Liquids

Doing research for my book "What Money Can't Buy" has been a lesson and a mind warping experience. Let me explain.
Now that I look at almost everything through Survivalist Eyes, I see simple things in a new light. Everyone in North America has seen Tetra-Pak juice boxes, especially if you have kids. I never thought about them as a possible source of nutrients and liquids. You now should know the "recommended" amount of water to store in an emergency is about 1 gallon (4litres)per person per day. If you had to evacuate for 4 days and you were walking, you may be able to carry 2x10 litre jugs as well as a large back pack with all your clothes, food and entertainment/tools with you. The jugs alone will weigh 10 kilos each, about 26 pounds. The pack could weigh up to another 20 kilos or so. That is a little over 100 pounds! How far can you carry 100 pounds? If you are in shape MAYBE 15 kilometres (about 10 miles.) Most of us would not get more than a few blocks. I would load up my Trike and cycle it to where ever I needed to be. In a day I could go (maybe,if I had to) 50 kilometres with a load like that.
Lets get back to the walking bit. I would assume if a disaster broke out, most people would find shelter in the same city. It would have to be very big to force a move further away.
What does that have to do with juice boxes? If you still want to carry some liquids you could get by with smaller jugs and carry the boxes in pockets and in cloth bags wrapped around the handles of the jugs. I need to do more research, but the juices last a long time and do not need to be refrigerated.

Here's your list for this post,

What you need to buy first. A large knapsack! Good outer clothes, good shoes or boots, water jugs and juice boxes, extra vitamins and meds,hard candy and trail mix,granola,extra glasses if you wear glasses, extra underwear and socks. Photocopy all your important documents and seal it in a large zip-lock bag. After that I suggest a good tarp about 3 metres x 3 metres (about 10ftx10ft), a small pillow or blow up pillow, a good camping blanket and extra clothes. stuff extra toilet paper and a towel in a bag with soap and shaving kit. I would pack several flashlights, a radio and a good book or two, along with a deck of cards, a swiss army knife and a stainless steel cup. A small first aid kit is a must. A couple of cheap lighters and some matches or some other means of lighting a fire would not be out of order. That's it for the basic "bug-out" kit.

Michael J. Kaer, President of Kaer Enterprises (.com) and www.mikesworms.com