Whats in your First Aid/Emergency kit?

Nick

Nick

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Aug 9, 2007
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My first aid kit got totally soaked when I did the Black Hole last weekend, so I'm going through and replacing things and evaluating what I really need/want in there. Curious what others carry in their first aid/emergency kit.

I usually start with an Adventure Medical .5 kit and then add the following:
  • DIY mini duct tape roll
  • Princeton Tech Pulsar II LED light - brighter than most head lamps and weighs .25 oz. This has come to the rescue on several trips where I or others didn't have a functioning head lamp. It also has a switch on the other side so you don't have to squeeze it to use it. Very handy.
  • chewable pepto tablets
  • anti-diarrhea pills
  • Replace packets of antibiotic ointment with an actual tube of neosporin. I make sure to use the ointment, not the cream so it's good for dogs too
  • Micropur water purification tablets
  • 1 BIC lighter
  • 1 memory card for my camera - the trauma of carrying a camera and no card could be overwhelming!
  • 1 survival blanket (mylar sheet type thing)
  • Thermarest repair kit
  • Some extra knuckle/finger tip bandages
  • Occasionally I have fire steel in there but not always
  • Sensi-wrap, good for humans, GREAT for dog paw problems
  • Pain pills for the pups (rimadyl)
  • Misc other drugs - heavy pain killers, some Tylenol PM, etc.
  • Chewable antacids
  • 50 feet of paracord
Sound like I'm missing anything? Agree or disagree with any items? What do you guys carry?
 
And a follow up question - how do you guys manage your pharmaceuticals in your kits? I used to toss a bunch of pills in one bottle but that gets messy. Lately I've been putting them into the small snack size plastic bags and then stuffing those all those bags into one bag. Kind of a lot of plastic. It'd be nice to find tiny little baggies, like 2" x 2" with a really good seal.
 
You're probably going to think I'm crazy for everything I carry in my emergency bag:

Ankle tape (after my wife pretty much broke her ankle on a trail)
Spare AA, AAA, and CR123 batteries (for the GPS/InReach, Headlamp, and Steripen)
Lighter
Storm matches
Fire starter (because I can't make a fire with a blow torch)
Earplugs (after I bad experience at a public campground in Alaska; these have actually been really useful)
Moleskin
Gauze sponge
Alcohol swabs
Needle
Bandaids
Celox blood clot
Advil, Aspirin, Melatonin, cough drops, and Benadryl (small amounts of each, just mixed together in a baggy)
Duct tape
Signal mirror
Whistle
Chlorine Dioxide tablets
Fish hook
Small LED light
Toilet paper (small amount)
Pad repair kit

The bag only weighs about a pound. I've managed to pare it down quite a bit from where it used to be. I used to carry a lot more fire starter than was necessary, and I'd carry enough Advil for an Army. I also used to carry a small pocket knife, but I managed to force myself to take it out, relying on the Leatherman I carry with me.
 
I just dug my kit out to see what was in there. here goes, (2) spare contacts and tiny bottle of eye drops, mini tube of sun screen, little bag of Advil, (8) Katadyn water tablets, (4) 3" gauze bandages, 1/2 roll of sports tape, small amount of TP, (1) package hand warmers, tube of SPF 25 lip balm, (4) individual packets of wet wipes, (3) packets Imodium AD, mini BIC lighter, tweezers, (1) mocha flavored Cliff shot, (3) AAA batteries, (2) AA batteries, (2) empty packages of Neosporin? Stuffed into an old REI 4"X5"X1" first aid kit. There are also other items that are multi use or stored elsewhere. Duct tape on both hiking poles, whistle on my sternum strap, emergency mirror on my compass, also good for putting in contacts, pocket knife on my packs shoulder strap, and I never head for the boonies without 2 bandanas, (the uses are nearly endless)
This will be a fun thread, and a good time to restock and reevaluate my kit!
 
an Adventure Medical Kit where I added a celox blood clot kit, neosporin spray, extra bandages, blister kit
then emergency blanket
fire steel and lighter
headlamp
TP and trowel
Duct Tape
Micropur tablets
Advil ( I can only use these)
Compass
extra batteries
 
My first aid kit is my hypochondriac hiking partner. He's slower than me so doubles as my bear spray too. ;)

All I carry is a couple band aids, Imodium, Advil, Pepcid, sunscreen, blistex, and duct tape.

Have only ever used the Advil and sunscreen.
 
I'm WFA certified, so maybe a little more stuff, but not much:
Duct tape wrapped on small pencil
6 2x2s
6 4x4s
Antibiotic ointment
Pair of gloves
Patient eval sheets
SAM Splint
Roll of self-adherent wrap
Variety of band aids
Couple of alcohol wipes
Advil, Tylenol, excedrin, pepto, Benadryl , Imodium (all generic tablets in single zip lock)
Tiny lighter
Micro windup headlamp
 
There is a lot of double duty stuff, like my main headlamp has a whistle built in, but I don't include these as part of my "kit"
 
In zipper bags:

Ibuprofen 800
Imodium
anti-muscle-pain-creme
magnesium pills
multi vitamins

needle & thread
DIY duct tape
Bandaids
elastic bandages
Rescue blankets

Headlights
Batteries
GPS + SPOT
Smartphone
Compass
Emergency Whistle

little BIC
fire steel
Micropur

Gesendet von meinem HTC One X mit Tapatalk 2
 
I have a full suturing kit, my friend that's a surgeon leaves me one every year after our big backpacking trip. During my late fall hunts and spring hikes, I just pack that. There's to much stuff in there to mention. The nice thing, it only weights 18 ounces. If I had to use it, I'm not sure my buddies would let me stitch them up...:uhhuh: With the small container of Lidocaine, they should be just fine. I'm pretty good at patching up holes in all my outdoor gear, how hard can it be to patch up a cut/gash?:frantic: How often do you guys update your medication and other items in your First Aid Kit? When I don't take the suturing kit I pack my little first aid kit. I think it's been 4 year since I've opened it up. Thanks to this post, I think it's time to do a little spring cleaning.

Things not in my First Aid Kit:

Fast burning sticks for wet weather/soaked wood
Zippo Lighter
Strike anywhere matches in waterproof container
Knife
Small bottle with Excedrin/Ibuprofen
Rope
Tee Pee

That's my staple for day hikes.
 
first aid kit

In addition to the standard kit (bandaids, neosporin, steri-strips, assortment of pills, kid friendly liquid benadryl, etc), i usuallly include the following:

Duct Tape (multi-use)
Tegaderm Self Adhesive pads
Celox Gauze - hemostatic agent
Superglue w/ brush (multi-use)
Irrigator
ziplock bag (multi-use)
Tincture of Benzoin

Tweezers - oh man, this tool right here was a life-saver after 2-yo child went head first full body layout into a prickly pear cactus patch, one long day's walk from the trailhead.

Whiskey (multi-use) :twothumbs:

most important - knowledge and improvision.
 
moose droppings said:
Tweezers - oh man, this tool right here was a life-saver after 2-yo child went head first full body layout into a prickly pear cactus patch, one long day's walk from the trailhead.
Click to expand...

I need to get me some tweezers too! I could have used them a few weeks ago when I fell ass first into a prickly pear cactus in Southern Ut. :oops: Luckily I didn't have to have Antlerking or the others pull them out. I think I still have a few of them in my rear...
 
HomerJ said:
I need to get me some tweezers too! I could have used them a few weeks ago when I fell ass first into a prickly pear cactus in Southern Ut. :oops: Luckily I didn't have to have Antlerking or the others pull them out. I think I still have a few of them in my rear...
Click to expand...

Duct Tape is helpful to get rid of the ones that broke off or you can't catch with tweezers. That's how I removed a lot a few years back from my heel.
Just apply a piece of duct tape for an hour or so and than peel it off. Usually all the ones in your skin come off with it
 
Miss Buffalo said:
Duct Tape is helpful to get rid of the ones that broke off or you can't catch with tweezers. That's how I removed a lot a few years back from my heel.
Just apply a piece of duct tape for an hour or so and than peel it off. Usually all the ones in your skin come off with it
Click to expand...
Thanks! I actually tried this after I got home (thought about it on the drive home). Except I didn't leave it on for an hour, that'd probably work better!
 
Man, just pulled out my kit and all the meds expired 2+ years ago... Time to replace all those...
 
SAM Splint! + duct tape. Blood clotting stuff, syringe, mole skin, hydrocortisone, neosporine, ibuprofen .
 
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