Urban Survival Site

  • HOME
  • START HERE
  • CONTACT
  • DEFENSE
    • Home Security
    • Self Defense
    • Weapons
  • DIY
    • Gardening
    • Projects
    • Upcycling
  • FOOD
    • Cooking
    • Food Storage
    • Survival Food
    • Water
  • FREE GEAR
  • MISC
    • Books
    • Economy
    • Holidays
    • SHTF
    • Weather
  • SKILLS
    • Beginners
    • First Aid
    • Frugality
    • Survival Skills
  • SUPPLIES
    • Bug Out
    • Gear
    • Lists
    • Medical
    • Power
  • SURVIVAL
    • Bugging Out
    • Disasters
    • Health
    • Survival Tips
    • Urban Survival
You are here: Home / Supplies / Gear / 13 Essential Items For Your Get Home Bag

Want To Prep But Not Sure Where To Begin?

Sign Up for Our Newsletter and Get Your FREE One Year Urban Survival Plan!

I will never give away, trade or sell your email address. You can unsubscribe at any time.

13 Essential Items For Your Get Home Bag

By Alan 7 Comments ✓ This post may contain affiliate links*

761
SHARES
PinShareTweetPrint

13 Essential Items For Your Get Home BagLet’s begin today’s article with a simple question: How much time do you spend at home compared to the time you spend at work, running errands, driving, in school, visiting friends, and so forth?

Now let’s suppose something bad happens while you’re away from home, something like a random car accident that leaves you stranded in the middle of nowhere, not to mention catastrophic events like major earthquakes or terrorist attacks.

What do you do? If you’re a prepper, you probably have plenty of food and water along with guns, ammo and the whole nine yards. You probably also have a bug out bag sitting in your home, collecting dust. And your home is 20 miles away. See the problem?

Here’s where the get home bag comes into play.

What is a get home bag? Basically, it’s the little brother of your bug out bag. Instead of keeping it at home, you keep it in your car (or at work if you don’t drive a car). This bag will help you get home safely during a disaster.

The get home bag (GHB) is part of the holy trinity of prepping, along with your everyday carry bag (EDC) and your bug out bag (BOB). The difference between the BOB and the GHB is that the former is a full size backpack designed to carry enough supplies to keep you alive and kicking for more than a week in a SHTF scenario.

The only purpose of the GHB is to help you get home in case your regular commute is compromised following an unfortunate event (civil unrest, severe weather, power-grid failure, natural disasters, vehicle breakdown, road closures, and so forth).

And if you think I’m talking nonsense, just remember what happened on 9/11, how many people died or developed severe lung problems from inhaling smoke, fumes, and dust while escaping ground zero. Now, imagine how much better off they would have been with N95 face masks. Starting to get the picture?

Hence, today’s article is about how to build the perfect get home bag. Don’t worry, assembling your get home bag is not difficult and can be done in a couple of hours.

Get Home Bag List

Starting with the bag itself, the idea is to have a minimalist approach. You should choose something lightweight yet sturdy, easy to carry while keeping your hands free, and that doesn’t attract attention. Ideally, a small backpack will do the trick, even a laptop bag.

Now, let’s see about what’s in the bag.

1. Metal Container

Hydration being of crucial importance, you should pack something you can drink from. I suggest you get a metal bottle because it gives you the possibility to boil water or even cook in it, which comes handy in a survival scenario.

2. High-Calorie Foods

With hydration taken care of, food is the next issue. You should have 6-10 energy/protein bars in your get home bag. Don’t waste time with packing elaborate military grade freeze-dried meals or things of that nature.

Just go for simple high calorie bars which are great when you’re on the go, as they don’t require you stopping for eating nor heating/preparation. Also, they’re cheap, lightweight, and have long shelf lives (5 years in this particular case).

3. Poncho

A military-version of the classic rain poncho is a must-have item. Getting wet in a crisis situation will make you feel miserable, and hypothermia can be deadly. If you’re wet in an outdoors survival scenario, you’ll be prone to hypothermia even if it’s not very cold outside.

Also, a rain poncho with grommets in the corners has multiple uses, including the ability to form a shelter.

4. Comfy Pair Of Shoes

Walking or tennis shoes would be a great addition to your GHB, especially if you wear dress shoes when you’re at work. Don’t forget to add a pair of spare socks, too.

5. Multi-tool

A high-quality multi-tool is another must-have item in your get home bag, as it will provide you with a saw blade, wire cutters, cross point/flat head drivers, pliers, and even a tough knife-blade, things for which there’s no substitute in an emergency situation.

You could also add a fixed blade survival knife into the mix.

6. First Aid Kit

Gauze pads, bandages, splint, gauze, moleskin, sunscreen, medical tape, tweezers, together with some basic meds like antacids, aspirin, Tylenol, and Dramamine. Don’t forget to include some antibacterial wet wipes.

7. Mylar Blanket

An emergency Mylar blanket will save your life in an outdoors survival situation. It’s lightweight, compact, cheap, and you can use it for improvising a shelter.

8. N95 Face Mask

Definitely don’t forget this as it will help you in a variety of scenarios: dust, debris, or even sickness. Oftentimes, your T-shirt won’t be enough.

9. Flashlight

You’ll need this in case you’re travelling through an unlit area at night. If you want to keep your hands free, consider getting a high quality head-lamp (water resistant, hands free).

10. Compass and Paper Map

Technology is great, but I wouldn’t rely on my smartphone when it comes to survival, hence a compass and a paper map of your surrounding area may save your life, especially if you live in a large city. You won’t be the only one trying to get home, so plan for alternative routes/detours from where you work.

Speaking of that, check out our article, How To Get Home After The SHTF.

11. Cash

Make sure you have some cash (the universal language everybody understands) in your GHB, including coins for vending machines.

12. Lighter

You may need to boil water, heat up food, or just stay warm while you make your way home, so make sure you have a good lighter or some other kind of fire starter.

13. Weapon

Last but not least, don’t forget about self-defense. SHTF events tend to be a breeding ground for desperation, frustration and even confrontation. You know that saying: when people lose everything, they have nothing left to lose and they lose it.

Of course, there are plenty more things you could put in your get home bag, but the items in this list are essential. And remember, even the perfect get home bag will be absolutely useless if you don’t keep it handy. Try to keep it near you at all times.

Want To Prep But Not Sure Where To Begin?

Sign Up for Our Newsletter and Get Your FREE One Year Urban Survival Plan!

I will never give away, trade or sell your email address. You can unsubscribe at any time.

761
SHARES
PinShareTweetPrint

You May Also Like:

Comments

  1. Sonya says

    February 22, 2019 at 10:58 am

    If you keep ur bob in your vehicle wouldn’t that work as a ghb ?

    Reply
    • Leslie Miller says

      July 26, 2020 at 5:54 pm

      it would but what would you do if you were separated from your vehicle (i.e. you used public transportation to get to your present location, or carpool)? This is a bag you carry that is small enough to have with you all the time, yet, unobtrusive enough to not draw attention and give you some items to make things easy for you to get back home or to your vehicle (which may be vandalized and/or robbed while you are away from it)

      Reply
  2. Jack Fallin says

    November 21, 2016 at 7:13 pm

    Your GHB can wind up as large as a BOB, my problem. Water, good shoes, warm & dry, extra batteries for light, good first aid kit, 24-48 hrs food. You won’t make the same distance per day as an infantry recruit. Prepare for half the distance so twice the time. Good article.

    Reply
  3. prsmith says

    November 14, 2016 at 11:05 pm

    Toss a broad brimmed hat in with the backpack (and you might want to stick a mosquito net and sunglasses in there also).
    I’d add some cordage – 25 feet of Paracord and 25 yards of bank line.
    I’d add a second fire starter – two is one and one is none.
    I’d add several yards of Gorilla tape – multiple uses including blister cover, tarp/poncho repair, butterfly band aids and many others.
    Shelter is life. Depending on where you live and the time of year, you’re likely going to want more shelter than a poncho and a mylar blanket. An 8×12 plastic tarp with guy ropes attached is a good start. Roll up a 2 inch thick ground pad, a wool blanket and a bivvy bag in the tarp and you’ve got a sleep system.
    I’d add some water purification tablets in case you don’t want to/can’t build a fire.
    It might be a luxury but I’d add a water filter (Burbank bag) to get rid of the nasty stuff before you boil/chemically purify to get rid of the nasties.
    I’d add a toiletries kit – sunscreen, bug repellent, hand soap, TP, toothbrush/paste, etc. – you’ll sleep better.
    And don’t forget to include your medications – especially if your life depends on them.

    Reply
    • prsmith says

      November 14, 2016 at 11:23 pm

      Oh yeah, I’d add three other things that are simply critical – knowledge, experience and conditioning. Go camping, learn several ways to configure your tarp. Obtain, filter and purify your drinking water. Learn how to build a fire and then learn how to hide your fire. An old Boy Scout handbook or one of the excellent survival manuals out today should also find a spot in your pack. If you’ve got 3 days worth of food but your three day excursion turns into a miserable 7 or 10 day marathon because you’re out of shape and twist an ankle or damage a knee in a fall, well. . .

      The list just seems to grow. . .a second light source such as http://www.ebay.com/itm/Streamlight-73001-Nano-Light-Micro-Miniature-LED-Key-Chain-Light-/351899493697?hash=item51eed82541:g:v4sAAOSwo4pYKnJw would be a good idea and don’t forget spare batteries. These are great for EDC also.

      Reply
  4. Raven says

    November 9, 2016 at 6:59 pm

    Great list of items to include in your Get Home Bag. The metal bottle is a great multi-functional tool that is worth the little extra weight, but I wouldn’t recommend a vacuum insulated or double wall ones if you plan to use it to cooking or boil water on a camp fire. I have had great luck with the unpainted single wall Klean Kanteens. Just remember to remove the plastic top when placing them next to the fire!

    Reply
  5. Ronn Candow says

    November 9, 2016 at 12:01 am

    great advice

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Facebook Icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon
Easy Cellar Video
Lost Ways Video
Blackout USA Video
Food For Freedom Video
Lost Book Of Remedies
Prepper Website

  TOP POSTS

25 Fruits & Veggies You Can Grow In Buckets
The Beginner's Guide To Emergency Food Storage
100 Survival Items You Forgot To Buy
15 Brilliant Uses for Buckets
50 Dirt-Cheap Items That Will Be Priceless After The Collapse
Top 100 Bug Out Bag Items

© Copyright 2010-2020 Urban Survival Site · All Rights Reserved

Disclosure · Privacy · Terms of Use

Facebook · Pinterest · Twitter

* Urban Survival Site is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Copyright © 2021 · Agency Pro On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in