The world will end some day, likely when the sun fries the Earth in a few billion years. If the end comes before that though, you can better your survival odds by packing the right gear. As the Boy Scouts say, “Be prepared.”
It’s pretty commonly stated that disaster can strike at any time and that to better your odds of survival, you need to be prepared. Odds are you, like many others (and my old self included), heard this, nodded your head, and then promptly went back to playing video games on your PS3. Perhaps if you lived in a disaster prone area, be it Tornado Alley, Hurricane areas, or Earthquake vulnerable California you took the first basic step and assembled a few things that will keep you comfortable in the event of a power outage. Some water, some canned food maybe, but mostly flashlights and candles.
That’s a fine start for the mundane, but what about the unthinkable? Pardon the punny word use, but if you think the unthinkable can’t happen, think again. Every country has faced a variety of disasters that have tried their citizenry. A massive earthquake almost erased San Francisco from the map. Terrorists have attacked major cities all over the world. Hell, freaking volcanoes still explode and threaten lives.
If you’re lucky, you won’t ever face an epic tragedy, but if you find yourself in a strange, apocalyptic setting, taking a few precautions right now could mean surviving later. At the absolute worst, you’ve bought a few things you won’t end up using and spent a couple of hours putting a few things together. Best case? You don’t starve or get killed by a roving band of bikers in 2021.
How to Build a Survival Pack
This is not your everyday earthquake kit or the kind of stuff you tuck into your overnight bag. This is an end of the world survival kit – meant to help you survive, even thrive, in all kinds of adverse conditions. While it’s impossible to plan for every eventuality, or please every survivalist (I will no doubt fail to mention someone’s personal most essential object), but with the things in this kit, you’ll be far better off should disaster strike than if you have nothing, or if you buy some travel safety kit from an outdoors outfitter.
In collecting information and items for a kit, I’ve made extensive use of two books from Chris McNab: The Boy’s Book of Outdoor Survival and Special Forces Survival Guide. These portions have been reprinted with permission and where appropriate these books have been cited. Also make sure to check out our give-away page for your chance to win one of four survival books.
The Pocket Kit
This kit, assembled by Chris McNab (SFSG, 17), won’t save your life during the Apocalypse, but it does fit in your pocket. Having this every time you head into the wilderness, or leave your base camp, is a great idea. Essentially, this pocket kit is part of your larger kit that never leaves your side in an emergency.
- A waterproof container to house your goods
- Matches
- A candle
- Flint/striker or other non-match based fire starter
- Sewing Kit
- Water purification tablets
- Compass
- Signaling mirror
- Safety pins
- Wire saw
- Fishing line and hooks
- Plasting bags
- Snare wire
In the wilderness, your primary concerns are going to be water and heat – hence multiple ways of creating fire (and light) as well as ways to make drinkable water (tablets or boiling). This kit is useful to have around at all times, but for the real deal Armageddon, you’re going to need a lot more stuff.
This list will be long and the descriptions relatively short. As a smart reader (we trust you) you’ll probably know what the purpose of most of these items without us explaining them (you sleep in the sleeping bag). We plan to return to some of these topics in the future to provide more detail, so only the barest is given here.
The Armageddon Pack
Backpack – Your backpack should be lightweight, waterproof, and comfortable to wear over long distances (SFSG, 27). It should be rugged and of decent enough capacity to hold everything you you intend on carrying. I highly recommend a pack that has external webbing (PALS) or is otherwise MOLLE compliant, allowing you to attach your gear to the outside when prudent. Check out this Maxpedition Condor II pack.
If you find yourself in an emergency situation with gear to carry, try creating a horseshoe pack.
Flashlight
Compass – A compass is a no brainer and a vital tool, make sure to select one of decent quality. A lensatic compass will allow you to plot more detailed courses when used in conjunction with… (SFSG, 234)
Maps – The more you know about the area, the better. When disaster strikes, you may have to flee the area and you may have to travel far. You’ll be best served by having a few maps, some of your immediate area, and some of nearby areas (ie a Southwest USA map, a Central USA Map and an Eastern USA map). Store them in waterproof ziploc bags.
A Medical Kit – Many stores will sell put together kits that can be assimilated into your bag. They should include latex gloves, tweezers, plenty of bandages, pain killers, anti-diarrheals, sutures, needles, and antiseptics. Check out the Hunter Kit by Adventure Medical Kits.
Knives – A knife is an extremely important survival tool. A proper, quality survival knife can aide in hunting, wood gathering, cooking, and defense. The sturdiest knives are fixed blade models with a full tang. Straight edges are easier to maintain in the field than serrated ones, so get either a partially or non-serrated blade. You should also keep at least one back-up knife, which can be a folding knife, in case something happens to your primary knife. (SFSG, 25) Check out our review of survival knives by Gerber.
A Multitool - It’s just freaking useful to have.
Crowbar – When most people think survival, they think the woods, but it’s not as though cities will disappear. A crowbar is your key to urban survival, and in a pinch, can be used as a climbing apparatus with the right rope.
Hatchet – Whether you need to make fire, traps, or shelter, gathering wood comes into play. You’ll find a hatchet, though heavier and larger, is more durable than a pocket saw and makes gathering decent sized bits of wood a breeze. (SFSG, 70, 98, 116)
Firearm - This is the end of the world we’re talking about. Ideally you’ll already be versed in firearms (if not, seek out some training) and own two: a pistol for self protection and a long arm for further defense and food gathering. If you can only have one weapon, a pump action shotgun is reliable and accepts a wide variety of rounds, giving you options from taking down small or large birds, small game like rabbits, or larger mammals like deer, coyotes, and whatever else lives in you area. For more on the best weapons for self-defense, check out this Primer article.
Ammunition – A gun is useless without bullets. Unfortunately, ammo is heavy so you won’t be carrying an armory with you, but 50-100 rounds of pistol ammunition and as much shotgun ammunition (of varying shot loads) as you can comfortably fit/carry is recommended.
Collapsible Shovel – Compact and useful for digging fire pits, shelters, and can even be used as a frying pan if cleaned.
Water Purification – The most compact purification system are iodine tablets, though if you think you’ll be traveling with a group (roommates, friends, family), you may want to consider carrying a water purification jug and filter. This comes in especially handy in long term survival, where you may establish base camp for days or weeks. When necessary, water can also by purified.
Water Storage – Lugging around a 40lb jug isn’t entirely feasible, so in between camp locations, you’ll need a canteen.
Sleeping Bag
Collapsible Tent – Carrying a collapsible tent prevents you from having to create new shelter every night. With modern materials, you can find lightweight tents that fit four and fold down into a 24x6x6 area, which can easily be attached to the exterior of your bag. If you don’t want to carry a tent, you can try making one of these.
Fire - You should have many ways of starting a fire. A couple packs of strike anywhere matches, a five-pack of Bic lighters, and a magnesium block and striker will keep you business for a very long time. You can get a government issue striker for about $6.
Cotton balls or, ahem, tampons, make great fire starting material.
Climbing Rope – You can never have enough rope. Climbing rope is rated to handle both heavy weights and shock forces. Combined with climbing carabiners (not those junky keychain ones), 50-100 feet of rope can come in very handy when navigating tricky areas. I keep a length of rope that has a knot and carabiner already attached to one end.
General Purpose Rope - Great for pending shelters, making rafts, dragging and lifting game, creating traps, and many more things, you’ll want to have plenty of non-climbing rope (not rated for shock) for general uses. Paracord is popular, strong, and relatively inexpensive.
Knot Tying Guide - You can either learn a ton of knots or pick up a small plastic card set that tells you how to tie a bunch of different knots. It’s not the first thing that pops into your mind when you think survival. (BBoOS, 44)
Socks/Underwear - Unfortunately you’re probably going to be stuck wearing the same clothes, day in, day out, but having dry clothing reserves is a smart idea to prevent infections, especially in the feet and groin.
Food – While you won’t be able to live out of your pack, it is wise to keep some long lasting, energy dense food in your pack to help get you through lean times. Dried pinto beans just need to be boiled, while tinned meats can be eaten straight away. Nuts, chocolate, and peanut butter are also calorie dense for energy and many can be doubled as bait for animals if necessary.
Appropriate Clothing – This depends on where you are and where you’re heading, but even in the heat, you’ll want lightweight layers that can protect your skin from exposure, keep you warm at night, but not be sweltering during the day.
Bandannas - Wrapped over the head they protect from the sun, over the mouth they protect from dust, or soaked in water they can keep you cool. Also capable of serving as bandages and bindings. Or signaling which marauding tribe you’ve joined. (Just kidding.)
Gloves - In cold climates you’ll want gloves to keep your hands warm, though in all climates a pair of leather working gloves can protect your hands and fingers from cuts and splinters while chopping wood.
Waterproofing – With either garbage bags or a tarp, you can create a waterproof pack or impromptu shelter. Garbage bags are wise to have regardless of whether or not you’ve decided to pack a tent.
Radio – A hand crank radio for tuning into emergency stations is a great idea and a multiple band CB hand held may enable you to make contact with others nearby. Or, if you think you’ll be part of a group, radios for several members can make hunting and traveling safer and easier.
A Survival Book – Let’s be honest, unless you spend a great deal of time training and studying to build fires, shelters, and snares, you’re not going to remember any of it when disaster strikes. Buy a decent survival guide that fits in your pack, or hey, try to win one here.
I’m sure many people will tell you many different things about survival packs. What not to have, what to have, this is too heavy, that’s not necessary, etc. When it comes right down to it, it’s better to have more stuff rather than not enough. After all, if you master building a lean-to shelter, you could ditch the tent, or trade it for something else you need.
This is a pretty extensive kit, but if you think something’s missing, pack it. If you think it’s too heavy, ditch something. Customize the kit to your own body and geographic location. But you can’t go too wrong with the stuff listed above. Good luck – but I hope you’ll never need it.
About Robert Fure
Robert Fure is a fitness, lifestyle, and entertainment writer living in his Los Angeles. He is also a certified Personal Trainer and the Creator/Editor of Fit and Furious, an online outlet dedicated to the pursuit of a fit lifestyle. His entertainment work can be viewed at Film School Rejects.
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81 People had something insightful to add, but we're missing your voice! Continue the conversation with a comment.
Mark Roberts
First thing I would do is grab my end-of-the-world pack!
Jul 11th, 2010
Nolan Bryan Lynch
Head for eastern Oregon.
Jul 11th, 2010
Clay
Grab my wife and kids and head to work (fire station two)
Jul 12th, 2010
Shaun
First thing I’d do is check for zombies. Then decide whether to sit tight, or head for the hills.
Jul 12th, 2010
Ed
Stay off the interstate highways; get to high ground; keep the group together!
Jul 12th, 2010
Stridar
Assuming this is a zombie scenario and I hadn’t yet complied my survival kit beforehand, I’d grab my mate and loot the local hardware warehouse before setting out
Jul 12th, 2010
Matt S
My first action would be to not panic.
Jul 12th, 2010
francisco velazquez
Grab my k-bar bowie and follow the railroad tracks to save time and distance in getting to other places.
Jul 12th, 2010
Seth
Pray
Jul 12th, 2010
Jeff Pile
Load the go bag and moutain bikes in the truck and roll.
Jul 12th, 2010
Lorin Wilkerson
Gather a small group together of people I trust living nearby, pool weaponry/food/resources/start making long-term survival plans re: food/water.. That band of roving bikers will think twice before assaulting twelve people armed with twelve gauges…
Jul 12th, 2010
Harry
Contact my crew- family and friends I trust. A trustworthy and able companion is the best survival aid. Second is to secure my guns.
Jul 12th, 2010
Hepu
Store food and water for the long haul.
Jul 12th, 2010
Clint
grab my go bag and head to the Firehouse to be able to help others- being a man means taking pride and responsibility for your community.
Jul 12th, 2010
Geoff
First thing I’d do is tune up my guitar so I’d have something to soothe the hillbilly beast with once we arrive in the hinterlands.
.-= Geoff´s last blog ..gcouncil- -kauguston -kauguston http-wwwyoutubecom-watchvDzPo2F8h298-NR1 =-.
Jul 12th, 2010
Chris
Gather the family and gear, and then check it again to make sure we don’t forget anything. Probably won’t be coming back home again.
Jul 12th, 2010
Tim
Pack family, friends, survival gear and get the hell out of there.
Jul 12th, 2010
Chris
Step 1: Double time it to Ted Nugent’s ranch.
Jul 12th, 2010
OkieRover
Armageddon? Gather my firearms and ammo. That way I can protect what food and gear I have. Second, is to execute our predetermined plan. There is safety in numbers.
Jul 12th, 2010
Darrel
Lock the door. And hope they don’t have blasters.
Jul 12th, 2010
Ryan
My first action would be to plan my first action.
Jul 12th, 2010
mars
fist of all, DO NOT PANIC.
second, determine the type of catastrophe (flood, fire, earthquake etc.)
then, I could determine my course of action. Bring only the BARE necessities.
Jul 12th, 2010
DavidM
1st thing I’d do is get my family & friends to the nearby helicopter hangers for defense.
Jul 12th, 2010
Jackson
Meet at the pre-determined rally point with my family.
.-= Jackson´s last blog ..8 Ways to be a Terrible Listener =-.
Jul 12th, 2010
Robert
First: Check on my family’s, neighbors’ and friends’ safety and well being.
Second: Organize the neighborhood to begin rebuilding the community.
Third: Start using all the reloading components I have stored to reload ammo for the coming effort.
Jul 12th, 2010
Ben
Gather the team, load the guns, and figure out what’s going on.
Jul 12th, 2010
Nathan
Honestly, if the apocalypse happens and zombies aren’t involved, I’m gonna be pretty disappointed. First order of business will be to find out if zombies are a part of the chaos, if not, I’ll halfheartedly pack my things and be ready to get out of dodge.
Jul 12th, 2010
Greg Schneider
I carry a BOB (bug out bag) in my trunk, and the first thing I would do is asses my situation, and decide if food/water, shelter, or protection is most important. If I’ve got water and a firearm, it’s going to be shelter. Also, it could depend on where I’m stuck, and when. Mountains during the summer? Protection and shelter. Elements and animals out here in the rockies.
My kit involves a few nice knives, plenty of ways of starting a fire, quick shelter starters, and ways of purifying water. Enough stuff to walk out into the woods and camp for a few days.
Jul 12th, 2010
Ben
Retire comfortably living on the abandoned stores that everyone else left behind. Hooray for Spam and Twinkies!
Jul 12th, 2010
Oswaldo
First to do:
Get my zombie survival pack
Jul 12th, 2010
Travis
Grab the essentials and high tail it out of town
Jul 12th, 2010
Jeriel
I’m looting.
Jul 12th, 2010
cisco
pour a glass, wait a day and pick the bones of all the jack nuts that killed each other trying to get out of the city.
Jul 12th, 2010
Dan
The first thing I would do is ensure personal safety for my family, then food, water, and shelter.
Jul 12th, 2010
Chris C
Grab my daughter; grab my wife; then hunker down with my Ham radio.
Jul 12th, 2010
Trevor
First thing: take a few minutes, breath deep, and figure out what the first step should be. Is it necessary to grab the bag and leave? Or can I stay at the house a little longer?
Jul 12th, 2010
Dennis
wander out into the wilderness that currently surrounds me.
Jul 12th, 2010
Dave
Raid a supermarket !
Jul 12th, 2010
Justin
Contact closest family and friends and determine where to meet.
Jul 12th, 2010
Ken C
The first thing I would do would be to take stock of my surroundings and what I had on hand to survive with. based on the estimated time I believe I would have to survive, I would act accourdingly.
Jul 12th, 2010
Jeremy C
I’d gather my family and take them as far away from civilization as possible.
Jul 12th, 2010
Tyler
You left beer off the survival list. First thing is first: grab a beer and enjoy it. Never know when you’re next one will be.
Jul 13th, 2010
Justin
Secure a living area for my family.
Jul 13th, 2010
Andy
Grab my bag, family, and head into the hills behind my house….
Jul 13th, 2010
AJ
Make sure my family is ok, load the gun, and take inventory of our provisions. My other thought is to fill the car with as much gas as I can get a hold of and drive out into the country and set up camp.
Jul 13th, 2010
Dustin
Gather supplies(food, water, ammunition) and my loved ones and get out of Dodge.
Jul 13th, 2010
Grizzly Adam
load my gun
Jul 13th, 2010
Noel
Grab supplies (survival pack) my family, friends (creating a survival group) and head for a safe country (dependent on disaster)
Jul 13th, 2010
Playstead
Make sure my wife and kids are in a safe place, then look for shelter. Love the article — nice work.
Jul 14th, 2010
PirateMunky
As an avid Zombie survivalist- my first response would be to fly home, grab my go bag and weapons then head to the city limits and secure shelter within a building supply run distance from the city. PS This may be one of the best links I’ve ever seen pop up on my twitter feed. Well done!
Jul 15th, 2010
JD
I would grab my gun and get away from other people.
Jul 15th, 2010
Sam
I’d locate my significant other, grab our packs and head out into the countryside.
Jul 15th, 2010
Andrew Carlson
Use my natural man skills to make make a focused and confident decision.
Jul 16th, 2010
Dean M
Hit my knees for a short chat with the Man then get up, grab my bug-out bag//long arm/web gear and fade into the woods toward one of my caches…
Jul 16th, 2010
MDS
I would assemble my “always packed and ready” survival gear close to my truck and determine, based on the type of emergency, if my home or truck might still be a safer place to be prior to deciding to move into the woods.
Jul 17th, 2010
Stan
I would Immediately head tothe nearest grocery and convienece store to buy every scrap of food and water they would sell me, sincepaper money wil lbe close to useless, and then add it to the months worth of food i already have stored
Jul 17th, 2010
Frank Hansen
Hopefully I will be at home. First thing, gather family, gather survival gear, and try to find info on the radio to sort out the danger and make an intelligent decision (given what info I have) on whether to stay put or leave and where to leave to.
Jul 17th, 2010
Adam Dummar
I would first use the internet and news outlets to get any information I could while those sources lasted, supplemented chatter gleaned from local police and emergency response scanner. At the same time I would review my topographical and area maps to determine the best escape route (if needed) and prepare to fall back to my long-term locations.
Of course, I have the luxury of working at home, so the family is generally always in the same general area. Otherwise that might change the game plan somewhat.
Jul 17th, 2010
Wes
Get home to gather the family!
Jul 17th, 2010
Nico
I would contact all the family members, find out where they are at the moment of emergency and see what condition they’re in at the time!
Jul 18th, 2010
Willie B
take time to gather my thoughts re the situation, check my shooting iron,
head to my prestocked “safe ” place. Hunker down till things either cool down or zombies (folks that have not prepared) die off or are too weak to be a threat.
Jul 18th, 2010
Jordan B
Take the time to think about what I will need for this emergency. The last thing I want to do is rush off and be unprepared.
I’d probably end up checking the internet for survival pack lists, just like this one.
Jul 18th, 2010
combsy
Grab my bug out bag and family and head for the hills ala red dawn.
Jul 18th, 2010
Justin C
Make sure my mountain bike is up and running smoothly.
Jul 18th, 2010
Robert
I’d probably try and gas up my pickup, just to make it last as long as possible.
Jul 18th, 2010
John G.
1. Hunker in the bunker, in our already remote and defensible residence. Set perimeter alarms/motion sensors. Watch for potentially hostile “visitors” who may be looking to help themselves to what we have.
Jul 19th, 2010
Roger Nichols
Get grab bag and guns, gas up, and head for the farm, far outside the big city. I’d still have half a tank of gas left. Hunker downn and listen to the radio.
Jul 22nd, 2010
Dan
I watch the news daily so I would grab my prepared survival pack, wife and two dogs. I would head for my pre-selected site (cover, game and water available) and we would head out immediately without telling anyone.
Jul 22nd, 2010
Rob Smith
Well the first thing I would do is get my family ray to go with packs ready. Then we would if we can drive as far north as we can on a cingle tank of gas and hick the rest of the way. I’m thinking 3 locations first Colorado secound Oragon last Canada. I would also avoid any major citys. Once we found a place we would try to live off the land.
Jul 24th, 2010
Portogear
i am having same like that
.-= Portogear´s last blog ..Women Black Leather Customize Motorcycle Racing Jacket =-.
Aug 3rd, 2010
Max Pedition
Hey you guys should review a Maxpedition pack! Best tactical / survival gear out there!
http://www.maxpedition.com
Aug 30th, 2010
john
I don’t like to think of these things. However, given the economy, the fact that even Gates say “don’t worry about the J-20, we will probably maintain our air superiority over the Chinese for at least 10 more years”, and the general condition of America, it might not be a bad idea to seek life elsewhere or at least put together a survival pack.
Realistically, we were a rag-tag nation up until WWI, then we went through a Depression and WWII. The folks who lived through that put duty above all…and raised a bunch of spoiled brats who became the “me me me” brats of the 60s and 70s.
The guys all wanted to get in touch with their feelings, the women all wanted to be liberated and have careers….so while they grew up spoiled, they raised a generation of latch-key kids who felt obligation to no-one because most had been raised by sitters, teachers, and people who put them on prozac for being kids. Meanwhile, the spoiled brat baby boomers enacted legislation based on the value of “diversity”.
They opened the borders wide to every illegal immigrant imaginable, voted in every b.s. social benefit imaginable for everyone but our own damn citizens, and acted like spoiled children leaving open the door to the house and giving out money and possessions to every passer by as though there were no limits because their parents (the WWII generation) actually earned it.
Now we are rocketing toward 3rd world nation status…wealth disparity – check, skilled jobs being exported – check, crushing debt – check, hostile nations own our debt and are rapidly outcompeting us – check…so yeah…I’m gonna buy a pack and some water tablets.
Jan 30th, 2011
Jim@Grilling Tips
The first thing I would do is grab the survival kit, the pocket kit sounds really good. Grab my wife and kids and RUN!
Jul 17th, 2011
Unwilling_Realist
–John,
your synopsis of our current crisis is right on! those are all the reasons why i’ve sought out this website, and yes i am getting my survival pack together
Nov 19th, 2011
Kirsten
RUN LIKE HELL
Jan 4th, 2012
Kirsten
THE WORLD IS NOT GOING TO END. just saying… If it does i hope it goes fast.
Jan 4th, 2012
ibby dibby
I’d definitely call the cops.
Jan 6th, 2012
Your awesome ideas go here: