It is certainly prudent to be sure that there is O2 available; I am sure there are several backup canisters available, due to the popularity of scuba diving in and around the park.<br><br>For what it is worth, I seldom read of problems at Isle Royale on the NPS Morning Report, a daily roundup of rescues, emergencies, and unusual events around the Service. Lots more action at Lake Mead and Yosemite.<br><br>I'll bet you will enjoy Windigo. It's low key and friendly - a lot like many parks were thirty to fifty years ago.

Just a note: SCUBA divers do not use tanks filled with compressed O2, but compressed air which has the same concentration of O2 that normal breathing contains. Medical O2 tanks have compressed 100% O2 that is for medical use only. Pete

>>Wow! To have been present for all of those major events, you must be the unluckiest person on Earth. Don't stand near me in a lighthing storm! <<<br><br>Nah.. in most ways, I've been extremely fortunate.<br><br>Almost none of the events I named made me feel that I was in personal jeopardy- in most cases, it was something going on "over there", not something I was in the middle of. The few times in my life where I did feel that I was in serious danger were not incidents that made the news.<br><br>The point was that I've seen the infrastructure break down, maybe more than most folks. Sometimes it's widespread, more often it's very local, but it's happening constantly on some scale, somewhere. My experience hasn't led me to trust the infrastructure much, and that certainly applies to a long commute. Urban threats are different, but they are none the less real. Most people, though, are more likely to be prepared in the wilderness than they are for any serious problem during their normal working day.<br>

The compass is good for navigating in a city, when you´re not familiar with the city. When use it regularly, you might discover that it can make sense.<br>Having a flint on me isn´t really neccessary, but it´s so small that it doesn´t hurt. The lighter or matches come in handy, when you have to light candles and no smoker is around.<br>A small first aid kit is enough for many occasions. And it´s much better to carry a small kit than having a big one at home (unless you´re at home of course). <br>Any kit you´re going to carry (or drive around in your car) has to be a compomise.

Right. The O2 is used in first care for scuba injuries. At Channel Islands every boat has at least two cylinders of O2, and each island also had a stash of at least two cylinders. The commercial dive boats using the island also carry O2 routinely. I can recall at least a couple of occasions, converging on an accident scene and computing the amount of O2 remaining with the victim, who would arrive with O2 next, etc.<br><br>I would be very surprised if Isle Royale did not have medical O2 easily at hand. The diving there is often much colder and occasionally quite a bit deeper than most common scuba destinations.

Got ya.

OK, I wont argue w/ the book of burt (makes sense, but wasn't he more of a "survivalist" than a survivor . . . ) but I have to think of a compass to orient you after getting out of subway as more of a convenience than survival equipment.

I'm not an expert by any means, these are just some of my thoughts.<br><br>Water is obviously the most important thing not only for survival, but just for day to day functioning, so since I'm never very far away from my car (as some who have posted are, so their situations may be different) I keep half a case of bottled water in the trunk to supplement the bottle I carry in my backpack. <br>Living just outside of Washington DC, the terrorist attacks changed the way I thought about survival. I used to envision scenarios that could happen while I was backpacking or canoeing, but now I think about what could happen going to and from work and school. A couple people have mentioned smoke and gasses as potential dangers. I could smell the Pentagon burning from my house, and ever since then an asbestos mask (home depot, $5) has been in my backpack and in my car. <br>On a slightly less dark note, I'm supprised that I haven't seen anyone mention gas siphons. the only times I have ever run out of gas were when either there were no gas stations around, or the one that was there was closed for the day. Maybe that's just my luck, but it seems Murphy's laws are always at work, so the next day I bought a length of plastic tubing and a gas can that stay in the trunk. <br> Once again, I don't claim to be an expert, these are just some of my thoughts.

I separate my commuter kit and auto kit into two separate kits. My atomobile kit does include a siphon with a hand pump for exactlt that purpose plus about another 300 pounds of other vehicle recovery gear.<br><br>Good Points.