Review/Refreshing my get home bag

Jayne

Jayne

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I'm doing a refresh on my 'get home' bag. The theory here isn't that I'm going out camping for days, or living off grid, or anything so dramatic. It's that I'm stuck away from home close enough that I can walk it in a day or two. I'm assuming that I'm dressed for work, so wearing clothing inappropriate to anything outside of a meeting room and will only have useless tools beyond my EDC. Grid down? Hey, I have a display port to HDMI adapter! No water? Hey, I have a USB slide advancer!

What's missing?

-- Clothing —

Hiking shoes, light socks, heavy socks, underwear, short sleeve t-shirt, long sleeve t-shirt
polypro shirt and pants, hiking pants, hats, rain jacket and pants, fuzzy jacket, 2x poncho

-- Tools —

clear tarp, cordage, AA headlamp, AA flashlight, 15x lithium AA batteries, programmed 2m/440 HT, AA adapter, antenna, silcock key, lighter, small fixed knife, leatherman tool, multi-bit screwdriver set

-- Meds & hygiene—

small medical kit (no meds, but gauze, bandages, etc), quick clot trauma kit, 3x extra pairs of gloves, Israeli bandage, baby wipes, toilet paper, bug spray

-- Food and water —

water packets, life straw, lifeboat rations, stainless water bottle

-- Safety Gear —

work gloves, goggles, ear plugs, face mask

-- Random Crap —

mylar sleeping bag, backpack that holds a lot of this besides the extra clothes , binoculars, ziplock bags, cash, wire saw (why??)

IMG_4275.jpg
 
I would add some kind of fire starter / being warm is nice ! Why any extra ? Cause its better to hope for the best , but be prepped for the worse !
 
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waxhaw said:
I would add some kind of fire starter / being warm is nice ! Why any extra ? Cause its better to hope for the best , but be prepped for the worse !
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I've got a lighter in there somewhere, but I wouldn't assume I would be starting any fires. If the goal is to get home, something "bad" must be going on and hiding at night seems like more of a plan than inviting everyone around to come sit by the obvious fire and wonder what else I might have they want.
 
I have no experience in this but if you are gonna be stuck overnight even at this time of year and don’t want to make a fire I am thinking you will want a heavy coat. Don’t need it leave it but if you need one and don’t have it you will prob not make it. Even 40 degrees overnight with rain would be a crap pie..
 
Looks like an extensive set up, nice kit. If the medical is only stuff you carry, you could consider adding a few more pieces, like a tourniquet or two. Also, multiple ways to start a fire. I agree it can attract negative attention, but better to have and not need/use... Especially if you end up exposed to the elements for an extended period of time. @waxhaw and @Amps 13 mentioned staying warm... hypothermia can set in as early as 50*F. Plenty of times a GHB bag can be used in a non hostile environment. I.E stuck overnight on an icy highway like the folks in Atlanta were a few years ago.
 
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I would add booze, warmer clothes, compass, waterproof maps, energy boost.
 
I carry both a small GHB as well as stuff in my truck, food, water, shelter, ammo, extra gun. I’ll shelter in place or head for home as needed.
 
Humping home?

I'd trade half that stuff for some foot powder, 800mg Motrin and a few hundred in small bills. The motrin is for breakfast.

Paying someone $100 for a mountain bike seems very reasonable after 10 miles.

(More expensive the better on foot powder.)

Sincerely,
Mr. Manchu March
 
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I keep my get home clothing separate from my get home bag.

Small plastic tub in the trunk of my car with seasonally appropriate clothes. Stuff happens I'll change clothes before I leave my vehicle.

Then I have my GHB.

As a result my bag is smaller and lighter.
 
rantingredneck said:
I keep my get home clothing separate from my get home bag.

Small plastic tub in the trunk of my car with seasonally appropriate clothes. Stuff happens I'll change clothes before I leave my vehicle.

Then I have my GHB.

As a result my bag is smaller and lighter.
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I just bought a couple of those dry bags mostly used for boating. Put the bigger one in my trunk loaded with extra clothes for the winter. I’ll probably swap out the clothes for some lighter gear as it warms up. Also have a couple pairs of wool socks and some Gortex Merrel’s in there. Now my pack is a little lighter and has some extra room. Need to reciew mine as well.
 
Scott88 said:
I.E stuck overnight on an icy highway like the folks in Atlanta were a few years ago.
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That was the reason I put together my first GHB.


I have a very small bottle of gold bond - if Im walking, I dont want to chafe! Cost a buck.
I always take a new bottle with me on vacation, has lasted up to four days in the past of walking all day, applying only in the morning before I went, still had a lot left over, but I always apply liberally.
 
Jayne said:
What's missing?
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One question: are you trying to take care of yourself alone out of your GHB? Or do you anticipate any possibility of a "defense of others" scenario?
 
HMP said:
That was the reason I put together my first GHB.


I have a very small bottle of gold bond - if Im walking, I dont want to chafe! Cost a buck.
I always take a new bottle with me on vacation, has lasted up to four days in the past of walking all day, applying only in the morning before I went, still had a lot left over, but I always apply liberally.
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Gold Bond is great, I like it for that purpose as well.

Couple more ideas for the OP, a small tub of Vaseline and OTC's.
 
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While I have been home convalescing from ortho surgery I have been thinking along the same lines. GOOD STUFF IN THIS THREAD! I have 2 pc gore tex rain suit in boot of my Pilot. ALways have my go bag. I just bought a maxpedition fat something or other pouch to get my small items organized like multi tool, flash light, pocket knife, pen, right in rain pad, etc. Was looking at water filters, etc this a.m. Going to add some rations of some sort, polar fleece top, boots, socks. Meds are a problem as I take some pretty essential stuff everyday but had been carrying my weekly pill minder with me whenever I travel. Already had an IFAK but need to add/expand it. Need a tourniquet and some other stuff.
 
A heavy duty garbage bag. It rolls up nice and small so not to take up much room but can be used for quite a few things from keeping things dry without wasting your poncho to holding wet stuff (clothes, muddy shoes,etc) if you have to put it back in your pack.
 
Don't know how far from home you are, but with sleeping bags on clearance for around $5 at Walmart it might be a good investment if you have to camp out overnight while trying to make it home.
 
I have all my stuff separated into bigger vacuum sealable ziploc bags that vacuum down tight. I also keep a 90 gallon super heavy duty trash bag in mine that I can put my entire pack in and tie up in case I need to cross water.
 
Lots of calls for a jacket and warmer clothing, which are in there. The polypro stuff is what I used to wear as a base layer while snowboarding, and the 'fuzzy jacket' is the inner layer of a ski parka basically (missing the outer shells). I'm hoping that the base layer, several shirts, the jacket and then the rain jacket over the top will suffice, and if it's actually cold out then I will have my wool coat on me for work, which is stylish and warm (and has another beenie and pair of gloves in the pockets).

I've added 2 more methods of fire, a 'fire kit' with pre-soaked tinder and some storm matches. The knife actually comes with a ferro rod, but I don't have experience using it so it doesn't count.
 
NCFubar said:
A heavy duty garbage bag. It rolls up nice and small so not to take up much room but can be used for quite a few things from keeping things dry without wasting your poncho to holding wet stuff (clothes, muddy shoes,etc) if you have to put it back in your pack.
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I was just stealing some from the kitchen to add. I have several in the car for other purposes, but having two stuck in the kit I don't use day-to-day is a good idea.
 
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Jayne said:
Yep, just me.
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Then I'd say you've absorbed the best of the advice already given and you look to me to be good to go. (YMMV) :)
 
well, 70% of the weight of my bag is bottled water.
 
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I've got 3 methods of fire now, and foot powder. May have to re-think the packaging of the powder though, the smallest I could find is still pretty large.
 
35mm film cannisters.

You can get them in bulk online. Work great for storing meds, tinder, matches, sewing kit, fishing kit, small spare AR parts like extractors and so on.
 
One thing i see neglected in many kits is landnav tools. My primary is a Sunnto Alpha and backup is a 50 state road map and Sunnto Compass and will make a pace counter the day of if needed.

The Sunnto Alpha is super sweet. I can poi anything and nav back to it, i can upload waypoints and nav to them
 
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Jayne said:
I've got 3 methods of fire now, and foot powder. May have to re-think the packaging of the powder though, the smallest I could find is still pretty large.
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99c gold bond at WM
 
I'm retired from my main career now but it was within an easy days walk from my house. My GHB consisted of a bottle of water, pack of smokes w/lighter, a candy bar or peanuts, pocket knife, and my carry gun.
Land nav was not an issue in my case, food was not an issue, and water was not really an issue. The ONE thing that was an issue, was dealing with packs of dogs DISCREETLY. Don't ask me how I know but a can of pepper spray or a big stick will help you avoid needless disruptions in your travels.
Tally Ho
 
I would ditch that lifeboat food and throw in a pack or 2 of dehydrated food, and a couple of good quality energy bars with protein. Or a field-stripped MRE. Nothing like eating chalk flavored drywall dust to kill any morale you may have left.

Also, the standard lifestraw is about the least useful water filter on the market. The kit that combined the lifestraw with the water bottle lids and a carbon post-filter are far more useful in a bug-out, GHB situation. They're on clearance at various Walmarts, and I have tested them at home and on hikes. Plus it weighs less than a Katadyne or MSR hiking filter. You already have the bottle

https://brickseek.com/walmart-inventory-checker/?sku=339196645
here's the amazon link if you can't score some at Walmart for $2-7
https://www.amazon.com/LifeStraw-Un...l+adapter+kit&qid=1553090914&s=gateway&sr=8-3

Get some type of adhesive tape in there too, like a few feet of duck tape/gorilla tape etc
 
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