Give Me Advice On My Kit/Preparation

[Warheit]

Get some basic medical and first aid supplies, they are not on your list. And if you take any prescription medications, be sure and take those along, of stock them in your BOB all the time! If you get hurt in the field, you will be glad you have them!
And dont forget the snake bite kit! There are rattlers in them there woods!

I have created my own custom first aid kit. That's listed in the first order of items and does include my perscription meds. Good idea on the rattlers.

[1stimestar]

Keep them inside your coat or close to your body and they work fine.
I've never understood this, I smoked for 15 years even droped my lighter in water, always got it to work.

You just shake or blow the excess water out and if it still doesn't light, just press the strike wheel against a piece of dry clothing(T-Shirt works well) I really need to make a youtube video.

Oh you can get them to work after you dry them out or warm them up, but a match is more instant in those cases. The temperatures I go out in, and the corresponding cold weather gear necessitated by those temps make it really not handy to have a lighter on an inside pocket. I normally do, but I don't rely on it. You have to remove mittens to dig down into an inside pocket to get it. I realize the OP probably wont be out in -20 and colder but it is possible even in Colorado.

[RandyRhoads]

And dont forget the snake bite kit! There are rattlers in them there woods!

I can't think of anything a snakebite kit would help with besides a good laugh at what a joke they are. Don't tourniquet, don't cut with a razor, and don't try sucking it out. Keep it below your heart and try not to do anything that will get your heart rate up. Remove any overlying clothing/jewelry that may constrict when it swells. Flush with clean water away from the site. If possible sit still and try to send for help.

[randyt]

I carry a zippo, a candle and a couple 55 gallon trash bags. I like the big bags in case i have to make a palmer furnace.

[Rick]

Of course if you go to sleep using a Palmer furnace you become the lesser known Palmer Cadaver or the Palmer Bonfire, which reverts you to the Palmer Cadaver.

Just joking, Randy. It is a good, last ditch effort to prevent or reverse hypothermia.

[randyt]

well yea LOL, air is essential for survival. Any info out in cyberspace or elsewhere on the seneca fire hole?

[Wildthang]

I can't think of anything a snakebite kit would help with besides a good laugh at what a joke they are. Don't tourniquet, don't cut with a razor, and don't try sucking it out. Keep it below your heart and try not to do anything that will get your heart rate up. Remove any overlying clothing/jewelry that may constrict when it swells. Flush with clean water away from the site. If possible sit still and try to send for help.

Well I have seen one on the internet that creates a lot of suction on the bit area, and supposedly removes a good portion of poisen. So you're telling me that all snake bite kits are useless, becuase I really wasn't aware of that?

[Rick]

You can't remove the poison from the wound any more than you can suck out the liquid injected with a shot. By the time you retrieve a snake bite kit and get it open the venom has already been absorbed into the surrounding tissue. Never cut the bite area. Then you not only have a snake bite to deal with but an open wound. If you can mark the bite area then do so. That way in the unlikely event that you are bitten by a poisonous snake and can't respond to questions those treating you can find your injury.

Most snakes in the U.S. are non-venomous and even if you are bitten by a poisonous snake there is no guarantee that your were injected with venom or a load large enough to cause significant injury. The snake has the ability to activate the glands or not via the temporal muscle that surrounds the venom gland. It may only be a warning strike. If the snake has just recently eaten then it may not have enough venom to cause injury.

Remember that snakes use venom to retrieve food and they don't waste the venom if they don't have to.

Randy's advice is spot on. Otherwise, avoidance is your best bet.

[finallyME]

Snakes are rare at high altitudes.

[Rick]

You just need to cook them longer at high altitude. You can get them well done if you try.

[RandyRhoads]

You just need to cook them longer at high altitude. You can get them well done if you try.

LOL My pets didn't appreciate that!Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

[Warheit]

Snakes are rare at high altitudes.

That is what I was going to say. For my first planned trips out in May, they will be in areas 9,000+ ft above sea level. Haven't heard or seen a rattler up this high, nor have many.

[natertot]

LOL My pets didn't appreciate that!Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

Pic kinda reminds me of the lobster tanks at the local market!

[RandyRhoads]

Lol. Funny you should mention that I had more but i'd pick them out when I felt like tanning a skin and eating one. Now i'm down to one breeding pair and 2 sub adults that can't breed yet.

[Rick]

"Hey Randy, how many snakes did you say you have?"
"Four. Why?"
"Cause there's only three in here."
"Uh oh."

[Sarge47]

I can't think of anything a snakebite kit would help with besides a good laugh at what a joke they are. Don't tourniquet, don't cut with a razor, and don't try sucking it out. Keep it below your heart and try not to do anything that will get your heart rate up. Remove any overlying clothing/jewelry that may constrict when it swells. Flush with clean water away from the site. If possible sit still and try to send for help.

...if all that fails to work, immediately crouch down, place your head between your legs, and kiss your a$$ goodbye!

[RandyRhoads]

...if all that fails to work, immediately crouch down, place your head between your legs, and kiss your a$$ goodbye!

Not necessarily. While it may be really painful you have a chance of living. You may just lose an appendage.

[Rick]

It's one of the reasons I carry a walking stick. It steps over downed logs before I do. Don't want any surprises when my foot touches down on the other side. I'll let the walking stick startle anything that might be laying there....curled up.....ready to strike.

[Northern Horseman]

I'm with you Rick, I never hike without a walking stick. the walking stick I have now is just the right circumference at the bottom to fit my SOG Spirit (the handle unscrews to become a spear head)
I use a threaded broom repair adapter for a pressure fit, I had to grind off some material on the threads to get it to fit.
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[Northern Horseman]

Another thing you might consider besides the headlamp flashlight is a hand crank rechargeable flashlight multi tool.
Extra batteries are heavy and if a short trip turns into a long haul they may not last long enough anyway.
This one might be a good option to consider Multi Tool with Hand-crank Rechargeable Torch

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