SAR ReadyPack

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When out in the field it is important to have all necessary equipment and supplies, in working order, sufficient to keep YOURSELF mobile and functional.  You must not become dependent upon other people for these items, nor should you ever give yours away lest you find yourself in need of and without them.  You should never allow yourself to become separated from your readypack.

The buzzwords for readypack items are portable, versatile, durable, and reliable.  Portable means lightweight and compact--a load exceeding 30 lbs (13.5 kg) is probably excessive for most adults.  One way to keep weight down is to use cross-utility instead of carrying spares; an example is to have all electronic gear use the same size batteries, so that the "spares" are already present in items that you are not immediately using.  You should have versatile items--those that can serve multiple purposes with improvisation, such as a net sleeping hammock rather than a ground cloth, which can double as a dry seat, cargo suspender ("bear bag"), or even as a stretcher.

Durability and reliability usually go hand in hand; items that are delicate during rough work probably will fail just when you most need them.  Avoid cheap or non-waterproof construction, and do invest a small amount of extra weight on protective containment of breakable items, such as cases for GPS receivers.  

For clothing, think BUBU--the acronym for big, ugly, bulky, and unconstricting, and remember many useful items are small enough to carry as pocket items rather than deep in your pack.   My own preference is for one additional clothing quality; visibility.  Nothing is harder to see than camouflage (especially from a plane!), so bright unnatural colors (bright blue or blaze orange) and night illumination (reflective tape, flashers, etc.) are advisable.       [BACK]

There are several classes of readypack items.  Personal safety and comfort, mission operations, and consumables constitute the bulk of what each person must carry, and occasionally there will be additional specialty items (e.g., a camera).  However, remember that you may have extended periods of arduous work, so that your fully loaded pack must neither be so heavy as to fatigue you prematurely, nor so bulky as to impair your progress through dense vegetation or across rugged terrain.  A good pack capacity should not exceed 1800 in³, and often can be much less; it also should have no sharp projections and few loose ties that can tangle.