After the March Break we will be assembling survival kits. Please gather items you will need over the next two weeks and bring them in to the next meeting. The items in italics will be purchased for you by the leaders because they are best bought in larger quantities and you may not have them at home. For a container it would be best to have some sort of tin which can be used to boil water, but if you can not find a suitable metal container, any other suitable container will do.

Here is a list of a well-equipped Survival Kit. The items in bold letters are the bare essentials which you should not be without—have at least those items, or a substitute for them, with you at the next meeting:

NAVIGATION

Compass—nothing fancy. A small button compass will do for a survival kit, you would be carrying a good one at a camp or hike, but this is one which stays in the kit)

SHELTER

Orange heavy-duty garbage bags, space blanket, duct tape (wrap some around your container or something else) rope and/or twine (or dental floss), small pocket knife (penknife) or small multi-tool (again, you would be carrying a good one on any camps or hikes, this one stays in your kit)

FIRE: one (or more) of the following:  

Mischmetal striker, flint and steel, or strike-anywhere matches in waterproof container

and one or more of the following:

fuel cubes (or cotton balls in petroleum jelly packed in a film canister), steel wool or fatwood, some other tinder (dryer lint, pine tar, spruce gum)

WATER

purification tablets or drops (or iodine)

small tin (if you pack your kit in a metal container, you can use it to carry and boil water, and to cook in too)

zip-lock bags (large)

FOOD

Some suggestions:

granola bars, meal replacement bars, trail mix, electrolyte powder (e..g., Gatorade), power or energy bars

non-refined sugars (e..g., honey), sugar packets, soup mix, bouillon cubes,

SIGNALLING EQUIPMENT

Fox-40 type whistle (the compact “micro” model is good for packing in a kit and is cheaper, but comes in packages of two, so get together with another scout if you buy this) or other plastic, pea-less whistle, signalling mirror (or you can polish the inside of the lid of your container if it is metal, or use an old CD), flashing or strobe light or penlight (the small keychain type is fine).

FIRST AID

Moleskin, first aid tape, steri-strips, band-aids, tape, gauze, pain killer, allergy medication, disinfectant

MISCELLANEOUS

snare wire, fish hooks and line, tin foil, survival and first-aid booklets, bug repellent, bug head nets, hand sanitizer, needle and thread, safety pins, salt packets