I too carry the following "Shelter & Personal Protection" related items in either a North Face Sport Hiker™ utility waist pack (550 cu in / 9L) or a Columbia Omni-Dry® Ridge Trek™ Venture Vest (depending upon the situation) and still have plenty of room left over for all my other essential "category" items (Medical & First Aid, Fire & Light, Water & Food, Signaling & Communication, Wilderness Navigation, Knives & Tools, Multi-purpose Components, and Miscellaneous Components):

• AMK Thermo-Lite® 2.0 Bivvy Sack, 84" x 36"/27"
• Cocoon® Coolmax® Mummy Liner, 86" x 32"/24"
• AMK Heatsheets® 2 Person Survival Blanket, 96" x 60"
• Coghlan's® Survival Bag, 3 Mil Poyethylene, Orange, 84" x 36"
• Ruffies® 45 Gallon Trash Bag Liner, Clear, 45" x 38"
• Coleman® Emergency Poncho, 50" x 80", #9173
• Coleman® Disposable Hand Warmers (4)
• The North Face® M Vortex Stretch-Fit Fleece Glove Liners, XL
• Buff® Original Multifuntional Headwear, 12-in-1 Styles, Indore Blue
• Hav-A-Hank® Bandana, 22" x 22", Blue
• Solar∙Rolz™ Post-Mydriatic Sunglasses
• Vaseline® Lip Therapy, Cherry, 0.35 oz
• Coppertone™ Sport UVA/UVB Sunblock, SPF 30, 1 oz

I also have a larger North Face Day Hiker™ waist pack (1,000 cu in / 16.5L) or Camelbak® Alpine Explorer™ Day Pack (1,900 cu in / 31.1L) that I use for longer treks, and they each carry everything listed above, as well as the following:

• Byer Amazonas® Miskito Traveller™ Hammock, Nylon w/ Integral No-See-Um™ Misquito Canapy, 84" x 54", Spruce Green
• Byer Amazonas® Microrope™ Ultra-Light Hammock Rope Set, 1/4" Polyester Braid, 330 lbs Maximum, 10' Adj. Range
• Equinox® 10' x 12' Siliconized Ultralight Backpacking Tarpaulin, 3 Mil, Green, Model 20070 (Rain Fly)
• Shockcord, 1/8" Diameter, 25', Red (Rain Fly Ridge Line)
• Braided Nylon Paracord, 1/8" Dia x 10', 300 lb Test, Green (Rain Fly Guide Lines)
• Vargo® Titanium Nail Pegs, 6" Long w/ 50mm Steel Lanyard Rings (Rain Fly Anchors) (6)
• The North Face® M Venture Side Vent Rain Pants, HyVent D™, Black
• The North Face® Crosswinds Anora Hooded Rain Jacket, w/Stuff Sack, Ultramar Blue

While I realize this amount of gear may seem overkill for most people on this board, I'm a gearwhore who strongly subscribes to the old adage of "It’s better to carry something you don't need than to need something you don't carry".

In reality, I firmly believe my wilderness skills and training would actually allow me to survive for several days with nothing more than the EDC items in my pockets, although this system insures that I'll be comfortable waiting for the SAR guys to arrive, and the limited redundancy allows me to provide for an additional hiking companion that may not be as well prepared.

The last time I checked, the Day Hiker kit or Venture Vest system weighed in at just under six pounds (plus an additional 2.2 lbs with water) so it's actually quite manageable.

If anyone would like me to post pictures of my setup, I'll try to when I get a chance.

[hijack thread]On that note, is Photobucket a decent site to look into for photo hosting, or are there better options out there?[/hijack thread]

Jim