What I Carry
on Deployment

Speaker mic for issued portable radio. Haven't found one worth recommending yet.

We run issued radios. What BCWS doesn't issue is enough batteries for a 14-hour day at the edge of range. Carry more than you think you need.

Holds two radios. Thin straps mean you're not cooking in it on a hot structure day. There's a shoulder attachment point — I've clipped a small flashlight there more than once. The radio angle keeps the antenna pointed up and away rather than in your face.

Crews will call it a circus tent. I don't care. Camp is bright, loud, and full of bugs. This tent is blackout dark inside. I set it up once at the start of deployment and it becomes my office when it's raining and my bedroom every night. Bug-free. Dark. Quiet enough with earplugs. I won't miss calls — my Apple Watch vibrates on my wrist. No noise needed. Takes longer to set up than it should and it won't survive a serious windstorm. Good spikes fix the second problem. I'd replace it annually if I had to. Worth every dollar.

Camp is loud. Generator at 2am loud. Foam earplugs cost almost nothing. Loops are better but I keep losing them so I buy foam in bulk and don't think about it again. Any brand works. Just have them.

Hot nights in a tent wreck your sleep. I clip this to my EcoFlow battery so it sits roughly level with me all night. I bring more than one. I've lent them out. Good sleep leads to good decisions — that goes for everyone on your team, not just you.

A circus tent needs circus stakes. I use a drill to anchor this thing down properly. Bring an impact driver in your truck — it takes 30 seconds per stake and nothing is moving in the wind. Pro tip: on the last night of deployment, loosen the stakes before bed. You will not want to run a power tool at 5am next to 50 people sleeping in tents. Unless they have earplugs.

If you don't have a drill these are the next best thing. 12 inches of forged steel goes into hard ground with a mallet. Not as fast as a drill but they hold. Good stakes are the difference between a tent and a kite.

The warehouse will have work gloves. These are for everything else — driving, keyboard work, detail tasks where issued gloves are too heavy. The SPS role is as much documentation and assessment as it is hands-on work. Your hands need to work either way.

Clips to your duty belt. Gloves stay on your person, not in a pile somewhere. Pack of 2 — one for work gloves, one for the Mechanix. Simple but I'm surprised how many people don't have this.

I wear the cycling cut specifically. It's longer in the back so it stays tucked under PPE all day. Might be a personal thing — but if you're not a small person, you know exactly what I mean. Regulates heat better than synthetic. Doesn't smell after multiple days. I've tried Icebreaker — similar price, same pro deal, fell apart faster. Smartwool has held up. Look up the Smartwool pro deal online. You need proof of current firefighter status. Worth the few minutes it takes.

Your feet are in boots for 14 hours. Wool socks are not optional at this point in a long career. Cushioning, heat regulation, smell — all of it matters on day 12. Same pro deal as the shirts. Buy several pairs.

Bald head. BC summer sun. The hard hat helps — it's good motivation to keep it on. I use SPF 15. Anything heavier clogs pores and makes you hotter in full PPE. Reapply more often instead.

I live in these on deployment. 14-hour days, rough terrain, two weeks straight — and they still clean up like new after every season. One quirk: the tongue works its way down as the day goes on. Readjust at noon and it's not an issue for the rest of the shift. Never had a blister or pain. Pair with Smartwool socks and your feet are never the problem.

In my pocket every single day. Cutting things, pliers, bit driver — I reach for it constantly without thinking about it. Seven tools, five ounces. If you only buy one thing from this page, buy this. I keep one on me, one in the truck, one in my kit bag. When you use something this much you stop wanting to look for it.

Hands-free light for pre-dawn briefings and night work around camp. 400 lumens handles most tasks.

Magnetic base sticks to the truck, trailer shelving, anywhere metal. Built-in stand keeps it upright on the ground. I hang one from the top of the tent when I'm doing paperwork at night. Rechargeable, 1500 lumens, comes in a two pack. I keep them in different spots — truck, camp box, briefcase bag. You always know where one is.

This one lives under my cot. When you step down in the dark at 3am to find your shoes, it turns on automatically. Works so well I use one under my bed at home in the winter. When deployment gear improves your regular life, you know it's a good product. Magnetic mount, USB rechargeable, three in a pack.

Soft warm light for reading or winding down in the tent. The important part — you can turn it off without getting out of bed. Plugs into any USB port. Costs almost nothing. Stays in my camp kit permanently.

My daily driver. I'm drinking it right now. On a long deployment day in full PPE you lose more than water. Electrolytes matter — especially if you're eating low-carb in the field. I go through a packet a day minimum in hot weather. Referral link and more carnivore field nutrition at carnivoreweekly.com

Always with me and always full. Wide mouth so I can drop LMNT straight in. I have three. One for LMNT, one for water only, and one that lives in the tent for middle-of-the-night emergencies when it's below zero and the bathroom is far away. It's red. Red means stop. If you've camped enough you know exactly what I mean. Indestructible. Costs nothing. Buy several.

I've had expensive travel mugs. I bought this one at Walmart and it's been with me for two seasons. Coffee at pre-dawn briefings. Coffee between assignments. Coffee when camp food is the only other option. You know what it's for.

I pack it every time. I haven't filled it in a while — camp always has water. But remote structure assignments happen and you don't always know what you're driving into. Takes up almost no space empty. Worth having.

High protein, no prep, no refrigeration. Lives in my kit bag, my truck, my briefcase. This is the backbone of eating well between camp meals. Load up before you leave. Good quality jerky with no sugar is hard to find — check carnivoreweekly.com for what I actually buy.

Excellent protein source. Cheap. Shelf stable. Two things to know. First — the smell. If you're eating these in a tent or a shared space, you will not be making friends. Second — bear country. Strong smelling food in remote BC is a real consideration. Eat them in the open, dispose of the tin properly. If you can manage both of those things, they're worth carrying.

These live in my truck for emergencies. I've never had to crack one open but I've been glad they were there. Remote structure assignments don't always have guaranteed food. One MRE kit means you're never in a situation where you're making bad decisions because you haven't eaten.

Camp usually issues these. I carry my own anyway. Some Plans Chiefs still want paper. This is the paper they like. Waterproof, tough, writes in the rain. Keep one in your kit even if you've gone digital — you never know who you're working for until you get there.

I have a lot of little power banks. Some issued, some from Amazon, some I honestly don't know where they came from. A few are essential. The best one is the MagSafe that attaches to the back of the phone. No cable. No fumbling. Snaps on when you run low and you keep moving. On a busy deployment day that matters more than you'd think.

The thing I use most is alarms. Every two hours you need to check in. First thing every morning I set alarms for the next 20 hours straight — just in case I get busy and lose track. The phone is constantly going on deployment. The watch makes it easy to find the right alarm fast. But the quiet wakeup is worth every penny. Earplugs in, watch on your wrist, it vibrates when someone calls. You sleep through the camp noise and wake up for what matters. That's worth all the money right there.

I've been moving to digital notes and haven't had pushback — as long as I save everything as a PDF at the end of deployment. SitReps, briefing notes, crew evals, safety forms — all on the iPad. Searchable, backed up, legible. Some Plans Chiefs still want paper. Know your audience before you show up without a notebook.

My work phone case has a slot for my travel card and purchase card. They're always with me, always accessible. Simple. Never leave for a deployment without your purchase card in your hand not your bag.

Three apps cover everything I need in the field. Google Maps for roads and getting to the incident. Avenza for georeferenced PDF maps — load your operational maps before you leave cell range. Google Earth for aerial imagery and pre-planning. Download your maps before you leave. Cell service is not guaranteed and usually doesn't exist where you're going.

The hub everything runs off. Fridge, Starlink, fan, phones, iPads — all day on solar, all night on battery. No generator. No noise. No fuel to source. I've looked at adding the River for a second unit. Don't need it yet but the system is expandable if your deployment gets longer or your power needs grow.

Set them up at base or at the structure depending on the day. Easy all-day charge. I've only needed them a handful of times but when I did, everything just ran. Phones, iPads, fridge, Starlink — all day without touching the battery. Silent. No moving parts. Folds into the truck when you move.

Runs off the Delta 2 so there's no generator noise at night. Dual zone means one side stays frozen. Cold water and electrolytes in the middle of nowhere for a crew that's been working all day in smoke and heat. Nothing makes you more popular. It sounds like a luxury. It's actually just looking after people.