As a outdoor recreation guide I always have a first-aid kit in my backpack. Depending on how far away we are from road access and a hospital, I will plan to be that much more thorough in my kit. I tested out two Adventure Medical Kits, the Womens’ Edition Outdoor Medical Kit, and the Survive Outdoor Longer (SOL) Hybrid 3 kit. For a reasonable cost, both kits provide some peace of mind when in the outdoors or traveling in remote areas.
I use my Women’s Edition Outdoor Medical Kit when I’m leading my day trips in Olympic National Park and Mt. Rainier National Park . The kit is designed for multiple women for a 1-2 day trip. It contains an array of bandages, hand sanitizer, blister dressings, ibuprofen, aspirin, gauze, an ACE bandage, burn gel-the long list can be seen here. What made it a women’s specific kit was the fact that they added tampons, cramp relief medicine and a leak-proof tinted bag.
I thought the materials that they included were an excellent base for your average person heading out to the woods for a day hike. The wilderness medical book could be useful in a pinch if you had never taken any wilderness medical course. This being said, I think any medical kit from Adventure Medical Kits would be fine for using as a first-aid kit. You can just add tampons and extra ibuprofen to make it women’s specific.
The SOL Hybrid 3 survival kit lives in my car. I plan to use it when I break down in the middle of the woods. I know it’s going to happen one of these days considering how much time I drive in rural areas. Similar to the outdoor medical kit, the survival kit includes a medical component- a variety of bandages, antibiotic ointment, iodine solution-the supply list is here . For the survival component, there is a mini signal mirror, small pieces of tinder to start fires, a whistle, compass, clip light and survival blanket. Don’t forget the duct tape and cable ties.
I feel much more prepared when driving in the middle of a national forest because I have this kit in my car. They provide a small detachable bag that could be taken with you if you used this as an outdoor medical kit, but I don’t think it’s necessary. The kit itself is very small-just about 6 by 8 inches-easy to throw in your backpack or keep in your car.
Whether you’re an outdoor backpacking professional or a daytime hiker, there is a wide variety of kits to choose from.
The SOL Hybrid 3 kit retails for $44 and can be bought here on Amazon.
The Women’s Edition Outdoor Kit retails for $30 and can be bought here on Amazon.
Photos of the kits courtesy of Amazon.
