Hello everyone, this is my first post on the forum.
I'm working on assembling a whitewater kayaking survival kit. The two major limiting factors on the kit are money (I'm a broke college student), and storage space in my kayak. My kayak is rather small, so my goal is to fit everything into a 5-liter drybag.
I already carry 50 ft. throw rope, a serrated knife, and a whistle on my lifejacket. I also have a 1-liter steel water bottle in my boat.
What I plan on having in the kit so far:
Short (5 1/4")ka-bar knife
Signal mirror
Bic lighter
Spark-lite
Wetfire tinder
Hat
Water purification tablets
30ft. Paracord
Small flashlight
Compass
Folding saw or pocket chainsaw
Small first aid kit
Duct tape
The obvious items that are not in this kit so far are shelter and insulation. I kayak March - November in Idaho, so there's the potential for 20-degree nights. Most options I've seen for shelter and insulation are either very bulky, or very expensive. Does anyone have recommendations?
I also don't have any dedicated food procurement tools. We'll be on known rivers, with expected return times - so I'm mostly worried about a 1-2 night wait for SAR to come get us!
Are there any items I need to add to this kit, or any items I should leave out?