FINALLY Getting Bug Out Bag Pulled Together -yeah I'm slow

[Pops1911]

Well gang I have finally gotten around to assembling the various parts for our B.O.B.s together. Started by feeling guilty after reading the Oregon State Rep's email here on the forum. I really meant to do this a couple of years ago. sigh I even read "Cascadia Rising" and did not get my bubblegum in gear to get it done. I have had each winter a large zippered survival duffel bag in the vehicle in case of getting stranded in snowy/icy weather. Already had a good start on warm things. Now that we have moved full time into the Cascadia zone the Oregon Rep's email caused some alarm bell to ring inside and it "tolled for me".
Browsing Amazon and found Mil-Tec Military Army Patrol Molle Assault Pack Tactical Combat Rucksack Backpack Bag 36L Black for a good price and pretty quickly one for both me and the Mrs arrived today. I have a growing list of stuff to include in the BOBs. All of the expected basics plus a few extras I didn't want to be without. I'll not post the list of "stuff" going into the new rucks since everyone's list will vary but be very similar. Let's just say that some fine TN whisky comes in very small light bottles. Wondered if others got bit by the guilt and have finally started on yours. I know large numbers of our forum membership have already done their due diligence and have gotten their BOBs together. Some of us are slow. Now, let's see. What did my DI say about packing a ruck?
Pops

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[Member 34319]

Better late than never, as the saying goes.

I feel that you may find filling that size pack a little too easily. If you plan on packing clothing or some sort of bivy capable to keep you warm, that alone will consume a large portion of the pack. Look into stuff sacks and compression sacks. They helped me save room in my packs. Also helped organize things. Keeping a few empties too helps, that way when you have dirty clothing or something like that you can keep it separate in the pack. Good sturdy zip locks, or the small waterproof bags from the sporting goods stores help too in keeping things dry and organized.

I went with actual hiking packs vs something military or tactical. They are designed for being packed full of stuff and redistributing the weight. My thought on the matter though, nothing wrong with the military style or tactical types. Especially if you have a true Milspec type pack, in that case they too are designed for carrying a bunch of crap.

I agree to the flask of something "warming" is always a good idea too!

 

[Pops1911]

Thanks Reno911. I did remember what my DI said about packing your ruck. LOL "OK ladies, today you are going to learn how to properly pack your ruck the Army way! You bubblegumming chicken bubblegum bubblegummers. Long hump later bubblegum bubblegumers. You pack it you carry it or I will stick bubblegum bubblegumed down your bubblegummed bubble...." Ah,the memories.

 

[Medic!]

Bugging out?

Oh............. Sorry. You didn't get the memo.
Hillary has set up sleeping accommodations for all of us.

So. No need to be self sufficient.

 

[Ura-Ki]

I found out quickly when I first started this journey about 8 years ago, that all the bags I had bought quickly ran out of room! I also got into the Go Light craze when it was really cracking, and that has actually been a blessing! I finally resorted to using my Kelty Red Cloud Backpack as my BOB and have found that if I pack it like I would for a long hike, I will have every thing I need! Like Reno recommends, Stuff sacks really make things easier to deal with! I put socks, undies, and tee shirts in one, food prep in another, stove and water filtration in one, and tools and accessories in one! Ammo sits in the very bottom, where the tent goes, and the sleeping bag and winter parka go on top. The bulk of room is for food and water. Every thing I would need quick access to is on the outside of the pack, much of it secured with 550 cord and or real carabiners. Again, al of this is a personal choice for each person, but this is what I do! I keep my pack with me every where I go, and it stays in my Jeep which itself stays close!

 

[Pops1911]

Great stuff everyone. This is an enjoyable project to do. Looking to move some of the items from winter duffel to BOBs. Maybe this weekend.

 

[AMProducts]

For what it's worth, I'm not sure you will ever actually get done packing a BoB, once you start, you will unpack, repack, weigh, reorganize, reprioritize, change, and go through so many permutations. To my thinking, cutting down on the crap is probably the most important thing. I look back at some of the things I did in the past that involved battery chargers, and spare batteries, it was like trying to stuff everything I would never need for a moon mission into a pack.

I've got things fairly well tuned at the moment, this is what I carry:

EDC:
Pocket Knife (either gerber or camillus)
SOG multi-tool
Nebo Flashlight or Larry light
FNX-9 with spare mag and pistol light
Baofeng Amateur Radio

In the Pack:

2 Bivvy Rolls (socks, underwear, shirt)
Pair of pants
Molle Canteen pouch with canteen cup, stove, titanium spork, nalgene oasis bottle, and canteen cup lid
Ultra-light 40F sleeping bag (thing packs down to the size of a large snowball).
Personal FAK (bandaids, tongue depressors, glucose tabs, ibuprofen, salt tablets)
2 50ft hanks of paracord
Military poncho w/liner
SOL emergency bivvy
LED Head Lamp

Food:
peanut butter cliff bars and individual gatoraid pouches (8 of each)
2 800 kcal solas ration bars
a large summer sausage or pepperoni

Water:

Sawyer miniworks kit, and a platypus 2L folding bottle.

Hygiene:

Microfiber Towel
Bar of Soap
Toothbrush/paste
Shower Shoes

There is actually so little stuff here, that it doesn't even fill up my Molle II assault pack. There's an easy tendency to want to throw more in there. Fight that urge! If/when the time comes, you'll have a rifle, you'll have extra space to add extra ammo and any grab-and-go food that's available. One thing I recommend is finding a small nylon "forage bag" (essentially a stronger better quality reusable grocery bag) you can stuff dirty clothes, or any last-minute "oh yea I need that" things on your way out the door.

I usually pack the individual components like clothes, bathing supplies and the like in waterproof stuff sacks. This has two effects, first it keeps the gear dry, but it also makes my pack float, and once I get out of the water, it's way lighter than it would be when fully water-logged.

The big thing, don't pack a lot of expensive stuff that you won't want to abandon should the need arise to do so. Gold bars do you no good on a sinking ship.

 

[HuckleberryFun]

We have generally similar philosophies. My BOB is also under packed to leave room for the above mentioned. Also, packing, re-packing, fiddling, weighing and re-weighing that bag is a pleasant way to while away time.

 

[Brutus57]

My BOB is in storage a few miles away since in my current place I won't be bugging out. It is an ALICE in excellent condition with a waist belt upgrade. A big earthquake and house compromised... we'll move in to my Harbor Freight tarp garage and drag out the 2 Coleman stoves. My GHB goes with me everywhere and will get my BOB's rain gear since fall is here. Fortunately the biggest local threat to our place is forest fire and the most recent douche of rain this past weekend took care of that. My commute is 6.5 miles with no bridges through rural country side so I figure am pretty good in that regard. If am on the rare occasion on the mainland...a whole different can of worms. I am usually finding new items to add to GHB or different combos of "snacks". Recent addition was a plastic GI canteen I found when going through a storage box..... I know, I know, better hydration systems but I like it....My BOB has GI 1943 canteen complete with nesting pot in a web gear carrier.

Brutus Out

 

[AMProducts]

My BOB is in storage a few miles away since in my current place I won't be bugging out. It is an ALICE in excellent condition with a waist belt upgrade. A big earthquake and house compromised... we'll move in to my Harbor Freight tarp garage and drag out the 2 Coleman stoves. My GHB goes with me everywhere and will get my BOB's rain gear since fall is here. Fortunately the biggest local threat to our place is forest fire and the most recent douche of rain this past weekend took care of that. My commute is 6.5 miles with no bridges through rural country side so I figure am pretty good in that regard. If am on the rare occasion on the mainland...a whole different can of worms. I am usually finding new items to add to GHB or different combos of "snacks". Recent addition was a plastic GI canteen I found when going through a storage box..... I know, I know, better hydration systems but I like it....My BOB has GI 1943 canteen complete with nesting pot in a web gear carrier.

Brutus Out

I love those HFT tarp garage things... I have one stashed up at the ranch, use it every time I do a big hunting trip. Gives you a nice place to hang out out of the rain/snow/sun, keeps the goo out of your tent. Check out the Nalgene Oasis bottles... it's a GI-pattern canteen but it's made of clear plastic, it's easy to clean, and gives you the option of UV sterilization of your water after chemical treatment by leaving the bottle in the sun for a few hours. You can also make sun-tea this way.

One thing that kinda gets me about most of the hydration carriers out there is their cost. IIRC the camelbak stand-alone carrier is $90, I have one, but it's too expensive to leave in a BoB full time, when I use it frequently.

The big thing when it comes to packing a good bob is to try it out. I often take mine on camping and business trips, and I just use what's in the bag. If you put those little scotch-bookmark things, or some target dots on each package (meaning each little bag) you can start to pare down things you never use. I dropped about 10lbs of electronics that seemed like a good idea at the time using this process.

 

[Pops1911]

Great input everyone. The focus of my BOB/GHB is supplying the wife and I minimally what it would take to get home in a day-night walk. Once we get home we would be good to go. Really appreciate all of your creativity with your own bags. That email from the Oregon Rep really got me going.

 

[ChiefStealth]

I've found something new to try. Its a LuminAID solar powered LED emergency light. Folds up for storage. Expands to provide light over larger area. Supposed to provide light for several hours. Three power levels. Even low power is enough for a pitch dark house. Supposed to charge in 7 hrs of bright Sun. We'll see how it does in W. Wash sun.

 

[308]

Were are we supposed to bug-out to?

 

[Pops1911]

I'm just trying to get home safely out of the Big City. Others may have their own compelling reasons.

 

[Ura-Ki]

Bug may be the only viable option! What if you guys had a 9.0 Quake? Homes may not be standing, gotta go someplace. Many homes built or retrofitted after the 70's may fare better. There is going to be a humongous amount of damage all over, and your place may be part of that! Not a pretty picture, that's why we give our selves options!

 

[Pops1911]

A 9.0 would mean for me that ALL bets are off. Not much would be left standing in our part of the Big City. All that would be left at that point would be improvise, adapt and overcome.

 

[Ura-Ki]

Pops1911, you have the right ideas and the right attitude, There is no perfect setup, no perfect plan, you just have to give your self the best you can come up with, and hope you survive to make a go, what ever happens! Good on you for recognizing the dangers and making a working plan that you can learn and grow from, That gives you an edge, and a chance! Now all you need to do is try out your gear and your set up and see how it all works and how it all comes together! My self, I find that part to be quite enjoyable and it is always a learning experience!

 

[Pops1911]

Thanks Ura-Ki. We are back home this weekend and,weather permitting, our plans are to gear up and try it all out. All that is left is to add a change of clothes to our bags. Really appreciate your encouragement. Been a long time since this old 11Bravo has packed a ruck and humped it "over hill and over dale". LOL

 

[JeremyK]

We have generally similar philosophies. My BOB is also under packed to leave room for the above mentioned. Also, packing, re-packing, fiddling, weighing and re-weighing that bag is a pleasant way to while away time.

I'm so glad someone else is admitting to doing this

 

[Pops1911]

UPDATE:
Everything is finally assembled now. First walk about this weekend. They then get put in the vehicles.
Thanks for everyone pitching in on this thread. Be awake out there.