Get Home Bags?

[Coffee_Break]

Majority of the item's I have I picked up cheap, I dont buy Survival Kit's those are too pricey! (not to mention probably packed with the same cheap sh**!)

2 x Silver Mylar Sheet's (Retain Body Heat) cost £1
1 x Emergancy Survival Shelter (Silver Mylar) cost £1
1 x Pack of Six disposable Lighters with LED cost £1
1 x Pack of Cable Tidies cost £1
1 x Cheap Multi tool Pen Knife cost £1
1 x Pack of 45 Bleech Tablets (1 tablet = 1 litre of bleech!) cost £1
3 x 5 meter lengths of Paracord (550 Gauge OD Green) cost £3
1 x Pack of 3 Condoms (hey I might get lucky!!) cost £2.50
4 x Pack of Strike anywhere Matches cost £1
1 x Tube of Hand Sanitation Gel cost £1
1 x Folding Tree Saw cost £1
1 x Ground Sheet cost £1
1 x Tarp cost £1
1 x Bag of Cotton Wool cost £1
1 x Pack of 2 Glow Stick's cost £1

Last couple of items are just common cense, fishing lures, plastic ponchos, sowing pins, compass, medical kit and then things some people just seem to forget, packet of shaving razors (for my old fashioned RAZOR) toothbrush, toothpaste and more importantly soap!!

You can make a really good B.O.B (Bug Out Bag) or Get Home Bag for under £20

The professional camping bag itself, to store most of it in, might cost you a bit more, but search around, you'll find places like Charity Shops have them on the cheap sometimes for less than £10

The One Pound Shop or the Dollar store has everything you could possibly need! (including aluminium mess tins x 2 for £1)

The most important thing you can do besides pondering what to put in your emergancy kit bag, is knowing what you can live on and eat, so a little research goes a long way to staying alive.

Unless your looking forwards to trying to carry over 2lbs (in weight) worth of food in Tins (in which case I hope you remembered a Can opener!)

Woodlice - Edible
Earthworms - Edible
Hawthorn Berries - Edible
Blackberries - Edible
Elder Berries - Edible
Sea Buckthorn Berries - Edible
Rosehips - Edible
Dandilions - Edible
Nettles - Edible
Burdock - Edible
Rats Tail Plantain - Edible
Chickweed - Edible
Pendulum Sedge - Edible (needs prep)
Acorns - Edible (needs prep, you have to remove the Tanins in water, but dont throw that waste water away, thats good for washing your clothes!) N.B: Potentially debilitating stomache cramps if you try to eat them Raw!

And just as an example of what will kill you in an instant if you stick it in your mouth, Woody Nightshade Berries (Bittersweet), Deadly Nightshade (Atropa Belladona) Berries and Black Nightshade, not so edible.. Death in one or two bite's!

If you see something that looks just like fresh Parcley, some advice, dont stick it in your mouth unless your 100% certain, because Monk's Hood or Wolfsbane which will melt your insides out, looks exactly the same!

I once saw an article elsewhere about eating the humble earthworm, which was filled with other peoples misconceptions, one guy wrote that if the worm had a big ring around it's body it should be discarded because it was infested with parasite's!

Pure hogwash, that ring just so you know, is where two worm's have gotten Jiggy with it! Thats an egg sack filled with unhatched baby worms! Preparing them is easy, you dig them up, you flatten them from the head down with a flat bladed knife so there innards go out there rear end, you then dump the now very flat earthworm into your cooking pot along with his little friends with a little Bisto freeze dried gravy and chow down! (simple) They taste gritty and earthy (pretty damn horrid actually) but they'll keep you alive, hence you might want a packet or two of gravy granules to make them taste a bit better!

If the idea of eating an earthworm makes your stomache churn, feel free to expend most of your energy (which you could better spend trying to get home) trying to lure, catch, shoot or gut bigger game.

You'll always come across some Yahoo or Jock, that has a self erecting camping tent and a self lighting camping stove, who's brought along four packets of bacon and a packet of egg's, half a ton of weapon's like a large machette and presumes he can survive on his own just fine.

Word of advice, let them, those kind of people will get you killed - Epecially when his stove runs out of Gas and he want's to borrow your lighter!

[SARKY]

I think a definition of a GHB is in order. A GHB is a bag and contents to get you home from where ever you under worst case scenario/conditions. So based on that, how many miles will you have to travel (worst case, on foot) and how many miles will you be able to cover a day, worst case? I figure on 10 miles travel per day. So now aside from your survival gear you will need food (while you may be able to forage along the way, hunting or trapping will cut down on your distance traveled per day) for the days of travel. You will need water and or sources of water on your travel route, and the means to purify it. so,this is just a start, keep it going.

[Rick]

Just out of curiosity how often do you test your bag and your plan?

[crashdive123]

On coffee breaks of course.

[SARKY]

My bag has been rock solid tested about a dozens times to tweak it in. As to my plan twice a year i run it thru, make notes and review.

[Coffee_Break]

On coffee breaks of course.

How often have I tested my plan?

Well lets see I spent a few years roughing it, if you've packed a 9mm and think that bunny rabbit will taste nice after you've blasted a hollow point into it's gut's. Go for it!

A water container with water in it, is always a good idea, but there's plenty of place's you can find water, it's always a good idea to pack some spare warm clothes.

Scenario, you fall into a river and the temprature is dropping and you've got no spare clothes, your screwed.

I saw an article not to long ago about some dude, who when he lost his Job decided in his infinate wisdom to move out his flat to save money, then he packed all his possessions into his car and then he drove, hundred's of miles into the forest with his four person tent and his self lighting stove! There was even a photo in the article with him sitting there eating bacon and eggs, saying he wasnt going to come back to civilization until his online web buisness bloomed or blossomed.

Well lets just look at that scenario from a realistic perspective, he's Jobless, so he's got no cash, he's just driven hundreds of miles into the middle of nowhere, his car must have an infinite source of gas, like the stove.. Or is he by now and very realisticly probably dead somewhere!

Miles I can cover, well I once had to do a 27.5 mile trek in under 24 hours non-stop and that was with the bag carrying everything to actually make it home.

Trapping take's time, fishing take's time and thats time that can be better spent actually bugging out!

If your on the trail, the half of the time, dinner will present itself, without having to go hunting through the underbrush for it, baby deer for instance, hide in long grass, they just lay there waiting for there mom to come back. So there's nothing stopping you from turning it into a quick meal by just picking up a big chunk of wood, walking right up to it and clubbing the crap out of it!

What did I eat over that 24 hour period, well, I came across apple tree's, plum's and pear's in fact I filled my bag with so many of them I was still chewing them by the time I made it home, it is not the "Zombie Apocolypse" so packing a 12 gauge or 9mm is just a little OTT but thats just my view!

People that feel the need to pack iron & brass must be compensating for there tiny dick and there insecurity at being able to kill something with their bare hands, half the time expecting the worst case scenario, when half of the forest if used correctly can kill you or anyone else if you know how. I would happily enter into a Survival scenario with anyone, to see whom ends up where and by when, heck I'd even feel tempted to leave them a happy camper picknick hamper on the way down the trail, with a little note that says "Open for one Snake Surprise!"

You can always tell exactly how dehydrated you are by simply observing the color of your own piss, if it's almost crystal clear, your not that dehydrated, if its amber, your slightly dehydrated, if it's dark orange, your pretty dehydrated.

If your worried about thing's like Athlete's Foot or Trenchfoot, dont be, there's an instant cure for that, next time you stop to pull out your dong and take a leak, take your boots off and piss on your feet... Doesnt sound very sanitary does it but surprisingly this is what they teach soldiers the world over!

Feel free to Bazuka that Varuca (your miles from a pharmacy!) but the fact is your own pee contains enough Uretha (Alkaline) to kill most fungal infections dead!

[crashdive123]

Well - since you quoted me.

How many times have you tested YOUR GHB was the question posed. Unless you live in a very temperate area - relying on two little mylar sheets for warmth (remember, this is your plan) and six disposable lighters indicates that no testing has been involved, and minimal experience.

Many here have roughed it, but that is not to say that we know that a bag that we put together works unless we've tested it.

Also - we don't know you. There is an introduction section if you'd like to let us know a little about yourself.

[Coffee_Break]

Used it many times, over a six year period, caught plenty of game, never forget that first time. It was a rabbit, tried shooting at them with a crossbow, never a good idea, if you miss the bolt's ricochet, tried shooting at them with a .22 pellet gun with platic flight lead tipped pest control pellets, great effect the pellets are so damn light they go right through the rabbit and the rabbit runs off, in the end what worked funnily enough was picking up a pebble and throwing it at one whilst filling a canteen with water.

It went "eek" and fell over, then unable to believe my luck I picked it and the water canteen up, went back to camp. Two friends with me, suddenly whilst we where all laughing about the irony of how simple it had actually been the damned thing came back to life. Yeap, seems it was only stunned. So then I had both people giving me advice, one suggested just throttling it, tried that, hands around its neck, eyeballs bulged and it put up even more of a struggle, so then the other guy suggested a karate chop to the back of it's neck, tried that too, that pissed it off even worse. What worked in the end, just grabbed the hind legs and smashed it's head off the floor!

[crashdive123]

I didn't see crossbow, .22 pellet gun, water canteen on your list.

Your list sounds like something you read, not something you used.

[Coffee_Break]

No that was a camping trip, where I started out getting interested in survival with some friends. So they produced the crossbow and the air rifle. The crossbow soon fell out of favour when it bounced a bolt off a rock and buried itself a few yards from where one of us was standing, the pellet gun, was to be honest perfectly useless over a distance and ironicly the one thing that worked and works well to this day is a small round projectile, just like a slingshot. No a slingshot is not on that list, because these days I would find a nice Wych Elm, Willow or Yew tree and just fashion a bow. I've got the Paracord and the woodsaw what else would I need? Oh maybe a some cotton wool tied around the end to give the arrow some drag.

It might sound like hard work to some people, wittling down a 5 of 6 foot length of wood with only a pocket knife to make your string notches, but hey, thats what the camping fire it for, you dump either end in the fire and let it burn around the ends evenly. Their are plenty of ways you can make something with a 60lb draw wieght out of lengths of PVC pipe, but are you going to have time to grab, the bag, the arrows and the long length of PVC and not find yourself being stopped and asked "whats in the bag?"

Nowadays I dont go anywhere without my big heavy wool hooded coat (even if its summer, i'll put it over my shoulder!) and the first thing I would do at night is get a fire going, frost bite, I can tell you all about that, first you get red blotches on your legs, then those discolor like a bruise only thats not a bruise, that's you starting to freeze to death.

It puts it sharply into perspective when you miscalculate the weather, get soaked to the bone, then wake up in agony because you cant feel your toe's even with heavy socks and boots on in a sleeping bag!

I cant even begin to describe how soul destroying and increadibly painful that feel's, waking up before the break of dawn unable to move because it just makes all your muscles and bones ache, the only thing is to go off and experiance it for yourself and then learn from those mistakes. Most people take it for granted that if the weather turns foul, they can just go back in the house and put a nice thick jumper on, or a spare pair of Joggers under the clothes they already have on, but if you packed a bag thinking to bring only shorts and a few teeshirts, your in for some real pain if the weather goes bad!

[Rick]

Mate, me thinks you are in the 12 year old range. Either way, this is fantasy stuff.

[Coffee_Break]

12 years old... try 39 and having spent 6 years homeless, you know survival through the winter... Fantasy stuff.. hahaha! Born survivalist you are! Maybe down in indiana the weather stays warm but here in the UK we get snow drift's. Come over to my neck of the wood's and we'll see how well you do with 6 months of Winter Rain followed by Ice & Snow.

You know that fat guy whats his name, oh yeah Ray Mears (survival expert) he did a big documentry for the BBC about how to survive in the British Wilds, but even he put his tail between his legs and got back in his Jeep and bugged out home when the Winter started to set in!

What is it they say about him again, "oh yeah!" the only Fat Survival Guy who heads off into the wilderness and come's back looking fatter than before he went in!

[Rick]

And you're better than Ray Mears? Okay, cowboy. Let's see how long you last on here.

[finallyME]

A GHB is called a "Get Home Bag" because the objective is to get home as fast as possible. The reason is because your home is where your supplies are, and most likely your family. A GHB is completely different from a BOB, or "Bug out Bag". You want to cover miles with a GHB, and fast. Foraging and "wilderness survival" are not the goal. Foraging and hiking are mutually exclusive activities. The more you forage, the longer it will take you to get home. Your GHB should be light.

For most people, they work in urban environments, and live in urban environments. There generally isn't much rural area between their office and home. This means that they won't be in the wilderness on their trip back home. The GHB should reflect that. For me, I have a mountain rang between my office and home. I have a choice of going over the mountain range, or walking around on the interstate. If it is winter, I am not walking over the mountains.

[magentasky]

Coffee_Break,what part of UK do you live in?
Lived in various parts of UK all my life,except for the past year.Apart from '63 (when I was just a glimmer in my parents eyes) lots of winters spent there and I have never experience snow drifts...just sayin'.Not implying what you say is incorrect,just wondering?

[crashdive123]

@ Rick - I do believe you nailed it.

[magentasky]

Coffee_Break,what part of UK do you live in?
Lived in various parts of UK all my life,except for the past year.Apart from '63 (when I was just a glimmer in my parents eyes) lots of winters spent there and I have never experience snow drifts...just sayin'.Not implying what you say is incorrect,just wondering?

[Coffee_Break]

Coffee_Break,what part of UK do you live in?
Lived in various parts of UK all my life,except for the past year.Apart from '63 (when I was just a glimmer in my parents eyes) lots of winters spent there and I have never experience snow drifts...just sayin'.Not implying what you say is incorrect,just wondering?

Then you were not in London this May when it blew a blizzard and that would be the South-West, but I have travelled all over, including the Highlands where the peaks are always covered in Snow and if you look out the window right about now, youd see what I mean about the weather turning. It's now pissing down with rain and the sunshine is gone, by the end of Sept, the weather is going to be foul.

As for the guy who went travelling in his Car that was oversea's in Sweden... (Silly bugger actually Drove miles into the woods)

You know I love American's there ideology is great, try to buy a crossbow online from Oversea's or an Air-rifle for that matter and they wont sell it to you, blindly thinking that it's export controlled in your country, little realising most people to the north have a shotgun license! (or maybe it's just the arseholes that run e-Bay).

Try lighting a fire in a so called conservation national park, you'll be expelled by the park warden's or the firebrigade will turn up and hose your warm fire down whilst the police who are more than a little over zealous will raid your bag looking for large sharp objects.

Here's the craziness of it: Banstead Common is huge! It's acres of woodland, know what the council notice says on the faded park notice.

Any persons caught picking any wild flower will be fined upto a minimum of £5000
Any persons caught erecting a Temporary or Camping Shelter with be fined upto a minimum of £5000
Any persons caught shooting any wild animal or wild fowl will be fined upto a minimum of £5000
Any persons caught lighting any fire's will be fined upto a minimum of £5000

And thats just one Borough!

Places where you'll be left in peace a quiet are few and far between in this country, you could always try sleeping in a shop doorway in the town and see how long you last! Or get on the train and head for a few places that I know off-hand where no-body will disturb you! Norfolkbroads is one, Dartmoor is another, Yorkshire Dales, Inverness, Kent Coast. If you pull up the Satalite map's on Google Maps, you soon find plenty of deep, overgrown green places.

I lived on a boat for two years before I sold it and moved back to the city, lost my own Job and ended up Surviving, forget trying a place for food handout's those places hand you tined food but no tin opener and they dont really give a **** that your sleeping on a bit of cardboard!

[hunter63]

This is all pretty interesting Coffee Break......so I think I'll just sit here and take notes........

[Winnie]

May in London.

http://www.accuweather.com/en/gb/lon...weather/328328

I live about 80 miles north of London, funny that, I don't see or remember any blizzards. Oh and London is in the SOUTH EAST.

Now, do yourself a favour,and go for a walk. Oh and don't forget your GHB, You never know, you might get lucky! Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

I wouldn't rely on that tat to get me to the end of the street. Where's your food, water, cash, credit card, spare socks, hat and gloves, torch, I could go on but I know you won't undrstand.
And I would happily put my life in the hands of Ray Mears and his Land Rover to get me home safely, while you dig about for worms. (good luck with that in the winter.)