Hiking Camping and survival?

You live in an over-developed country where there are few "wilderness" areas and likely none open to your abuse destroying natural resources for your "survival" exercise. Furthermore, you seem to lack experience camping in controlled circumstances prior to your intended experiment in "survival" techniques. Always go fully prepared to function independently during your camping experience, with food and water filter, proper shelter and protective clothing, and other equipment for comfort and security. You need not be concerned about carrying a knife in the United Kingdom as long as you can express a legitimate need for the tool to any officer who challenges you. You should obtain more experience in developed campgrounds before striking-off on your own in wild areas. You should perform more resource on what is needed for a comfortable camping experience.

---------------------------

Day-hiking essentials: “The Ten Essentials.”

In my pockets, I always carry a pocket knife and fire starter, tissues or lint packets, along with several bandages in my wallet. Although reception does not exist in many gulches, I carry a cell phone that usually functions above tree-line.

In my daypack, I have compression sacks that hold my down jacket, heat packs, windbreaker, and down mittens or lighter gloves. I carry a second fire starter and two headlamps with extra batteries. I pack trail snacks, such as cheese, nuts, and rice chips. Attached by carabiner, I have at least two water bottles, sunglasses, reading glasses, and global positioning system. On most hikes, I also carry a water filter.

-----------------------------

Investigate commercial survival courses in the United Kingdom.

"I can set up a camp fire".

No, NO, you can't. I know Yorkshire well, having lived on the edge of the Moors and walked all over them.

If you try to light a fire on the Moors, or the Pennine moorland, you will soon be visited by a farmer or gamekeeper rightly worried about the whole moor being set on fire. Most will just make you put it out and tell you to clear off, some will get the police and want you charged with criminal damage (to the wood you burned, which was the property of the landowner), a few may beat you up or set a dog on you.

"A knife is a very important survival tool when out in the wilderness."

A classic 'survival knife' looks macho but isn't actually much use, as you cannot stab or butcher any animals, unless you want to land in jail. 90% of the cutting you might do will be of wood, for which a saw-edge is much more use than a knife-edge. Take a multi-tool for small cutting jobs, etc, and carry a 20 - 30cm folding saw for wood. As well as being more use, these have the added advantage of not upsettting policemen.

All I want to add is you better make sure you know the basics before you head out in to the wilderness alone. It's not hard to learn but I'd highly suggest having some experience under your belt before heading off alone.

For instance, if by 'soap' you mean soap for your body then that's not necessary. "Light" food? Nope. You need to eat more on the trail than you do when you're at home. And you sure better have plenty of matches or a lighter as well as a headlamp. Days turn in to nights. You also didn't mention a camp stove, sleeping bag and pad, utensils, a compass/map and appropriate clothes/extra socks.

And dude? Army boots from eBay? Uh..OK. But if you don't get a bunch of miles on them before you go you'll be having one rough outing.

Don't mean to discourage you because I do most of my backpacking alone. And while I'm not familiar with what the conditions are like in the UK I'd say that most any time you remove yourself from human contact you better have a pretty good idea of what you're doing.

My advice? Start slow. Do some solo car camping and hike during the day. Make your mistakes when they won't cost you too much.

You forgot the #1 thing that should be on your list. Therefore I recommend you find someone more experienced at this than you to go with, or to camp at a campsite.

The #1 thing you forgot is water--even if you are hoping that there is running water there, you need something to keep it in when you hike. Since you aren't hunting or fishing you need food, not some light food items. You never mention a map or a navigation device (compass or GPS).

Really this is an experiment in good packing. If you have everything you need in the car when you arrive at the campsite, you did well--if you are running out to a store for a couple things, then you need to plan better next time. Once you've tried camping next to a car a few times and know what you need to get by.

If you have a good camera on your phone, bring that. Bring some kind of lightweight entertainment--a book, a deck of cards, a pad of paper--something to do if you end up stuck in a tent in the rain. Also consider field guides and such--when you are out in nature sometimes when you find something you haven't seen it is nice to look it up so you can tell people about it.

Firstly, your knife is fine. As long as a copper can clearly see you're going camping and it's deep in the bottom of your rucksack whilst you're in public and not on display, you have a legitimate reason to carry it.

Just as long, it isn't a fixed blade.

I'm assuming that you already have a decent 60 litre rucksack and a decent 3 season sleeping bag and that your tent has a hydro-static head with a minimum of 3000mm. If it's anything lower, It's considered water-resistant rather than waterproof and you're going to get wet.

There's nothing much else you're missing from your list. I would probably throw in a couple of batteries, a head-torch/lamp, lighters/firestarter, a stove and some gas canisters, though.

Possibly, some chlorine tablets just in case.

If you have realized you've missed something, go look at a couple of brands.

Vango, campingaz, Bergahaus and Eurohike are good brands for what I listed.

Have fun :-)

Two issues, first your list is missing to many items so use a better check list here is a good one,

http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/backpacking...

Second issue- The uk highly regulates wilderness use and camping as well as personal defense items like knives and such so use a multi tool and you will have no problems. Search the internet sources for trails and wilderness area's that you can hike into and get all the required permits in advance, many require reservations a year in advance.

Good luck and good hikeing!

Class act's start with the like of one Messerschmitt Bf-110 allowing

flight over England just to pick a piece of it for yourself. Rudolf Hess

was dressed for success on arrival and so should reader. Until the

Home Guard arrives I suggest taking off any parachutes and making

sure your nose isn't dusty. Its not like you are standing in Yorkshire

wearing Feldgrau and under battle dented coal-scuttle helmet, is it?

Like Herr Hess you'll need papers to prove identity. Pistol or knife on

this outing is verboten. The list of existing camp gear needs little help.

Writer usually travels with axe or wood saw in scabbard on DR650SE.

Suggest a backpack design that allows padded waist strap to put the

content load on your hips and eliminate upper back distress. Use your

shoulder straps to mount a loud metal whistle, engineer compass, and

cellular holster with keyring. Writer usually hikes with a notebook that

contains route information found by Google Earth download. Using it

with a personal residence address I could see if your wet laundry is

sun dried outside or not. Writer often uses two metal walking poles

having pistol-like grips when walking rocky ground or swatting aside

aggressive animals. Mine are not easily bent and so resolve pub tab

disputes. Expect to consume a gallon of water each day. No, bitter

or porter is not the same thing. Listen to common sense even if you

are the only person talking.

2

1

I would look into portable solar chargers.