To be human is to explore, to learn, to live. COVID has taken our world and turned it upside down. Just a few months ago, we were all preparing for the worst case of, well, I won’t say it, but we sure as heck bought all the darn toilet paper, we could find, didn’t we? If we are going to stockpile something like toilet paper to be prepared, why is it many people do not prepare for their safety when they go out and about?

Sure, we put on shoes and jackets, maybe grab an umbrella or gloves, but what else should we have with us, just in case? Have you ever thought of carrying a survival pack? One that is pretty universal for leaving in your car for when we end up in the ditch in the winter, or with a flat tire on the side of the road, or something you can carry with you when you go to some random quarry park in St Cloud on a late fall evening?

A survival pack does not have to be bulky, or even overly expensive, but it does have to prepare you for situations you may encounter. It may not even be for your survival; it could be that you save someone else’s life with your survival kit. The important piece of the kit is asking the right “what if” questions. If your “what if” question is “What if I meet a fire breathing dragon on a hike?” a survival pack is probably the least of your worries. But if your “what if” question is “what happens if I go out on the river with friends, our boat dies, and we have to spend the night on an island?” then the right pack may come in handy.

Last year, I decided that one of my projects was going to be to make a survival pack for myself and both of my kids. Something they could keep in their car. It had to cover the basics of keeping them safe on the side of the road if they ended up in some remote area, in a ditch with no cellular service and they had to make it for a half a day or longer with out freezing. I also wanted it light enough so it could be carried with them if they decided to go off into the woods in a park somewhere and something happened.

A friend of mine wanted to see how my pack stood up to an instructor’s inspection because his kid was in a hunting class and they were told to make a pack. This pack was chosen as the best pack of the class, and that was before it was completed. I did not have the matches yet and that was his one criticism of it. My pack is slightly bigger as I am WAY more likely to randomly walk into the woods than they are, but the contents are the same for the basic pack. I just have more room to carry some extra goodies. I bought most of the stuff either locally or on Amazon. I will round up to the nearest dollar for the item prices to make it simple.

Here is what is in the kit.

33 feet of Fluorescent Reflective 550 Type III guy line tent rope. $5 Lighter – Jet Torch adjustable flame refillable butane game lighter – $7 Baiyang folding pocket-knife – Nothing spectacular, but seemed solid for an emergency use – $6 Flexzion Mini baseplate Compass, pocket style. Standard style clear plastic map compass $6 Esky Upgraded Emergency Solar Hand Crank Radio, NOAA Weather radio with AM/FM, LED flashlight, reading lamp, 2000 mAh power bank. $20 Sawyer Products SP128 Mini Water Filtration System. $20 Small travel first aid kit – 87 pieces. I did end up modifying this by adding some better Band-Aids, alcohol swabs, ibuprofen and antacids. $8 Soft Digits Headlamp, Ultra bright 5 LED headlight. – A super bright, long lasting head lamp that allows your hands to remain free and still be able to see. $17 Be Ready Industrial grade 12 hours glow sticks. 12 pack is $12 and I have four in my pack $4 Primacare HB-10 Emergency Foil Mylar Thermal Blanket (10 pack for $8) three per kit $3 RediTape Compact Flat Fold Duct Tape. $4 per pack Carboard based fire starters $3 3 cliff bars – $6 Extra batteries, a waterproof notepad and pen. $11 Tourniquet $10 Waterproof strike anywhere matches. $5 48 hours’ worth of hand warmers $5 GZ Xinxing Tactical Sling pack Military style shoulder backpack $18 The bag is quite compact, and you barely notice you are carrying it. I did add an external water bottle holder for $10. In all, I spent roughly $180 for the whole kit. Sounds like a lot up front, but I assembled mine over the course of a few months.

When I assembled the kit, I put most things in the freezer style Ziplock baggies. I included some extra Ziplock baggies in the kit because they can come in handy, maybe for carrying water or melting snow for water. Plus, they also keep things dry that need to stay dry. I put the weather radio into a baggie with two sets of extra batteries and extra cords I need to charge both my phone and the head lamp. The radio can be charged via hand crank, solar power, plugged in or replace the batteries. It is quite flexible as to where it gets its power. Yes, it charges my iPhone 10 max, at least enough to allow me to send some texts if I have that good of a signal. I made sure to keep the instructions with the radio, the head lamp, the tourniquet, and the straw. The straw is also in the box. All these paper items provide extra fire-starting items if the fire starters run out.

The first aid kit is setup to provide basic emergency medical needs. Like I said above, I did add some minor things to it. I also have a Ziplock with a decent amount of paper towels in it. The cliff bars are the only thing in the kit that expire. The batteries in the lamp and radio should be charged every month just to make sure they are at a decent capacity if needed.

The mylar blankets are what many people refer to as space blankets. The cool thing about them is, they can be used in a car for heat if I end up in a ditch, or I can use them to make a shelter if I end up having an issue hiking in the woods. Their reflective surface helps rescuers too. To make a shelter, I just need to use the duct tape, some of the 550 rope I have with me and sticks, and I have something. Having multiple foil blankets helps with a ground tarp and an actual blanket too.

It is something I hope I never need, but if I do need it, I’d like to think it could save my life.

What if you want something a little less Armageddonish and just want something for the car? I don’t have anything made for just that, but that is easy to make. I would certainly include somethings from above. The radio is pretty handy to have, even if it’s just to charge devices in a pinch. A bigger backpack, with foil blankets, a lighter, some candles and some of the glow sticks. I would still recommend carrying stuff to start a fire just incase you need to melt snow for water. Keep a pack of your favorite granola bars and blankets. The HotHands style hand warmers are always nice to keep in the car, even if it is not an emergency. Rope is handy. If you end up in the ditch in a secluded area, a nice chunk of rope with glow sticks on it could attract potential help. Remember, it’s not only about having the stuff, but also about using it to get one person’s attention to save your life. That is all you need to be able to do.

Other emergency supplies to keep in your car in the winter.

Ice melt or sand. Keep a couple ice cream buckets of one or each in the trunk, that could mean the difference between life or death.

Bottle water. Yeah, it will freeze, but you can use heat to melt it and provide you fluids.

A small shovel. You have no idea how many times a shovel was all it took to get a bus, a garbage truck or a car out of a snowbank.

Jumper Cables. This one should be self-explanatory. Yes, you need another car to jump yours, but how easy it to find another car? Usually pretty easy, and not everyone carries jumper cables.

Flares / Triangles to help with visibility if you break down on the side of the road.

A tow straps. Similar to jumper cables, it would be one less thing to have to find in a pinch.

Hopefully you always keep the shiny side up and the rubber side on the road, but if you do get in to a pickle, may you be prepared!