Disasters are inevitable. It can strike anytime without giving you a hint and without proper preparation. Hence, it’s advisable to prepare your survival backpack with all essentials.
Remember that backend preparation is vital while considering survival. More than 48 percent of Americans don’t have emergency supplies in a disaster situation. The data shows half of the population will not be ready when a disaster strikes.
Preparing a survival-ready backpack should be your top priority. But you might wonder what to keep in a survival backpack as there are many things in your mind? To help you out with this, we have mentioned some Essentials for a Survival backpack. Have a look at the below-given points.
Why Should You Prepare Your Survival Backpack?
Your survival backpack can hold all the necessary items you and your family need to survive. A perfectly assembled survival backpack can keep you safe and will meet your basic survival needs. You might have known about the rule of 4 that shows the maximum amount of time one survives without certain essentials. These are:
- Water- three days
- Food- three weeks
- Air-three minutes
- Shelter- three hours
Your survival backpack and its items will ensure that you have sufficient water and food, breathable air, and a shelter to rest or sleep. Knowing what to keep in your survival kit or backpack will offer you means of tools, self-defense, and more.
Essential Items To Keep In Your Survival Backpack
#1 Breathing Mask
When the surrounding air becomes unbreathable, you will have to use a good air filtration mask to keep breathing on clean oxygen. Ensure that the mask you are using is of the highest quality and can filter harmful particles. Go for a mask that filters 99 percent of chemicals, fumes, dust, pollen, and smoke. Besides, ensure that it perfectly covers your nose and mouth.
#2 Food
As per the experts, you should keep at least three days of non-perishable food for every person in your survival backpack. Don’t forget to check the expiration date of the food you have kept in your backpack annually.
You can stock freeze-dried food or food bars designed for emergency use as they have around 5 to 30 years of shelf life. Besides, you should keep some baby food and pet food if you have a pet or baby.
#3 Drinking-Water
You should drink the right amount of water to keep yourself hydrated. So, don’t forget to add a water container and a water purifier to your survival backpack. These items in a Survival Backpack are a must.
You can find a natural source of water. But you can’t drink that directly as it can have bacteria, parasites, and pollutants. You can filter it and keep it in your water container using a water purifier.
#4 Shelter And Warmth
You can keep a sleeping bag, a space blanket, and a compatible or DIY tent for shelter. While preparing your backpack, you need to ensure that your backpack is not very heavy and can carry it comfortably.
If possible, carry a rain poncho for every person. Besides, you shouldn’t forget to carry body or hand warmers. Keeping a pair of cold weather gloves can also be a good idea.
#5 First Aid
No matter what, you should try your best to carry a good first aid kit that you can use to treat many injuries. Ensure the first aid kit includes hydrogen peroxide, antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment, eye drops, rolled gauze, burn gel, CPR masks, thermometer, duct tape or adhesive tape, etc.
#6 Navigation
You can’t entirely rely on your GPS when a disaster strikes. This is where you can use a detailed topographical map or a road map. Besides, you can also carry a compass.
But it’s preferable to buy a high-quality compass. But first, make sure you know how to read a compass or map so that you can easily track your way. An old or traditional navigation technique can help you a lot during disasters.
#7 Don’t Forget The Rescue Items
You can keep a sleeping bag, a space blanket, and a compatible or DIY tent for shelter. While preparing your backpack, you need to ensure that your backpack is not very heavy and can carry it comfortably.
If possible, carry a rain poncho for every person. Besides, you shouldn’t forget to carry body or hand warmers. Keeping a pair of cold weather gloves can also be a good idea.
#5 First Aid
No matter what, you should try your best to carry a good first aid kit that you can use to treat many injuries. Ensure the first aid kit includes hydrogen peroxide, antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment, eye drops, rolled gauze, burn gel, CPR masks, thermometer, duct tape or adhesive tape, etc.
#6 Navigation
You can’t entirely rely on your GPS when a disaster strikes. This is where you can use a detailed topographical map or a road map. Besides, you can also carry a compass.
But it’s preferable to buy a high-quality compass. But first, make sure you know how to read a compass or map so that you can easily track your way. An old or traditional navigation technique can help you a lot during disasters.
#7 Don’t Forget The Rescue Items
You must carry different signaling items to call for help or rescue. One such item is a whistle. You can buy a plastic whistle as it is cheap and doesn’t rust. You can also carry it hanging on your neck. Besides, you should also keep a signaling mirror in your survival backpack.
A mirror can reflect light that you can easily notice. Sometimes, chemical light sticks can help you log. A good quality chemical light stick can produce bright light for more than 10 hours and send a signal from a distance.
Your Personal Items
Once you are done with adding the above essentials for a survival backpack, it’s time to use the rest of the space for your additional items. Even though these may not help physically survive, it is still a good idea to carry some of them. Some essential personal items that you should keep in your survival backpack are:
#1 Personal Medications
While the first aid kit items can help you treat different conditions in case of a medical emergency, there are still some medicines that only you and your family may need. So, consult a doctor and carry an extra dose in the backpack. With the correct type of medication, you will be able to maintain your health for months. Do not forget to pack your personal hygiene items as well.
#2 Important Documents
It includes car papers, birth certificate deeds, loans, IDs, contracts, passports, and more important documents. If you are forced to leave your house, you shouldn’t forget to take a piece of paper to identify your possessions and property.
#3 Your Phone And Charger
The intent might go down, or the satellite might fall, but you should remember that not all disasters create the same effect. So, if you are dealing with a local natural disaster, then your phone can help you a lot.
It will help you to maintain regular communication with your family and friends. Besides, you can also call the emergency services and get the latest updates about the situation. Also, add your phone charger to your backpack. If you have money, you can invest in a two-way radio, extra batteries, etc.
#4 Some Self-Defense Tools
Some situations may require you to protect yourself from aggressive attackers. Besides, many hungry predators in the wild can attack you whenever they get a chance. So, your survival backpack should include some type of self-defense weapon.
It is not necessary to buy a gun or a large knife. You can also use some non-lethal items. For example, stun guns, batons, pepper spray, and more. However, while buying, you also need to consider the local laws.
#5 Money
If the area’s social structure or IT facilities have completely collapsed, you can’t use your credit or debit cards. So, you should always carry a few amounts of cash to use in a motel, gas station, or store. Keep your money in a waterproof pouch. Keep your debit cards near you as you may find an ATM in other locations.
How Should You Pack Your Survival Supplies personal hygiene items?
An ideal way to pack your survival backpack is to think about what the situation will be and what you will be doing at that moment. Understand your specific requirements and plan accordingly. While adding items to your backpack, you can consider the below-given questions.
What Type Of Emergency Situation Might You Face?
Based on your activities, you may deal with various potential emergencies. For example, if you plan to travel through a forest, you may need a tick-removal cream.
In a desert, carrying sunburn cream will be very useful. Remember that every situation will demand different things and have its own risk. So, try to understand any possible risks and add items accordingly to your backpack.
How Many Persons Will Be Sharing The Items?
It is crucial to prepare your survival backpack based on the number of people who will use it. For example, a solo trip will require you to carry fewer items than a 10-person camping trip.
If the number increases, some things will increase directly proportional to the number of persons. For example, the entire group can use a single fire starter as it is a basic item. But only one person can use an emergency space blanket. So, always keep the thing in mind.
Where You Will Use The Kit?
Various locations can create different types of climatic challenges. And you need to consider this while adding items to a Survival Backpack. For example, if you are in an area with an earthquake, you should include extra first aid. If you are in a northern latitude, you should not forget to carry space blankets and emergency hand warmers.
What Is Your Experience Level?
If you have more outdoor survival skills and experience, you would need fewer items in your survival backpack. For example, those who know how to start campfires don’t need to carry emergency fuel or matches.
How Long You May Need To Wait For Help?
A local or state emergency service would try to rescue you within a few hours. But if you are hiking through Darien Gap, then to get help, you may need to wait for a few weeks. So, always consider this to understand how much water and food you should carry in your survival backpack.
Final Words
The fact is, one can never be perfectly prepared for whatever lies in the future. You can’t predict an emergency or a natural disaster. But you can remain prepared with all the essential things to deal with any emergency.
After reading this article, you now understand what to keep in a survival backpack. Well, some other essential items are not listed here.
Only you can understand what is crucial for you and what you should add to your survival backpack. For example, if you are preparing yourself to survive in a city where a natural disaster occurs, you should follow urban survival methods.
If you don’t have much time to arrange all these items, don’t worry and buy a ready-made emergency kit now. Such a kit comes equipped with all the essential items you can use for any situation.
FAQS
What Are The Five Most Important Survival Skills?
You will find a lot of survival techniques, but there are five most essential survival skills that you should understand. These are:
- Knowing the methods of finding and purifying water.
- Keep yourself protected from different elements, including animals.
- Understanding how to navigate without using a compass.
- First aid
- Technique to create a fire.
What Is An Emergency Kit?
An emergency kit, also known as a survival kit, is a package of basic supplies and tools that you need to survive in an emergency. Most emergency kits come equipped with breathing protection systems, emergency water, lights, extra clothing, first aid supplies, survival foods, etc. Besides, these are essentials for a survival backpack.
What Do You Mean By The 5 C’s Of Survival?
The 5 C’s of survivability are cover, cordage, container, cutting tools, and combustion device. If you have all these things in your survival backpack, you can increase your chances of staying safe during any natural disaster.
What Are The 7 Important Survival Items?
The seven crucial survival items that you should forget to carry in your survival backpack are food, water, sanitation or hygiene, shelter or warmth, lighting and communication, and essential survival gear.
Why Should You Carry A Whistle In Your Survival Kit?
One of the most essential items in a Survival Backpack is a whistle. This is a perfect bang-for-the-buck item. You can produce a loud sound with a little blowing effort when you have a good quality whistle. So, don’t forget to get one now to increase your chances of survival.