Christmas Gifts for Preppers

If your family member or significant other is a prepper, or even a dedicated survivalist, what sort of gift might you get them for Christmas? — or Chanukah, which begins on Thanksgiving this year. I’ll suggest a few guidelines and examples. But keep in mind that these are not the specific gifts that you should get for me. (I know some of my family members read this blog.)

What’s the most common gift-buying mistake that people make? Buying a gift that you yourself would like, but that the other person does not. (The same mistake happens in cooking for other people, but that’s another story.) So if you are a prepper buying a gift for another prepper, don’t assume that they need or want an item just because you like it, need it, or want it. Of course, you could always ask them what they would like, but where’s the fun in that?

One thing that every prepper needs is food. A dedicated pepper or survivalist should already have a good amount of staple food. So what I would suggest as one possible gift is some of the more expensive food items, that the prepper is unlikely to have in large amounts, and could always use. For example, nuts and seeds store fairly well, are a good source of protein and dietary fat, and are a little on the expensive side compared to staples like rice, pasta, and flour.

You could buy nuts or seeds in bulk as a gift. Good choices for prepping are: walnuts (high in omega-3 fat), pumpkin seeds (high in omega-6 fat), cashews (a complete protein), pistachio nuts (also a complete protein), sunflower seeds (least expensive, still nutritious). Worst choices are: brazil nuts (you can overdose on selenium from too many brazil nuts) and macadamia nuts (low in protein, low quality protein, not much essential fatty acids).

A good companion item with nuts and seeds is dried fruits. These keep well and provide vitamins, minerals, and variety in stored foods. Least expensive is raisins (go ahead and spring for the slightly more pricy red or yellow variety). But a good assortment of dried fruits would be appreciated: cranberries, blueberries, cherries, apples, apricots, etc.

Another good food item is coffee and tea. You probably already know if your prepper is a coffee person or a tea person. Instant coffee stores very well long-term, so does tea. Most preppers don’t have enough coffee and tea in storage, and it’s a little on the expensive side. If you know the coffee habits of the intended gift recipient, you might get whole coffee beans and a grinder. But I think most preppers are practical and would appreciate the instant coffee.

Caf or Decaf? Get both. And even if your prepper is a coffee drinker, get some tea (caf and decaf) also. The reason is that water purification is an important consideration in prepping. But what most people don’t know is that do-it-yourself purified water — using any number of different water purification devices or methods — has an off-taste. It might taste like the plastic of the device used to purify it. It might have a slight carbon taste, if the device has a carbon filter. But it doesn’t taste like Dasani or some other store-bought brand name water. So using the water to make coffee or tea hides the taste. And since you don’t always want caffeine when you are thirsty, decaf versions of coffee and tea should be welcome.

The upside to a food gift for preppers is that they can eat some of the food now, and store the rest. The gift is not solely for storage with other preps. You could throw in some other food gift items that are not for storage at all, to round out your gift offering.

On the subject of water purification, it’s an often over-looked prepping item. This is largely due to a dearth of water purification products that are affordable, purify large quantities of water, and meet EPA standards. The LifeStraw is a common prepping item; it is inexpensive and removes bacteria and protozoa — but not viruses. However, there is a new product on the market: LifeStraw Family. (See the ad for LifeStraw on this page; click through and find the link for the “Family” version of the product.) It is relatively inexpensive, purifies thousands of gallons of water, and removes viruses, bacteria, and protozoa to EPA standards.

While we’re on the topic of food, many preppers are also gardeners. Good gardening tools and a wide assortment of gardening seeds are always useful for prepping. Growing some of your own food is a goal of many preppers (and all survivalists).

Another tool that almost all preppers and survivalists appreciate is a good knife. My advice, don’t get department store knife that says “survival knife” on the package. Get a brand-name folding or fixed blade knife. Top brands include Spyderco, Benchmade, KA-BAR, Kershaw, and CRKT.

If your prepper friend is also a firearms enthusiast (but what are the odds of that?), good gift items include ammunition — full metal jacket for practice at the range and hollow points for self-defense. Find out what he or she uses and buy more of the same. Ammunition is still in short supply, so you many have to look around to find what you want. (But buying someone a firearm for a gift is tricky and not generally recommended.)

A good weapon-mounted flashlight is great for any pistol with a rail. A well-made gun safe makes a good gift for any shooter. So does a nice range bag, like the ones made by Maxpedition.

Every prepper appreciates a good quality strong flashlight; its useful in many different circumstances. Get a small high quality flashlight, for everyday carry, and a larger one for home use.

A nice bug-out bag has a universal appeal among preppers and survivalists. Start with a high quality backpack, not the department store variety. Then add a number of common bug-out and prepping items. Don’t stuff the bag entirely full, since your prepper will want to customize it to his or her own needs. Here’s Butch’s thoughts on the subject.

Finally, a good first aid kit is a must for all preppers. Again, don’t get the department store or drug store kit; buy one from a prepping and survival store. (See our advertisers, to be more specific.) It should be the size of a small backpack to as large as a medium duffle bag (like my kit). You don’t want the kit to be mainly band-aids and items for minor scrapes and cuts. It should be an “advanced” first aid kit.

If your prepper is also a technophile, and you don’t mind springing for a somewhat pricy gift, you might consider getting him or her an Amazon Kindle. There are several versions. They all work well for storing many prepping and informational books in a small space. they are also great for bugging out. I have two: the basic gray-scale Kindle and the newer full-color “Fire” version.

Well, those are my suggestions. I’m sure I’ve left out quite a few good gift possibilities. Feel free to add your gift ideas in the comments.

- Thoreau