In terms of sharp stuff I'll always have my legal carry Spyderco UKPK on me and at least one SAK and / or Leatherman in the bag. I usually try to keep them non-locking unless I'm off to the wilderness. In that case I bring the big boy knives ;D
I also have a few lights now including a glowstick with at least one on me no matter the time of day.
A FAK is essential for any person on this site. Even just a few plasters in your wallet. You never what you'll come across; you may be a fully competent outdoorsperson but you could stumble upon a few Bear wannabe's ::)
What if you you're out on your own admiring the wonderful views when you trip on a rock straight into a broken beer bottle (yobs >:(). It makes a mess of your arm and you're at least 30 mins from help :o Wipes and a dressing would make things much better; even a bandana would work wonders :)
You don't need to be a boy scout to be prepared or an old fogie just a bit of forward thinking along with some whatif scenarios.
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Very nice organised list Cerbera.
Fred -
one thing I would consider is...putting your FAK at the bottom of your pack may be safe, but it's not very accessible (I imagine, don't know your pack). If one hand was injured or there was a bleeder that needed attention it would be difficult to get the kit. Also, secondary aid items for an emergency (like bivvy or insulation) need to be tipped out to access the FAK, they may get lost or wet.
I sewed a daisy chain into my pack top-pocket that I can clip small/essential things to with mini carabiners. I mainly use it for keys, but headtorch, FAK etc could also be clipped in. Maybe you could even rig something inside the main pack but would hold it at the top? It's also an idea to tell people you are with where your FAK is before you set off. My noobie mates never bring first aid even if you advise them, or your partner may lose their pack in whatever crazy incident has you unconscious.... this more applies to high mountains where fall, rock-fall or avalanche are dangers.
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You have a fair point Craig but my reasoning is that if it were near the top of my pack, it would get turfed out when I need to access other things. I have considered fitting an internal zippered pocket within the body of my rucksack but just never got around to making one. Actually, your daisy chain is a good idea, I might consider fitting an internal lanyard for essential items like the FAK.
fred
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Oh, a wee pocket would be good inside single-compartment bags!
I know some newer bags have a hook or something to hang bladders from, could be useful too.
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Cerbera how much does that kit all weigh out of interest?
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Cerbera how much does that kit all weigh out of interest?
No clue. As long as it's not too heavy I'm happy ;D To be honest I probably pack too much but better to have and not need and all that. Another good rule is one is none and two is one ;D
I'll get the scales out later and weigh it. The one above is shoulder bag so you are limited as to what you pack but I've also got a gearslinger style bag and a backpack which helps :)