Yukon Alpha Survival Kit Review

*This is not a sponsored post, just an honest description of our giveaway item. We were not reimbursed in any way by the manufacturer.

Yukon Alpha Survival Kit Review

We couldn’t find a good review on this survival backpack kit, the grand prize from our bug out bag giveaway (worth $229), so we figured we might as well give you a rundown on what you’re entering to win.

Pack

I was actually really impressed with the Alpha backpack.

It’s made of 600D polyester, has good back and shoulder padding, and has plenty of storage with cinch straps. It’s also MOLLE compatible and comes with a 3 liter hydration bladder.

So right away, the Alpha ticks off most of the boxes on our bug out bag backpack buying guide. It’s durable, comfortable, and can hold a lot of stuff. Check out the post to learn why these things are important.

Appearance

In the military backpacks vs hiking backpacks, I lean towards the latter. I live in an urban environment in a state known for crazy people with guns so looking like I have my shit together isn’t the best idea.

That being said, this survival pack looks badass. I would totally rock this on the prepper red carpet.

Storage

There are a lot of pockets. A LOT. One guy said he counted 30 and, since I can’t count that high without taking off my shoes, I believe him.

The main pocket opens almost fully clamshell-style, which is great for finding and organizing your knickknacks. But it’s not just a free for all in there, zippered mesh pockets and elastic bands keep the anarchy from running loose and things stay in place.

Up top there’s a felt lined pocket for storing valuables like sunglasses, GPS, or your phone.

And in the hydration bladder area, there’s a section up against the flat back padding that would be perfect for documents or maps so they don’t get crumpled (make sure to put them in a sealable bag though).

Besides those, you’ve got all the other storage compartments you’re used to, along with a few that you’ll find about 6 months later.

Comfort

The Alpha has good shoulder strap and back padding. The straps are wide too which helps displace the weight.

There is good shoulder strap and back airflow, though I’ve seen better. I’m spoiled on hiking backpacks.

Sternum strap, check. You’d be amazed at how much difference this little strap can make.

There is no hip strap. You don’t see these a lot on tactical bags but it would have been nice. A girl can dream.

Cinch straps. I love me some straps and these keep everything nice and tight. They also have velcro fasteners to prevent them from flapping all hither and to while you’re walking, one of my main gripes with my current bag.

Wide yoke. I get that this adds durability but sometimes they rub my neck. After about a half hour of that, you start to feel like tiny, inefficient lumberjacks are trying to saw off your head. I don’t have that problem with the Alpha.

The Alpha is 3.6 pounds without the hydration bladder. That ain’t light. It’s a solid bag and that comes at the expense of weight.

Other Features

There are 2 drain grommets at the bottom of the main compartment. I’ve heard mixed opinions on grommets. They’re great if the water is on the inside, terrible if the water is one the outside.

Speaking of water, the Alpha is water resistant for those light spring showers and comes with a rainfly for those heavier summer monsoons.

I thought this was interesting; the shoulder straps unbuckle at the bottom. I couldn’t figure out why until I remembered sleeping on my backpack while traveling and getting annoyed with the straps getting in the way. Maybe that’s the purpose. I could be completely wrong though so let me know in the comments.

It’s MOLLE compatible. Awesome for adding pockets, sheaths, daypacks, or your favorite Hello Kitty morale patch. It also has attachments on the shoulder straps to keep things that need to be close at hand close at hand.

Hydration bladder. Wide mouth, 3 liter capacity, also great for staying hydrated on rum and cokes while tailgating. If you bought the bag separately, the bladder wouldn’t be included. And those things can get expensive so this is a pretty great feature.

Mosquito Hammock

For those of us who live in more temperate climates, a hammock is a much better choice than a tent and sleeping bag.

The downside of that warm climate is a bonanza of bloodsucking bugs. Fortunately, this hammock has mosquito netting built in!

And if you don’t need the netting, just turn it over and use it like a normal hammock.

It’s pretty lightweight, even with the hardware, and has a 275 pound weight limit. Which keeps my buddy Max from stealing it.

Rainfly Tarp

Very lightweight and has integrated guy lines. This tarp weighs right at about a pound with all of the hardware and storage bag.

Which isn’t bad at all considering it’s damn big (11’10” x 9’4″). There’s definitely enough room to cover your hammock and gear.

I’ve never had a lot of success with hammocks with built in rainflys so it’s pretty awesome to have this one included. Plus there are a lot of uses for a tarp in an emergency situation.

100 ft of 550 paracord

This is the real 550 stuff. And while you can never have too much paracord, 100 feet should more than enough for most situations.

If you’ve already got enough cordage, here are some paracord projects to keep some spare nearby when you need it.

440 Stainless Steel Knife

Honestly, when I saw that the Alpha Survival Kit came with a knife, I figured it would be one of those cheap ones that you can pick up for a dollar at the flea market.

I was pleasantly surprised.

This is actually a pretty good knife. It feel solid, has a nice weight, and seems to be made out of quality materials.

I’m not saying that you’re getting a freaking Spyderco here. But if I told you that this thing you bought comes with a free knife, you’d be pretty impressed by what you got.

It’s a frame lock knife with 440 steel blade and G10 rubberized handle. I thought the handle would feel cheap and plastic but it’s solid and has great grip.

Flashlight/Lantern

It’s a bright orange metallic flashlight that can convert into a lantern. It strobes too.

It’s a bit smaller than I thought it would be.

Probably made out of aluminum.

Water resistant.

…There’s not too much to say about this.

First Aid/Survival Kit

This is the feature that I think really makes the whole bug out bag. Yukon packs a lot of survival into this little emergency kit.

This review is already getting too long so I won’t go into too much detail on each item. You can probably figure out why each is useful and appreciate that you have it in an emergency.

The Bag

Bright orange so you won’t miss it. Trifold design that opens up to easily reach stuff without rooting around. And velcro gear strap loops to attach to things or attach things to.

The Contents

Survival cheat card

• Morse Code
• Fire starting instructions and methods
• Ground to Air signals
• Shelter systems and protection
• Snare building
• H2O requirements depending on environment
• River Crossings and Navigation

Ziploc Dry bag

Handsaw

5 in 1 Whistle

• matches
• mirror
• compass
• lanyard (cordage)

Emergency mylar blanket

Poncho

Spork/knife/spoon eating utensil

Pocket notebook and pencil

Fishing kit

• line
• jig bait
• 2 hooks
• 3 weights

Sewing kit

• 2 buttons
• 2 safety pins
• 5 feet of yellow, white, black red, brown, and blue thread

First aid supplies

• First aid instructions
• Alcohol pads
• Bandages
• Cotton
• Gauze tape
• Antiseptic wipes
• Elastic bandages
• Disposable gloves
• Gauze pads
• Tourniquet

Fire starter tool

• Strike rod
• Measuring tool
• Bottle opener and church key built-in

Right? Quite a bit of stuff in one little bag. And it saves you from having to try to pack it all in yourself.

Even if you remembered to put each item in there, I doubt you’d be able to organize it nearly as well as they have.

Warranty

The Alpha Survival Kit comes with a one year warranty as well. Normally I wouldn’t take the time to mention this since everything comes with a warranty but in my research, I found that a lot of people were raving about how great Yukon’s customer service was.

So if you’re the lucky winner of our bug out bag giveaway and, against all odds, something goes wrong with your gear, the guys at Yukon will take care of you.

Conclusion

I usually don’t like premade survival kits. They’re generally cheap and are loaded with crap you probably won’t need.

That wasn’t the case with this bug out bag.

It doesn’t have everything you need. Because everyone has different needs and Yukon understands that.

But the Alpha is a great starting point for building your bug out bag. Throw some a change of clothes, couple bottles of water, and a few protein bars in there and you’re well on your way to being prepared.

And batteries. The flashlight doesn’t come with batteries. Definitely don’t forget those.