Explorer Rescue Swag: Gear review & recommendations

Field test and review – Explorer Rescue Swag

All hikers should be armed with sufficient health and hike safety knowledge to avoid encountering unnecessary problems in the bush. Before venturing on to the trail it’s important to make sure you are well prepared with a hike safety plan and are carrying adequate First Aid and Survival gear for possible emergency situations and be prepared to manage the situation. Even if you are going for a short hike, there’s always a possibility you could break a limb, cut yourself or get bitten by insects or snakes, so you need to be prepared. If you are injured and need assistance, it can take time for rescuers to reach you, so your priority is to attend to any injuries, find shelter, and keep warm and dry.

Most first aid kits are compact and contain all the essential items you’ll need. You can event build a first aid kit from scratch. I tend to vary my kits based on the weather, terrain, and length of each hike. Your kits should be packed in a compact, durable, water resistant and lightweight container, small enough to fit into a large pocket and ideally should weigh less than 500 grams. You don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars on a fancy, bright coloured kits with all the bells and whistles.

The Explorer Rescue Swag

If you’ve read many of the articles on this site, you’ll know I take safety and trip preparation seriously. So, I was excited when Rescue Swag contacted me in late 2022 to see if I was interested in checking out the Explorer Rescue Swag. Developed in rural Australia, the innovative kits were born from the challenges of an active, outdoor lifestyle. From a humble beginning to its first big appearance on Shark Tank Australia Series 1, the world’s first SMART first aid kit, Rescue Swag was created in response to a need for portable, comprehensive safety response.

The Explorer Rescue Swag is about a third of the size of the Adventurer & Workplace Rescue Swag first aid kits, yet still offers the ability to use the outer as a sling in case of emergency. The detachable internal dry bag design ensures your medical items are protected from the water and dust, remaining completely clean and dry even when fully submerged.

The Explorer Rescue Swag (as a complete kit) is designed to attach to any item so you can carry it with you wherever you go. With a 15cm diametre, 22cm length and weighing around 500 grams, it’s a little bit large to be carrying the full kit in your pack for overnight and multi-day hikes where space and weight is usually at a premium. You could however split the kit into separate modules and only take what you need for each hike.

The outer module

The outer module has attachment clips, to be used to attach the entire kit to your pack, bike, kyak, ATV or saddle. The adjustable webbing and lock-down clips ensure a compact fit and help prevent movement while in transit. The outer module of the kit can be used as a sling, splint or immobilisation device offering extra support and lessening movement.

To use as a splint

1. Remove first aid modules from the Rescue Swag and zip it closed
2. Lengthen (webbing) straps
3. Wrap Rescue Swag carefully around injured limb as required – you will configure your splint to suit the injury. Take care to position around other injuries
4. Tighten straps until the joint is immobilised or immobilisation is achieved, taking care not to over tighten.

To use as a sling

1. Remove first aid modules from the Rescue Swag and zip it closed
2. Lengthen (webbing) straps
3. Make a roll with Rescue Swag and secure with external velcro tabs
4. Carefully place the injured limb inside the roll
5. Pass the extended strap around neck and clip to the opposite buckle
6. The second strap may be passed around the back and clipped in to the remaining buckle for greater stability.

The inner module

The inner module of the Rescue Swag consists of a waterproof dry bag with the following pack contents. This dry bag keeps all your first aid gear dry when you are not using it and also provides you with a handy bag/bucket to collect water when required. As mentioned previously, there is a lot in this kit so I suggest creating a checklist for your day, overnight and multi-day hikes and varying the kit for each trip.

Pack contents

• Antiseptic cream – 25g (x1)
• Snake bite indicator bandage – 10cm x 10.5m (x1)
• Instant ice pack – 80g (x1)
• Low adherent dressing – 7.5cm x 10cm (x1)
• Stainless steel tweezers – 9cm (x1)
• Splinter probes – 3.7cm (x5)
• CPR face shield (disposable) (x1)
• Powder free gloves (pack of 2) (x2)
• Bandaid – 72mm x 19mm (pack of 25) (x1)
• Bandaid knuckle and finger tip (pack of 12) (x1)
• Burn gel sachets – 3.5g (x3)
• Combine dressing – 10cm x 10cm (x1)
• Eyewash ampoule – 15ml (x2)
• Butterfly wound closure strips – 45mm x 10mm (pack of 10) (x1)
• Cleansing wipes (x3)
• Stainless steel scissors (x1)
• Thermal blanket – 140 x 210cm (x1)
• Calico triangular bandage – 110cm x 110cm (x1)
• Gauze swabs – 5cm x 5cm (2x packs of 3)
• Instruction card (x1)

The Rescue Swag for hiking

As mentioned previously, the Rescue Swag is a little bit large to be carrying as a complete kit in your pack for overnight and multi-day hikes where space and weight is usually at a premium. I have however separated the modules so I could take only the first aid items I needed, packed neatly in the waterproof dry bag. Instead of taking the outer (that is used as a splint or sling), I just made sure I had enough bandages to perform the same function.

For me, the Explorer Rescue Swag ( as a complete kit) is better suited to stow in your vehicle for all trips, particularly when base camping. You can then take a more compact kit in your hiking pack for emergency management while out on the trail. For day hikes, I haven’t minded carrying the entire kit as weight and space is not that greater concern. I did however separate the modules so they would fit better inside my pack rather than securing it all to the outside.

Tech Specs

• Lightweight and compact first aid kit that is perfect for taking on hikes, bike rides, fishing trips and more
• Comprehensive first aid kit containing all the medical supplies necessary to treat 1-person injuries
• Includes a Snake Bite Indicator Bandage and essential medical items, making it the perfect companion for those who love an outdoor lifestyle including; hiking, mountain biking, bird watching or children’s activities
• The best compact and portable and waterproof first aid kit on the Market
• Fits neatly into a backpack, on a bike, and is the ideal fishing companion
• Weight: 500g.

Every sale makes a difference

Rescue Swag is owned by the Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section), with 100% of profits helping support RFDS deliver vital healthcare and services to people in regional, rural, and remote communities.

The team at Rescue Swag have created a special discount code for Trail Hiking Australia community. Enter TRAILHIKING10 at checkout.

Buy the Explorer Rescue Swag online for $87