Helikon-Tek Mini Med Kit Pouch
Basic Preparedness: A Down and Dirty Primer
This basic preparedness primer was originally published in September, 2020. It was intended to help people become more prepared for the uncertainty of an upcoming election. With the recent flooding in North Carolina and Tennessee I thought it would be a good time to re-post it, along with a substantial update. I added a couple thousand words to this very long article, including a brand new section on bug-out bags. I sincerely hope this article helps you become better prepared to deal with emergencies.
Survival Cooking: Ultralight Isobutane Stoves
Next up in the Survival Cooking series is… well, I don’t really have a brand or model for you. Today we’re taking a look at an example of many no-name, variously branded, Chinese-manufactured, isobutane stoves. These ultralight isobutane stoves might not have a durable brand but they work insanely well.
Survival Cooking: Ohuhu Camp Stove
The next stove up in the Survival Cooking series is the Ohuhu camp stove (also available under other brand names). This is a unique stove in that it is designed to burn wood. With very non-specific fuel this is a very, very flexible option. It does, however, have it downsides. Let’s get into it.
Survival Cooking: JetBoil Flash Stove
The second stove in the Survival Cooking series is the Jetboil Flash. The Jetboil has been around for twenty years (since 2001) and is the gold standard in personal camp stoves. It is used by backpackers, climbers, preppers, special operations personnel, and just about everyone else who spends significant time away from the comforts of home.
Survival Cooking: Charcoal Grills
Today I’m going to talk about using your charcoal grill for survival cooking. It’s not a conventional “prepper” item, and most of the prepper literature prefers to talk about dedicated wilderness/survival stoves. Those definitely have their advantages, but the lowly grill is often overlooked. In my opinion it is one of the best “entry level” survival cooking items you can own.
Prepping Others: The Handout Fire Kit
A couple weeks ago I wrote about small, handout first-aid kits. I made them for our hiking friends who have not made their own preparedness efforts. Both of these individuals are great people, they just don’t know where to start. More recently, I decided to build them each a handout fire kit. The handout fire kit is a small, relatively lightweight, fairly inexpensive kit full of really good tools. Let’s take a look at mine.
Why You Should Become an EMT
I was MIA for most of last week. I was doing clinicals – 12-hour shifts in an ambulance – for my EMT class, which didn’t leave me much bandwidth for anything else. While I was riding around in an ambulance I had a lot of time to reflect on a recent reader question: Would you consider penning [an] article regarding your EMT course? That’s something I’d be interested in pursuing…
Comprehensive: How to Build a Fire
There are few skills that are as universal as building a fire. From remote Afghani villagers who have never seen a cell phone to the most Gucci’d-out backpackers, the fundamentals of building a fire don’t change much. It comes as a surprise to me when I encounter individuals who can’t build a fire…even though I encounter them with some regularity. This post is going to take a very deep dive (13,000 words and 70 photos, or about 6-8 times longer than the average article here) into how to build a fire.
Know a Knot! The Water/Tape Knot
Welcome back to Know-a-Knot! It has been a while since we’ve looked at a new knot but I’ve received emails from a couple of you asking for the series to continue. Today we’re going to talk about an interesting joining knot: the water or tape knot.