Had a wonderful time over the weekend. Camped Friday night, got up and day-hiked 10 miles through some pretty hilly terrain, and returned to my base camp on Saturday afternoon. Came home on Sunday. It was a bit chilly at night, but I had good gear and slept well.
Made sure to carry the necessities while on my hike – knife, multitool, Camelbak, survival kit, compass, cordage, walking stick, etc. Didn’t need any of it (except the water in the Camelbak) but that’s a good thing. I’d much rather be prepared and have a nice uneventful trip than to leave it all behind and be caught unprepared.
My new knife arrived before I left for the trip on Friday. I had ordered a Ka-Bar BK2 Companion. I’d first learned about it from an article on http://www.shtfblog.com by Jarhead Survivor. He’d compared his to a newer knife from Gerber. In short, the well-worn but nearly indestructible Ka-Bar won out.
I also did a fair amount of research online to learn about the knife (4.5 out of 5 stars with 200 reviews on Amazon). I also went to several stores and held various models of the Ka-Bar knives. I haven’t had a chance to put it through the paces yet, but it seems like a really good investment. I’m glad to own it.
Tonight, I put yet another plug in the rear passenger tire on my wife’s vehicle. That’s the second plug in the tire within a month. The first looked like a file from a chainsaw sharpener. This was just a tiny hole without anything in it. It took some soapy water for me to even find the puncture. Nevertheless, it’s fixed now. I’m hoping her tires will last another couple of months; I plan to put some new ones on before winter really sets in hard.
I’m about 1/2 way through Lucifer’s Hammer by Larry Niven. It’s a good read; I’m enjoying it.
PreppingToSurvive.com 
October 4, 2011 at 6:53 am
Ahh, you talk about three of my favorite things in this post… hiking and camping, the BK2 survival knife, and Lucifer’s Hammer.
I hope you like the knife as much as I do. I’ve owned it for several years now and I still love it. I actually took a ranger band and fastened my fire steel to the sheath, so all I have to do is put the knife on and I’m ready to go.
Lucifer’s Hammer. Man, I loved that story. I’ve read it at least three times now. It can get a little wordy at times, but I like the way he covers all facets of the destruction and how it affects people’s every day lives.
October 5, 2011 at 9:50 am
Attaching a firesteel to the sheath? Great idea, Jarhead.
Joe
October 4, 2011 at 4:36 pm
Lucifers Hammer is a good book. I have a much dog eared copy. I don’t do as much hiking as I used to when my kids were home but the dogs and I still go out and walk to the waterfall when it isn’t too hot or snowing. I carry my back pack with my emergency gear in it. At the worst, it’s good exercise to carry the extra weight. And you never know in the woods, just what’s around the next bend.
October 5, 2011 at 9:49 am
I’m really enjoying my copy.