As I get deeper into the personal safety and survival industry with Galactic Bioware, I have become fascinated with the “Go” bag and what kinds of gear one should pack to prepare for the widest array of situations. We’ve all seen these in films and novels, but I hadn’t previously turned my mind to making one and what I’d include if I were to.
I wanted to share some of the gear that I have studied and catalogued that I think would be a great generalist “Go” bag. I’ve also done somewhat of a literature review of all the major “Go” bag recipes online.
All of the below should fit inside a 52 litre bag and can be carried whilst running for a prolonged duration.
The below has not considered 1) clothing/warmth, 2) local radio broadcasting issues in your country, 3) whether these items are legal in your country, and 4) any medical/special needs that you might have. It goes without saying that this is not to be taken too seriously and is not advice of any kind!
The Bag
- Condor Colossus Duffle Bag (52 Litres)
Medical Equipment
- MyMedic “The Medic” Medical Kit (to be mounted on the outside of the Colossus)
- Iosat Potassium Iodide Tablets (at least 48 tablets)
- Learn & Live First Aid Kit
- 10 x 23 in 1 Water Test Kit
- Water purification tablets (at least 120 tablets)
- Sea To Summit reusable quick dry towel
- Toothbrush and 2 x large tooth paste tubes
- Hand sanitiser
Tools
- Gerber Diesel Multi-Plier – Stainless
- Gerber Downrange Tomahawk
- Smith & Wesson Bullseye Extreme Ops Serrated Tanto Knife
- G-Shock Digital Military Black Series, Shock Resistant GD400MB-1D
- Orienteering-level analogue compass (not powered)
- Nitecore MT20A 2XAA 360 lumen LED torch
- Tecsun – Best Emergency Radio (AM/FM/SW Solar Powered with Hand Crank)
- EasyLog Dual Channel K, J & T-type Thermocouple Data Logger with Graphic Screen
- Thermocouple Hand Held Immersion Type K 3 X 150 MM
- Nitecore NWS10 emergency whistle
- Wiley X Valor | Polarised Grey Lens W/ Matte Black Frame
- Small tarpaulin (~1 square meter to collect water)
- 3 metres of Paracord (7mm to 10mm)
Hazmat & CBRN
- MIRA Safety CM-7M Military Gas Mask
- MIRA Safety CM-6M Tactical Gas Mask
- Filters:
- CBRN Gas Mask Filter NBC-77 SOF 40mm Thread x 10
- ParticleMax P3 Virus Filter x 10
- 2 x MIRA Safety HAZ-SUIT Protective CBRN HAZMAT
- RADEX RD1212-BT Advanced Radiation Detector
- Solar Eclipse / Welding Goggles (Shade 14)
Security
- Pro-Lok 11pc Pick Set & Case
- 125KHz RFID Copier/Writer/Readers/Duplicator (10 spare tags)
- Cash (ideally USD) and any gold/precious metals that could be tradeable
Identification:
- Passports
- Birth Certificate
- Any land titles / asset titles
You may not want to furnish these, depending on the situation, and they can always be dropped if its more dangerous to have them than not.
Consumables
- Batteries (assorted collection), see my note below on battery type consistency.
- Matches (double waterproofed)
- Long-life high-energy snacks (3 days worth of energy for you)
- Few cans of tuna / long-life protein
- 2L of water across 1 x one litre vessels (fill up on departure)
- Duct tape
- Roll of toilet paper
General Comments
- Try to keep devices that need batteries in the same battery size e.g. all AA or all AAA.
- I’d carry enough batteries to power 1 month of expected use of each of the powered devices.
- Avoid anything with rechargeable batteries unless you are going to commit to a portable solar/generator system, then have everything run off that. This is riskier in my view in an adverse situation than a cache of batteries.
- You’ll likely bury/drop/hide equipment you don’t need regularly to come back to later, so better to pack more and shed it than not have what you need.
NOVEMBER 2020 UPDATE:
Optics gear added (see this post) including:
- Leupold Mark 4 12-40x60mm Tactical Spotting Scope
- Humvee 10×50 Field Binocular
- FLIR Breach PTQ136 Thermal Imaging Monocular (60Hz)
- Streamlight ProTac HL-X 1000 Lumens Flashlight Black