Page 2 of 6 FirstFirst 1234 ... LastLast
Results 11 to 20 of 54

Thread: Go Bags

  1. #11
    Site Supporter ST911's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    Midwest, USA
    Hit some of the serious outdoor blogs and websites for info on minimalist/ultralight backpacking and camping. Lots of application and crossover, 10% of the tactical/EOTW noise.
    Last edited by ST911; 03-14-2019 at 12:58 PM.
    الدهون القاع الفتيات لك جعل العالم هزاز جولة الذهاب

  2. #12
    I think this is very dependent on your locations and population density.

    More on this later, but after seeing the massive traffic jams and gridlocks on the interstate systems around the time of various events, I would very seriously look at some simple bicycles, along with a couple spare tubes, and know how to change them before hand. Walking with a pack on is fine and should be part of the plan, but you can cover some serious ground on a bike, and take the weight off your shoulders with a couple of small saddle bags.

    Plus you can use the bike itself as the frame of your shelter in a pinch, though I prefer a tent with a bug screen.

  3. #13
    Site Supporter Maple Syrup Actual's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Northern Fur Seal Team Six
    I keep a get home bag in any vehicle I have to spend time in, and although most of the contents are pretty obvious, a couple of items I think are less common are as follows:

    Work gloves
    12x Eat-more bars
    1 litre bottle of coke
    Spare socks
    Little turtle-type LEDs in white and red, with flashing options
    Compact binoculars
    Waterproof notepad
    Half a dozen pens and pencils and markers

    Basically I want to be able to help dig someone else out of earthquake rubble, stay fueled without having to stop, dump in sugar and caffeine if necessary, walk for a long time in relative comfort, not get run over by the side of the road if streetlights are out, see things without necessarily having to get close to them, and leave messages for people if they aren't home or something.

    Obviously weather gear, first aid, and so on are going to be a part of it. But that's the stuff I have that people sometimes question.

    I also keep spare keys for EVERYTHING in those bags.

    Sent from my BND-L24 using Tapatalk
    This is a thread where I built a boat I designed and which I very occasionally update with accounts of using it, which is really fun as long as I'm not driving over logs and blowing up the outboard.
    https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....ilding-a-skiff

  4. #14
    Member Wake27's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2017
    Location
    Eastern NC
    Second the recommendation to actually walk with it, if nothing else. I love watching videos of this stuff on YouTube because a lot of it is overweight people with 3,000 different items. The best part is that a lot of time, the stuff is half convenience stuff and have end of the world stuff.

    I’d rather have water, medical, and a poncho liner than spare clothing. Personal discomfort should be expected, don’t try to pack everything so that you’re not inconvenienced.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  5. #15
    The R in F.A.R.T RevolverRob's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Gotham Adjacent
    I've played and played and played with the go-bag ideal.

    And ultimately, I either found it too far differentiated from my needs or basically it turned into a daily bag. So, rather than create a specific bag, I simply stashed the supplies I don't need in my daily bag, in the four places I am most likely to be.

    For instance, I keep a spare change of clothes in the car and at both of my offices. I also keep some extra hygiene supplies there, in case I get snowed in (which actually happened in Austin, but not Chicago). I keep a small case of water in the car and in each office. Similarly, the fourth place I'm likely to be is at home. So, in that scenario, the water is right there.

    For day-to-day hydration needs, I have a 1.5L Vapur water bottle that I fill at the office. I admit, I usually drain it before leaving, because carrying water is heavy, but I can open it and pour three bottles of water into it and carry it (and the water is in my trunk or office).

    Gear wise, I'm Boyscouty and never leave the house without a way to make fire, a way to navigate, and first aid supplies:

    Button Compass
    Book of safety matches (carry-on legal)
    Colibri DuPont style soft flame lighter (carry-on legal, with pressurized reservoir so it doesn't evaporate)
    A spare flashlight (single AA, because)
    EMT Shears
    Leatherman Micra
    Misc. Hygiene (wet wipes, etc)
    Two Clif Bars
    Cash

    I don't carry much else, because too much else is heavy. Though, I've been experimenting with a coin wallet recently. Also, aside form ditching the Leatherman, I can walk right through airport security or an X-ray controlled checkpoint without an issue. This will give me everything I need for 24-48 hours of survival. Beyond that, I'm either screwed, or we're all screwed.

  6. #16
    I think it depends on what you are preparing for.

    For example, let's say you live in California foothills, and what you're preparing for is that a deputy knocks on the door and says your neighborhood is going to burn in 30 minutes, and the plan is to jump in the car RFN and go stay with your sister in LA/SF/Seattle/wherever, and if the house burns not come back for a while. In that scenario, a water filter and stove aren't really what you need, but you might need paperwork (as one example, I recall a series of blog posts from a guy who fled N.O. after Katrina who really wished he had brought some professional certs that would have let him look for a new job while spending the next few months with relatives farther north). Or what if you are enrolling the kids in a new school district and need vaccination records, etc, etc.

    OTOH if you work in downtown Atlanta and there is a Carrington event, and the plan is to walk 75 miles to your rural home, then the water filter, food, and good shoes might matter more than the paperwork. If you're doing the same thing in a Colorado winter, then clothing and a sleeping bag matter a lot, etc, etc.

    If you live in Highlands Ranch and a tornado levels your house, that's usually a small destroyed area. If you can keep working and just stay with friends until renting an apartment, then that's one thing. If something like Katrina levels your house and workplace enough that neither will be recoverable for many months, that's a larger scale and rather different problem.

    So, not to pry, but what's the likely scenario? You and GF walk five miles home and stay at the house? Walk 75 miles to the house? Walk/bike to relatives in Casper, WY? Do you both have one place to go to, or might you be trying to rendezvous at some unknown place (which might make GMRS radios really spiffy if cell phones are down)? What's the likelihood of traveling through areas of civil unrest (by staying home if things are iffy, or leaving at the first hint or trouble)?

  7. #17
    Plan Ahead for Disasters | Ready.gov, specifically, Make A Plan | Ready.gov. Downloadable plans and supply lists are at Free Publications | Ready.gov

    In my opinion you should start your kit by considering The Ten Essentials: Ten Essentials (U.S. National Park Service) and/or What Are The Ten Essentials? — The Mountaineers

    Factors to consider:
    Are you talking car or back?
    Are you talking "get home from work" or "evacuate" or "never coming back"?

    If you're expecting to hump it, make sure you have well-fitted, properly broken in walking/hiking boots or shoes, and appropriate socks. About the only real argument my wife and I have ever had was over the shoes and socks she kept in her "get home bag" under her desk at work.

    Added:
    Quote Originally Posted by Nephrology View Post
    Anything that will help sustain me/us for ~24-48h in the setting of a sudden evacuation or similar scenario is sort of the theme I am going for here.
    The advice used to be "3 Days, 3 Ways."

    Most professional emergency managers and emergency management agencies are now advocating preparing to be on your own for two weeks.

    14 days.

    Mostly that's "Keep two weeks of essentials in your home, just in case", but if you have to grab 'n' go because Godzilla is coming for your neck of the woods, and you are able to drive, you'd probably be well advised to be able to haul 2 weeks of rations, etc., with you so all you need to do is find someplace to camp until the cavalry arrives.
    Last edited by Drang; 03-14-2019 at 06:46 PM.
    Recovering Gun Store Commando. My Blog: The Clue Meter
    “It doesn’t matter what the problem is, the solution is always for us to give the government more money and power, while we eat less meat.”
    Glenn Reynolds

  8. #18
    Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2014
    Location
    Heading for the hills
    Quote Originally Posted by whomever View Post
    I think it depends on what you are preparing for.

    For example, let's say you live in California foothills, and what you're preparing for is that a deputy knocks on the door and says your neighborhood is going to burn in 30 minutes, and the plan is to jump in the car RFN and go stay with your sister in LA/SF/Seattle/wherever, and if the house burns not come back for a while. In that scenario, a water filter and stove aren't really what you need, but you might need paperwork (as one example, I recall a series of blog posts from a guy who fled N.O. after Katrina who really wished he had brought some professional certs that would have let him look for a new job while spending the next few months with relatives farther north). Or what if you are enrolling the kids in a new school district and need vaccination records, etc, etc.
    Here is the blog referenced above. Incredible. https://theplacewithnoname.com/blogs/klessons/index.html
    The fact that I could pull that outta my head simply confirms how boring my life is,... or something. Also, I started down the trail he lays out a few times. Never could get things where I wanted them. It is a significant and ongoing undertaking. Good stuff nonetheless.

  9. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by breakingtime91 View Post
    You have gotten some really good advice. I used to always keep a "go" bag packed when I was overseas. I was usually at a small combat out post (cop) and grew up reading how the ones up north were overrun and the guys were debating abandoning the cop or fight to the death. So I always kept a medium size pack, with food, water, extra clothes, batteries, etc next to my bed. One thing I would say, if you are going to be carrying a gun during your evac (which I'm guessing you will be) throw a couple extra mags in it. Insurance added.

  10. #20
    Member
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    S.W. Ohio
    Good advice given so far.

    To add to it, if either of you have medications you need to take, then I'd bring them along. Also, if either of you wear prescription glasses, I'd toss in a spare set of glasses. I might also toss in a light weight rain poncho.

    If you're go bag is centered around an evacuation from a natural disaster, I'd scan any important documents onto a thumb drive and secure it in the bag. That way if you return home to find your home was destroyed, you have a set of these documents.

    The biggest mistake I see when the topic of a "Go-Bag" comes up is people tend to put too much crap in them. By the time they get done, their bag weighs too much. The less experience a person has humping a pack, the more they tend to put into them. If you're just taking your bag from your car to a hotel, it's not a big deal. But if you might have to walk for an extended period with your "Go-Bag", lighter is better.

    On a similar topic, if discussing things to keep in your car, I'd recommend a pair of broken in hiking boots with a pair of socks stuffed inside. Especially for women, in the event that they are wearing something like sandals when an event kicked off.

User Tag List

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •