Ultimate Preppers Bug Out Bag for Long Term Survival

Here is our ultimate bug out bag. Version # 1.03
Sponsored by, www.SolarStormWarning.com
© Copyright 2012, Solar Storm Warning, Inc

Previous Update On: 03.15.2012 - 8:41 PM, EST
Last Updated On: 03.28.2012 - 4:55 PM, EST

MEDICAL:

Your prescription medications.(Typically preppers order extra medicine while others skip medications once or twice a week to stockpile supply.) Note: Skipping medications can put you at serious health risk. Consult your doctor about extra meds for emergencies.
One, hikers first aid kit. (Don't forget to add medical scissors and plenty of Imodium AD for diarrhea in pill form to your medical kit)
Pain killers like a bottle of Tylenol 250 count. (You may want to place them in a thick zip-lock plastic bag for easier storage)

OPTICAL:

One pocket size magnifying glass. Some pocket size magnifying glasses allow you to significantly increase the power of the magnification of which is a big plus. A magnifying glass is also another way to start a campfire.
Contact lenses? You are not going to be able to properly deal with contact lenses for very long. If you are basically blind without without glasses, then you need to get at least one pair of glasses with a strong frame, but two pairs are strongly recommended. If you cant see very well without glasses, then you better get two pairs of glasses, otherwise your just tuff out of luck once you no longer have glasses to see with.
2 eyeglass cleaning cloths. Glasses can also be cleaned easily without soap and water just by using a hand towel to rub the lens clean.
One compact pair of foldable 12x Binoculars. If you can afford it, I strongly recommend 60x binoculars which are great to locate streams and rivers that are far away, as well as locate game, and especially help you spot other people before they spot you.
One small pocket size travel mirror. At some point you will need one.

MAKEUP:

If you ware makeup, do not bring it with you, leave it behind. (1) Makeup attracts bugs. (2) You will not have the comforts of home to easily wash it off and put it back. (3) Most importantly, you are giving up valuable room for food.

FOOD:

Forty-five to sixty Ready to Eat Meals in vacuum pouch bags. If you're a creative backpacker, you can carry up to ninety or more when using an expedition backpack. Note: Only eat one ready to eat meal a day, otherwise you will go through your food in half the time. NOTE! The very fist chance you get, start foraging for food RIGHT AWAY. Fishing is a great way to start. This way by the time you run out of the food you carried with you (and you will run out) you will have already adapted to foraging for your own food. Otherwise, you'll suddenly find yourself with no more food, panic might set in, along with your body quickly starting to become weaker and weaker with each passing day, making all the more difficult to have the strength to hunt for food. Acclimating yourself right away to living off the land is vital in making a smooth transition to finding your own food to eat, which in most cases, is all around us out in the wild.
OPTIONAL FOOD SUPPLY BAG: High quality hardware bag with wheels, offering rigid plastic protection strips on bottom, water-resistant, luggage grade nylon tough, tear-resistant interior lining, with rigid bottom section are an ideal way to carry an additional 300 Ready To Eat Meals. Note: Though it's on wheels, it's still going to be heavy and hard to roll behind you for miles and miles on end should you be forced to walk long distances. Especially once your in a more wilderness or rugged type area, which will make it even harder to roll behind you, which will slow down your rate of travel. But in the end if you don't give up, or take turns pulling it between partners, it will be well worth the trouble. Or you can get a small one on wheels, the kind used for carry on luggage for planes.
Salt and pepper until you get use to eating from the wild, a little salt and pepper will go a long ways to getting food into your stomach.
SEED!!! At some point you and or your party will need more than just fish and meet to eat. A garden is a must have for long term survival. Seeds are light and pack easily. You need to check for which kind of crops grow best in your region or the bug out region you plan on going to. IE: corn, tomatoes, early carrots, squash, cantaloupe, watermelon, cabbage, lettuce, broccoli, winter cauliflower, Swiss chard, sweet potatoes and white potatoes because one type of potato may get a disease and then your screwed, onions, red beets, pumpkin, Brussels sprout, spinach, and various herbs to season your food with. Bringing seed with you is an absolute MUST HAVE!!! Otherwise survival is going to get really tuff and malnutrition will set in, making you weak, which compromises your immune system. *Seed is dirt cheep!! (DON'T FORGET TO TIE A WELL MADE HAND TROWEL ONTO THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR BACKPACK!! Typically hand trowels have a small hole in the handle which is used to hang it up on a wall. You'll need your hand trowel to plant and maintain your garden.

WATER:

One small hand operated reverse osmoses water pump.(Avoid muddy water or pre filter it with sand)
Three spare reverse osmoses filters. If you're with a group, have them carry extra filters as well as a couple extra reverse osmoses water pumps.
Two (belt mountable) water canteens. (One canteen is NOT enough!) When one canteen runs dry, you know it's time to start looking for more drinking water. Once we become seriously dehydrated, were done for! That is... unless someone comes to our rescue.
One hundred water purification tablets for when you are in a pinch for safe drinking water, otherwise you'll have to boil your water. Once you settle into a long term shelter, you'll have to deal with long term issues of making clean drinking water by other means as you will eventually run out of tablets and water filters. (Note: By filling up a natural hollowed out tree trunk with sand (that stands at least five feet tall) and then pouring water through the top is one means to cleaner water. You'll have to plug the bottom with a several inches of clay and then using a knife to bore a hole in the side near the base to capture the water. Should there be serious pollution problems with the water, the water still might not be suitable for drinking even after boiling it.) NEVER USE WATER FOR DRINKING OR COOKING WHERE DEAD ANIMALS ARE FOUND IN THE WATER.
One, Three gallon capacity, collapsible water container. THIS IS A MUST HAVE!!

BEDDING:

One subzero sleeping bag. If your bag is rated at below zero, that means you should be plenty warm at temps above zero. Dessert regions get very cold at night, sometimes dropping down to near freezing or colder. Some desert regions even have very cold winters.
Two space blankets (with grommets) at least eight feet in length. (One used to insulate you from the ground, the other to place on you for added warmth and to insulate you from your wool blanket. Space blankets with grommets make for quick shelters from rain and can act a ponchos.
One small wool blanket six to seven feet maximum in length. (A small wool blanket will make and break how warm you are able to maintain your body as you sleep over the countless months ahead.)
Pillow? No matter how small a pillow might be, it takes up valuable space that otherwise could be used to carry even more, Ready To Eat Meals. Rollup your jacket up, or a pair of jeans to use as a pillow. You can use one of your t-shirts to act as a pillow case. There are inflatable pillows, still, you're giving up space for food.
Bed warmer. Place lots of large but smooth round rocks next to fire and allow to absorb the heat from the fire for a few hours. WARNING - EXTREME DANGER!! Never use river rocks that come from the river itself as they have extra moister in them which will cause the rock to explode when heated. Additionally some rocks have air pockets in them, causing them to explode when heated. So you need to build a separate fire a good safe distance away from your camp to test heating all new rocks before heating them up at your main fire. Simply place the heated rocks in your tent away from your body, as not to accident burn yourself in your sleep. Rocks that are not hot enough to burn you can be dragged into bed with you, and place at least one of them at your feet on really cold nights work wonders. (Do not allow ash to accidently get on the rock(s) you plan on using in bed.)

COOKWARE:

One backpacker's cooking set that fastens to your belt or on the outside of your bug out bag. (Be sure to pack at least one strong spoon, fork and table knife as the eating utensils that come with the backpacker's cooking set are usually flimsy junk.)
If you're in a group, you might want to consider having someone carry a thick iron skillet and a quality cooking pot with lid as you'll need it to cook over an open fire each night. (Always do your cooking at night, as your smoke can been seen for miles around during daylight.)

FIRE MAKING:

Three steel flint fire starters, as you can't have to many of those around and there pocket friendly too!
Three butane and or Bic lighters. (Use these as a last resort as you need to make these last as long as possible.)
Waterproof matches contained in a small container. (Use these as a last resort as you need to make these last as long as possible.)
NOTE: The ability to start a fire over the centuries has been paramount when it comes to man's survival!! Your ability to start a fire to cook and sterilize water with, and especially to keep warm in the cold winter months with will make and break your long term chance of survival. (Do your cooking at night, as your smoke can been seen for miles around during daylight.) YOU DO NOT WANT TO ATTRACT UNWANTED ATTENTION TO YOUR CAMP.

PERSONAL CARE & HYGIENE:

Straight razor and proper sharpening stone or use the backside of your leather belt listed under clothing.
Q-tips! A small pack of Q-tips go a long ways to keeping your ears clean. Also helpful for some medical applications.
(Women) Its impossible to carry all the Tampons and or pads you will need. So do you research on alternative methods to make your own. IE: Two or three thick cotton wash cloths folded properly. Use one at a time while the other two are drying from washing them in a stream or river, etc.
Three good toothbrushes of your choosing. (Note: Cheep toothbrushes break.)
Three packs of Dental Floss. Use it sparingly, as daily flossing is not an option, otherwise you will run out of dental floss before you know it.
Three large tubes of tooth paste. (At some point you will need to read your survival guide how to make natural toothpaste.) Note: As long as you brush your teeth right away with plain water every time you eat, you'll be surprised how well that works to prevent cavities and keep bad breath down. Cavities are caused by the byproduct from the bacteria in our month when it comes into contact with sugar. So unless you packed a lot sugar, cavities will not be such an issue. So stretch your toothpaste as long as possible. When we brush our teeth and especially the back of our tongue with just water every single time we eat, you'll be surprised how little our breath stinks, if at all.
One hair comb and or brush.
Three bars of antibacterial soap. (At some point you will need to read your survival guide how to make natural soap.)
One, sixteen ounce bottle of shampoo. (Use it sparingly.) (At some point you will need to read your survival guide how to make natural shampoo.)
One hand towel. (Hand towels can double up as a wash cloth.)
One thick wash cloth.
One heavy duty pair of nail clippers!!
WARNING!! Do not bring or use deodorants, colognes or perfumes as they attract bees and gnats.

TOOLS:

One army shovel. Used to dig drainage ditches to channel heavy rain water away from your shelter. Also used to dig your long term shelter into the side of a hill so as to best camouflage your location, especially when you are away hunting. If you are located where winters are typically sever, dig down into the ground, line the floor and walls with cut trees of the same diameter using your bow saw. Then cover the hole with large timbers, place the large sheet of plastic over the timber and the cover back over with at least three feet of earth. Mound the dirt up high in the middle as this will cause most of the rain water to flow away from you underground fort. You should build another watertight wood roof above your underground fort as to make sure you wont have problems during heavy rain. Don't forget to make drainage ditches to channel water away from your underground fort, especially on the uphill side. Dig your entrance to go down from the side. The watertight A-frame roof you made above your fort will keep the rain and snow from getting into your entrance, especially if you make a door for at the entrance of the A-frame roof and close off the back of your A-frame roof. If you transplant large shrubs to help hide your fort, and make it look natural, you'll be able to hide your location from most. Note: Thermal imaging from the air and satellites will not be able to see you as your heat-signature will be very low.
One Leatherman, which is a highly advanced all around utility knife needed to work on hooks (like removing a hook caught under your skin) as well as repairing your fishing pole, and lots of other uses.
One small pocket knife.
One professional survival knife with seven inch harden blade with belt sheath. Don't cheap out on the cost of a quality survival knife as your life will depend on it almost daily.
One sharpening stone. (River rocks or most any smooth rock will work in a pinch to sharpen your knife.) Lean how to sharpen your knife right away!
One professional pocket compass with sight. (Learn how to use your compass right away!)
One AAA battery pocket sized LED flashlight. (Two extra sets of rechargeable batteries)
One AA battery LED flashlight that mounts on your head that ALSO has inferred lighting. (Two extra sets of rechargeable batteries) Inferred lighting is key to traveling at night and not being easily seen from a distance, or any time you don't want to be seen at night.
One shirt pocket sized AM/FM/Short Wave Radio (Two extra sets of rechargeable batteries) You need to monitor the airwaves once a week to know when it's safe to come back, which most likely will not be for many months to come; possibly a year or two or far longer if marshal law is the new law of the land in the US. In that case, once you've been discovered, you will be apprehended and brought to a government run center.
One compact solar powered battery charger. Some fasten to a hat on your head to charge your batteries as you hike! Pretty cool!
One bow saw with twenty four inch blade. (Used to make long term shelter, fell six inch trees, and cut firewood) THIS IS A MUST HAVE!! Whatever you do, don't forget to get yourself a quality bow saw as your life and safety WILL depend on it to build long term shelters such as a small log cabin, wood fencing, cut firewood and be able to do it very quietly without the chopping sound that an axe makes. It's also faster.
Six extra blades for bow saw as they will break. The blades are light and slide easily into a tall backpack when left in their cardboard sleeve.
One small hand axe. Used to 'notch out' wood and shave a flat spot on both sides along the length of small timber in building airtight shelters. The flat backend of the axe to be used as a hammer. If you are bugging out with one or more members in a group, some one can carry a big axe, while another one carries an army shovel. The shovel is key to digging into the side of a steep hill in building a well hidden, long term shelter with a low heat-signature.

FIRE ARMS:

Hand gun of your choosing for sudden life threatening moments. Note: Bullets are heavy and take up a lot of room.
One medium size crossbow (preferably collapsible) and bring as many arrows as you can comfortably carry. Crossbows are quiet. This way you won't draw attention to yourself. Eventually you'll run out of bullets, where as with a crossbow, you can make all the arrows you want.
A dozen extra arrow heads is strongly advised. NOTE: Arrows don't need arrow heads to hunt game in a pinch as long as you are relatively close to your game. With time, you'll need to start making your own arrow heads.
Three replacements sets of crossbow string. You're crossbow is useless once you have no string for it. So the more spare string you have the better, as your crossbow allows you to hunt game with relative ease. Practice all you can long before you ever need to use it for survival, that way you're not losing arrows left and right, let alone breaking them.

MAPS & GUIDES:

One fold up map of your region covering at least two hundred miles in all directions, if not six hundred or more.
One detailed map of your local region and/or of your bug out destination showing lakes, streams and rivers that covers no more than a thirty mile radios, as your map might lose detail of streams and small lakes.
One pocket guide to eatable plants in your region.
One pocket guide to building 'long term' survival shelters for your region of the world. THIS IS A MUST HAVE!!

CLOTHING:

WARNING: Clothes take up a lot of room in a backpack. So ware as much of your second set of clothes as possible. Once you arrive at your bug out destination, you can remove them. Remember, layering is the best way to stay warm while at the same time you can open and or remove layers to cool down. Note: Depending on where you are at in the world, you should seriously consider a set of thermal pants and shirt. If you have to deal with cold blowing temperatures and or snow, you'll need to be better dressed. In the event of cold blowing wind and or snow, it's best that you find a safe place right away to shelter yourself from the bad whether until it clears, which may not be for days or possible for weeks in some areas of the world.
Two warm long sleeve button down shirts; one on your back, the other one in your bug out bag. You can always rollup your sleeves and open your shirt whenever you get to hot. You should make one of the two long sleeved shirts flannel. Staying warm under all conditions is paramount. You can always take off layers of clothing to stay cool, where as you we can't put on clothes we simply don't have to stay warm.
Two T-shirts. (Four is strongly advised) Keep in mind that clothing takes up a huge amount of room in a backpack that otherwise is best used for food and other critical supplies. So wearing any extra clothing is best. Or tie it to the outside of your backpack using a small nylon tube sack that has a built in, locking pull string.
Two lose fitting pairs of green, tan or brown jeans that is best suited for camouflage. (Do not use the color blue.) You can ware two pairs of loose fitting jeans for added warmth against cold whether.
Two pairs of cotton underwear; one you wear, the other one in your bug out bag.
Two pairs of long cotton underwear; one you wear, the other one in your bug out bag. (Man or woman, do NOT overlook long underwear!!) Your long underwear will mean the difference between hyperthermia and survival. Ware both pairs at the same time for extra warmth.
Four pairs of cotton socks; two you wear at the same time, (your feet will breathe better in hot or cold) the other two pairs of socks in your bug out bag. Two pairs of socks need to be quality wool socks and the other two socks need to be cotton. Ware the wool socks on top of the cotton socks. In hot weather your feet stay cool as it allows your feet to breath as you walk, and keeps your feet warm in cold weather. I ware two pairs of cotton socks year around and do not have problems with sweaty feet as long as your shoes breathe. In the winter I always ware wool socks over my cotton socks.
One oversized genuine thick and wide plain leather belt. (Backside to be used for sharpening straight razor.) Make extra small holes in the belt as to allow the belt to fit you better.
One, lightweight pair of tennis shoes with ankle support. (Tie the tennis shoes to the outside of your backpack.) You don't want to be stuck wearing your hiking shoes all the time.
Brimmed hat! You need to protect your face from the sun. Mosquito hats are the best choice as you get the best protection from both the sun as well as protect your face from gnats, flying bugs and insects. Your are plain crazy if you leave home without a mosquito hat. Otherwise you'll find yourself wishing you had followed my advice.

SURVIVAL GEAR:

Quality binoculars! At least 10X. Some binoculars are small and fold up and fit in your pocket. A must have so you can scope things out way ahead of you, like looking for water, game and seeing your enemy first before they spot you. I pack one 10X pair and keep a 60x over my shoulder. Note: Most binoculars that have the ability to zoom have a lot of trouble producing images with sharp focus. So be prepared to spend extra cash for a quality pair of binoculars with zoom that will also produce a crisp image.
One black expedition backpack. Black, green or tan backpack, depending on your region as you want your backpack to blend in with your environment. (Expedition backpacks are specifically designed for maximum carrying capacity.) Note: These packs get heavy, especially when loaded down with lots of food. So a roll along carrying bag is an alternative way to making your pack lighter and or carrying an additional six to twelve months of additional food. Greater insight about roller bags on wheels can be found in our SURVIVAL GEAR section below.
One pocket guide to making natural soaps, shampoos, toothpaste.
One leather belt to ware around your waist. You will find a leather belt very valuable, especially as a tourniquet.
One pocket fisherman and/or small collapsible fishing pole.
Two hundred and fifty feet of spare fishing line, (medium weight) and a hundred various size fishing hooks stored in thin plastic container.
Various artificial baits ideal for your region. Use native live bait when possible as you'll have better luck.
One, one-hundred foot roll (or larger) of thin nylon string. You'll find a million survival uses for it! So use it wisely.
Several thick long candle sticks. Do NOT use them unless you have to, as they will not last long.
Two twelve by sixteen sheet of plastic commonly sold in most hardware and painter's stores. Great for reinforcing your shelter's roof from leaking until you build a more permanent leak proof roof.
Several dozen water purification tablets for when you are in a pinch, otherwise you'll have to boil your water. Once you settle into a long term shelter, you'll have to deal with long term issues of making clean drinking water by other means as you will eventually run out of tablets and water filters.
Note: DO NOT WAIT until you are almost out of food and water to start foraging for food and water, as you need to start adapting to becoming self sufficient as quickly as possible. This way, once you run out of the food you carried with you, you will not find yourself suddenly starving for days on end, which makes you very week and all the harder to forage for food, let alone hunt for game.

MONEY:

Paper money? Little to no use. Gold and silver coins could be used in a pinch to barter, but paper money will not be very useful. Carrying gold such as gold coins are very heavy, but some gold coins might be useful in a pinch.

TIPS AND POINTERS:

Preplan your bug out destination.
Preplan at least two separate routs to get there.
Pre-pack your bug out bag. Then re-pack it a few times more. Each time you re-pack it, you will get better and better at getting as much as possible into your ultimate bug out bag.
Use Google Earth in advance to locate streams, ponds and lakes and especially near by residents at your bug out destination.
If possible, place a cache of supplies at your bug out location(s) like your heavy tools, canned food, rice of which is very heavy, candles,
Make a second cache of supplies in case you cant get to your first cache.
Locate preppers in your community that ideally bring something to the table. Such as doctors, engineers and especially a horticulturist or two.
Do not locate your long term shelter beside a river. (1) It will flood at some point. (2) People travel along rivers. (3) Don't leave tall tell signs away from your camp that people might be living in the area, like unknowingly beating down a path to and from the river, lake and or stream. Use natural animal trails whenever possible.
Build your long term survival shelter into a hill side by digging in a little ways. Don't forget to properly shore up the ceilings and walls with strong timbers. Better yet, build yourself and underground fort. It's warmer and safer from large animals that otherwise would pray upon you as you slept.
Locate the entrance to your shelter behind tall bushes, or transplant lots of big bushes close to your entrance, but keep it natural looking.
Make sure you don't build where runoff from rain water will be flowing into or over top of your shelter.
Always make deep and wide rain channels/gutters reinforced with rocks and or timber above and around your long term shelter as to channel away rainwater.
Catch the channeled rain water into a small makeshift pond to be used for washing.
Capture rainwater separately for drinking water using plastic, or use wide leaves for lining a naturally hollowed downed tree.
Always build your shelter with a southern exposure by using your compass to confirm south.
Do not build your shelter at the bottom of the hill as rainwater and avalanches from snow pose a serious threat.
DO NOT DISCHARGE FIRE ARMS UNLESS YOU HAVE NO CHOICE!! Firearms can be heard for miles around as you will alert others of your presence.
Build your latrine at least fifty yards away from your base camp, otherwise it will draw curious animals into your camp area, some of which might be quite large.
Have the men in your group regularly mark the area with there urine (discreetly) in a circular perimeter around your campsite some twenty-five yards away from the camp's parameter with urine. Typically this acts as a strong deterrent against bigger animals coming into your camp unexpectedly as you sleep. Have the men get together to prearrange where exactly where this twenty-five yard border will be established. All solid human waste should be expelled at a predetermined make shift latrine far and away from all natural water sources such a lakes, streams, rivers and ponds. A separate latrine station is recommended as to better accommodate any women in your group. Parties of six or more should build another bathroom facility as to better accommodate bigger groups.
If there is a water source near by, you should given consideration to how you might use that water to irrigate your garden. Possibly even moving your garden closer to your water source. Keep in mind that wild animals are going to eat from your garden and can wipe out your entire garden as you sleep. So, protecting your garden is a must. However this is not as big of a problem with crops that grow underground.

As you can see, my bug out bag and survival tools along with thinking ahead is all about feasible, long term survival plan, rather than a four to six week camping trip. We must keep in mind that once society breaks down (for whatever reason that you find yourself most concerned about to prep for,) that more than likely, we will NOT be able to come back to our home for months, possible years to come, if at all. So when we leave with our bug out bag and gear, we must do so with the thought in mind that we are leaving for good.

Start exercising and go on short day hikes with a loaded backpack to start building up the right kind of muscle mass you body will need to carry a heavy pack. Even if you have to rest every ten minutes or so, you will eventually get to your destination with your supplies.

I might also mention that many believe in life after death and thus are at peace with moving on into the afterlife. So some of you may want to rethink things through and simply prep to do your best to survive at home. Getting your 'spiritual ducks' in order is strongly recommended. You may want to seek spiritual guidance in this matter.

Lastly: Many people have beloved pets and refuse to leave home without them. Unless you have stashed hundreds of pounds of pet food in advance at your bug out location(s), you will not have the required food to feed your pets. And if you start feeding them people food, you will be out of food in no time flat. So you need to give this some serious thought. If you decide to stay home because of your pet(s) after society has broken down, your pets will become your demise in a dog eat dog world of food gangs, where home invasion will be the norm.

That's it for now. Check back often as we will be continually updating key information for a while to come.

Hope this helps.

Cheers!