trad or modern

[Mortblanc]

It might sound strange, but as an 18th Century reenactor I engage in many long term events where the "traditional gear" is mandated and usage enforced. I generally spend about 5-10% of my life in those style camps.

Tarps/tents are canvas, cookware is cast iron or copper pots, clothing is wool, silk or linen. Fires are made flint and steel (not the modern fire strikers) or friction and foods are dried, smoked, salted or pickled.

However, my real survival gear is a mix of technologies, which only makes sense. I want the knowledge of the people that survived with nothing, or at least minimal gear, combined with the materials available to me today.

That is especially true when most of the modern gear works so well, and so much better than the equipment of the past.

Modern foot gear is one of my favorite comparisons. For only a small amount of money I can obtain footwear that will protect my feet down to -50, but only a few years back frostbite was a major concern to all woodsmen operating in severe winter conditions.

It is the same for sleeping bags. I have a 6 point Whitney blanket on my bed that is worth several hundred pounds. I have slept cold in camp using that blanket several times when temps were only "mild". My sleeping bag, rated down to -40, cost me about 50 pounds your money and has never let the cold dominate.

On the other end of the spectrum, I want all the benefits of aluminum foil and the best of water purification systems at my disposal, but I prefer to boil my water in an old fashioned tin billy over an open flame rather than a pack along stove.