Survive!

by Les Stroud

  What follows is a list of the items essential to any kit (some can be used for more than one purpose). You can gather all of them quickly by consulting the Complete Survival Kit Checklist before setting out on your adventure. Remember that you will have to modify this list depending on your particular destination, season, weather, and activity:

  Bandana: This multi-purpose garment will protect your head from the sun, but it can also be used as an emergency bandage or, when dipped in water, as a cool compress.

  Belt knife (with sharpening stone): If you happen to lose your knife, having a backup in your survival kit could be a big help.

  Candle: A candle can help you get a fire going if you light it and allow the wax to drip into the tinder.

  Cup (metal, collapsible): A cup can be used for drinking or to boil water.

  Dried food: Most survival kits contain everything under the sun except extra food. I realize dried food adds to the weight and bulkiness of your kit, but nothing will give you a physical and psychological boost like knowing that you have an energy bar or two on hand. Fat is important. Peanuts are an excellent and compact source of fat and protein.

  Duct tape: The wonders of ultra-durable and super-sticky duct tape have long been lauded in the outdoor community, with good reason: it can repair just about any kind of outdoor equipment. And it can also be useful in bandaging wounds and other minor injuries. Just make sure you use it in conjunction with a piece of cloth; don’t apply it directly to a wound.

  Recent years have seen the introduction of colored duct tape. And while you may have a problem with patching your gear with pink or yellow, keep in mind that it’ll stand out more than battleship gray. Duct tape is also excellent as a fire starter; it holds the flame the way a candle would.

  Fire-starting devices: Fire is one of the most beneficial things you can have with you, no matter where you find yourself. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the desert or the jungle, for even in the world’s hottest places, fire makes all the difference to survival. Fire-starting devices should be a priority in your kit.

  I am always asked what my favorite fire-starting method is. Is it flint and steel? Magnesium flint striker? Fire and piston? What I can tell you is that making fire without a fire-starting device is extremely difficult, so make sure you give yourself options. I love knowing that I have several options with me and that I’m prepared for almost any situation.

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  STROUD’S TIP

  Some people think it’s a good idea to waterproof their matches by dipping them in wax. Leave that to the gear geeks. Instead, buy solid strike-anywhere matches and invest in a good waterproof container.

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  My preference is a butane lighter, the kind that shoots a flame like a propane torch. These work upside down and in the wind, two great advantages. A lighter will eventually run out of fuel, but only after a few hundred fires. Furthermore, in a survival emergency, the first fire is the most important.

  Always carry a high-quality lighter, because depending on where you are, it may well be a challenge to keep your fire going. You don’t want to add the stress of fire-starting to your list of worries.

  In addition to a lighter, I like to carry a magnesium flint striker (which in a pinch can be used as a signaling device), a fire piston (if weight is not an issue), and some solid strike-anywhere matches with a striker (just to be sure) in a waterproof container such as a film canister. Note that plastic containers can be unsafe to keep matches in because, though a remote possibility, static electricity can ignite the matches. A metal container is best.

  Just make sure—as with everything in your survival kit—that you know how to use these fire starters. Take the time to practice making a fire with them before disaster strikes. I recommend that you carry at least one of these fire starters on you, as part of your personal survival kit (for example, in a pocket), and a couple more in your complete survival kit. See “Fire,” Chapter 6, for more on this topic.

  Fire-starting tinder: There are a few different types of commercially available tinder, including pellets, pastes, and shavings. I like having three or four wax-and-cotton fuel wads. A small piece of this added to the tinder you collect in the bush will flame up from a simple spark and keep going like a candle flame until your fire is roaring. You should also add bits of tinder, such as birch bark or dried grass, to your survival kit as you come across them during your travels.

  The wax-and-cotton cube, one of the best commercially available tinders you can buy, holds a flame for a long time.

  First-aid kit:

  antidiarrheal tablets and painkillers: If you get diarrhea on vacation in Mexico, you’re disappointed. Get it in the jungles of Borneo and you could be dead. Pain, on the other hand, won’t necessarily kill you, but painkillers such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen can increase your chances of survival if you have to make your way down a mountain with a small injury or even a pounding headache. For a really nasty injury such as a broken leg, powerful painkillers such as Demerol (meperidine) can save an injured person from slipping into fatal shock. Pack all medicines in waterproof, airtight containers.

  antihistamines: They are handy for allergies, as well as for insect bites and stings.

  bandages and antiseptic ointment: An “ouch” kit can help prevent infection.

  butterfly sutures: These will hold together deeper and more serious wounds.

  prescription medicine: Always bring extra.

  surgical blades: Light and small, these are for more than just dressing wounds.

  They can be used for whittling, cleaning fish, or skinning and gutting game.

  triangle bandages: Use these as wound dressings or as slings.

  Fishing lures (3), hooks, sinkers, a leader, and fishing line: As a rule, you’re better off keeping heavier line in your survival kit. The weight and volume difference between 10-pound and 30-pound test is nominal, but the difference in strength is significant. Most people avoid lures, but they don’t add much weight to your kit and can significantly improve your chances of catching dinner. Throw in a leader as well, just in case you want to try for “the big one.”

  Flares: You want to be found, right? The more compact the flare, the better. They can also be used to start fires.

  Flashlight (small, LED): These little lights can be very bright, which makes them good not only for locating things at night, but for signaling too. You might also consider packing a couple of extra batteries. When you buy a flashlight, make sure you get one with a white, yellow, green, or blue light (red LEDs are not very bright).

  GPS (Global Positioning System), in addition to a map and compass: The GPS has revolutionized wilderness travel. The beauty of a GPS is that it provides you with precise, real-time information regarding your location, at all times and in all weather conditions. As long as it has enough battery power, a GPS will determine your latitude, longitude, and altitude.

  Garbage bags (2, orange, large): Garbage bags can make the difference between life and death because of the multitude of purposes for which they are useful. They fold down to practically nothing, don’t weigh much, and fit easily into a pocket. But make sure you get the 45-gallon (170-L) orange ones (which can be readily seen), not green bags (which can’t).

  You can turn a garbage bag into a raincoat, or a makeshift jacket to protect you from cold and wind, by tearing or cutting a hole in the top for your head and holes in the sides for your arms. You can signal with it because it’s bright and highly visible. Your wondrous, orange plastic sheet can also act as a rain-catch if you need water or be used in the construction of vegetation and solar stills (although the best type of bag for a vegetation still is a clear plastic one. See “Water,” Chapter 5).

  My favorite use for garbage bags is as waterproofing for a shelter. No matter how adept you are, it is exceptionally difficult to build from scratch a shelter that is completely waterproof. If you have a garbage bag on hand, just cut it open so that it forms a single sheet (the 45-gallon ones will
be 4 feet x 6 feet [1.2 m x 1.8 m]) and you have a ready-made roof.

  Hand lens (small): A small hand lens such as a Fresnel lens is essentially a magnifying glass that can be used to start fires or inspect small injuries.

  Map and compass: Topographical maps are your best source of detailed information in the backcountry; carry them whenever possible. If you are carrying one, you owe it to yourself also to carry a high-quality compass that you know how to use. There are many excellent books and college courses on compass use and map reading. See “Survival Travel and Navigation,” Chapter 9.

  Marker or “surveyor’s” tape: Bright red or orange tape can be hung from your shelter to help attract rescue or be used to mark a trail.

  Money: A $20 or $50 bill won’t help you procure water in the wilderness, but it sure comes in handy when you eventually make your way out to a highway. Once you scramble out of the bush, the money in your kit will allow you to buy something to eat and drink, and take care of any immediate needs. You may also want to put a credit card in your kit.

  Multi-tool: When I set out for a week of survival, I believe there’s nothing more crucial than a multi-tool. A twist on the classic Swiss Army–style knife, the multi-tool takes things to the next level with the addition of an integrated set of pliers, which has many uses in the wilderness. I often use the pliers on my multi-tool to take a pot of boiling water off a fire.

  Make sure that the multi-tool you choose includes a saw blade. You won’t use it much for felling trees, but a saw blade is excellent for making traps and snares. Scissors also come in handy in a survival situation, so make sure your multi-tool has a pair. And remember, quality counts! Don’t buy a cheap model or you will regret it.

  Needle and thread: It’s a good idea to carry a needle and thread, yet in all the years I’ve been participating in survival-related activities, I think I’ve used these only once, to mend a torn canoe pack. Bring a needle with a very large eye so that it can be threaded with thick materials, such as sinew and coarse thread. Perhaps the best use for the needle is in first aid, to remove splinters and slivers.

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  STROUD’S TIP

  You can magnetize a needle by rubbing it in one direction on a magnetic item, such as the speaker of a radio. When you float the magnetized needle in water, on a leaf or on a piece of paper, the needle will point north/south. Once you determine which end is north, color that end of the needle with a marker.

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  PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) or EPIRB (Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon): While these units do not contact your family at the same time as they contact search and rescue organizations (the way SPOT does), they are excellent for notifying emergency personnel or the military, and have saved many lives.

  Parachute cord or similar rope (about 50 feet [15 m] of 1/4-inch [0.5 cm] cord): As romantic as it may sound to make rope out of bark and roots, the fact is that the process is slow, tedious, and often difficult. On the other hand, having a good spool of parachute cord can make a tremendous difference in a survival situation. You can use it to make shelters, fire bows, signals, snares or traps, and for countless other purposes.

  I’ve singled out parachute cord here because it is legendary for its strength. Constructed of an outer sheath surrounding seven inner strands, true parachute cord is one of the strongest and lightest ropes you can find, and it’s rated at 550-pound test.

  Parachute cord can be bulky in large quantities, however, so it helps to come up with innovative ways to carry it. Some travelers wrap it around the handles of their belt knives; others use it in lieu of shoelaces, as every little bit helps when it comes to lightening your load.

  Pencil and notebook: Use these to write your personal survival log, in which you take note of efforts and discoveries you’ve made. It will help boost your morale, act as a reference guide, and support your memory should it begin to fail. Perhaps its most important use is in leaving a note for potential rescuers if you move on, to let them know where you have gone.

  Safety pins: These are helpful when making repairs to clothing and other gear. Safety pins can also be used as fish hooks.

  Saw (folding): Here’s an item I really love, although admittedly a folding saw is bulkier and heavier than most items you’ll see in a typical survival kit. Nevertheless, it’s worth its weight in gold, because it completely transforms how you can build shelters or keep a fire going, both of which are crucial (physically and psychologically) in a survival ordeal.

  It used to be that you could get only poor-quality folding saws, but they’ve come a long way in recent years in terms of quality and durability. My favorites are the one-piece units with a blade that folds into the handle. When folded they’re about 10 inches (25 cm) long.

  Signal mirror: When choosing a signal mirror, you have a couple of options. Personally, I prefer hand mirrors that are designed to act as signaling devices. You can distinguish these by the small hole in the middle, which is used for sighting passing aircraft.

  Like any item in your survival kit, your signal mirror can also serve other functions, such as grooming or first aid. If you get something in your eye (which happens more often than you’d think), a little mirror is invaluable. Something as seemingly innocuous as a pine needle in your eye can cause intense pain if you can’t get it out. A good signal mirror can also serve as a fire starter by reflecting the sun’s rays.

  Snare wire: Like parachute cord, snare wire has a multitude of uses, the most important of which is catching your potential dinner! Snare wire meant for rabbits is the most appropriate.

  Solar or “space” blanket (small): A solar blanket reflects your own body heat back to you, which is effective if you need to get warm in a hurry. Granted, it doesn’t feel warm and cozy, but it works better than anything else you can get for the weight.

  The potential danger with solar blankets is that they do not breathe or permit perspiration to escape, so they have the potential to leave you damper and colder than when you started. Don’t roll up in one or use it as an under-layer inside a jacket; simply wrap it around you.

  Solar blankets are terrific reflectors and can be used for signaling if necessary, as a makeshift tarp to waterproof your shelter, or as a rain-catch. While surviving in the Canadian Rocky Mountains outside of Revelstoke, British Columbia, I used one as a roof, and it made for the warmest shelter I can remember. Be careful with solar blankets around fire, however. They can melt within seconds when touched by flames.

  SPOT satellite messenger: The SPOT enables you to send e-mails by satellite, and includes your latitude and longitude coordinates. It will even track you and send your coordinates to 10 contacts by e-mail or text message every 10 minutes. The SPOT goes beyond a GPS to the next level of safety. A GPS will tell you where you are. The SPOT will tell your rescuers where you are.

  Water purification tablets: Each iodine-based water purification tablet will purify 1 to 2 quarts (1 to 2 L) of water, depending on the level of contamination.

  Iodine-based tablets can also be used in first aid. Simply crush one tablet and add about a teaspoon of water. This will yield a strong topical solution of iodine, which can be used to disinfect wounds.

  Water-purifying straw: A relatively new innovation, the water-purifying straw uses a combination of iodine and resin to purify water as you drink. Each straw is good for 20 to 25 gallons (75 to 95 L) of water, depending on how dirty the water is. Some of these nifty little straws claim to reduce bacteria and viruses by as much as 96 percent!

  Whistle: Get the sturdiest, loudest, brightest, and most obnoxious one you can find. My favorites are manufactured by Fox 40.

  Ziploc bags (large): In a pinch, these bags have many uses, including storing and carrying water. Ziplocs can also be used for keeping sensitive items, such as fire-starting tinder, dry. You can even fill them with snow and put them under your coat to melt the snow into a drink of water.

  Your complete survival kit items should help you make it through almost any sit
uation, provided you know how to use them.

  A well-planned, complete survival kit will help you make it through the toughest situations.

  Tailor Your Kit to Your Destination

  THINK OF YOUR COMPLETE SURVIVAL KIT as something that should evolve and change according to your needs, rather than as something that you assemble once and toss into your pack each time you travel. The complete survival kit I’ve listed above should help you through most emergencies, but survival is situation-specific, and certain tools that may help you in the Arctic or the boreal forest will do you little good in the desert or jungle.