Assembling a survival kit is at best a daunting task to the beginner. There is a plethora of information available; The 5 C's, 10 C's, the rule of 3s, Jerry D. Young's endless lists. There are any numbers of ways to approach the question of what should be in a survival kit. What we end up with is a failure of imagination. In order to properly assemble a kit is is incumbent on the individual to carefully consider his or her unique situation and what the most likely scenario would require of the kit. There is no universal list that will satisfy each individual's needs in every likely scenario. Each kit must be customized. So, how do you begin to approach the problem of assembling a unique, custom kit tailored to your specific situation? Easy. USE YOUR IMAGINATION! Imagine yourself trapped in the most likely scenario that may require you to survive using only your wits and the contents of your pack. Use the four ancient elements; Air, Fire, Water and Earth, to consider the threats to your survival and how they may be overcome. PRACTICE the skills necessary to properly utilize the contents of your kit. Then insure that you are never caught unprepared without your kit. To illustrate the approach I am proposing I will present a basic survival scenario, then prioritize the threats faced in it and list some items that will serve you well in that scenario. This is by no means meant as a comprehensive list for each individ- ual! So... THE SCENARIO: You are on a camping/fishing trip in the Adirondaks in early September. You went off the trail looking for a better fishing spot, lost track of time, and realize you're going to have to hunker down for the night before heading back to basecamp in the morning. The daytime temps were in the 70s but are expected to drop into the 40s overnight, with a chance of showers before morning. You are dressed in a T-shirt, cargo pants and trail shoes with only the contents of your pack to sustain you. The first thing you're going to have to deal with is your exposure to the... AIR "these are GARMENTS Mr. Cratchet, designed to protect us from the cold" -Ebenezer Scrooge The rule of 3s states that we can survive 3 minutes without air. Air is the only element that affects us every minute of every hour of every day. It is in constant contact with our skin and continued exposure to it's extremes can kill us within 3 hours. Constant attention must be paid to maintaining our body temperature and avoiding hyper- and hypothermia. The first and most basic line of defense are, of course, the clothes on your back. In this scenario you are not dressed ad- equately for the expected conditions, thus the first item you should consider is some kind of a thermal base- or outer layer. A long sleeve thermal undershirt or sweatshirt should be the first thing in your kit. Wool or synthetic fibers are a better choice for this item as they tend to maintain their thermal properties even when wet. And that raises the next problem; rain. Being wet and cold as opposed to just cold exposes you to hypothermia faster and at higher ambient temps. Thus, some kind of rain gear should be included in your kit. A heavy plastic poncho is the most use- ful item to have as it can also double as ground cover to shield you from the cold ground. A military style poncho can be used with an insulated liner (woobie) for additional warmth. But even a large plastic trash can liner is better than nothing. Now that you're dressed for the conditions you will want to make some kind of encampment for the night. Camp means shelter, and short of lugging several pounds of tent around the trail all day you should at least have a tarp. An 8x10 water- proof tarp can be fashioned into a basic pup tent quickly and easily. It is also large enough to completely shelter you from the rain. Wind is another story, but by carefully considering how it's positioned and configured much of the wind's effects can be alleviated. Of course the tarp shelter will require some cordage to properly erect. I'm not going to engage in the ongoing debate be- tween paracord, bankline and what have you. Suffice it to say that anyone who thinks some type of cordage, be it even hum- ble mason's line, is unnecessary is not someone I'd want to be caught out in the wilderness with. One item that some may consider a luxury but I would have with me in this scenario is a small fleece blanket. Rolled up in your tarp it will add almost no weight to your kit and could go a long way toward making the night easier to endure. In lieu of a fleece blanket you should carry a couple mylar space blankets. In addition to heat retention space blankets are very noticeable when you're in distress. So there you are, huddled under your tarp, laying on a bed of evergreen fronds covered by your poncho and wrapped in your fleece blanket. The only thing that could make you more comfortable now would be a nice crackling.... FIRE It is man's ability to harness and control fire that sets him apart from the other of earth's creatures...well, that and opposable thumbs, which are pretty useful as well. Fire has civilized us, made us powerful, and destroyed us many times over. It is your ability to make fire that could be the deciding factor in whether or not you see the morning sun. There is an ongoing debate regarding how many different ways to make fire should be included in a survival kit. I'm not going to engage that debate beyond this; carry as many as you can use effectively and are willing to lug around all day. The first and most basic fire source is the disposable lighter. Cheap and readily avilable you should have a couple in your pack at all times. There are some who prefer the classic Zippo and to them I say "carry on". One thing to remember is that both the Bic and Zippo do not function well when wet, so keep them dry if you want to have them when you need them. Next pack some matches. Wooden strike anywhere matches are best, but even the humble matchbook will make fire. So called "lifeboat" matches are more weather resistant and make a big long lasting flame and are worth the investment. They are quite reminiscent of holiday sparklers when they burn, adding a festive touch to your survival efforts. Much more weather resistant and reliable is the firesteel. Made of a compound known as "ferrocerium" the firesteel produ- ces a shower of big hot sparks when scraped with a steel. When combined with a flammable tinder fire is the result. Fire- steels do require some skill and practice to use effectively so don't pack one unless you have actually produced fire with one several times. Similar to the firesteel is the magnesium match. They normally come with a ferro rod molded into one side, and work by scraping a pile of shavings off the bar and then sparking the ferro rod with a steel. The one I carry has a piece of hacksaw blade chained to it for scraping and sparking. As with the firesteel don't pack one unless you have used it to good effect. A ball of steel wool can be ignited by touching a 9 volt battery to it. This is a tried and true method of fire making and also makes a neat parlor trick at parties. Just be ready to explain why you're carrying it around with you. You should also make an effort to keep the steel wool well seperated from the battery in your pack. Ask me how I know that. If all else fails you could always rub 2 sticks together. Whatever method of fire making you choose you should have packed some kind of tinder. Tinder is what transfers combus- tion from your ignition source to your kindling and fuel. There are as many different types of tinder as there are ignition sources. Balls of cotton mixed with petroleum jelly, dryer lint enhanced with a few drops of lighter fluid and sawdust simi- larly treated are just a few. I carry about a dozen alcohol pads, which only require a small spark to ignite but produce a nearly invisible flame. Have some fun experimenting with various tinders to find your own preference. All of your various igniters and tinders should be packed and sealed in a waterproof container. The standard guideline for kindling and fuel state that tinder ignites kindling and kindling ignites fuel. Kindling can be anyting from dried leaves to twigs as big around as a pencil. Fuel starts at the diameter of your thumb. There are many good guides to proper construction of a fire pile so I'm not going to get into all that. But you should practice building fires with all of your chosen methods until you know you can build one successfully in adverse conditions. Finally, in the interest of safety, in order to extinguish your fire you should keep close at hand plenty of... WATER After air, water is the most critical element to our survival.