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Creating a Bushcraft Belt Pouch Kit

Leather French army double ammo pouch

A belt pouch is a great item to carry when practicing bushcraft. It allows a person to carry essential items within easy reach. This means the items that we choose to carry in a belt pouch, should be well thought out and ideally, multi-use in there functions.

Belt pouches are made in various materials, cordura, cotton canvas and leather. All of these materials have advantages and disadvantages. I went over these points in the last blog post which can found here:

 Creating a Simple Fire Kit

One major point to take into account is that a belt pouch will have to endure the weather. This means that a belt pouch will often require more maintenance than a pouch that would be inside your pack. If the pouch is leather or waxed cotton canvas, it will need leather conditioning or re-waxing more often. 

Close-up of the pouch

I've been using a French army leather double ammo pouch for a few months now. This is a nice option for a belt pouch, and I quite like how it has the two separate pouches to help organise what you place inside. The leather is thick, and the stitching is nicely done. This would be very easy to repair if the stitching ever did break. The pouch also has two inch belt loops and a small D ring. The D ring could be used to tie gear onto, or to attach it to your pack if you wanted to carry it in that way.

Rear view of the pouch, showing the two inch belt loops and the D ring.

What to Include in your Belt Pouch Kit

 There are hundreds of items that you could include in this kit. However there are a few that stand out. I will now cover these items in detail and why they should be included. 

 Small folding pocket knife 

A small folding pocket knife is a great item to carry in your belt pouch. The reasons behind carrying a small folding pocket knife are simple, it's sometimes nice to have a smaller blade than your main bushcraft knife for more intricate work, and it also serves as a backup to your main bushcraft knife. You could either choose a stainless steel or a carbon steel knife. I opted for a stainless steel blade, so that I don't have to worry about oiling it and can just leave it inside the pouch with minimum maintenance required. 

Pocket whetstone

A vital piece of kit for keeping your knife and axe edge sharp. I keep my sharpening stone in my belt pouch as it's quick and easy to access. Usually at the end of the day I will sit down and refine the edge on my axe or knife. This can also be used to sharpen fishing hooks, sewing needles and awls. 

There are plenty of choices on the market for pocket whetstones. I got mine from Whitby & Co, a supplier of knives and other outdoor products. This item could keep this item in your pack, but I think it's easier to keep in your belt pouch as it's quicker and saves time rather than shuffling items around in your pack looking for it. 


Small ferrocerium rod 

A small ferrocerium rod is a great tool to carry in your bushcraft belt pouch. I always carry spare ferrocerium rods in my pack and one in my belt pouch. I keep my main, large ferrocerium in my fire kit. Whilst this smaller ferrocerium rod is not a replacement for the main rod inside the fire kit, it is meant to supplement that kit and If you ever became separated from your pack, you have a means of starting a fire in an emergency.  


ACME tornado whistle

A whistle is a good piece of kit to carry when out in the wild practicing bushcraft, it is often overlooked. If you ever find yourself in an emergency and you need to attract attention and seek help, a loud whistle will help greatly. I keep mine stored in my belt pouch, as I know that I will always have it on my person, rather than storing it in my pack. I also have the option to tie the whistle onto the D ring on my pouch, a nice option if I need access to it right away.

Overview

There are lots of choices when it comes to what items to include inside your belt pouch, this can be tailored to suit each individual and I have just provided a few items which I think are a good basis to start with. these items and tools are useful in a variety of locations and situations.

Other items that you should consider including in your kit are:

  • small compass
  • fatwood
  • lighter
  • flint and steel
  • char cloth
  • magnifying lens
  • torch


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