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I’m jealous, this kid had the ride of his life, and is living to tell the story. He sneaks onto the wing of an airplane and rides it for 2 hours from Perm to Moscow. He is suffering from some frostbite and mad props from his friends. He is 15 so this tale is sure to help him out with the ladies J

In case you missed part one on how to make the ultimate colored smoke bomb you can find it here. Here is part two where the video shows you how to make a pull ring for that smoke bomb to make it even cooler!

Yeah that’s right, first smoke bombs now thermite. It’s easy to make but can be dangerous so use with caution and for goodness sake, kids don’t do this without the army guy nearby.

I found this neat how to video on making the ultilmate colored smoke bomb. As always be careful when doing things like this and never use these in an unsafe manner. I accept no responsibility for your actions Click the picture for the video.

This isn’t a humor post. Just a thinking out loud post. Recently I moved someone’s camping trailer for them and a dozen things went wrong. Which led me to thinking about a Fix It kit for trailers that you can put together.

1. Most importantly, just because you pulled it with your truck a few times doesn’t mean that it will be pulled by your truck again. With that being said, keep in mind that not all vehicles are the same size. If you have a big hitch with sway and torsion bars then your hitch is probably adjustable and more than likely it is adjusted for your vehicle. Go take a look at the nuts & bolts on that hitch and make sure you have the correct wrenches stored IN the trailer WITH the hitch. Always, always store the hitch in the trailer with what you need to adjust every part of it. It will come in SUPER handy.

2. Misc Broken things:

• Super glue: get the variety pack of one time use tubes if you can. The super glue will always be dried out when you need it. The one time use tubes are great for avoiding this. Super Glue can be used to temporarily fix most of the plumbing on a trailer.
• Electric Tape: Exposed wires should not be. Check your brake line, it might have been dragged bare.
• Duct Tape: You got it! Good for a lot!
• Gloves: keep your hands scratch free!
• Tool bag with usual tools: You can buy ready to go tool bag/chest’s for under 50$ get one. They usually have an assortment of wrenches, a multi screw driver, a knife, flashlight (check on batteries)
• Shake or Crank Flashlight: Murphy’s Law, the batteries will be dead when you need it.
• A floor jack: Yes it is expensive and yes it is heavy but so is that trailer. Many trailers do not come with a jack for changing tires and the leveling jacks are NOT designed for this. Do not even attempt to lift the trailer (to change a tire) with the leveling or tongue jack. Get the big floor jack and stow it underneath. Most companies want you to use Road Side Assistance so you don’t get hurt but I figure this; if you can lift a floor jack than you should be able to handle changing a tire. MENTAL NOTE: Put blocks under the wheels of the trailer AND the floor jack when it is positioned so it doesn’t slide and CRUSH your silly head.
• Wet Wipes/Paper Towels/Towel AND Toilet Paper: In any situation where you need any of the above bulleted items will be a situation where you will get dirty, need to mop something up or wipe *something*.

Above all, have some common sense and ingenuity. Never put your life or the life of others at stake, if something doesn’t *feel* right about the trailer, it isn’t. Stop and investigate. If you’re not sure, find someone who knows better.

 If I missed anything that you feel should be here, let me know.

The 10 Essentials are the suggested minimum you should take with you on any outing. This is the first part in a series that I hope you will enjoy and find some use for. The aim is to educate the reader on the importance and uses of the 10 Essentials (and alternatives) so they will be more confident and able in the wilderness. I reserve the right to come up with my own version of the list and a mnemonic to help you remember.

The Ten Essentials:

1. Map
2. Compass
3. Sunglasses and Sunscreen
4. Extra Food
5. Extra Clothes
6. Headlamp/Flashlight
7. First Aid Supplies
8. Fire Starter
9. Matches
10. Knife

If you are reading this then hopefully you have already read the first post on Survival which is an outline of what you need to survive. We will be using this to further define the 10 Essentials.

Let’s break down this list into the the categories from the survival article.

1. Shelter
• Sunglasses and Sunscreen: they shelter you from the sun or glare from water, ice and snow. And depending on your prescription the sunglasses could be used to start a fire.
• Extra Clothes: again, more shelter
• Knife: Use it to cut branches, vines, plants for your shelter
2. Fire
• Headlamp/Flashlight: fire gives you light and you use these to light a fire (we’ll go over that later)
• Fire Starter: not the movie, usually a flammable paste or some kind of tinder. This can be handy in wet, damp weather when dry wood is hard to find.
• Matches: to light the fire!
3. Water (the original list did not specifically state anything related to water, BE WARNED you do need water storage and water purification abilities in most situations)
• Map: use it to locate rivers and other bodies of water.
• First Aid Supplies: I put this here just in case you pack water purification tabs in your first aid kit. If you don’t go put some in there right now.
• Refer to Fire and Clothing: With enough ingenuity you can build a water filter starting with these items (we will definitely go over this later)
4. Food
• Extra Food: eat it or use it to attract more food, like animals!
• Knife: use it to kill or cut up food.
5. Hope and Ingenuity
• Map: you need to know how to use it but it can be one of the most valuable items
• Compass: Very useful with or without the map, if you lose or break it, don’t worry we will go over direction later. Many compasses have a mirror, can be used for signaling.
• Headlamp/Flashlight: Use it to find your way, do things at night and for signaling. The parts can be used for other uses as well, sometimes the batteries can be used to produce a spark to start a fire.
• First Aid Supplies: many kits have the miminum plus. If your injuries are severe and you are not a doctor/medic you will need some ingenuity with your kit to patch yourself up. While a huge section in its own right, we will attempt to cover the basics for what are the most common injuries in the wilderness.

If you have not already, print this list and make a commitment to pack these items into at least one bag in the next week. Be sure to pack a large water bottle and some water purification tablets as well. Put this bag in your car so it is there when you need it.

That is all for now and stay tuned for our next installment where we cover the alternative lists and other items you should bring with you (or at least seriously considering doing so)

Most of my friends know I am a survival nut in one way or another. In my cars I always have the least of what I need to survive if I break down somewhere and if I ever drive more than hour out of town I will always bring my ‘GoBag’ (more about that later). Every vehicle has several MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat), my house has a few boxes as well as my trailer, just in case.

I’ve read hundreds of survival ‘guides’, books, cards, websites and so on and have always wondered what the most important tool/item would be for a survival situation, of ANY kind. Ingenuity. You can be without a knife, but you can make one out of bone, or stones, and sometimes wood (stabbing/spearing knives). You can be without shelter, but you can make one out of your surroundings. You can be without food, but you can find it or even discover it with the right testing process. You can even be without water but you can find it readily (in most cases). Even if you are without a map you can find your way.

Obviously that would be closer to an extreme situation and we all hope you don’t end up in one. But what if you do? What if for some magical reason you end up in the wilderness, all alone and with nothing? What do you do? (more…)