My tale of survival

[Pred@tor]

Did ya put the sign back up?

Lol it was bent and broken I tried to. Lets just hope no one makes a dumb move like I did. I am not one to be inconsiderate of others.

[Pred@tor]

Nice kit Sloguy everyone should have a kit if they use a vehicle for commuting,offroad use or any trip 5miles from home. And before anyone says why would you need a kit. I've used mine when I was Stuck for many hours(food,blanket) due to freeway closures, I used the first aid kit and blanket on several accidents,used the shovel to put out a small fire on the freeway, used the tow rope to remove a fallon tree on the road and a few other situations. As far as Pre@tor goes hey we weren't born old and wise, we learned alot from other people,experiance and thier mistakes and we grew wiser. I did stuff that makes me wonder why I lived past 21 and I'm sure others have. His adventure should be a lesson to others who take it for granted that it won't happen to them.

LOL when I read this "If I had a girl I probably wouldn't do stupid **** like this but I shouldn't in the first place"
I thought this too but then i remember trying to explain why i buried a car in mud out in the boonies to a irate dad because his daughter was with me. Then there was the time of fighting two guys because they made a comment to the GF as we walked by in town (the cops kinda understood) so anyway don't count on GF's keeping you out of trouble. And I still do stupid s*** once in a while even tho I'm a gray beard just ask my wife.

Well regardless of age its just a number thats the way I look at it. Either way I am good I dont necessarily need a gal. I am actually glad no one was with me because I would have had to put their safety before my own. I would have had to worry about the other person ya know. Glad I didnt have that to deal with. BTW I had medkits and stuff too its just I didnt need them at that time. (yes they were in the truck)

Should I post this over at ARFCOM? I am sure I will get the same questions and lectures but I have a pretty good idea of what to do and what not to do by now. I am still walking like a cripple but I am doing fine.

[Two Shots]

You did Survive thats the most important fact. Glad you have some items in the truck for the just in case, I wish you a speedy recovery and take care.

[Pred@tor]

Well I got pulled over today for having no registration tag in date. They fell off out there so now I gotta go to the DMV and get new ones my registration expired back in April anyway. Sheesh just what I needed the officer didn't really care for my excuse he deals with A holes all the time I guess so well that made my day. I was polite and tired to tell him but he didn't care its not his problem he was just doing his job. I thanked him for pointing it out to me he was kind of rude though. Since my 2004 tags were showing he had to arrogantly say well we could impound your vehicle so make this a priority. Jeeze.... what a hassle

He was CHP BTW.

[Pred@tor]

Heck I gave a guy two dollars before I reached the DMV he was a poor young homeless man. I felt bad for him so two bucks wasn't bad i just hope my good Karma will help me out in the end.

[Pred@tor]

Guess it would've been much easier and cheaper to get the registration renewed back in March, huh?

Indeed but since it fell off its probably better this way.

[WokMaster1]

thank you. there are a few items ive been meaning to add but have been lazy. maybe i should get off my butt eh?

peanut butter has about the same fat content for 2 table spoons as a medium can of baked beans. fat is important for survival. i need to stick a jar of pb into the bag. im more worried about water tho. if im planning a trip off the beaten path i have a case of water i stick into the truck( 6 one gallon jugs sealed in cardboard). i also need to remember to buy a honey bear to stick into the bag. honey is a natural wound treatment, as well as adds flavor to drinks and food. i need to make another "portable campfire" and a few more fire starters. the portable campfire is a coffee can with a cotton rag or thick cord imbedded in candle wax. with a large enough wick itll burn great and cant be blown out. down side is that its a outdoor only thing as it gives off some smoke. the fire starters are cotton balls saturated with vaseline. each normal cotton ball gets you about 15 or so smaller ones and each of those start a fire. you pack the cotton/vaseline into a film can and take out a tiny bit, fluff it up and itll light with a single flint spark. itll even light after being dunked in water. you just squeeze out the water and fluff the cotton and it still lights easier than magnesium shavings. stick that vaseline/cotton ball on a screwdriver and arc the battery terminals and you can get a fast easy fire. far safer than using fuel for that trick.

edit: oh yeah, duh, ive been meaning to add a few chocolate bars for moral. trudgeing thru wet fields is more fun while eating a chocolate bar.

I didn't see a metal cup/mess kit for melting snow or boiling water. Nice kit.

[Pred@tor]

You know what I now know why I think he was such a dick to me. One of my bumper stickers on the rear of my truck says Dr. Ron Paul the cure for the police state. I think that did it... May have offended him but oh well...

[sloguy]

ok, dude, im just seeing bad decision after bad decision after bad decision after bad decision after bad decision after bad decision after bad decision after bad decision.

seriously, i owe blindluck2 an apology. he called this one.

[M. Sage]

Well leaving my truck probably wasn't that best idea is right. If I had found it again and got back to it I would have built a shelter and light a fire. I had old school work and stuff I had some things with me just not the other stuff I could have used that day. Like I said I am usually more prepared... Never again...

... again, why build a shelter when you have a shelter sitting there, far more windproof, comfortable and insulated than you'll ever make in the rough? Your truck makes an excellent shelter! It's got everything but running water... As cold as the weather was, if there was standing water, you should have been able to spend the night inside it without running the heat with no problem, using your coat as a blanket. Just remember to untie your boots to create a dead air pocket around your feet to keep 'em warm, no matter where you settle in.

[StraightShooter]

Sounds like you should invest in a winch. There were plenty of trees around and you would have been unstuck in no time. I have learned my lesson well with off roading in muddy terrain. Its usually more hassle than its worth so I stick to the dry stuff whenever possible. In the el nino season of a few years back I got my truck stuck on a forestry road near my house and it was so bad that I had to wait a week till it dried out enough to get our tractor back there with a chain to get it out. That was when I was like 16 years old and my parents were PISSED!

[lawnrevenge]

Sage,
I must correct/add to some things you said so people don't get in worse shape for it if they are stranded.

1. Water is not the best conductor, it is better at transferring heat that air due to relative density (liquid vs. gas) However wool and many synthetics insulate well, even when wet. Being naked as opposed to being in wet wool would result in your naked demise. Being in wet cotton or most older synthetics (polyester) will result in you dying faster than naked. However both might result in naked and I don't want to die naked...

2. Vehicle shelter. Cars are better shelters than nothing, but they do not insulate well. All that metal conducts heat well, and all that glass allows IR heat to escape too, meaning your car could easily become a metal coffin. I keep a wool blanket in my truck and a sleeping bag too when I go to cold places. That way the truck cab can be a wind brake with some insulating qualities and the blanket/bag will keep me warm. In an extreme situation (donnor pass snowed in) I might use my shovel (kept in the truck at all times) to pile snow onto my cab to help insulate it (should keep my cab around 32 degrees instead of whatever the temp is outside)

In cold weather situations I recommend having some sort of fire building ability. If in the woods there will be wood and you will just need building materials kindling etc. In the desert I throw a bag of charcoal in the bed. I can keep a small fire going through the night with it if need be (don't forget some way of lighting the charcoal, and that wet charcoal won't burn well)

When I had a bug I kept a CB radio in the trunk ($5 at the thrift store) If I got stranded where a cellphone wouldn't work I could have used it to get help by some means.

I also suggest having some food with you (sugar=quick energy=quick heat) and some water, eating snow is a quick way to get hypothermia. A huge amount of energy is required to melt snow into 32 degree water, as opposed to raising 33 degree water by 1 degree. Ask any chemistry or physics teacher and they will explain about latent heat required to phase change water (meaning that the ice will remain ice for a while as energy is added to it before it melts and becomes 32 degree water, but that same amount of energy would raise the temperature of 32 degree water by several degrees)

[11Z50]

I often wonder why squared away proper-minded folks die in freak accidents and total idiots survive situations in which they themselves make worse by the minute.

This individual is lucky to still be processing oxygen.

[Stormfeather]

cmon now guys, weve all done really dumb stuff before. Granted, this guy got lucky. Now he knows better. Hopefully. Its kind of hard to admit that you can get lost in your own backyard, even for me. He kept his head while the normal "am I gonna die" stuff ran thru it. Dont throw the first stone unless youve never done something stupid.

[5968]

in the spirit of promoting discussion, i took pics of the stuff in the bag that lives in my truck. the bag is not all of what stays in the truck, its just one of the many items that i do not take out unless its to resupply it or add things. in addition to this stuff i usually have automotive tool bag, 4 or so extra( good quality) flashlights, a gallon jug of water, folding shovel, pick axe, 2 cb radios, automotive fluids, 1 or 2 fire extinguishers, sleeping bag and/or work blanket( good for covering cargo, or keeping things clean when moving stuff, but in a life or death situation can be slept with to keep warm) extra heavier jacket and other random things. i try to keep a unopened roll of papertowels along with what roll im using.

i just obtained a old gps and that shall live in the truck as well. make any cb calls i have to make trying to get rescued as easy as possible on my rescuers.

needless to say, i take alot of extra junk that is seldome/never used. but i like having options.

first pic, the bag.
second pic, the unzipped bag.

third, visible are a soft beanie sorta hat( that i dont wear usually) a flashlight, duct tape and garbage bags stuffed inside it, two smaller plastic bags( contents pictured below) a can of "ensure plus" in the bag still are 4 bottles of water, 3 cans of soup, a old pillow case with a sweater, pants, 2 pair of socks, 2 pair of undies, and 2 shirts.

fourth pic, contents of smaller plastic pouch. gum, toothbrush, paste floss/pick thingies, allergy meds, neosporin, a lone bandaid( i know i need more) and chapstick.

fifth pic, contents of other plastic ziplock. 2 pouches of tuna, a few condiments, some string, od green utensils some old leftover vicoden, 3 tea candles wrapped up in a paper towel.

sixth pic is the rest of the contents from the outer pockets of the red bag. tylenol and more vicoden, water purifier stuff, a heat pad, lotion, gloves, ammo, eye wash, sting ointments and wipes, magnesium block, whisle, matches wrapped in plastic wrap, fish hooks and fish line, two folding knives( one has a little fork on it), a small cheapo multi tool, a nylon mesh bag that doubles as a bug net over my head( isnt easy to see thru but it works, a darker color would be beter) a old vitamin bottle with more gum, toothpick/floss aspirin, chapstick, needle and thread, little can opener,ect.

Nice kit you have there SloGuy. I have one very similar to yours in my truck. I always keep at least a gallon of water and some Cliff bars in addition to what I have in my kit in my truck. I have my kit in a Alice Pack along with a small tent and sleeping bag in case I decide to walk out. I didn't see anyone mention it, but the "SAS Survival Handbook" by John "Lofty" Wisemen is a pretty good. manual to have.