Survival

Overland Expo's focus may be largely on earth-exploring giants and heavy-duty gear, but the show does also highlight some smaller gadgets. One of our favorite finds was the Fire Flute, a tiny, 50-gram fire starter with watertight cache and whistle.

The wilderness can instantly leave you stranded and in desperate need of rescue. Airmarker debuts a new survival beacon that can triumph where others fail, sending up a visual indicator of the victim's exact location, without battery or connectivity.

Even the best multitool isn't going to do you much good if you don't have it with you. The 13-tool MultiMighty Paracord Survival Bracelet is the latest device (there have been others) to address that problem by simply going around your wrist.

Scientists have found the molecular mechanism that causes a losing zebrafish to wave the white flag. While fighting fish in general may not spark a lot of interest, their shared neurobiology with humans means this could be a very significant discovery.

DeepBlue's new Ti-capsule multi-tool is a thumb-size titanium capsule that comes with a series of interchangeable tools. Most notable is the kerosene lighter that gives you a reliable fire-starting option that fits in your smallest pocket.

The new Vitaloop Defender bottle uses an all-in-one design to collect, purify and deliver water. Its five-part filtration system and battery-powered pump turn water from a lake or river into potable drinking water at the push of a button.

There are a number of "survival items" that people should bring on camping trips, which can be a hassle to round up and pack every time. The Outdoor Survival Stick offers a solution, by keeping everything ready to go in one stowable device.

When we saw the term "Extinction Level Event Camper Trailer," we assumed it was just creative marketing. But the Mammoth ELE trailer is different, loaded with features like bear spray defense, medical-grade air filtration and optional bulletproofing.

Interest in outdoor recreation has soared since the Covid-19 pandemic. It's no wonder, then, that manufacturers launched innovative products throughout 2022 to help athletes go farther, faster and deeper into the backcountry. Here are the highlights.

With the new UltraPress Ti, Grayl injects its titanium know-how into its original water filter bottle design, creating a versatile tool that can quickly purify water and cook over a fire. It's a lightweight, hardwearing food-and-beverage multitool.

The knife may be the center of the multitool universe, but the axe appears more often than one might expect. The Roamer NOA is the latest survival multi-axe, packing over half a dozen functions into a modular handle below its razor-sharp axe blade.

Sometimes it pays to keep things simple when it comes to survival. Taking this approach is the newly launched Sharp-n-Spark, a lightweight camping implement that focuses on doing just two jobs and doing them well.