Day Walk Gear - Part 1

Being a scout in my younger years I have tried to follow the motto "Be Prepared". So with that I try to make sure the gear is safe, reliable, light and is low in cost or free!

So let’s start with the safe stuff things first.

So the most important gear I carry with me is a first aid kit. It will hopefully won't be used much. It is a kit put together from a popular outdoors store. In it is:
1 x triangular bandage non-woven
1 x roll conforming elastic gauze bandage 5cm wide
1 x roll rigid tape 2.5cm x 5cm
10 x band-aid strips/plasters
2 x fabric dressing 10cm x 6cm
2 x cleansing wipes
1 x splinter probe
1 x pair of scissors
1 x pair latex gloves
1 x emergency information booklet

I have also added Stingose Gel and Panadol. It only weights just under 200g's. Whenever anything in it is used, it will be replaced. I just need to add a first aid course so I know how to use it properly.

The next bit of gear I carry I also plan on not using except for emergencies. It is a plastic coated aluminium emergency blanket. It is designed to keep you warm. It is also could be used to attract the attention of search and rescue. I have a small whistle also to get attention.

I have a little Uniden UHF radio. It has around 3 km range. I keep the batteries separate so they don't go flat.

For sun protection the hat I carry has a foldable brim. So it is nice and compact. I plan getting a similar hat, but one that covers my neck and ears. The sun cream I use is a sports suncream, so when I’m sweaty it doesn't get in my eyes. I have a aloe vera 30+ lip balm. I make sure that I wear a shirt with a collar that can protect my neck from the sun.

For hygiene I have a small alcohol based hand sanitiser.
For an emergency fire I have a Light My Fire Scout. I could use the hand sanitiser and cotton to start the fire.

 

I have my old Victorinox Swiss army knife. This can be useful for a number of things like cutting an apple to fighting off vicious bunyips.

I use Bushman Plus insect repellent. It helps to keep away the mozzies, ticks, leeches and those awful marchfiles. In areas that are home to leaches I make sure that there is plenty on my boots and gaiters.
 

 

So I don't get hopelessly lost I have a compass. It is quite fancy; it has a alarm, clock, mirror, small touch and temperature gauge. Depending on the walk I am doing, I carry a head touch. Which also can flash, to attract search and rescue.

For remote walks I will hire or pick up for free from the local police station a distress radio beacon (also known as PLB or EPIRB). If activated a signal can be picked from satellites and sent to local emergency services. Some have a GPS built into them. Which makes it easy to track down the twit that got lost.


I hope you found this useful. I will blog soon about the rest of my day walking gear.