by elricfate » Wed Jun 01, 2011 1:38 pm
MBO fail. I mean, I went out and did the 24 hour bugout, but my (new to me) camera failed after I got out of the car at my drop-spot (should have tested before I left the house).
Either way, I'll do a quick write-up, but I don't expect kudos for not having pics (on the internet it didn't happen unless there are pics) -- the least I can do is list my gear and give a rundown of what happened.
So to begin, I took:
High Sierra Long Trail 90L pack (with hydration pack)
East German Steel Canteen + Cup
Nalgene with CapCap lid and steel cup (with coffee pot lid)
MSR SuperFly + windshield + remote + IsoPro canister in a stuff sack
MSR MiniWorks EX filter + stuff sack + microfiber sunglasses pouch (can explain)
Alps Mountaineering Mystique tent
Coleman Heavy Duty tent stakes
Mystique footprint
10x5 silnylon tent (extra rainfly or extended shelter)
Sleep Cell E-Bag
Wenzel camp pad
Extra socks
Hi-Tec Men's Light Hiker boots
Fleece blanket
(3) x USGI green bandanas
(100) feet paracord loop
Petzl E+Lite
Walking stick (frog gig in pack)
900 lumen light + (2) x 18650 batteries
Light my Fire spork and cook kit (salt, pepper, sugar, lemon dust, etc)
Coleman stuffable pillow
Fire kit (includes boat matches, twine, cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly, striker, misch metal firesteel, and fatwood, all in a tin)
Dehydrated rice and beans (home made)
(4) x Clif bars (blueberry crisp)
Frank's sweet chili sauce packets
Handheld fishing kit
Toz 78-01 with mini-survival kit in stock and paracord sling
100rds of CCI mini-mags for the rifle above
Citadel 1911 CS in a Desantis Nemesis Holster
(2) x 7rd 1911 Officer magazines, FMJ - (5) x 8rd 1911 Government magazines, FMJ (these will fit, just extend out of the magwell on the CS)
That's not an utterly complete listing, but it's a short rundown of the main things that were used during the bugout.
I bugged out to my Uncle Kenny's 80 acres down in Athens, Ohio. It's about an hour drive, which is a long time when your adrenaline is pumping because you have convinced yourself you're bugging out for real, and lost your wife in whatever happened. (she refused to go, so I "lost" her).
I got there, got within the property line, drove as far as my car would take me into the wooded portion of his property, and then hopped out on foot.
It was a two hour hike to where I remembered the water being, thankfully having a good knowledge of the surroundings precluded the necessity of a compass and map (though those are both included in my pack in the event they're needed). I knew water would be a necessity as I started the bug out with dry canteens and a dry hydro pouch (on purpose). There is a small pool of water that is fed from an underground spring, leads down to a creek, and then out to a lake somewhere (I assume), I actually don't know the end point, but the pool itself is semi-clear.
After clearing a large area of algae away from the shore, I wrapped the end of the miniworks hose in the microfiber sunglass pouch and started pumping. The good thing about the sunglass pouch is that it acts as a prefilter, keeping me from sucking up any large chunks of sediment or slime into the filter. After filling the hydro pouch in my pack, and the two canteens (nalgene and east german), I decided to break camp.
About 400 yards away from the small source of water I had, I set up my alps mountaineering mystique. It's actually a decent tent, I've had it for about a year and subjected it to two trips before this one. It came seam sealed, but I sealed it again just for good measure. It keeps me dry and handles some pretty strong winds. In the woods, though, I figured I wouldn't need the extra guy lines to stabilize it and only left the first set on. I also knew that it was going to be hot and humid, but not rainy, so I left off the fly, leaving the tops and sides open except for fine mesh to keep out the bugs. The nice thing about the tent is that with the rainfly on there are two overhangs to keep gear under, for this go around, though, I kept my gear inside with me.
Right about now it was getting to be noonish and stiflingly hot, I knew if there was any game to be put into my pot that evening, it would be resting high in the branches, out of sight, trying to stay cool -- or in the bushes on the ground, dug into a little rut. So I decided to go ahead and take a small rest, making sure all my dinner gear was in order, and my bear line was ready to pull up the cooking gear. I know, I know, bears? Well, my uncle owns a black bear, and he loves to roam the property... and god forbid I leave my food, cook pots, or anything else on the ground for him to pick at. This is what we all carry paracord for, right? So after setting up the fire, I rubbed ash on a bandana and set it aside for later.
As the afternoon wore on, I chewed on a clif bar for the calories and I foraged a little. I found wild mint, wild onions, a small handful of wild potatoes, and a lot of dandelions, there was a whole clearing full of the little weeds. Most of them were adult, but some were still smaller and the greens weren't as bitter, so they were going to go into the stew I planned.
I came back to the camp and made sure the Toz 78-01 was in good working order, while having a cup of mint tea (something to put into my belly) before the main meal of the evening). Being as the rifle is set up for irons and not optics, I already knew it was zeroed for what I was going to use. About 3pm I decided it was time to go see if I could get some meat for the pot. Now don't get me wrong, I am an accomplished small game hunter, but this heat we're having in Ohio makes the little critters sluggish and hard to get. Also, please keep in mind that hunting season for rabbit and squirrel are not open right now, however if it is to be used as food for the pot, on private land, harvesting is allowed.
While I heard a few chitters from the tree lines, I didn't notice any movement from our furry tree-rat friends. I stalked and stopped for about an hour before I sat down and waited. After sitting there for a half hour, I stalked and stopped closer to camp, and took a seat. I, literally, saw nothing until I was just getting ready to call it a day and eat what I'd packed. There was a little almond shaped eye staring at me from a bush about 30 yards away, it was off my path back, but I strolled along it anyways. I walked toward it and stopped, waiting, suddenly the rabbit shot out of the bush and away. As I watched it go, it stopped for a few seconds near a tree to look back and I held my shot (it was a rather small rabbit, and I figured I might come back for him next year).
On the way back to the campsite I did happen across a squirrel nest, but we don't shoot into those for two reasons 1) baby squirrel are useless unless you have dozens of them, and 2) you can't retrieve a dead squirrel from its nest unless you can climb really well.
Dinner that evening consisted of boiled onions, potatoes, and dandelion greens, all added to my mix of rice and beans, which turned out to be pretty delicious and filling, but still was lacking in protein that meat would have added.
After washing up with a green scrub pad I had in my cook kit, and some extra water from my hydro pouch, I wrapped up the cook kit and remainder of food items into my bandana (from earlier) and hung them as high as I could in one of the trees near my campsite. I am not sure if the ash was strong enough, but I figured the smell of fire might overwhelm the smell of food.
After a hard night of sleep, fought because without the white noise of the fan I usually sleep with, I woke up to every little sound in the woods, I was greeted by a cool morning and gentle sunlight filtering in through the tree tops.
Breakfast was two Clif bars. This is what I get for only packing the very bare minimum of food instead of the 72 hours of food I should have packed. Also goes to show that relying on spare food from game is a 50/50 chance you roll the dice on. Thankfully I had something to make up for it, but it would have been nice to have caught something.
After breaking camp and washing my bandana to get the ash smell off, I hiked the two hours back to the car and set to home.
A few things I learned while shaking down my gear:
This time of year, in Ohio, a Fleece blanket is all you need, no need for a sleeping bag too.
Foraging for veggies is fun and all, but takes precious time that could be used for more constructive things - HOWEVER - knowing where veggies are growing is a great resource for when you need to add things to your dinner to keep the vitamins constant.
Always pack more food than you think you'll need or you will feel hunger pangs all weekend. I didn't put down every time I ate in my list above, but I came home and ate something in the area of 3500 calories in one sitting, afterwards.
I think I might prefer a hammock and silnylon tarp setup more than a backpacking tent, for the ability to have air moving all parts of your body, rather than just your top-side, in this kind of heat.
No matter what temperature it is, those Hi-Tek Hiking boots kept my feet nice and cool, and the waterproof part isn't bad either.
A bandana that is impregnated with fresh ash isn't 100% bear proof, but it's good enough for me.
I'm sure I left something out, but I'm at work and tired.
Last edited by
elricfate on Mon Jul 18, 2011 9:38 am, edited 1 time in total.
