The most important items in your bug out bag will be those you need for your own survival, water, food, tools and medicine and so on. However if a crisis gets completely out of hand, it may be useful to have some items on hand that you can barter for things you might run low on, and in many cases you may be able to use yourself. Money may be useless in the face of a societal collapse. Of course, items for bartering should have a low weight to value ratio, you do not want to carry around heavy items and weigh down your kit for the sake of bartering. Here is a list of useful bartering items that you may wish to consider for your bug out kit.
- Batteries
- Ferrocium Rods
- Small Fresnel Lenses
- Lighters
- Mini Water Filters
- Extra Water Purification Tablets
- Mini Compasses
- Work Gloves
- Socks
- Mini Flashlight
- Salt (many uses)
- Pepper
- Spices
- Whiskey
- Small Bottles of Vodka (this can be used to sterilise as well)
- Extra Tools
- Matches
- Cigarettes
- Baby Wipes or Sanitary Wipes
- Travel Sized Soaps
- Travel Sized Shampoos
- Extra Food (preferably MRE’s)
- Extra Water
- Extra Painkillers
- Extra Medical Supplies
- Feminine Products
- Entertainment Items
- Duct Tape
- Condoms
- Plastic Bags and Garbage Bags (very little weight and room but lots of uses)
- Extra Clothing
- Small Survival Knowledge Books
- Small Amounts of Precious Metals
Never flaunt your wealth, it may make you a target. Trade in different locations each time, this will make it harder for you to be a target for looters and bandits. Keep a low profile, you do not want people thinking that you are hiding more than you are letting on, be humble, do not boast, hint or threaten. Never tell anyone the location of your stash, even if you think you can trust someone, people slip up.
If you have any more barter item ideas feel free to put them in the comments below.
