Practical tools to support planning, judgement, and safe decision-making
Checklists are not a substitute for experience or judgement — but used well, they ensure important considerations are not overlooked before you leave home. These free downloadable checklists cover hike planning, survival kit preparation, first aid, and day and multi-day safety — each designed around how hiking safety systems work together, not as rigid packing lists.
Hike Planning & Safety Checklist
A pre-hike safety systems check
This checklist is designed to help you think through the key safety systems that support a hike before you leave home. Rather than focusing on individual items, it prompts you to consider route information, conditions, group capability, and decision-making in context. Use it to identify gaps, assumptions, or risks early, when they are easiest to manage, and to ensure your hike is appropriate for the environment, conditions, and people involved.
Survival Kit Checklist
A system for short-term self-reliance when things go wrong
A survival kit is not about preparing for extreme or unlikely scenarios. It exists to support you through common problems such as delays, getting disoriented, unexpected weather, or needing to wait for assistance. This checklist focuses on the core functions a personal survival kit should provide, rather than prescribing a fixed list of items. The goal is simple: if you had to stop moving or could not immediately self-rescue, would your survival kit help you stay warm, hydrated, visible, and capable of managing the situation until help arrives or you can move safely again?
First Aid Kit Checklist
A systems-based approach to injury management on the trail
Injuries and medical issues are one of the most common reasons hikes escalate from inconvenient to serious. A first aid kit is not about carrying everything, but about being able to manage the most likely problems for your trip until you can walk out or help arrives. This checklist helps you think through what your first aid system needs to support, based on hike length, remoteness, group size, and environmental conditions. It encourages a practical, risk-based approach rather than a one-size-fits-all kit.
Day Hike Safety Checklist
A systems-based approach to packing for safety
This checklist is not a traditional packing list. It is designed to help you assess whether the core hiking safety systems are adequately supported for a day hike, based on realistic conditions and the possibility of delay. Instead of listing specific gear, it focuses on outcomes: staying oriented, hydrated, protected from the environment, mobile, and able to communicate if something goes wrong. Use it to guide your packing decisions, not replace them.
Overnight & Multi-Day Hike Safety Checklist
A systems-based approach for longer and more remote hikes
Overnight and multi-day hikes place greater demands on self-reliance, judgement, and system redundancy. This checklist helps you assess whether each hiking safety system remains supported over extended timeframes, changing conditions, and increasing fatigue. It is not an inventory of gear, but a structured way to think about shelter, warmth, hydration, energy, communication, injury management, and decision-making when help may be distant or delayed.
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