Emergency blanket actual use?

[mt terry d]

@mt terry d glad you made it through that night. Don’t think you quite understood my post

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The first line of my response was referring your post which was referring to “ky friends”.

My adventure with the tin foil was not.

I’m new here; what did I misunderstand ?

 

[SoloWilderness]

I have used several different versions over the years, all due to unplanned nights out, primarily during September- October archery or early rifle elk hunts at anywhere from 8-11k elevation in Colorado (10-30 degrees, with a candle, or small fire). One really unpleasant night during 3rd rifle when I lost my truck on a sage flat hunting mule deer (5-10 degrees out and snowing, with no fire). The thin ones are pretty useless, they will reflect heat, and as others have mentioned, are best used behind you with a fire to reflect and trap heat. As a "bag" you will just spend the night constantly adjusting to keep them over you. Although there is a noticeable difference between the parts of the body that are covered, and those that aren't, enough that trying to stay covered becomes important. The thin ones are better than nothing, in a survival situation, and a slightly better flat sheet (such as an SOS) is much better than the .99 gas station version.

I carry an SOS bag and flat sheet, and plan on building a fire to maximize the heat gain from using one. It will be an unpleasant night, and you probably won't sleep more than 15-30 minutes at a time, depending on how well your fire stays burning. But you also will have a better chance of not getting hypothermic. Paired with a puffy jacket, and puffy pants, which I put in the critical survival gear category for back country hunting, they may make the difference between an unpleasant night hunkered down, or a brutal night trying to push back to the truck, exhausted, cold and likely to get injured. Shooting an elk in a deep canyon at dusk, 5 miles from camp, and 10 miles from the truck, in mid-October, with snow on the ground, you may not have many other options.

They are what they are, a piece of survival gear, that you hope not to use, but when you need them, they are critically important. I replace mine every few years, after opening a few old ones and having them fall apart. The Blizzard multilayers that @mtwarden linked look like a nice step up from the SOS, which are head and shoulders above the cheapies. I will probably add a 3 layer bag to my emergency bag, which goes with me whether I am on a day hunt from the truck, or on a 10 day backcountry elk hunt in deep in a wilderness. What is important is to keep the other critical parts of this survival system all packed together for easy access and use, when you are shivering, tired, and stumbling around in the dark. Firestarters, of whatever flavor you choose, packable insulation layers, and a way to reflect and collect heat are essential, in my opinion.

 

[Jethro]

I’m new here; what did I misunderstand ?

Maybe nothing. I just didn’t want you thinking I got a chuckle out of anybody having a rough night in a Mylar sheet. We’re good

 

[Fatcamp]

My real emergency blanket is a 5x7 sheet of Tyvek that is in my kill kit.

Between the foil one and that I will have some basics to start with. Get me a nest going and a fire, should be ok.

 

[mtwarden]

@SoloWilderness Big yes to a warm puffy jacket and pants- always, day or multi-day trip

On day trips I'm also carrying a 50 degree Apex quilt, weighs 12 oz and packs small- it does double duty as it has a "poncho" hole in it and I can drape it over all of my other layers when glassing if need be.

Also a 20x40" section of a Z pad- sitting, but handy in an unplanned night out too

 

[TheBootBowhunting]

Only time I ever used 1 was in SERE school and it blocked some wind but that’s about it. Running on virtually no calories, I think all it actually provided was false hope that I might actually live to see the sunlight again.

 

[SoloWilderness]

My real emergency blanket is a 5x7 sheet of Tyvek that is in my kill kit.

Between the foil one and that I will have some basics to start with. Get me a nest going and a fire, should be ok.

This is also an important thing to consider. On the nights I have had to sleep out, I often pull out every single item in my bag that can be used to improve my situation. Laying out game bags on a Tyvek sheet for ground insulation and stuffing my feet and legs inside my backpack are all parts of it. The Tyvek sheet is an essential part of my system, it is an incredibly tough material, and can serve many purposes. Everyone should carry one, in my opinion, they are just too lightweight and versatile not to.

Another important thing to consider is the trouble you can get into if you get separated from your backpack in the dark, a situation I found myself in after making an overambitious move on a bull I saw on the way into camp late in the day. Dropped my pack, thinking I could easily find it "it's under the tree shaped like a XYZ", and then spent two hours circling around a meadow looking for it with a bic lighter as a light source, freezing and tired. I now always keep a mini survival kit with a flashlight, emergency bivy, and firestarter in my bino harness. My backpack now also has glow in the dark zipper pulls, as I walked within a dozen feet of my pack multiple times and never saw it with the 2' radius of light the lighter gave me. It's easy to get complacent in areas we are comfortable in, and get ourselves into trouble. Most of my unplanned nights out have been a result of being a little too comfortable being way out on the sharp end. So understanding that I am willing to push the boundaries of safety a bit more than normal when hunting, and ensuring that I have strategies, and appropriate equipment in place to compensate for my tunnel vision are important to me.

 

[Macintosh]

…. I think all it actually provided was false hope that I might actually live to see the sunlight again.

Well, yeah…but did you die?

 

[Cameron.25]

I used one this year on my spring bear hunt. Killed a boar in the bottom of a deep canyon and cowboy camped with the dog by a fire wrapped in one of those blankets. Dog got some sleep but i barely did

 

[Beendare]

A big step up from the ultra thin mylar ones are the blankets (they have bags too) from Blizzard- they use 2 and 3 layer "Reflexcell" fabric- the small air cells actually give you some insulation. Obviously heavier and take up more volume, but still relatively light/small.

https://www.blizzardsurvival.com

Now that might actually work…interesting concept

 

[mtwarden]

Now that might actually work…interesting concept

You get the reflective stuff that the thin blankets have, but some actual insulation.

 

[Te Hopo]

Never slept inside one, I have used them as a mini tarp/windbreak/reflector with a fire and slept okish.

A good mate and I used to try all sorts of survival activities in our 20s, pushing ourselves in winter but with the knowledge that the vehicle is maybe a mile away.
I spent one night wrapped in a thin wool blanket, getting some sleep while my mate wrapped in his 'survival blanket' had a sleepless night huddled up to a fire.


Now I carry a few of the SOL ponchos in my various kits, it'll still work as a reflective blanket and windbreaker but is practical for making a move as well.


I have one in my kayak vest as part of a 'ditch kit'.
It's been used once and was much appreciated.
Day trip, weather unexpectedly turned nasty, I capsized.
Once back in my kayak, I made my way to the nearest shore, popped the poncho on, got a fire going with my lighter and hexamine cube and warmed up.