11 Best Gifts for Preppers & Survivalists They Will Love
The best gifts for preppers and survivalists address the basics needed for survival: physical safety, food, water, warmth, shelter, light, and communication. If we have learned anything from the pandemic, it's that emergency preparedness isn't only for doomsday preppers anticipating societal collapse. Emergencies can occur to anyone at any time.
Many prepper gifts are suitable for multiple survival situations and will give your friend or loved one greater peace of mind. These multi-purpose pieces of equipment can be used in the wild or during natural disasters.
Gift Ideas for Survival in the Wild
For someone who loves the great outdoors, there are many practical gift options. These range from survival gear to emergency medical supplies.
1. Fire Starter
There are many different ways to start fires, from basic solutions like matches to more advanced fire starters. Expert survivalists recommend carrying at least three different ways to start a fire to ensure the warmth one needs when facing a night outside.
Fire starters are generally inexpensive—around $20—and small enough to carry in one’s pocket, around the neck, or in a backpack. The best fire starters have a very long life, making them must-haves for any survivalist.
2. Bleeding Control Kit
A bleeding control kit is essential when venturing out into the wild. Bleeding control kits or trauma kits can be used to staunch catastrophic bleeding caused by an accident or animal attack.
Bleeding control kits contain:
- A tourniquet for severe bleeding from the upper or lower extremities. Commercial tourniquets can be applied one-handed or by somebody else.
- Compressed gauze to pack wounds and wrap injuries
- An Emergency Trauma Dressing (ETD) to cover large wounds and apply immediate and direct pressure where it’s needed
- Other vital pieces of equipment such as gloves, an emergency blanket, and trauma shears
More advanced medical supplies also make great additions to any portable first aid kit or trauma kit:
- A hemostatic dressing: Hemostatic dressings use either hemostatic clotting fibers or clotting agents to help wounds clot faster. Hemostatic gauze is used by the military and emergency responders to stem bleeding and makes an excellent addition to any emergency kit.
- A vented chest seal: A vented chest seal helps to prevent traumatic tension pneumothorax after a penetrating chest wound. This gift is invaluable for survivalists who may experience gunshot wounds or chest trauma from an accident.
3. Portable Solar Charger
Nobody wants to be out of battery in an emergency situation. This is a real risk both in the wilderness and during a natural disaster when electricity lines may be down. A portable solar charger is a survival kit essential that solves this issue by providing charge for one’s portable devices using its own solar panel.
Please note: Survivalists must keep the charger exposed to sunlight in order for it to charge their devices.
4. Outdoor Multitool
Multitools are excellent additions to any backpack, first aid kit, or emergency car kit. Most people are familiar with multi-use pocket knives, but more advanced multitools include things like saws, hammers, axes, and pliers as well as different knives. These essential tools can assist with multiple situations that campers or hikers could encounter in the wild.
5. Military-Grade Compass
The smartphone has largely done away with traditional backpack items such as the compass. However, relying on the compass on one’s cell phone for orientation during an emergency isn't a good idea because it won’t work once the battery dies. Manual compasses work without electricity and military-grade versions are both durable and reliable.
6. Bear Deterrents
Encountering a bear in the wild is a real danger that even the most seasoned campers can face. According to the World Animal Foundation, there are on average 11.4 bear attacks in North America every year.
Survivalists can reduce the risk of attracting a bear by taking sensible precautions like keeping their food supply away from the tent. However, in the event of meeting a bear in the wild, there are several tools they can use to scare it away, giving them more time to escape:
- Bear spray: Similar to pepper spray, bear spray repels an attacking black or grizzly bear.
- Flares: Flares work to scare the bear and also to alert rescuers if the camper needs assistance.
- Bear bangers or a wildlife deterrent horn: Also used to scare a bear or other wildlife, bear bangers create a loud noise that deters a bear from approaching.
7. Survival Skills Course
There are countless survival skills courses for beginners and advanced survivalists. Courses typically cover how to survive the first days or weeks in an extreme situation, including things like how to find shelter, how to find water, how to make a fire, and hunting skills.
Survival courses are a great gift idea for hiking and mountain enthusiasts. The average prepper can benefit from learning survival skills, too. Survival skills courses designed for children may be useful for families that love to camp, hike, and spend time outdoors.
Best Gifts for Surviving Natural Disasters
Preparing for natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods is a real issue for many people in the United States. For residents in states that are prone to more extreme weather, having all the essentials on hand can be the difference between life and death. The following are great gifts for disaster survival that will give both you and the gift recipient greater peace of mind.
8. Emergency Food Supplies
Food is one of the most important survival items a pepper can have. Help your prepper friends get ready for anything with nutritious, long-lift items for their emergency pantry. While these items have a long shelf life, it's still important for the giftee to ensure proper food storage, keeping their provisions in a cool, dry place where they won't spoil.
Essential emergency pantry supplies include:
- Bottled drinking water—and lots of it. Each person needs around half a gallon (two liters) of water for every day they may be unable to drink from the tap.
- High-calorie, non-perishable foods that don't require cooking. Think granola bars, crackers, and cereal.
- Nutritious canned or preserved products such as meat, milk, cheese, fruit, and vegetables. Protein-rich foods like peanut butter and long-life milk are shelf-stable options that are full of goodness.
9. Heirloom Seeds
Self-sufficiency can come in many forms, but being able to eat “come what may” must be at the top of the list. Heirloom seeds are the perfect gift idea for anyone with space to plant seeds. This gift will help them become less reliant on the outside world and allow them to grow and cook their own vegetables when external supplies are scarce.
10. LED Flashlight
Power outages are a common occurrence when a storm hits. For lighting in a power outage, LED flashlights are a great solution for several reasons:
- They are much safer than candles.
- They last up to 50 times longer than incandescent flashlights.
- They can be up to 15 times brighter than regular incandescent flashlights.
11. Emergency Roadside Car Kit
Severe weather doesn't always hit when one is at home. It can also occur while traveling or when leaving one’s home during a natural disaster. Bad weather can cause numerous roadside emergencies and an emergency car kit can help your giftee stay safe in these situations until assistance arrives.
Roadside car kits typically contain roadside flares, jumper cables, flashlights, a fire extinguisher, a shovel, a sleeping bag, and other tools that can help in an emergency. Remember that staying warm is also critically important, so choose a kit with blankets or buy blankets separately.
A bug-out bag is a similar idea that contains everything an adult needs to survive for 72 hours. Many preppers store this in their vehicle or in a closet and keep it stocked with essential supplies like water, food, and medical supplies.
The Right Gift Could Save Their Life
Whether your gift recipient ultimately experiences a simple power outage or comes face to face with a grizzly bear, it's always best to be prepared. These gift ideas will help the preppers and survivalists in your life rest at ease in the knowledge that they will be able to face whatever comes their way.
Gift items such as a trauma kit or fire starters can help your friend or loved one get through an emergency situation alive. In addition, giving them a voucher for a bleeding control or survival skills course will equip them with the skills they need to use your gift to its full advantage.
