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ejain
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PostThu Mar 16, 2017 11:34 pm 
Just inventoried my first aid kit.
I'm curious what items you keep in your hiking/backpacking first aid kits?

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InFlight
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Joined: 20 May 2015
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PostFri Mar 17, 2017 7:23 am 
There was another long thread on this subject last year. Basic First Aid items + Foot Care is really what's needed. The most important thing is personal knowledge of how to treat medical issues. I generally consider the sunblock and chap stick to be another essential (protection from sun) and keep them more handy than the first aid kit.

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately...” ― Henry David Thoreau
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HitTheTrail
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PostFri Mar 17, 2017 7:03 pm 
If not using this as a car first aid kit you could probably eliminate the flashlight and fire starter. Assuming you would be taking a headlamp and stove. Also, some compasses have a mirror built-in. But for backpacking I would also include a small tick removal tool and/or tweezers for splinters. And, you have two kinds of tape. Duct tape works for EVERYTHING!

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Brucester
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PostSun Apr 09, 2017 8:22 am 
You'll be glad you have one in the event of an accident. Twice I've relied on my simple kit. One was an over sight using wearing Atlas gloves (without cut proof rating) while removing dead fall on a trail using a Corona saw and the other time getting stabbed by a branch while ascending Middle Chiwakum in summer. In regards to safety, I also wear safety glasses especially while bushwacking and definitely while cycling. You only have two eyes and we all know how productive we are once something enters just one of the eyes. Band aids Duct tape Advil Gauze TP Alcohol wipes Q tips Baby wipes Cloth wrap Ointment Benedryl Calcium Magnesium Zinc Ear plugs (sleeping during mosquito season) Sharpie (signs: hitching, emergency) Sometimes spare pair of contacts and EpiPen

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Navy salad
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PostSun Apr 09, 2017 2:18 pm 
I also keep a small piece of paper and a short pencil (with duct tape wrapped around it as a handy way to wrap the tape on something), which was helpful once when I needed to write down GPS lat/long for a seriously injured hiker. Tweezers: make sure they have a flat surface where they come together. I have a pair that essentially have two points that come together and it's next to impossible to grab a sliver with them. Immodium: I never used to bother with this kind of thing, until I was hit (hard) without any being available. I will spare you the details, but immodium would've been extremely useful! Eye drops: I bring a couple tiny (each probably holds maybe 1/4 gram) disposable containers of eye drops that are virtually weightless. For serious bleeding (unlikely, but possible), it's hard to beat a maxi-thin kind of pad (I learned this in a Mountaineers first aid class).

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Schenk
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PostMon Apr 10, 2017 9:59 am 
Navy salad wrote:
For serious bleeding (unlikely, but possible), it's hard to beat a maxi-thin kind of pad (I learned this in a Mountaineers first aid class).
Those are good, but to stop serious bleeding faster this stuff works: http://www.quikclot.com/Products Hopefully no body will ever need to use any of these.

Nature exists with a stark indifference to humans' situation.
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DIYSteve
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PostMon Apr 10, 2017 11:54 am 
Steri-Strips have come in handy a few times

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Bandanabraids
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PostThu Apr 13, 2017 9:52 pm 
I have a little basic first aid kit in my running pack. Added to that, I carry one or two super or regular tampons, which have many uses besides the regular usage.

"Do or do not. There is no try" --Yoda
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thunderhead
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PostFri Apr 14, 2017 8:55 am 
A small roll of duct tape and some painkillers, and a little hand sanitizer. Ultralight, right?

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glenoid
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PostFri Apr 14, 2017 4:54 pm 
Agree with DIYSteve about the sterile strips. Be sure to apply benzoin to the intact skin, or they won't stick very well. (The new "skin glues" are great if applied properly. Not in the cut itself; then sterile strips over that for even more support.)

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wakerobin
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PostMon Apr 24, 2017 8:23 pm 
Do folks keep their prescription meds in their first aid kits or elsewhere? I keep a baggie of my thyroid pills in my first aid kit, usually (thankfully) that's the only love my first aid kit gets. smile.gif

Between the silence of the mountains and the crashing of the sea...
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