It doesn?t take the zombie apocalypse or a Red Dawn (the Swayze?not Hemsworth?version, of course) to find yourself in a situation wherein your future is determined by a well-curated list of essentials. You?re on your way to that waterfall that your buddy ranked as one of the most spectacular views on earth, only you?ve been off the beaten path for three hours and you?re pretty certain what you?re following now is a trail that only the deer use. No one is expecting to hear from you for the next 24 hours, and, given your friends, they won?t actually start worrying until you don?t show up for work on Monday. This is not the time for you and Mother Nature to have that really awkward blind date that only she will live to laugh about. So make sure you have these goods handy:
Survival Knife

Since you?re equipping yourself, go ahead and slip on a good fixed-blade knife. As a wise man once said, never trust your life to a folding blade. Numerous fixed-blade knives now come with a safety-glass-shattering metal pommel and a seatbelt cutter in the molded handle. These features are ideal should you find yourself trapped inside a vehicle.

First-Aid Kit, Flashlight, Rain Jacket

The time to think about safety is before you take off on a journey. Start with a good first-aid kit. A truly good kit should have items that can stop bleeding from any wound short of an arterial hemorrhage, wrap a wound, splint a possible fracture, handle snakebites or bee stings, ice something down or heat ...