Sleeping bag.

and natural resources available along the way, such as water, food, burnables for fire, natural or manmade shelter. Lots to think about on what can be left behind and what you'll really need. Depending on the time of year would depend on what I would bring for a trek in the woods. Know your area and where you are going, especially if you're on foot. I think too many folks think that wheeled transportation will be available or an option in a SHTF situation.

 

Ditto, even then the summer nights can still get cold. I would leave a tent behind before I'd leave my bag behind, since natural resources for building shelter isn't a problem here.

 

As far as a sleeping bag, I have had my eye on a Snugpak Softie 9 Hawk to replace my hefty French surplus bag. I might couple that along with a Rothco bivouac shelter (I sell the stuff, might as well put it to use!), granted I now see why a good night's sleep is important.

But, I'm a college student. I'm not used to a good night's sleep anyways.

 

Gotta love the Flyer. Had one when I was a kid and remember flying down a hillside in it. Loved that thing. Might come in handy for toting gear too.

 

Dpon't know if you've done any backpacking but a sleeping pad (closed cell) ground pad is a major part of the insulation of a " sleep system". when you lay in a bag the insulation underneath you flattens to next to nothing, the earth is a giant heat sink and will absorb more heat than you can create.if you sleep at all you'll be freezing and sore.Thermarest self inflating pads are thickest warmest, most comfortable, and unfortunately heaviest/bulkiest.

 

TMH, on the thinking that a couple of wheels is better than one wheel, maybe not. I work construction for a living, and as such, use a wheelbarrow quite a bit. I have used the one-wheel variety for years, and then they got all brilliant and came up with this two-wheeled version. I thought, Why not? Well, here's why not. the two-wheeler is harder to turn, easier to tip over on uneven ground, and harder to dump in some cases. Reason being, a single wheel allows you to tilt the barrow in relation to the ground, which makes uneven ground easier to deal with, dumping easier in tight places, and turning easier, due to the ability to 'bank' the barrow. Just some observations from a man with a LOT of time behind a wheelbarrow.[shrug]

 

Live in New Hampshire and watch our local news. Old Mt Washington is up to well over 100 dead over the years and the rest of the chain does real well. Have noticed that when TSHTF and the 4 hour hike from your car turns into a 3 day storm at well below freezing, the ones that survive almost always do so huddled in a sleeping bag with closed cell foam or other device keeping them off the ground and wrapped in a shelter half, poncho, tent or whatever to keep them out of the wind. Those in good cold weather gear, jackets, pants, ponchos, layers and all, but without a sleeping bag, are usually found dead.

Time after time when they are searching for the bodies on the mountian after a storm, they run across well equiped campers on the mountian who are safe, comfortable, warm, and wonder what all the fuss is about.

It may well be possible to survive a cold night huddled under a poncho out in the woods or in your car, but if you don't get any sleep to speak of, how do you function the next day and then the next night? IMHO there is a big difference between waiting 1 night to either be rescued or to get off the mountian, and in getting up the next morning and beginning the next day in the rest of your life, not knowing how long that may be, but knowing that all of the old support mechanisms are gone.

 

As posted above I think it really depends on the weather conditions you will face, this morning it is -6 with predicted windchills down to -20, if I had to move out on foot I think a good sleeping bag is needed. Also consider how many people are bugging out with you, if more than yourself some of these items can be split up. In my case I would be moving with children, my first concern is to make sure I have warmth for the kids, so sleeping bags for them is a must have, but they can carry these in their own BOB, that would be pretty much all I would have them carry with the balance split between me and my wife. Since we camp a lot the bags are always ready to go and would only have to be strapped on. In my area the snow becomes our friend when it comes to shelter also the snow gear, which would slow us down on the move but also keeps us warm, sleeping bags would also give us a chance to get out of wet snow gear and dry them out if needed.

I think I'm pretty good where I live, and really plan on bugging in, my BOB is really to get me back home not away from home.

 

Milsurp stores

Have a small bag to 20 degrees that bags up to about a football size. 29.99. That and a couple of space blankets and a ground tarp should suffice for short periods.

 

I compress a Fleece Sleeping Bag inside my Backpacks. Each one of my Bug Out Bags also has a Tent and a Self-Inflating Mattress. Ric

 

45-50f is about the minimum to be comfortable without a fartsack. Several years back while at Ft McCoy WI [in June] the evening temps were in the low 40s. Smart one [me!] only had along a poncho and two liners. By the end of the first week I was sleeping in MOST of the clothing I had along...including MOPP gear.
I now have a 1950's era US Military mountian bag [down filled w/cover] for summer use.
And a commercial type mid-weight [+10 degree rated] mummy bag.
And for when TSHTF in WI winter, a new issue army Extreme cold bag with cover. [This is in the BO bag in the truck.]
But don't underestimate the value of a sleeping pad! Insulate's you from the cold wet ground...as well as nice and cushy soft! Even the GI issue poly pad is worth it's weight in gold when it's cold/wet.

 

I subscribe to the travel light and freeze at night school, in place of a sleeping bag I carry 1 mylar blanket, 2 GI poncho liners and 1 GI poncho, makes an incredibly warm sleeping bag when snapped together, and can double as shelter (tent, lean-to) when combined with 550 cord and a couple of plastic tent stakes.

Years of carrying tons of gear on my back has taught me what works and doesn't for me, I constantly reevaluate my gear and always with an eye towards multipupose items and lighter overall weight. Every ounce of my gear is mission critical so it must have the most utility possible.

 

A blast for the past?

Not a bad topic.

BTW - the cart the guy was talking about upthread is this


I can understand the 'adventure' part I suppose, but this seems a bit much.

 

Me likes it. Dredging around in the old threads sometimes take us back to our roots.

 

I made a cart using steel conduit and the joints used in awnings for swap meets and the wheels from a wheel chair.
The advantage to the smaller castor wheels is that they make moving in odd situations easy to set down and maneuver, especially if your must use a rope and pull the cart up or let down a particularly steep hill.
Narrow airless tires need no attention and I run this thing up and down my property with heavy loads with little effort.300 lb capacity.
The advantage to this kind of build is that I can reconfigure it many different ways to accommodate my needs, taller shorter longer.
I can use cargo netting inside or more rigid materials for the sides. It can all be disassembled to make a shelter or reconstructed for floatation for crossing large bodies of water or apply skis and take it across snow/ice. it also has brakes.
I haven't tried it yet but I believe that I could hang a hammock in it as well.

 

A good quality down filled sleeping bag together with a breathable Goretex bivi bag should keep the trekker warm and dry without too much weight or bulk. Some might, in mild weather get away with a poncho, but quality sleep is important to survival...it also helps one's rations stretch further by not using as many calories to keep oneself warm. Remember. hypothermia is a killer.

When I was a mortar platoon commander I used a German Army sleeping bag...with sleeves and hood. it had a zipper across the torso which meant that one could stay warm whislt moving about. It was bulky and heavier than a down filled bag, but I had a Landrover at my disposal, so carrying it wasn't such an issue.



sleeping bag segments starts at 1minute 23 seconds.



A new bag's water resistant shell will crackle a bit, so will be a problem for 'sneaky pete' ops: Over time, the waterproofing membrane will become softer and more pliable and less noisy...the water resistance capability may diminish somewhat though. The sleeping bag folds up in it's own carry bag which is integral to the sleeping bag. I found that the sleeves could be drawn back into the man part of the bag to minimise heat loss. My bag kept me warm many a night whilst occupying a weapon pit, or whilst on CP radio picket.