Essentials/Survival

Cub Scouts will only need a small First Aid kit of their own. Their First Aid kit should have some adhesive bandages, moleskin to prevent blisters, antibiotic ointment (single use packages work great), and insect bite pain reliever (not pills).  This is not a comprehensive list, but it will get your Cub Scout started.

Keeping your Cub Scout hydrated is crucial, especially when it is hot out. Everyone should have a water bottle that will hold enough water for the entire Day/Hike. If you're going on a longer hike and need to carry more water, a hydration pack is a great solution. 

If you plan on getting a hydration pack, think about getting one that has extra compartments to carry these Cub Scout 6 Essentials.

Please read our page on water and staying hydrated.

This can be a small keychain flashlight.  For camping and to have at night.  Even if you are going on a day hike it is good to carry all six essentials even the flashlight.

***It's important to teach the Scouts that these tools are better to have and not need, then to need and not have. ***

Flashlights seem to be a pretty straight forward tool to use, however when it comes to young Scouts they need to taught how to use a flashlight properly:

1. Never shine a flashlight into yours or others eyes.  Besides the possibility of permanent damage to young developing eyes, it can cause an individual temporary blindness which could cause them lose sence of their surrounding.  This can cause them to fall or hit object that are of great danger.

2. Only use the flashlight when necessary.  It is important to use our 6 essentials only when needed.  When it comes to flash lights we want to conserve the batteries as much as possible.  We may have spare batteries but the point of the 6 essentials is to carry emergency items so teaching to conserve the use of these items is imperative.

3. When it comes to the 6 Essentials these items should be dedicated to your 6 Essentials kit. So the flashlight in the kit should only be used for when this kit needs to be carried.  Because of this it is a good idea to remove the batteries from the light when the activity is over and leave those batteries in the kit with the flashlight.

Trail mix, granola bars, fruit... food that is healthy, energy boosting and does not need to be refrigerated.

We all know how important sunscreen is - even when its cloudy. A hat and lip balm are always a great addition.

There are two things your Cub Scouts need to know about the whistle: 

1) It's only for emergencies.

2) Three blasts of the whistle means "HELP!" 

It might be a good idea to practice the help signal before the hike or during a den meeting in order for the Scouts to understand the rules associated with the whistle.

A Knife can be handy in a wide variety of situations. It’s useful for tasks as large as building an emergency shelter or lighting a campfire with poor fuel, or as small as repairing a damaged backpack. Keep you knife sharp and clean, and don’t forget to first earn your Whittling Chip (for older Cub Scouts) or Totin’ Chip (for Boy Scouts).

To match the weather. Multiple layers are better than a single massive jacket, because layered clothing is adaptable to a wide range of temperatures.

Rain gear is very important. Rain can come in a hurry, and getting your clothes drenched is more than just uncomfortable, it can lead to hypothermia, a potentially fatal condition.

Hypothermia - a medical emergency that occurs when your body loses heat faster than it can produce heat, causing a dangerously low body temperature. Normal body temperature is around 98.6 F (37 C). Hypothermia (hi-poe-THUR-me-uh) occurs as your body temperature falls below 95 F (35 C).

How your body loses heat:

The mechanisms of heat loss from your body include the following:

Radiated heat - Most heat loss is due to heat radiated from unprotected surfaces of your body.

Direct contact - If you're in direct contact with something very cold, such as cold water or the cold ground, heat is conducted away from your body. Because water is very good at transferring heat from your body, body heat is lost much faster in cold water than in cold air. Similarly, heat loss from your body is much faster if your clothes are wet, as when you're caught out in the rain.

Wind - Wind removes body heat by carrying away the thin layer of warm air at the surface of your skin. A wind chill factor is important in causing heat loss.

Fires Starters may be used to light fires for heat, or for signaling for help. Store matches or lighters in resealable plastic bags.

For Boy Scouts not Cubs, the Map & Compass are probably the most important tools you can carry in case you get lost.

Some say the Map and Compass have been substituted with Navigation (GPS).  I say this is nonsense.  Especially for the older Boy Scouts.  I want my Scouts to know how to use a Map and Compass.  In life and especially survival understanding how to use a simple Compass and knowing your cardinal directions is imperative.  A compass is simple to those that know how to use it, learning to use a Compass and with a Map can be complicated.  My 2 year old can use my GPS.  However when the battery dies or I loose my signal I am stuck in the wild with no knowledge of direction.