So I went camping and ATVing with a group of friends and the DW. I went out on the trail with the ATV several times and had a great time. Spent hours on the trail pretty much care free. Got home and was thinking about the great weekend. Then it hit me- I had literally an ATV, a 40 cal. pistol, 3 bottles of water and a GPS. That is it. No knife, no FAK, no food. I was a minimalist this weekend. Luckily nothing bad happened. But...

I am the one preaching to friends and family that preparedness is the key to every (most) situations. I wasnt even close to being smart let alone prepared. Wow, I have truely disappointed myself.

My question is this, have any of you, had a lapse in common sence? I know we all have but in the context of this thread. I am not new to this game, so I actually had my entire BOB, a EMT bag, a major FAK and my EDC back at camp - that at times was sometimes 25 miles away. Anyway, alls well that ends well. I promised myself that it would not happen again though.

Unfortunately it happens quite a bit, especially when traveling and I've got to adjust my EDC on the fly. Thats why I've been paring down my kits and EDC stuff so as much of it goes wherever I go no matter the situation. This saying can be applied to just about anything, but the small kit in your pocket is worth more than all the gear you have at home. Glad you trip was incident free.

You still had a great deal of useful, practical knowledge to fall back on. That alone is where many folks will fall short in a situation.

I don't personally own an ATV (my brother does), but I do own seven snowmobiles. The four that we typically use I keep loaded year round with certain supplies. That way, I don't have to worry about myself, or anyone else, using them without basic supplies on hand. Very dangerous to be without any supplies in the middle of winter. I also make sure to check all my supplies before and after each season, as part of my regular maintenance.

Off the top of my head, this is what the sleds have in them:

-Spare drive belt
-Spare qt. oil (two stroke)
-Spare spark plugs with plug wrench
-Spare recoil string (on sled without electric start)
-Spare fuel line/coolant line
-Duct tape
-Mini WD-40 can
-Chemical handwarmers
-Tow rope or strap
-Surefire G2 LED flashlight (perfect for snowmobiling; LED so no bulbs to break, lithium cr123 cells that work well even when cold, and plastic body instead of metal body so you can still hold it in your mouth when cold)
-Leatherman Blast Multi-tool
-Bic lighter and Swedish FireSteel
-Metal cup for boiling water

That's the bare minimum. The two lead sleds (the ones that go out most often) are also equipped with a small combination survival/first aid kit that includes some other little odds and ends. One of the lead sleds also has a hatchet, while the other has a Sawvivor saw. (As there have been times when we've needed to cut down fallen trees with the larger saw, or chop through ice with the hatchet)

I often ride with other people and I even check out their gear. I won't ride with anyone that doesn't have at least a spare belt, spare plugs, and a flashlight. Often times I end up having to remind people that they have to fend for themselves when snowmobiling. Many are programmed with the notion that, if anything happens, they can just whip out their cell phone and call AAA or whatever. That doesn't exactly work out in the sticks, where you rarely get any cell service and land lines can be miles away.

Everyone has a brain fart now and again. This is exactly the sort of situation that prompts me to recommend that even when you have more and better gear, nothing substitutes for the pocket survival kit and other survival gear that is small and unobtrusive enough that it is with you at all times. If it isn't with you, it can't save you (tm).

When I am out in the wilds, regardless of the situation, I always have my Pocket Survival Pak, a shelter (vacuum packed HeatSheets Blanket), knife and multi-tool (and going forward, the new tiny McMurdo Fast Find) and such in my pants pockets. Even if I forget or get separated from my other gear, I always have that. If I have my pants on, it's with me. If I don't have my pants on, well, I don't expect to be very far from camp in that condition.

I bet you won't let it happen again....

Speaking of pocket kits, any updates on the ETA of the new DR pocket survival kit?

Intodcution still on for OR Summer this month, production later this year. Still some signficant issues to be worked out befoe I;m happy. <g>

Doug when your happy, my bank account drops.

Just saying.

I have an REI goretex parka that i always have even just walking in the woods. I always carry one of Dougs excellent little Pocket Survival kits, a small First Aid Kit, my SAK, a single AAA cell LED light, my Surefire light and a flask of water. with that minimalist gear I am good for most overnight emergencies.
Normally I have a rucksack with more extensive gear including a poncho and liner, which beats the snot out of those mylar emergency blankets, in my humble opinion.
It only takes a minute for an idyllic outing to turn into a severe survival situation, we cannot plan when that will happen, that is why I chose to be prepared for such things always. But then we all have to have at least one wakeup call in our lives, if we are lucky to survive such things we seldom forget.
In the Pacific NorthWet, with our prodigious and continuous rainfall, hypothermia is a year round killer. It doesn't discriminate and always lies in wait for the weak, unsuspecting, or ignorant. Having the ability and tools to start a fire quickly and efficiently, as well as a means to get out of wind and rain, is mandatory.
It only took me one bad experience where I was borderline hypothermic to always keep that in mind.

Saturday I made it as far as my car without my EDC.

Kinda hard to open the door without keys. At least my roommate was home.

Well, I guarentee that this sort of thing will not happen again. And, reffering to another thread, my DW informed me after she looked at this thread, that she was carrying her EDC (last time your wife surprised you). However, I am going to make a pack specifically for the ATV. It will be modular-should I need to hoof it out of there I can *ehhem* take it with me.

Interesting.

I think that is it far more efficient and effective to travel light and get used to getting by with minimal amounts of gear. Hard experience has shown that historically survival kits are easily lost. Usually this happens at the worse possible time. At sea in the middle of a storm, thrown overboard into severe rapids, after you tumble down the side of a mountain, your likely to find pockets ripped off, kits lost, gear you had counted upon, gone.

As much comfort as you may get from a nice comprehensive kit there is a good chance when you need it it won't be there. So while I don't eschew carrying a simple survival kit I think it best to be fully prepared to make do with the clothes on your back, a knife and a source of fire. And to have backup plans of making do with less than that.

Knock on wood, I've never forgotten my PSK and other gear when going on a hike (I always plan these in advance - no spuir of the moment deals).

Sometimes, around town, I'll just be planning on going to the grocery store and end up doing hours and hours of something else on top of that (so far, always urban/suburban, not unexpected wilderness). I don't carry my PSK around town with me (maybe I should). I do always carry my Spyderco knife and my "special keyring" though. That keyring, funny enough, doesn't have any keys on it. But it has a small capsule with a spare $100 bill in it, another capsule with Advil and baby aspirin (in case of suspected heart attack), a pen, a whistle, and a AAA LED light. I always have my cellphone and wallet too. So I do have a minimum amount of stuff that may be useful. One thing I'm missing on my keyring is some way of making fire, but I'm not terribly worried about that in my urban/suburban messings around.

For urban/surburban I used to have an Altoids tin PSK that I carried in my pocket, but often times found that to be too large and it got left at home many times (OK, lots of times). Thus the "special keychain" that always fits in the pocket of what I'm wearing. If I'm PLANNING on an urban/suburban run-around, I have a small BOB that I carry with me. That carries lots of emergency stuff (PSK, first aid, food, water, firemaking gear, bandana, sunblock, sunglasses, etc.) along with entertainment stuff (a book, deck of cards, small pieces of rope to practice knot tying, an iPod, etc.)

Contrary to your convictions, and certainly not any indictment on your character, the odds are that you will forget again. It may not be on the ATV, but it will happen somehwere, sometime, and there's a chance it will happen when you could really use it.

Of far, far greater importance is the knowledge and reasoning ability you keep with you at all times. More than anything else you could stuff in a sack, down a pocket, or attach to your transport, a properly equipped mind will do far more to ensure your survival.

That said, I've tried to incorporate more kit into my "true" EDC and not separate so that I can pull such a stunt. I've learned that I can attach most of my kit in one form or another to things like key chains, necklaces, or belt pockets so that they are virtually attached to me. I don't go anywhere without equipping the basics first thing in the morning. Yes, it makes my keychain, my wallet, my id badge, my necklace a bit more bulky, but you get used to that sort of thing pretty quickly. Also, by attaching all the seldom used but essential survival gear to my daily use EDC, I am forced to pare it down to just the essentials, and have to really think of ways to make the most out of what I pack. We all suffer from the same diaschisma of believing we need to fill an absolute void before we are secure, but most of the time, much of what we need is not that far out of hand. All we lack in sufficient knowledge or cognitive ability to make the most out of our given environments. Unless you find yourself at the top of a mountain, somewhere deep in Antarctica, or lost at sea, then the provision is usually there to undo most predicaments, otherwise mankind would not have been able venture forth as we did thousands of years ago to occupy most of the land mass of this planet. All it usually takes is time and effort to figure it out. The more you can do of that beforehand, the less artifical means you will need to take with you.

The first thing you should take mentally with you is awareness. Without that, no amount or type of gear is going to save your butt. It seems to me that you had that with you, even if you had a brain fart about the gear, and that makes the biggest difference.

The DR kit is the next best thing to forced attachment. If you can make it a true EDC like your keys or your wallet, you probably won't be as likely to lose it. It will become like putting on your socks in the morning. When was the last time you lost a sock at work?

My EDC kit goes into a backpack that goes with me everywhere. It is seldom off my body when I am out of the house. Somehow I have worn small backpacks long enough that its completely normal to see me with one and with my lifestyle it blends in quite well.

My EDC is mighty but quite small, less than a pound and fits a small pouch.

Checklists. Often, they are for remembering the easy stuff.


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( I sometimes pack a generic backpack for a friend -food, water, shelter-- just so they will have some stuff.)

Deleted because half of it got eaten.

Personally, I don't see the big deal. When I was as young as 10, I'd roam as many as 10 miles from home through the woods with nothing but the clothes on my back. Worst case scenario, if your friends all left, thought you'd gone ahead or something, and the atv conked out, you'd have had a 25 mile hike out, and maybe a night spent hungry and cold in the woods. Uncomfortale, but hardly life threatening -unless I missed something and the weather was crappy - or had the possibility of becoming that way. Something to be avoided, surely, that's why we prepare, but imo, not a big deal, we all forget sometimes, hell, I think I left home without my head once or twice. Of course living in the south, I could leave home naked and other than embarrassing a squirrel or too, I'd be fine 9 months out of the year.

Proving once again that God takes care of drunks and fools. I put myself in the latter category too many times to think about. Or to answer your question....YES. Since you can't change history learn from it and go on.

Take Care and Stay Safe.

Add a bag to your ATV with a knife and survival gear, and improve your EDC to have a decent knife with you.

Whilst in Kenya back in 1981 myself and another guy was on a routine drive from our bush camp back to our base when we lost a wheel on our Land Rover in the middle of the bush. It was only then we realised we had no kit with us and only one water bottle. Although we were miles from anywhere it is amazing how many people appeared from out of the bush over the next hour and within a couple of hours the Kenyan Army had turned up to recover us back to one of their camps. We were very lucky it could have been a very different story.

We had broke the rules and that experience galvanised me to never go anywhere without survival equipment, spear water and personal kit.

It is when you are going about routine activities when things like this happen so it is a good idea to be prepared.

A friend puts a very compact PSK into the hollow handle of his ATV. I don't remember what al it had but I'm pretty sure it include:

1- small knife
2- space blankets
1- candle stub

I find myself agreeing with Benjamin about the distributed EDC.
I also agree with the dedicated kit when walking into the bush or going in a vehicle. Especially on a vehicle because it is so easy to get too far away to get back if it breaks down.
The point about each vehicle having an emergency repair and survival kit with it (or else it does not go) is excellent.

...And yes, I have left home without them a few times.

Oh, you bet your sweet bippy I have!

Didn't like it much and scared the willies out of me.

Glad you came out of it with only a case of the heebie-jeebies.

Well after all is said and done, pretty much I have beaten myself up over it. With that said, I got to contempating everything that was said or implied on this thread and came up with a few conclusions.

1) I have a vast amount of knowledge in survival comparitively. Am I an expert - no. However, knowledge is something that is hard to take away or loose. That is my best EDC.

2) Every ATV will have a minimum amount of necessary "stuff" (ie; granola bars, fire making, knife, water purifing straw. etc...)

3) never doubt the wife - enough said.

4) Quit talking the talk and just walk the walk