Our 2025 Hiking, Camping, Disaster Preparedness and Shooting Gear Checklists Everybody that's been Hiking, Camping and Shooting for a while has a list of gear that they always take with them on their adventures. For some people their method of keeping track of their gear is to keep it all in one place. Others make a checklist to ensure that they have everything that they need. We do both. Based on our experience the gear that you need for Hiking comes in 10 categories, Camping has 10 categories, Disaster Preparedness has 9 categories and Shooting gear comes in 17 categories: To make it easier for you we have updated and added downloadable PDFs of the Hiking, Camping, Disaster Preparedness and Shooting gear checklists that we use. The checklists include the types of gear that we think you need in each of these 46 categories. Our website has all the details on the specific gear that we use (536 items from these 46 categories at last count), the reasons that we selected it and links to Amazon, or other locations, where you can buy the gear. Our gear checklists have 54 Hiking items, 122 Camping items, 123 Disaster Preparedness items and 237 Shooting items.
You can find these downloadable PDF checklists on our Hiking, Camping, Disaster Preparedness and Shooting pages.
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Keeping Children Safe When Firearms Are in Your HouseRight before the Christmas/New Year holiday season we received an email from Ada, one of the homeschooling students of Ms. Anna Lee, about a project they had been working on related to gun safety. While performing research for their project they ran across our HCS website and found the information contained on it useful. They also found an article about gun safety that had some great information – so they passed it along to us and asked that we add it as a reference to our website. So, here's an overview of the 23 October 2024 "Kids and Gun Safety" article. As everyone that owns firearms knows – a responsibility for safety comes with the territory; when shooting at a range, when carrying for everyday safety and when storing your firearms at home. Being safe is complicated when there are children in your house. So, what’s the best approach to making sure that we protect the people that we love. Well, in our opinion, and in the opinion of the article that Ada sent us, the best approach is to be proactive and to “Empower your child with knowledge” since gun safety starts at home. It’s important to teach gun safety to your children as soon as they are old enough. That way they know the risks and what to do if they see a firearm.
The article details three initial main steps to take:
In addition to these three steps, it’s important to talk to your children. As the article says, “Having an open discussion with your kids about gun safety can make a difference.” Personally, we find this to be a critical step to take since our children see “make believe” firearms every day in video games, movies and TV shows. So, they need to know the reality of the risks associated with firearms and how to act around them so that they don’t think they are toys. The article advocates teaching children the following three things about what to do if they find or see a gun:
The last two areas that the article touches on are related to “Lockdown Drills and Emergency Preparedness” and “Reporting School Safety Concerns”; great areas to teach your children about given the tragic occurrences of the past 25 years. In addition to discussing why reporting concerns about dangerous actions is so important, the article also advocates taking the following 5 steps with respect to lockdowns:
Finally, the article lists some other good sources for information to help answer the question “Does your child know what to do if he or she finds a gun?”:
We’re glad that Ms. Anna Lee’s students are learning about firearms safety, and that Ada sent us the article on the topic. If you want to read the entire article that Ada and Ms. Anna Lee passed along, here’s a direct link to it: "Kids and Gun Safety” The Revolutionary Past Lives on in New England During the year there are several activities in the area that celebrate our Colonial and Revolutionary War history. This year we attended the Patriots’ Day and Memorial Day ceremonies, and the Colonial Faire and Fife & Drum Muster.
Patriots’ Day is a state holiday in Massachusetts commemorating the first shots fired in the American Revolutionary War, at the Battles of Lexington and Concord, on 19 April 1775. On 18 April 1775 the British Military Governor of the Massachusetts Colony, General Thomas Gage, ordered Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith to seize the arms and powder being stockpiled by the Concord militia. The skirmish that started at Concord's North Bridge had been brewing for some time since the tensions in Massachusetts had been escalating due to the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and the Intolerable Acts. But the Battles of Lexington and Concord marked the actual first shots were fired between the Patriots and British regulars, beginning what would eventually lead to the American colonies Revolutionary War against the British Empire. Every year on Patriots Day, the local militia companies that fought at the Battles of Lexington and Concord back in 1775 March from their towns to the North Bridge to commemorate the occasion. Memorial Day is a US Federal holiday that honors and mourns the country's deceased service members and women who lost their lives while defending the United States. It is celebrated on the last Monday of May (27 May in 2024) and is often considered the unofficial start of summer. The local militia company provided the salute to all those who sacrificed their lives so that we may enjoy our freedom today. Colonial Faire and Fife & Drum Muster: In the days preceding the Revolutionary War, the local militias would usually muster to drill twice each year, once in the spring and the other in the fall. Following their drill, the militia would be joined by their families and celebrate with good food and drink, music and games. On September 28, 2024, the local Companies of Militia & Minute and Ancient Fyfe and Drum Companie hosted a full day of events at the Wayside Inn (which was established in 1716, making it one of the oldest continuously operating inns in the United States). As noon approached, fifes and drums could be heard in the distance as 24 companies from all over New England assembled to parade from the Wayside Inn to the muster field. After the parade, each fife and drum company returned to the muster field to play for the audience. The Wayside Inn is also the site of the one-room schoolhouse from 1798 made famous in the “Mary Had a Little Lamb” poem Here are a few photos from the events celebrating our Colonial history from throughout the year: (click on any photo to start the slideshow) Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS Last week we were lucky enough to see a celestial event that could be seen across our entire northern sky; the Aurora Borealis. Last night, 19 October 2024, we experienced a celestial event that was much harder to see; comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS; also known as Comet C/2023 A3. The comet came from the Oort cloud and was only discovered on 9 January 2023 by the Purple Mountain Observatory in China when the comet was ~7.3 AU (1.09 billion km; 680 million mi) from the Sun. The first naked eye observation of the comet from Earth was reported on 23 September 2024. It made its closest approach to Earth on 12 October, at a distance of 71 million km (44 million mi). When visible the tail was reported to be 10 degrees long under dark skies and 17.5 degrees long photographically. By 2 November the comet had faded to below magnitude +6 and was no longer visible to the naked eye. Based on astronomical calculations the Tsuchinshan-ATLAS comet came from the Oort Cloud - which lies far beyond Pluto and the most distant edges of the Kuiper Belt. The Oort Cloud is believed to be a giant spherical shell surrounding the Sun, planets and Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs). It's like a big, thick bubble around our solar system, made of icy, comet-like objects. Because of the comet's orbit (a retrograde orbit, lying at an inclination of 139°) Tsuchinshan-ATLAS did not approach close to the giant planets of our Solar System. Consequently, the comet is only weakly bound to the Sun and it is calculated that the outbound orbit will become a hyperbolic trajectory that will most likely result in the comet being ejected from the Solar System - never to return. Here are some of the photos of the rare sight that we saw last night between 6:30 PM and 7:30 PM here on the East Coast: (click on any photo to start the slideshow) In addition, here’s a 1-minute time-lapse video of the Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS captured from space by Astronaut Matthew Dominick onboard the International Space Station (ISS). The Northern Lights Made a Second Rare Appearance Here in New England The past two nights the conditions were good for potentially seeing the Northern Lights here in New England once again. One chance to see the Aurora Borealis as far south as the Boston area is very rare; twice in the same year is unheard of. So, on the nights of 10 and 11 October 2024, we ventured out in the late evening and luckily got to see some amazing sights. As with the last time earlier this year (on 10 May 2024), prior to heading out we consulted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/) to check the forecast to find out if the conditions were actually good for seeing the Northern Lights in our area – since they’re the authoritative source for solar and space environment data. We also checked our “Sky Live”, “Moon Calendar” and “Lumnos” apps once again to see what the sky conditions were, the phase of the moon, and the location of the moon in the night sky. The air was crisp, the skies were clear, and the moon was in the Southern sky – so the viewing conditions were excellent. As mentioned in our previous Aurora blog from earlier this year (11 May 2024), we found that our cameras “saw” the lights (which are caused by charged particles from the Sun interacting with the Earth’s electromagnetic field) much better than our eyes. So, we had to shoot lots of photos and then see what showed up on our cameras. Again, we were surprised many times because the faint colors and striations that we saw in the sky were much brighter and more pronounced in the images that our cameras captured. Here's a great write-up by Ewen Bell explaining why this occurs: "Why Auroras Look Different on The Camera" The gallery below shows photos of the Northern Lights that appeared in our town’s skies during the two nights – along with a couple photos of our Town Center that was coincidentally lit up that week: (click on any photo to start the slideshow)
Amazing Sights of the Harvest Super Moon and the Clouds Last night, 17 September 2024, the weather was clear enough to see this month’s Harvest Super Moon – but the clouds were also out - so we saw some really interesting sights as the moon and the clouds interacted.
As the full Moon closest to the autumnal equinox, this was the Harvest Moon – named as such since during the fall harvest farmers sometimes needed to work late into the night by moonlight. Unlike other full moons, the Harvest Moon rises just after sunset for several consecutive days, creating an extended period of natural light in the early evening. Last night’s moon was also a super moon and the moon appeared particularly large in the sky owing to the coincidence of its closest approach to the earth (the perigee) with a full moon. If you want all of the scientific details, and all the dates, times and distances for full supermoons until the year 2100, Astronomer Fred Espenak has created a table that lists all of them at: Here are some of the photos showing the spectacular sights that we saw last night between 9:00 PM and 11:00 PM here on the East Coast: (click on any photo to start the slideshow) The Animals Keep Getting Closer Maybe it’s just me – but sometimes I get the feeling that the “wildlife” in our neighborhood is getting just a little too comfortable around humans.
So that you can see what I’m talking about, here are a few photos from the past 12 months of the animals that surround our home - Bears, Bobcats, Cormorants, Coyotes, Deer, Foxes, Fisher Cats, Hawks, Owls, Snakes, Snapping Turtles, Turkeys, Woodchucks, and a Turkey, Duck and Bunny all snacking together. Some of these photos are from our yard, some are from our local walks and hikes, and others are from our neighbors: (click on any photo to start the slideshow) What a Double Header – Seeing the Aurora Borealis and the Space Station on the Same Night We had an amazing coincidence occur earlier this week when, on the night of 11 May 2024, as we were waiting for the Aurora Borealis to appear, the International Space Station (ISS) streaked directly overhead. The largest man-made object in space, the ISS is 356 feet (109 meters) end-to-end, one yard shy of the full length of an American football field including the end zones. The solar array wingspan (356 feet, 109 meters) is longer than the world’s largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380 (262 feet, 80 meters). In 24 hours, the space station makes 16 orbits of Earth, traveling through 16 sunrises and sunsets at a speed of 17,100 mph (4.76 miles/second). Here’s a short video of what the ISS orbit looks like as it passes 248 miles above the Earth. Note that the highlighted “cone” shows the locations that can see the ISS as it passes by. Because of its size, and the sun’s rays reflecting off its metal hull and solar panels, the ISS is very visible against the night sky – if you know when and where to look for it. Luckily, we knew that the ISS would be passing overhead that night, so we noted the compass directions that it would come from and head off to, and were prepared to look for it at the scheduled orbital pass time. Here’s a time sequence photo montage of the ISS passing overhead during the 6 minutes and 34 seconds that it was visible to us. We even captured a short video of the ISS streaking through the night sky. (click on the arrows to expand the video to full screen since the ISS was shot against the dark night sky)
Although we initially headed out for a chance to see the Aurora Borealis, the fact that we saw both the Northern Lights and the ISS passing overhead made for an unforgettable night. The Northern Lights Made a Rare Appearance Here in New England Last night the conditions were good for potentially seeing the Northern Lights here in New England. So, on the night of 10 May 2024, we ventured out in the late evening and luckily got to see some amazing sights between 9:30 PM and 12:30 AM from a variety of locations around our town. Prior to heading out we consulted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/) to check the forecast to find out if the conditions were actually good for seeing the Northern Lights in our area – since they’re the authoritative source for solar and space environment data. We also checked our “Sky Live”, “Moon Calendar” and “Lumnos” apps to see what the sky conditions were, the phase of the moon, and the location of the moon in the night sky – and the viewing conditions were excellent. The only odd thing we found was that our cameras “saw” the lights (which are caused by charged particles from the Sun interacting with the Earth’s electromagnetic field) much better than our eyes. So, we had to shoot lots of photos and then see what showed up on our cameras. Needless to say, we were surprised many times because the faint colors and striations that we saw in the sky were much brighter and more pronounced in the images that our cameras captured. Here's a great write-up by Ewen Bell explaining why this occurs: "Why Auroras Look Different on The Camera" The gallery below shows photos of the Northern Lights that appeared in our town’s skies that night: (click on any photo to start the slideshow)
You Must Know How to Exercise Your Rights Within the Law These days there is an ongoing high-profile fight to redefine and change the rights of the people of the United States to have, hold and use firearms. The discussion is constant and many times the truth gets lost in the hyperbole as the media skews the truth to fit their agendas. But one thing is clear, if you own a firearm, and especially if you carry it or use it for self-protection, you need to know and understand your legal rights and your local laws. We all learned about the US Constitution in school. The Constitutional Convention assembled in Philadelphia in May of 1787. On 17 September 1787, after 3 months of discussions, arguments and deliberations, 38 delegates (plus George Reed who signed for John Dickinson of Delaware, who was absent) signed the Constitution. Here’s a good summary about what the purpose of the Constitution was and what it accomplished: “The Constitution acted like a colossal merger, uniting a group of states with different interests, laws, and cultures. Under America’s first national government, the Articles of Confederation, the states acted together only for specific purposes. The Constitution united its citizens as members of a whole, vesting the power of the union in the people. Without it, the American Experiment might have ended as quickly as it had begun. But the Constitution might never have been ratified if the framers hadn't promised to add a Bill of Rights. The first ten amendments to the Constitution gave citizens more confidence in the new government and contain many of today's Americans' most valued freedoms. Preamble to the Bill of Rights – “The Conventions of a number of the States, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government, will best ensure the beneficent ends of its institution. “On September 25, 1789, the First Congress of the United States proposed 12 amendments to the Constitution. Ten of the proposed 12 amendments were ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures on December 15, 1791. The ratified Articles (Articles 3–12) constitute the first 10 amendments of the Constitution, or the U.S. Bill of Rights. In 1992, 203 years after it was proposed, Article 2 was ratified as the 27th Amendment to the Constitution. Article 1 was never ratified.” The Bill of Rights enumerates the birthrights of every American. These are not rights granted to the people by the US Government, these are rights that the US Government was formed to protect. Furthermore, these rights are the rights that each individual has. They are not rights bestowed on the people by membership in a group; they are specifically individual rights. One of these rights is the right to own and bear arms as delineated in the 2nd Amendment. The right to bear arms was to specifically added to ensure that a citizen had the ability to secure their other enumerated rights. Here’s a really good short article on what we believe the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution means. Second Amendment to the United States Constitution https://www.historyonthenet.com/second-amendment-to-the-united-states-constitution Given today’s environment, whatever you do, know your rights, know your State’s laws, know the rules of gun safety - and if you get into a situation that requires legal support do not talk to the police – get a lawyer that knows how to support your 2nd Amendment rights - and then move forward with the legal system. If you don’t follow this one piece of simple advice you may regret your actions for the rest of your life. You are responsible for your actions, so plan and act accordingly. If you do need legal assistance related to your Gun Rights what should you do? Recently Timothy from the O’Mara Law Group in Orlando/Lakeland Florida sent us an email discussing their “2nd Amendment Rights Guide” that contains a lot of great information about what to do. We liked their overall position on the issue: “It is an American's right to own a gun. We believe in preserving this lawful right for responsible gun owners, but also protecting individuals who may have been forced to discharge their weapon to protect themselves or their family. There are situations where people who have fired a gun in self-defense face criminal convictions. That's why it's important to have the proper representation and knowledge in these cases. Here’s a brief summary of some of the key points from the O’Mara Law Group’s 2A guide:
If you have questions, or need their legal assistance you can contact the O’Mara Law Group at: https://www.omaralawgroup.com/contact/ If you want to know more, we’ve previously covered several aspects of this issue in some of our previous blogs related to new gun ownership: Back to Basics - What Beginners Need to Know About Handguns (2 Jan 2021) 4 Rules for Handling a Firearm - How to Keep Yourself, and Those Around You, Safe (27 March 2020) The Unprecedented Surge in US Gun Sales During The Covid-19 Pandemic (3 June 2020) In addition, our main Shooting page lists several resources to assist you in navigating these treacherous waters to include:
Finally, here’s a good app that you might want to have on your phone to help keep track of all the various laws and regulations from each of the 50 US States: CCW – Concealed Carry 50 State iOS - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ccw-concealed-carry-50-state/id443321291 Android - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ryan.ccw&hl=en If you want to read the details of the actual United States Constitution and Bill of Rights here are the links to the National Archives website: America's Founding Documents https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs The Constitution of the United States: A Transcription https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript The Bill of Rights: A Transcription https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights-transcript For the sake of clarity, just so there is no doubt, as stated in our Legal Disclaimer: “….. none of the authors of this website are licensed attorneys. Any information contained in this website on legal issues SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED TO BE LEGAL ADVICE. The opinions expressed are informed opinions based on the authors’ experience with and understanding of the appropriate statutes. It is NOT GUARANTEED to be CORRECT, COMPLETE or UP-TO-DATE. You should NOT act or rely on any information on this website or in an email from an author of this website without seeking the advice of an attorney that YOU have retained.”
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