On Wed, 27 Aug 2003 10:50:37 +1200, "Fred"
wrote:
Thanks very much Barry for a most informative reply. It concerns me that
some trampers / hikers think you are a bit paranoid or overanxious
Fred,

I have just found my "standard-minimum" hiking kit, and it's listed
below. You may find it useful, but I'll bet you get plenty of s******s
from those who have never been in a tricky situation.

Many, many, years ago, 3 of us did get a bit in the pooh. While we
were young and fit, as well as having plenty of survival training, we
had a tense day and night until we found our way out. The kit below
would have been a big help!

My list:

Matches, waterproof in a 35mm film cannister
candle stub
Bic butane lighter
Zippo lighter
several Band-Aids and a crepe bandage
2-3 safety pins
a dozen or so Disprin
magnifying glass
small bottle alcohol, about 75 mL.
Water purifying tablets
fish hooks and line
nylon parachute cord
Space blanket
A good solid pocket knife, or survival knife
2 x compass (one good, one standby cheapie)
Maps as required
A very loud whistle
2 x CDs
5 x single edged razor blades
pencil and paper
sunglasses
small roll of duct tape
LED flashlight and spare batteries
Plastic bags large and small
A 35 mm cannister holding cotton wool balls soaked in vaseline (a
great firestarter)
Waxed cardboard box to hold some of the above (secondary duty as
firestarter)


While it reads like a lot, it's all very compact and light.

While it's out of print, for sure, I often see used copies of an
excellent little book: "How to Survive in NZ" by Flt Lt B Hildreth.
It's worth a study, and I would generally carry it, depending on how
weight fussy I am. He used to teach survival techniques to RNZAF
airman cadets, and last I heard he was running a survival school in
the UK