In our days of running around the woods, we would always have a backpack with us that had at least a handful of key items. There are other useful items to have with you but these were some of our consistent favorites. In case you want to pick any of these items up for yourself, we’ll provide links to each item next to the paragraph header.
Fixed Blade Knife (Buy one here)
The uses of a fixed blade knife are virtually endless. Use it to sharpen a stick, cut down a small tree, gut a fish, anything that needs a knife but requires a little more "umph" than a folding pocket knife. We never went, or go, far into the woods without a good knife. One of my favorite knives ever is a knife made by Glock, which is the one I linked above and I also I wrote a full length review of here.
Hatchet (Buy one here)
If you need to cut down larger trees, split wood for fires, or drive stakes, a hatchet is a good go-to tool that has many uses and can’t really be understated. The one I linked to is made by Estwing and was given to me as a gift by Jacob and I love it. It’s got a real leather handle and is forged from a single piece of steel so the head will never come off. I plan on writing a full length review of it soon, which when complete I will link to here, in the meantime click at the bottom of the page to be notified of new articles so you don’t miss when I post that.
Shemagh (Buy one here)
We absolutely love these things, and have used them for years. I’ve used mine to keep bugs off of my face when sleeping in a hammock, soak it in water and put it around your neck to stay cool, or wrap it around your face to stay warm in colder temperatures. An additional use is you never know if you or one of your buddies will get cut in the woods and a shemagh can be used as a bandage in a pinch.
Paracord (Buy one here)
You never know when you may need to tie something. Paracord is strong, durable, and small enough to be easy to tie knots with. Use it for making shelters, crafting tools, hanging hammocks, or even take the smaller fibers out of the middle and use it for fishing line. You can’t really go wrong with this stuff.
Lifestraw (Buy one here)
These things are great. It’s always good to have water with you when you are outside, but if you are out for an extended period of time, eventually you will run out. But if you have a lifestraw, as long as there is a creek or some other body of water nearby (you can’t use salt water though) your supply of water will pretty much be limitless. The lifestraw has a series of microfilters that takes bad bacteria out of the water making it safe to drink. It cannot eliminate harmful chemicals though so it’s important to understand how to use the lifestraw properly and what is potentially in the water you are drinking from.
Matches (Buy some here)
When you are out at your fort or your campsite, sometimes you just want to make a campfire. Maybe for warmth, maybe to cook a meal, or maybe just for the fun of it. Lighting a campfire can be fun! The matches I’ve linked above, made by Diamond, are the ones I really like. The solid wooden sticks make them easier to light and put under your tinder then soft matches like the ones from a matchbook.
This is the end I guess (Buy one…. wait... umm this is awkward. There’s nothing to link here. Whoops.)
Well that’s it, that’s our list of 6 things you need in your backpack for a day in the woods. Certainly there is a near infinite number of items that you COULD take into the woods, so we’ll probably do more of these types of lists as well as individual reviews of each piece of gear as we move forward.
-Isaac
Disclaimer: Some of the links posted here in this post are affiliate links. What does that mean? If you click these links and end up buying something after clicking then we get a small percentage of that purchase. It doesn't cost you a penny extra so don't worry, but it does help us out some. So we thank you in advance! Get out there and build an adventure!
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