Survival gear tips

Good morning. Clear blue skies, the weather outside is neither too humid nor too hot. Today is my day off work so I have deciced to encourage my passion for hiking as well as to do something for my fitness. After a while I am going to start packing. But what should I pack ? Before we go, we should make little itinerary - where we are going, how long it is going to take, what are the possibilities,etc., but mainly check the forecast. The weather can always change very quickly and surprise us with unpleasant storm for example. After the essentials (clothing, backpack, etc.) come items that are rather subjective, where it depends on specific situations or each of us, whether we prefer these or those, etc. Let´s imagine a situation where we are dependent only on ourselves. 

I find myself in an unknown forest. Basically, I have two options. I will either stay where I am and wait until someone comes to find me, or I can leave a message and try to find civilization myself. It does not really matter where I am and what got me to this situation. The main thing is to keep calm and don´t panic. Those who give up may not survive. First of all, I need to find a place for shelter. I don´t have much energy left so I need to look around what the nature can offer (cave, gorge, thicker bushes). With the help of some tree branches I can make some temporary shelter. How do I make it, that is pretty much up to me, but I have to take into account the conditions. The other layers will consist of leaves, moss, possibly other branches, simply anything we can find that protects us against wind, rain and sun. 

All this, however, may cause that we will lose lot of energy. But we could carry something which would help us for sure. A knife! It should be part of any (survival) kit. Many people carry knife every day, but let´s talk about it little more. Nowadays, the market is full of different knives. One of the types are also knives with fixed blade – survival knives. They are designed for such situations (survival). Hugely important is thickness of the blade and handle as well as material. The improper blade will become dull quickly even during usual work. World-class steels are steels e.g. A-2, D-2, with hardness 58-62 HRC, which is considered ideal hardness in this case. Such a steel has good properties, for example it stays sharp for long time. Unfortunately knives made of such steel are quite expensive. The steel that is still very good and will serve well in our conditions, is steel9Cr19MoV, or steel AUS-8. Knives with these steels will be our great companion, however, survival knives can offer much more.

Survival knives have different features such as sharpener (every better survival knife should have it), whistle, glass breaker/hammer. One of such knives is also Gerber Ultimate Pro Bear Grylls. When the knife wears a Bear Grylls name, we can be sure that is has got something to do with survival and that is high-quality. Solid construction of knife with blade from steel 9Cr19MoV is hard and strong enough to withstand even tougher jobs and corrosion. The knife features stainlees steel pommel on the tail that can serve as a hammer. However, the real survival „euphoria“ comes when we look at the sheath. In addition to standard protection, we can also find ferrocerium fire starter, that can create sparks of high temperature when used together with the knife. This, together with the integrated diamond sharpener provides perfect tool for survival. Thanks to this tool, the associated jobs will be much more easier. Another problem may arise, when we need to fasten or attach the material. The bast of some trees can be used as an amazing fastener. But once again, by looking for the bast and following processing, we may lose precious time as well as energy. Luckily, there is a product that is effective but also looks good. We are talking about paracord bracelets.

As the name suggests, these bracelets are made of paracord. It depends on the specific paracord, but when we untangle it we get get 3-6 meters of strong cord. Each cord has an inner string that consists of six to nine small, but very solid fibers (strands). When we do the math, one such bracelet can give us 27-54 meters of cord. This will help us to built an improvised shelter, make a bow or secure a food on a tree. Pentagon brand has one of these bracelets, called Survival 2.0. It uses Je 4,8 meters of paracord, so after untangling we get 43 meters of cord. This versatile bracelet features stainless steel solid block clasp which helps us to adjust it to our needs (forearm). With this bracelet on your arm you will always have several meters of cord at hand. So now we have a shelter. This shelter becomes my temporary asylum. I'm starting to explore the surroundings. In the distance I found a rock formation, which could function as a good landmark. The more I know my surroundings, the more I will be able to work in the area. Supplies are running low, the primary task will now be to find water.

However, this may be not that easy task to do. There are several techniques that are unfortunately subjective to the environment. The animals are going to drink, but I don´t have that much time to observe the nature. The water is coming down to the valleys and gorges where I can dig. I´ve found a few pools and water holes. However, this water can be dangerous, sometimes even deadly. We can make simple gravity filter. For this filter we use layers of dried sand or charcoal from the fireplace. Then we let the water flow spontaneously, which filters out small organisms, dirt, etc. However, we must boil this water. The priority is to find a smaller stream with running water, the presence of fish proves the purity of water. Unfortunately, even all tips on how to get to know clean water will not guarantee 100% results. We can still get infected and die. I was lucky, after a few hours I encounter a smaller stream, which is sufficiently clean for drinking water. When making sure that there is no dead animal or other pollution, I came across a few fish for which I will return next time. Now I have to get water and replenish supplies. I carry water purification tablets. They are put in the desired amount of water and kill all the harmful things (viruses, bacteria, etc.) However, because I don´t have the newest version, I also have other tool - water filter. Nowadays, we have two main types - gravity and pressure water filters. Gravity filtration is a method of filtering impurities from solutions by using gravity to pull through a filter. With pressure filters, the principle is the same, only the water gets into the filter by pressing the pump. Each water filter can filter certain amount of water. Interesting example is Katadyn MyBottle. It is practically a 600 ml bottle with an integrated removable filter inside. It can filter up to 100 liters of water (depending on the state of the water). The use is very simple, just pour the water from the river ( or other water source) to the bottle, close the bottle, turn upside down, squeeze slightly and drink directly from the spout. The big advantage of this filter is that it also kills viruses. It is highly advised to be prepared, because we can go maximally two days without the water. Now I have my supplies of water and for this I also used thicker non lubricated condom, which can take up to 1,5 liters of water.

It is only half an hour to my base camp which is ok and I don´t have to move closer. On my way back I notice larger animal footprints that are well noticeable. I can really tell that it is not a small animal. It was obvious that I am not here alone. Now I have to be ready, protect myself as well as the food ( hide it in the crown of a tree or under the ground, possibly under the water). The best protection, either from animals or cold will definitely provide fire. I found some branches and tinder that will help me to start a fire. There are many ways how to start a fire without matches, or lighter. But I will need some wood and tinder anyway. The actual lighting of a fire is then matter of experiences or skills. I can use some old fashioned method, using friction or two stones, but these are rather lengthy. We would obviously ask - is there any easier way ? Of course it is. We can use already mentioned lighter ( it may stop working) or matches ( they can get wet), so another very good option would be fire starter. It usually consists of two parts - ferro rod, that can create hot sparks, and a plate. It works like this - prepare your tinder and strike the flint rod and create a shower of sparks onto the shavings (tinder). Until sparks are created and land directly into the pile of magnesium shavings, keep on sliding to create a fire. Once you get the fire going, spread the fire to the rest of tinder by blowing gently on the shavings. Our eshop can offer you plenty of options from different brands, one of them is Gerber Bear Grylls Fire Starter. We mention this product also for its waterproof storage compartment for tinder. It also features ferrocerium rod and metal striker. The fire is burning, which gives me a certain feeling of security. For the next few days I will try to orientate and let know about myself. The SOS sign, together with the large campfire for visual signaling, should be sufficient for now. Who knows what I will encounter, hopefully I will be lucky and get out of here as soon as possible. After all, they know that I am a missing person and they also know where I went.

As you can see, preparedness can really save lives. We don´t neccessarily need to carry huge backpack full of gear, that we might possibly use one day. We can prepare our own Survival Kit, where we can have for instance magnifying glass, matches, pocket knife, sewing kit, and fishing set. Simply anything you think is important for you. If you don´t have those items, our shop can offer you survival kits which contain things you will need in such situations. People involved in their content definitely know what the survival is. For example in the Ultimate Kit Gerber Bear Grylls you can find 16 different tools (including multi-tool, hand saw, or whistle), all wrapped in waterproof case. In other words, you will carry big hope in a small container. Do not underestimate even one-day trips and carry those things that can save our lives. The absence of a knife, first-aid kit, or water (water filter) can make our trip complicated, as it can turn into something much more serious than just recreational walk. So be prepared and remember to be prepared = stay alive.