Building a Useful First Aid Kit for the Backcountry

Get some tips on how to put together a well-stocked first aid kit so you have the tools you need to handle a medical incident in the backcountry. Tod Schimelpfenig, senior NOLS instructor and curriculum director of NOLS Wilderness Medicine, explains what essentials you should pack–and why.

“Pre-packed medical kits are expensive and heavy…For $100, that bulky two-pound nylon bag never has everything you need. You can put together a cheap, waterproof personal med kit that covers everything—hiking, camping, climbing, biking, trail running, kayaking, off-roading, hunting, and fishing—that’s lighter, more compact, and better-equipped than anything for sale by the Red Cross or REI. It’s simple. In a large one-gallon Zip-Loc, so you can see through it and quickly find what you need, pack these things…”

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