No One 17.4 The Staged Go-Bag (Bug-Out Bag)
Difficulty: Moderate · Time: about 1 day to assemble · Cost: about $200–$500 per person
I once helped unpack a mechanic’s go-bag during a training weekend. Expecting the usual—knife, flashlight, first aid—I was surprised by how plain it was: work gloves duct-taped to the straps, a battered paper notebook, and no gadgets. His spare fuel wasn’t in the bag at all; it rode in an approved fuel can in his truck. “Fuel never goes in the pack,” he said. “Everything in here, I’ve used in bad weather.” What really caught me off-guard was a photo of his family, sealed in plastic. “Reminds me why I move fast.” That little snapshot weighed nothing, but it felt heavier than the tools.
A go-bag is a pack, prepared in advance, that keeps one person alive and functioning for about 72 hours away from home. “Staged” means it’s packed, checked, and sitting by the exit, not scattered across three closets. Many people call it a bug-out bag. Same thing.
What you need
One sturdy, comfortable backpack per person who can carry one (about 1,800 to 3,000 cubic inches, or 30 to 50 liters, for adults), packed with:
Water - Two 1-quart (1-liter) bottles or a 2- to 3-quart (2- to 3-liter) bladder - A filter (0.1 to 0.2 micron) and a chemical backup (chlorine dioxide tablets) - A metal cup or small pot for boiling
Food - Three days of compact, high-calorie food that needs no cooking: bars, nut butter packets, trail mix, jerky - Aim for about 2,000 to 2,500 calories per day for moving adults - Pick food by calories per pound, because weight is what you carry. Rough figures: - nuts, nut butter, and trail mix: about 2,500 to 2,800 calories per pound (453 grams) - commercial emergency ration bars: about 2,000 to 2,300 calories per pound; they’re built to last 5 years in a hot car, but they’re dry and dull - freeze-dried meal pouches: about 1,800 to 2,200 calories per pound dry, but they need about 2 cups (16 fluid ounces, or 473 milliliters) of hot water each - granola and energy bars: about 1,800 to 2,000 calories per pound - jerky: about 1,100 to 1,400 calories per pound, mostly protein - MREs (military-style ready meals, sold surplus and civilian): about 800 to 900 calories per pound with packaging, heavy for what you get, but complete, no-cook, and they come with a flameless heater (Section 13.6, Volume 1) - tuna or chicken pouches: about 500 to 700 calories per pound; good protein, light compared to cans, but low calorie - Weight budget: plan on about 1 1/2 to 2 pounds (0.7 to 0.9 kilogram) of food per person per day, so 4 1/2 to 6 pounds (2 to 2.7 kilograms) for three days. Water weighs about 8 1/3 pounds per gallon (1 kilogram per liter), so carry some and plan to treat the rest (Section 20.2). - Pack food you’ve actually eaten and liked. Check expiration dates when you rotate the bag
Shelter and clothing - Tarp (8 × 10 feet) or poncho, with 50 feet of cord - Emergency bivvy or two emergency blankets - Closed-cell foam pad or small sleeping bag (season-dependent) - Layers: base layer, insulating jacket, rain shell, warm hat, gloves, and two pairs of wool or synthetic socks (Section 24.3) - Sturdy, broken-in footwear
Fire and light - Two lighters, a ferro rod, and storm matches in a waterproof bag - Tinder: cotton balls with petroleum jelly in a small container - Headlamp with a red light mode, plus spare batteries
Medical - Individual first aid kit: tourniquet, gauze, pressure bandage, gloves, tape, blister care, pain relievers, antihistamine, personal medications for at least a week (Section 27.1)
Navigation and communication - Paper maps of your routes, compass (Chapter 22) - Whistle, signal mirror - Phone, charging cable, power bank (Section 10.8) - Small battery or crank radio, or a two-way radio (Chapter 10) - Contact sheet and the household plan on paper - Your copy of No One Is Coming in a waterproof zip bag, packed apart from your backup phone or tablet so one loss doesn’t take both (Section 10.10)
Tools - Fixed-blade or folding knife - Multitool - Duct tape (a few yards wound around a card or bottle) - Work gloves - Trash bags (two heavy-duty) - N95 masks
Documents and cash - Copies of IDs, insurance, prescriptions, and key records in a waterproof bag (Section 17.6) - Cash in small bills
Hygiene - Small soap, hand sanitizer, toilet paper, trowel, toothbrush, menstrual supplies, wet wipes
Optional tools and weapons
Everything in this group is optional. I treat these as tools and necessities, not as a show of force, and each person decides what fits their skills, their household, and their law. If you carry none of it, the rest of the bag still does its job.
Safety for tools and weapons - Follow your state, provincial, and local laws on owning, carrying, and transporting firearms. They vary a lot, especially across state lines, and in Canada handguns are heavily restricted. - Get training before you rely on any firearm. I train at a range on a regular schedule with every firearm I keep, because skill fades fast without practice. - Go hunting with an experienced hunter before you need to. That’s how I learned to hunt and to use the knife, hatchet, and rifle safely, from someone who had done it for years. - Take a hunter education course. Most states and provinces require one before you can get a hunting license. - Store everything unloaded and locked, away from children. - Check hunting license and season rules before you take any game.
Steps
- Lay everything out on the floor before it goes in the pack. Check each item works.
- Pack heavy items close to your back and centered between the shoulder blades. Light, bulky items go at the bottom (sleeping gear) and outside pockets hold things you need quickly (water, map, rain shell, first aid).
- Line the pack with a trash bag to keep the contents dry.
- Weigh it. A loaded pack should be no more than about 20 to 25 percent of your body weight if you’re fit, less if you’re not. For children, about 10 percent.
- Wear it on a 2- to 3-mile walk. Adjust the straps, then remove anything you can live without.
- Stage it by the exit, with boots and a jacket beside it.
- Label each bag with the owner’s name inside, not outside.
Safety
- A bag you can’t carry is worse than no bag. It will slow you down, injure you, and end up in a ditch.
- Rotate food, water, batteries, and medications every six months (Section 17.8).
- Look ordinary. A plain backpack draws less attention than a military-style pack covered in straps and patches.
