I always carry a first aid kit when I leave on an adventure, I also keep one in my car and one at home. I have often used my med kits to help out other adventurers, but once in a while they come in handy for my own uses, as I am prone to blisters. NAO carries light weight medical kits by Adventure medical that are small, easy to carry and come in weather proof packages. You also have the option of creating your own kit, which is a great way to customize, but the costs add up quickly.

Adventure Medical has a very easy method for choosing the kit that will work best for your needs. Their kits are based on the number of supplies needed for different group sizes, trip lengths and activity types. The packages are large enough to add personal touches like prescription or OTC medications, tampons, spare contacts, etc.

Knowing how to use items from a first aid kit is as important as carrying one. The American Red Cross offers a variety of courses including CPR, first aid and wilderness first aid. UAS also offers Basic First Aid/CPR and a First Responder ETT class. You should consider carrying a quick reference guide or a smartphone app (e.g. American Red Cross first aid - there is one for your pets, too) which explains how to administer basic first aid.

Every good medical kit should have items that can be used to help stop bleeding, close and protect cuts, and help prevent infection from setting in. When using duct tape or butterfly sutures to close a wound. Carefully clean the wound and wash out any foreign materials or debris. If you have some sort of antiseptic, apply it to the wound and dry the area. Be aware that some people are allergic to Iodine as it contains shellfish, in this case Betadine is a safer option. Pain relief is essential especially if you are days or miles away from medical help.

Even if you don't think you have allergies, there are certain things that can still cause an allergic reaction. In some cases, especially in people who have food allergies, allergens can cause life threatening anaphylaxis reactions that need to be treated immediately. Carry an antihistamine such as Benadryl, otherwise known by its generic name Diphenhydramine HCl.

No one is immune to blisters. However, blisters are preventable if you understand the conditions that cause them and they will heal faster if you know how to treat them properly. If a blister has broken, it should be cleaned, disinfected and then bandaged. Unbroken blisters that are painful should be drained, cleaned and bandaged. Every first aid kit should include Moleskin, which when cut in an "O" can be placed around the blister to help protect it from rubbing. Pain relief is essential especially if you are days or miles away from the end of your journey. Carry a selection of aspirin, Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen to help with pain and inflammation.

Alaskan's use duct tape for everything from standard repairs to creative fashion accessories, so it stands to reason it would fit in our medical kits. Superglue also has a wide range of applications outside the medical field, and is widely used by surgeons to bond together parts of the body that respond poorly to stitches. Medical superglue is made of a substance called cyanoacrylate. When it comes into contact with liquids like water, it forms a plastic mesh that will keep skin, or anything someone wants glued, neatly bonded together. Medical Superglue can be used for a range of uses from stitching together cuts to healing blisters and it doesn't sting to put on. Regular superglue has methyl alcohol, however, which creates heat in order to produce the bonding effect. Methyl alcohol can really sting when applied to open skin and may even kill surrounding skin cells.