BOB's - Vehicle

Well, it’s the new year and that means it’s time to go through the bug-out-bags.  Ideally I try to go through them twice a year, once in the winter & once in summer so there are weather-appropriate items in there, but I never got around to switching to the summer stuff so my winter clothes were still in there. 

Not only had it been over a year since I went through it, but the pack that I normally keep in my vehicle had been in the garage.  A lot of good it was doing in there.  It probably got tossed out of the trunk before picking up a load of goat food or something like that.  So took everything out to see what I needed.  It was lacking several items; some which I never got around to putting in there and some that I’ve pilfered throughout the years but neglected to replace. 

Here is what I have in my backpack now:

Hiking shoes & 2 pair socks
Sweater, Cuddle Duds (long johns), Undies, T-Shirt
Hat & gloves
Leather work gloves
Fixed blade knife, box cutter w/extra blades, multi-purpose tool, small sharpening stone
Emergency “space” blanket
Rain Poncho x 2
Roll of TP, Wet wipes
Small flashlight & batteries
Compass
Small camp cooking kit (two pots, cup, utencils, can of sterno)
Candy bars (definately need replaced!)
Fire making kit (Jute, fire-starter logs, waterproof matches, lighter, magnesium fire starter)
Dozen tea lights (which melted, so I’ll replace them)
Duct tape
Small 1^st Aid Kit (band aids, alcohol prep pads, iodine, moleskin, tweezers, gauze, tape)
Hygiene (feminine pads, shampoo, toothbrush/paste, floss, deodorant, hair ties, comb)
Misc. Hygiene (hand sanitizer, insect repellent, sunblock, q-tips, disposable razor)
Water purification tablets
Diapers & Wipes

And what items I still need to put in there:

Water pouches, soap, washcloth, small tea candles (or other type of container candle),
deck of cards, garbage bags, hard candy or some other non-melting goodie, new hi-calorie food bars, instant soup packets, whistle, small mirror, local maps, personal phone / address book, some paper & coin money.

Now this list may seem somewhat long & daunting when written down, but it actually all fits nicely in a medium sized backpack.  This pack stays in your vehicle and you should have one for each vehicle you use.  For those of you who think I’m nuts for having one of these, let me tell you that I’ve used several items out of it through the years during road trips: twine, duct tape, water bottles, bandages, aspirin, flashlight, extra batteries, rain poncho, knife, work gloves, wet wipes & TP (when you gott’a go, you gott’a go!), coins, garbage bags. 

More than likely you’re not going to have to heft this thing on your back & really use it to “Bug Out” in the sense that a nuclear warhead just went off & your car went dead but I feel a lot better knowing that I could sling it over my shoulder & have some emergency items should a need arise. 

If you have children, they should have packs of their own (or keep items for small children in your pack).  Kid packs should have some snacks, water and/or juice boxes a change of clothes and some fun things like a few pocket games, crayons & paper.  These kid packs can be used during normal outings, like at the park or on a picnic.  This way the items in their backpacks will be rotated / updated; snacks won’t go bad, water will be replaced and clothes will be weather appropriate.

And remember to put your pack back in the vehicle after getting goat chow.