Get Home Bag Checklist
Here is a list of recommendations from Are You Ready host, Nick Pierce, the Barefoot Prepper. For more great tips and information listen to Are You Ready live Wednesdays at 7PM Eastern and on all popular podcast platforms.
If you leave your home regularly you should build yourself a get home bag.
Do you work or go to school outside your home?
Do you go shopping?
Are you going on vacation?
A get home bag is to help you make it home safely following a disaster.
Why you need one:
A get home bag helps you get home to your supplies and loved ones following a disaster. Especially one that disrupts your ability to use modern transportation. Things like downed bridges, transportation lockdown, destroyed roadways can become permanently un-passable. you’re forced to ditch your vehicle to hike home.
Another element to a get home bag/EDC is what environment you are in. If you are walking around the city going back and forth to work in an office building in business dress you may not want a camouflage tactical backpack that may not fit in with your “professional” office setting – get a black laptop bag or a commuter backpack instead. it’s critical to choose the right get home bag for you. You need one that’s durable, rugged, portable, well designed and priced right. You don't want one too cumbersome to carry and take with you every day. If it is too small and you won’t be able to take all your critical survival items with you.
Just like your bug out bag there are some key items you need to consider along with the type of bag.
Lets first look at the key things you need.
1- Water
2- shelter
3- safety-personal protection and first aid
4- fire
5-food
6- your get home plan
Water
For water there are 2 essentials. First is a water bottle the other is a way to gather and purify water.
A Stainless Steel Water Bottle is my recommendation along with a water straw/life straw. A stainless steel water bottle is great for boiling water to purify contaminated water in a pinch.
You may need several days’ worth of water. Water is heavy so you’ll need more than you can carry. However, drinking from streams, rivers, ponds, lakes or even puddles and down spouts can be risky. Natural water sources are often contaminated with viruses, bacteria, parasites or chemicals that will make you sick or even kill you. That is where the water straw comes in. It filters the water. Im my Get home Bag I have a steal water bottle to put clean water in. I have the water straw and a collapsible water bladder to collect water in that may need to be treated. Most water straws or inline filters will remove 99.999% of harmful bacteria.
I would like to add that water purification tablets are just a waist in my opinion. They sit around forever you never use them and they expire.
Shelter-
Plan on not making it home in a few hours – it might take several days. Depending on your skills you may have to pack a lightweight shelter. Sometimes it may be as simple as a tarp and some rope (550 Paracord) even an emergency blanket made of Mylar. There are also things called Bivvys that are like a mini lightweight sleeping bag made of Mylar. In my bag I have a mylar blanket, and paracord
Safety-personal protection and first aid
First-aid: You don’t need a full field hospital in your get home bag, you want the basics. lightweight and small things like painkillers, bandages, gauze, and antibiotic cream. Medical items you need to help get you home safe.
When it comes to personal protection, everyone has different beliefs, and ideas, also laws may play a roll in what you can and cannot have. At this point you may not be fighting the Zombie Apocalypse yet. You are just trying to get home to your gear and family. You may not need a full arsenal of weaponry. Hand to hand self defense and knowing how to make weapons out of everyday objects can be very helpful. Some may have a pistol in their get home bag some may have a taser, pepper spray, even nun-chucks, have something your comfortable using, and is effective. Check with your local laws too. Remember this is something that will be in your bag everywhere you go and there may be some restrictions in buildings and even a simple traffic stop could get you in trouble if you forget they are in there and they are discovered.
This leads me to flashlights. You can get a STUNGUN/flashlight you are going to want a flashlight in your bag and a 2 in one is great to cut down on weight.
Fire-
Fire will come in handy in any survival situation. You will need it for heat, signal for help, boil water to drink, light and much more. Again depending on your skills you will need a quick easy way to start a fire. Whether you are in the wilderness or a dark alleyway, you’ll want the option to start a small fire, have some matches, a lighter and some type of tinder. I have a few cotton balls dipped in petroleum jelly, and I also have a fuel tablet from a portable pocket stove that I keep in my bug out bag.
Food-
Kind of a low priority for your get home bag but you want to have a few calories to keep your energy levels up. See you can survive several weeks with calorie depletion. Again depending on your skills to be able to find plants and trap, forage and get food you may only have some slim-jims and a some granola bars. The food needs to be completely nonperishable and packaged in single servings.
Other stuff-
Your get home situation require evasion, but other times; its rescue. You will want Whistle.
Bandana
It can be used to signal for rescue, filter water, first-aid, a dust mask, tourniquet, cordage, wash cloth or towel, pit hold, collecting food,
Knife
I did a whole episode on finding the right knife. You may want a good pocket knife, a multi tool or even a survival knife. Each has a different purpose so having all 3 or at least 2 (survival and multi tool knife) or at least one- a good multi tool.
Communication
Back up cell phone, backup charging, CB, or Ham radio. In a widespread emergency disaster, traditional means of communication are often shut down. Getting in touch with loved ones after such a disaster becomes impossible. Is your family safe? Are they being forced to evacuate? If so, where are they taking them? Should they try to wait for you or follow the evacuation orders? Who’s got the kids? Who’s got the gold fish? You have no way to coordinate these emergency decisions if you have no way to communicate.
Toilet paper!
Poncho
Gloves
Binoculars
Just a small pair. Being able to spot potential threats well before they spot you allows you to avoid these hazards.
Maps and compass
Topographical
Maps, road maps.. we depend on GPS so much now, but Do you know the best, safest route? Do you know where all the natural water sources are? You need to be able to pull out the map and plan your best get home route while looking at the terrain and the emergency. Are there cliffs where you live and need to avoid? What about swampy areas or steep ravines? Every city has unique terrain, and a topo map helps you navigate this terrain in a worst case situation.
if you want to successfully navigate in unfamiliar areas, you’ll also want a compass. Without a compass in dense forests, humans tend to naturally walk in a slight arch.
So over time, you can accidentally walk in circles if you have limited visual cues.
You can find Free Topographical maps at:
Small Pocket Sized Radio
When it comes to emergency disasters, communication is key. The more information, the better. You can never have too much intel in a catastrophe!
There are other items I have in mine and I have a post on the Are You Ready Radio FB page, go to
I have made some changes but this will give you an idea.
Over all you want it to be light, easy to carry, desecrate, and practical. Remember you just need to get home to your gear and family when the SHTF.
For more great tips and information listen to Are You Ready live Wednesdays at 7PM Eastern and on all popular podcast platforms.