Improvised carrying: a bag from a shirt, a blanket roll

Every container needs two things: a closed bottom so nothing falls out, and a way to grip or sling it. A shirt or T-shirt almost brings both with it. The tied hem becomes the bottom, the sleeves become handles and the neck hole is the opening for filling.

The blanket roll works on a different principle. Rolling tightly encloses the items so they cannot shift. Carried diagonally across the upper body, the weight sits close to you and is spread over a long stretch – much like a backpack, only simpler. Loads close to the body are easier to carry because they pull you less off balance.

The classic cloth bundle is even older: a large square cloth is folded around the contents and opposite corners are knotted. A reef knot (also called a square knot) suits this well because it lies flat and can be undone again.

Less is more: fabric is not made for heavy loads. An overloaded T-shirt tears at the seams or at the hem knot. Rather split the weight into two bundles or carry heavy things in your hands. Hard and sharp items go inside so they neither poke through the fabric nor press into your back.

With the blanket roll, tightness decides everything: loosely rolled blankets sag and swing with every step. Roll as tightly as you can, fold in the ends and tie them off well. After packing, walk a few steps and retie if anything slips.

Thin cords dig into the shoulder. Put a folded cloth, gloves or a hat underneath as padding. On longer distances switch shoulders so your muscles can recover.

Improvised carrying helps over short distances with light to medium loads: when a bag has torn, when you need to take extra things along in an evacuation, or when you collect wood, cones or small items around camp. One advantage: afterwards the bundle turns back into clothing or a blanket.

For heavy loads and long distances it is not a good solution. Without a hip belt and padded straps the weight presses on a few points, and that quickly becomes painful. For an evacuation, a prepared go-bag is always better than any improvisation.

This technique is explicitly not meant for carrying injured people. Injured people are only moved if they are in immediate danger where they are. Otherwise: call the local emergency number (112 in the EU), stay with the person and wait for help.

In the cold, warmth comes first. A jumper used as a bag no longer keeps you warm. Even cool, windy or wet conditions can chill you, without any frost. So only use clothing you really can spare right now for bags, or a cloth, a sheet or a pillowcase.

Cords never go around the neck. If a bundle catches on something or someone falls, a cord around the neck can become dangerous. Always run carrying straps over one shoulder and across the upper body so they can be slipped off quickly if needed. Take particular care with children.

Look after your back as well: lift bundles with your knees, not with a rounded back, and rather carry twice than once too heavily.

The blanket roll over the shoulder is a very old way of carrying. Soldiers, travelling workers and travellers carried their belongings this way long before modern backpacks were common. Military survival manuals also describe improvised carrying systems made from a blanket or tarp.

Try it once at home: turn an old T-shirt into a bag and a blanket into a roll, and carry them around the flat or the garden. You will quickly notice how much fits into a bundle, which knots hold and where it pinches. Then in a real situation you will not have to think.