Bushcraft kit load out!
This is my basic equipment when I go walkabout, depending on the destination and purpose I will omit or add a few things. There’s no food or clothing here, we’ll talk about that in another article.
My bedroom:
- Exped pillow, no need to suffer, my luxury item.
- Warbonnet Mamajamba tarp, excellent, light and compact tarp.
- Rab Event bivy sack
- Exped Synmat UL mat
- Carinthia Tropen bag, not for cold weather though.
- Cheap sitting pad
For a hunting trip I’ll need to bring meat bags, rifle cleaning equipment and bullets. For a jungle trip, I’ll sleep in a Warbonnet Blackbird xlc hammock and leave the bivy sack at home.
The bathroom:
- deodorant
- toothpaste
- toothbrush
- nailclipper
- towel
- mosquito repellent, preferably the concentrated stuff
- soap in a box
In warmer climats, Tiger Balm is always included in my kit.
- Cordage
- Lighter & firelighting stuff. To start a fire in any weather condition, my choice of tinder is cotton balls impregnated with vaseline in a waterproof Aloksak, easy & effective! Steal the cotton balls from your girlfriend, girls use them to wipe make up off their face.
- Toiletpaper in a waterproof Sea to Summit bag. Important item, make sure you buy a good waterproof sack…
- Repairs: Tear-aid is a good product for quick repairs in the field. A roll of Gaffa tape. A few Tie wraps
Navigation equipment:
- Garmin Oregon 450
- Seiko analog watch
- Ortlieb waterproof map case, I tried a few others but this one is the best.
- Recta global compass now available from Suunto.
- Pencil & waterproof notebook
- Topographic maps
Emergency stuff:
- Israeli bandage
- Celox hemostatic granules to stop severe bleeding wounds.
- Band-aids for small cuts, Compeed for blisters.
- Waterproof first aid kit (painkillers, thermometer, antihistamines, tape, alcohol wipes, tick remover, eye wash, dressings, gauzes, tweezer, antiseptic solution, broadrange anti-biotics, …..)
- First aid & emergency satelitte beacon, a SPOT device. However they do not cover all continents! Check beforehand.
When travelling to third-world countries I include a sterile set of scalpels, syringes, hypodermic needles, etc. These can be hard to find in isolated places.
The kitchen:
- Pepper & salt mix
- Trangia alcohol stove
- Swedish army plastic cup, highly recommended! They are 5 euro a piece and last very long. Mine is 4 years old.
- Nalgene bottle & 750 ml cup. I often carry 2.
- Primus fuel can
- MSR MiniWorks EX water filter, heavy but durable.
- Trangia stove holder
- Titanium fork
The living room & electronic devices:
- Iphone in Lifeproof cover & lightning cable. A Lifeproof case is essential, it saved my iphone many times. IMHO the best waterproof case for Iphone.
- Xtorm power bank, waterproof( IP66). I use it to charge my iPhone & Kindle. Also it powers my GPS, very usefull as my Garmin drains batteries quickly. It has a LED light built in.
- Kindle with custom made leather cover, I never carry books around anymore. It has a built-in backlit led light for the screen, you can read in the sunlight without sunglasses & the battery lasts forever.
- Waterproof bag
- Leather tobacco pouch & wallet, made it myself.
- My old faithfull Petzl Tactikka headlamp
- Havana Club Rum, a must!
The workshop:
- Bahco Laplander saw
- Studio Blade custom made neck knife
- Cork screw, every trip should have a wine moment
- Leatherman Charge TTI
- Gransfors Bruks Small Forest axe
- Boker Vox Rold, fantastic knife! The standard sheath is very bad, this one was custom built by Studio Blade.
- Fire steel attached to my knife sheath
For a trip to a rainforest I prefer a machete instead of an axe.
Clothing:
- A waterproof Exped bag that’s also used as a pump for the sleeping pad.
- An old Gore-tex German army raincoat
The contents of my clothing bag differ from climate to climate, more on that later. Make sure you always have a complete set of fresh clothes in it.
Optics:
- Canon G15 camera in a Pelican hardcase with extra batteries en SD-cards. A lot of pictures on this website are taken with this camera. Very good and compact.
- Nikon Monarch 7 8X42 binoculars.
- Gorilla stand
Observation is what it’s all about!
The backpack:
- Fjäll Raven Kajka 85 liter backpack, it’s travelled to all continents with me. A bit heavy though at 3,5 kg, I am looking for a lighter option. This is a very comfortable backpack to carry heavy loads on longer trips.
- A waterproof cover that doubles as a duffelbag, very usefull. You now how they treat your luggage in airports…
All together
Ready to go!
My GPS is mounted on the shoulder straps.
Airport proof!
Keep exploring!
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