A few questions from an Amature Hiker

Hello, it my first post at survival forums. I have found the reviews of the pre-packed survival kits very useful, I of course purchased one that was rated rather inadequate from my local Academy store. So my question I want to post to you all is should I make my own according to the SAS requirements or your own personal recommendations on what to add to it? Another question is that my hiking/survival gear is composed of A.L.I.C.E gear a medium sized back pack and a full set of the combat load gear. Oh course I have converted all this over to more “civilian” style use an have found it all rather easy to carry around my essential gear with relative ease. But is this gear the best for hiking an survival?

Welcome to the forum!

What kit did you purchase?

I highly recommend that you design, develop, test and use your own kit. There are examples enough on this forum on home-made PSK's (Personal Survival Kit's).
By making your own you have absolute control over it's contents and quality. You decide what you need and what not.
And being a gear-guy, I enjoy the procces it takes to make it.

However, if you don't want to built your own kit, or are looking for a good starter-kit, look at the ''Pocket Survival Pak''.
http://www.equipped.org/psp/index.htm

I can't help you with the ALICE-pack's though.

Again welcome.

I concur...create your own kit. One, it's fun and Two, you get to put in stuff that will actually work.

Now, as to hiking...if you are talking actually hiking trips on trails...ALICE medium is might small cubic inches wide for multiple day trips. I have one that I use as my BOB, but for longer treks, I have a Kelty. ALICE is also good for minimalist camping...but for traditional hiking, I would look at purchasing a regular pack...trust me, they are way more comfortable than an ALICE with a frame, can carry more geart thus making you more comfortable at camp and creates a more enjoyable trip. Just my opinion. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I agree to build your own, but I personally believe it should be built on top of the Ritter kit (the Pocket Survival Pak) as mentioned by Jim. The mirror, whistle and fire starter is already worth $25.. I was building it separately until I realized building my own used those same three items...So it was cheaper to get the Pak, and then add to it/move to a different container, etc.

that's exactly what i'm doing...i picked up the PSP and a few other things. just need to decide what container to put it in (witz, otterbox or pelican).

There are several other options as well depending on what you want. I use a element-proof Aloksak bag. It's basically a heavy-duty Zip-Loc. I wear my PSK in my front left cargo pants when i'm on search & rescue assignments or deep in the wilderness on fishing or hiking trips. I find myself going for it once in a while for quick and easy access to a small knife, a lighter (to fire up propane appliances), my Photon Freedom LED light, etc.

If you would like a hard but cheap container, also consider the Lock N' Lock plastic containers.

It's hard to beat the standard Altoids tin for a small pocket kit. Mine is tightly sealed (waterproof tape) and wrapped with ranger bands and paracord. Making access undesireable except in emergencies - you'd need to keep your main knife, light, etc. seperately carried. This kit goes with me on every hike.

Inside my pack, I keep tons of stuff inside a liter Nalgene bottle. Waterproof, can obviously be used to transport water, has a nice metal cup that nests over the end for boiling water to purify. And you can put alot of stuff in there. I have a spare large folding knife, StarFlash signal mirror, Silva baseplate compass, large firesteel, large Bic lighter, paracord, wire, JetScream whistle, duct tape, fishing gear, fire tinder, first aid supplies, pen, note paper, and a ton of other stuff. This kit does not always go with me. It's left out on shorter hikes near civilization when I have friends hiking with me. Longer hikes, hikes in more remote or rugged terrain, or solo hikes I always carry this in addition to the Altoids kit.

I couldn't agree more with this post. I used the Ritter PSP then added the items useful for my local environment. For example, I took the fishing kit out for day-to-day use (I live near Dallas, TX.) I don't plan to fish if commuting back and forth to work. However, I add it to the BOB.

Most of my enjoyment comes from trying out new gear options and tweaking kit. For the price, the Ritter kit (with mirror, firestarter, whistle, surgical blade, mini-compass, et al) is an inexpensive start to any PSP.

I've found the same results with FAKs. I've bought a small commercial FAK and added materials and deleted others (most contain band-aids that are too small and of poor quality.

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I agree to build your own, but I personally believe it should be built on top of the Ritter kit (the Pocket Survival Pak) as mentioned by Jim. The mirror, whistle and fire starter is already worth $25.. I was building it separately until I realized building my own used those same three items...So it was cheaper to get the Pak, and then add to it/move to a different container, etc.

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