Wise advice, Nate. I've got caches of food/water/weapons/ammo/clothes buried along the way to our survival place. It takes about half a day to get there on foot after we four-wheel into the area and can't go any further. I've never seen anyone else in or near the area in 25 years. Fairly well isolated. If we have to, we can live there indefinitely. There's a water source nearby, and small game is pretty abundant. In any event, we've thought about it, and we're prepared to act if need be.
Rock on V.
On another subject, congrats to the Vols. After you changed QB's and removed the bricks from your WR's hand's it became a great game. A very enjoyable evening.
hehehehe... UO... you did that just to piss off MR didn't ya?
hehehehehe.
Great advice. I've only been awake to this stuff for a couple of years and I'm still not as prepared as I'd like to be. In your post you say to read...do you and the readers of the blog have any suggestions as to what to read? Are there books or websites out there that are considered authoritative, good quality sources of information on urban survival, preparation, etc.?
Thanks in advance
Posted mistakenly on previous thread:
Been thinking about a mountain fortress myself lately, but unless your goal is martyrdom Ruby Ridge style, it may be a suboptimal solution. The best place to be when TSHTF I'd think would be somewhere else. Failing that, second best place is on a boat, a big ocean-going boat. I'm looking at picking up an old 100+ ft. Tug for under $100K and fixing it up as a very spacious home. A house of comprable size and comfort would cost 3-4 times as much around here.(Though it would be cheaper to maintain.) This way, there's no bugout bags, no ugly sieges, no massive disruptions when the day finally comes. I could just saunter on down to the engineroom, fire up the diesels and chug chug chug my way to international waters and then maybe the UAE or something. As an added bonus, I could even replace my lost livelihood in the short or long term by actually working the Tug.
different strokes for different folks. Remember Ruby Ridge was an individual incident... It was one man against the government.
In that circumstance, it absolutely behooves you to bail. And bail quickly.
The Mountain Fortress is not designed or planned with the idea of defending myself against law enforcement.
Its a plan for TSHTF. Think of a fortress in the middle of New Orleans. Protected by huge flood walls, supplied with it's own water, and it's own food, and it's own electricity. A place that could exist just fine a decade or so.
The looters.. it would all have been irrelevant.
Now take that fortress and stick it up in the mountains, in some the harshest terrain in America. Terrain where tanks don't go.
Does DrWho think I'm a looney? No. It's like a hobby to her. She likes it. But it's not new to her. Its something that was done incrimentally. Its not like she came home from work one day to a paranoid husband.
Her husband became more and more paranoid over time... so it was easier to deal with... in fact... she decided to go ahead and get a little paranoid to.
Good Lord Dr. Who and I married the same person or we are the same person......
hehehehe
I reckon we'll both take that as a compliment.
Small quibble, if tanks don't go there, will the CATs and buldozers you'd presumably need to build it be able to? The peak of Mt. Everest would be a damn fine place for a fortress too, but no one ever built one there.
You can also find like minded friends... network with them... plan together. But not to much...
Actually, that's one of the great things about here and other internet places. We can all discuss plans in general and learn from it, without having to get too specific and without knowing enough about each other to be putting folks at risk.
Winter's coming, y'all don't forget to tuck those mummy bags back in your trunks, okay?
Everthing is all in place for me.
Reading suggestions???
How about "Unintended Consequences" for starters.
If you put your faith in your own preparedness and bad stuff happens, you may still fail. There is nothing you can hold that cannot be taken away from you. No one is invincable.
Boats? Pirates.
Guns, ammo, mountain fort? Other guys like you.
"If you put your faith in your own preparedness and bad stuff happens, you may still fail. There is nothing you can hold that cannot be taken away from you. No one is invincable."
You're correct, but my chances of surviving are much better if I'm prepared versus winging it on the fly. I'm an engineer by education/experience, and the old saw really is true - Failure to plan is a plan to fail. I indeed may fail, even though I'm well prepared, but if I do, it won't be because I neglected thinking about it.
INH
I plan to run and hide, until I die of complications of no insulin. But I'll be in the river fortress, only one way in and one way out.
Like the Boy Scouts motto says: "Be prepared." I agree that making provision for a disaster is a sound idea--whether it be natural, or spawned by the government. But I think our foremost trust should be put in our Father in Heaven. He can see us through obstacles that no amount of preparation can surmount.
"Her husband became more and more paranoid over time... so it was easier to deal with... in fact... she decided to go ahead and get a little paranoid to."
It's like a living mirror. My wife finally started shaking away the cobwebs maybe a year ago. She's wide awake now, I'll tell you what. She's looking to buy her first sidearm after Christmas.
There's virtually no where you can go where you won't be found but it's quite possible to lessen your problems by not making it easy to get to. The chances of really bad guys leaving the looting opportunities of the cities for looting opportunties in small towns is not likely. looking back on the most promising ways to survive bad times, I'd have to say that keeping a low to non-existant profile is far more important than the amount of stuff you have. No one's going to loot a location that doesn't have much to offer and yet is occupied by those who have the will to defend it.
Nate, once again,you drive the point home. This yankee-bred pissant they call the Commissar-in Chief has been a snake in the grass from the get-go,and this is a family tradition of traitorous and seditious behaviour with these bastards. I know most of you out there remember ol' poppy's "New World Order shit, but how many out there know about his grandad Prescott Bush doing business with the Krauts during WW 2 even after sanctions were in effect ? I don't trust him or his ilk as far as I can spit. Your buddy has the right idea with stockpiling goodies,and concentrating on stuff using the same rounds is good ol' fashion Southron country boy logic. And yeah, You can bet your ass the shit's fixin' the fan soon,as it's pickin' up speed as we speak. I agree with ya 100% on what's gittin' ready to go down, and free-thinkin' people like us scare the hell out of the powers that be. Gregg,stock up on all the insulin you can get hold of,'cause I don't want anything to happen to ya. INH,you can take the it ain't gonna do any good approach if ya want, but us ol' boys got a few tricks up our sleeve. And besides,if I gotta go down, it's gonna be swingin',and you can bet your ass I'm gonna take some asses with me. Long live Dixie!
Just to elaborate on what I'm talking about above, if you have guns, no one should no. If you have a generator, a mountain of food and fuel which everyone knows about, you're a dead man.
all plans are good until the clock goes off.
Ya gotta be ready to beat the clock, cruft. Gregg,I am sorry you're in so much pain,brother. Sweet pea and I will be prayin' hard for ya.If there's any thing I can do for ya, let me know please.
"hehehehe... UO... you did that just to piss off MR didn't ya?"
Haha.
Now be quiet and get back to the conspiracy survival TEOTWAWKI talk!! 
"Her husband became more and more paranoid over time... so it was easier to deal with... in fact... she decided to go ahead and get a little paranoid to."
I think I might have created a bit of a monster in SR, as there are times when she is more paranoid then I am now.
Although I have always been paranoid, I've just chosen to share slowly.
Gregg, I know somebody that could help make sure you got plenty of insulin,but I don't know a lot about diabetes,so can i ask ya some questions about it if you don't mind me askin'. Are there different forms of insulin,and if so,what do ya need? Hows about syringes? got some bags on your bike to hold 'em, if not' I'll get some throwovers to help ya out,got some in the shed.Do you use a meter,or pee strips? sorry if I'm gettin' into your bidness too much,if i can do somethin' lemee know,please.
MR,paranoia ain't that bad is it?
"How about "Unintended Consequences" for starters."
While UC is probably one of my favorite books of that (gun culture) genre, 800 plus pages might be a bit much if someone is looking to get an overview of preparedness and bug out bags.
Authors to read, of print books in the parenthesi:
John Ross (UC as spoken about earlier, I think Ross is coming out or has come out with another book, not sure what about though)
Matthew Bracken (Enemies Foreign and Domestic, also coming out or has come out with another book related to 1st)
Boston T. Party (Molon Labe, several others)
Vin Suprynowicz (Black Arrow, The Ballad of...)
James Wesley Rawles (Patriots and www.survivalblog.com)
JJ Johnson (Cracking the Liberty Bell, online only and I don't know if you can even get the whole thing anymore, online). I really enjoyed JJ's writing. Oddly enough I spent the first several years of my life 5 mintues from where this book takes place.
Claire Wolfe (a couple different books, plus she has a blog)
Aaron Zelman (several books plus website: www.jpfo.org)
Sorry, now I am starting to get into political stuff.
Back to Survival and Preps related...
http://www.captaindaves.com/
http://www.bob-oracle.com/ (Boy's Mom just passed this one on in a previous comment)
http://www.alpharubicon.com/index2.html
http://www.frugalsquirrels.com/s...rvival-
lib.html (has some dated material, but the majority of it is applicable today as it was 10-15 years ago) They also have a message board, have to register to read and post. Some good info and discussion along with the occasional nut.
And to make use of your taxpayer money... FEMA has some good basic information (ignore their feel good language that the .gov will take care of you). Also the Red Cross has some good online articles as well, for short-term emergencies.
While reading the .gov's info... repeat to yourself... "Never be anybody's Refugee".
The best bet is to start working toards meeting short-term survival goals. Ie, 3 days w/o power or have to leave home for 3-5 days.
Then go longer from there. It can be overwhelming when you only look at the "big" long-term picture.
While preparing physically for X, it is easy to forget the mental and spiritual.
Now some folks, being good Southron boys who don't like talkin' 'bout their feelings may tell you to just get ready and suck it up.
Me, I'm a touchy feely (not really) Yankee from NH (Live Free or Die) who wasted too much time getting degrees in Psychology. Preparing mentally is only slightly less important then preparing physically, IMHO. Especially if things go the long-term route.
And lastly, as I stated previously preparing includes many different levels... with the spiritual being one of them. Cause if you aren't right with your Creator, then it doesn't matter how many preps you have.
"MR,paranoia ain't that bad is it?"
Not at all, if it wasn't for paranoia my mind would not be encouraged to work overtime thinking of different things, I wouldn't read all the crap that I do and my brain would turn to gray mush.
Speaking of personal bidness, is it just me or do commentors' email addresses no longer show up when posting a comment?
And JAU, I love the idea of a big tug although you have to worry about fuel. If it (TSHTF) was anything long term that could be a big problem.
We had a discussion a couple weeks ago about motor vs. sail, course that was before Katrina probably changed Nate's mind about settling down on the coast of AL.
"You can also find like minded friends... network with them... plan together. But not to much..."
IMO, it wouldn't be a bad idea to share some slight personal information with people you run into and get to know on the Net. In the off chance that one has to travel to a different area of the country or is forceably relocated during a SHTF situation.
It's always nice to know that you know at least one person in whatever area of the country that might help you out, even if in a small way.
Not saying that you should be expecting to be fed for weeks on end or anything, just a helping hand if you really need it.
The disadvantage we have of living up here in G-d's country (NH) is that it's damned cold in the winter, so that's an added contingency that has to be thought out.
I myself am planning on heading back up North to where I was born. Plenty of animals to hunt, fish to fish, weapons, our own reloading bench; pretty much whatever we would need to survive. Far enough away to make it a pain for any looter to even attempt anything.
You know, with the advent of EMP's, someone ought to come up with a car cover that would protect your vehicle from one. I'm thinking there's money to be there.
Tin foil hat for the car too BillyD?
MR, stock up on MRE's and gut 'em. You'd be surprised how small they are once you take all the junk out of 'em.
MR. As long as I make it a point to keep the Tank full, Fuel shouldn't be a huge problem. Tugs like I'm talking about hold 30,000 gallons of fuel, that'll take me 7000-8000 miles. That should be more than enough to get me out of whatever trouble develops. and if 8000 miles ain't far enough away when TSHTF, then I wasn't likely to survive anyway. Plus, if you tune it right, those big marine diesels will burn grass clippings, or damn near anything else thats even remotely combustible.
MR,
As far as knowing someone who'd help you out in a pinch, isn't that what we have relatives for? Or maybe what they have us for. If you're the country mouse, you might want to think about how likely it is that the city mice in your family will try to get to your doorstep in event of disaster.
The problem with physical contact info of this sort with internet people is you can't be sure you're talking to a person who's real and not a well-built persona.
They might be a potential helping hand, or they might be a twelve-year-old with a computer. Or . . . someone else.
Why do you think I have to build the Mountain Fortress?
Someone has to take care of JAC.
" Gregg, I know somebody that could help make sure you got plenty of insulin,but I don't know a lot about diabetes,s"
I use Humalog insulin, in the pen, but the I have plenty of sirenges arnt a problem. But if I were to bugout I would want the vials of humalog instead of the pen. That would keep me alive. I use 90 units of humalog a day but it would probably got to about half that because of how it would change my diet and exercise.
Boysmom,
Are you trying to tell us that you’re not really a nice stay at home mom who loves her kids and husband, but a Harley ridding biker named Snake that likes to smash beer cans on his head?
I could be, how can you tell? I'm just reminding folks to be careful. But more likely than being a biker, if I wasn't me, I'd be . . . in intelegence, maybe? Just saying, we only think we know each other around here.
Res, you probably know more about me than most around here--what did come of that job offer, anyway?
It didn't pan out. They realy wanted a Phd but they were willing to take a Masters if the Phd was almost done. I would have dropped you a line if I had come to town, even if it was just to interview.
I'm planning on being close to you, well with in a 150 miles in about 2 weeks, but I'll be up in the mountians hunting elk.
EMP's should be useless as long as whatever electrical component you want to protect has no juice going through it - and I mean completely dead, before it strikes. Might be worth having a spare car, stripped of the battery and any live power, which should be good to go in a matter of moments afterward...i'll have to look into it further, but i believe one of those Omega shockproof batteries that bracket racers use would last on the shelf during an EMP blast as well...
"Plus, if you tune it right, those big marine diesels will burn grass clippings, or damn near anything else thats even remotely combustible."
Bodies?
As my dear former Marine husband has declared, our family abides by the 7 "P"'s
Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance.
We live in the desert southwest but I am beginning to believe a move further north would be a very, very, good idea.
MR said, "if you aren't right with your Creator, then it doesn't matter how many preps you have."
i disagree - your preps could keep you alive long enough to give you a chance to 'get right'..and your experience when TSHTF may help you see that you need to find Him
"...isn't that what we have relatives for?"
BoysMom, I do my best not to rely on anyone but myself. That way I am less likely to be dissapointed.
As well, I am the "prep" person in my family. My sister and mother just started thinking and taking small steps recently but seeing as they are 1500 plus and 600 plus miles away it would be tough to rely on them even if I wanted to.
SR's dad who would be a good bet but he is also about 500 miles away. Although he could probably equip a small platoon with enough firepower to hold off a good sized invading force, plus feed them for at least a month.
SR's mom and stepdad are the closest to us in location but their idea of preparing is to have an extra 50 rounds of ammo and a few gallons of bottled water.
And as of right now, I am not a country mouse... I am about 30 minutes from downtown Detroit (Can also be spelled Detriot ).
In the next couple years we are planning on moving further out but until then here we are.
"The problem with physical contact info of this sort with internet people is you can't be sure you're talking to a person who's real and not a well-built persona."
True, but after you have been on the Web for awhile, and as long as you have a little intuition, you should be able to figure out if someone is for real or not after reading their posts for a couple weeks/months.
Granted if somebody really wants to fool you, sure they can probably do it.
But there are several people in the group of blogs I frequent that I would trust, at least as far as I could throw them.
"i disagree - your preps could keep you alive long enough to give you a chance to 'get right'..and your experience when TSHTF may help you see that you need to find Him"
That is funny.
No seriously, if you feel comfortable in playing with your eternal life go ahead, save it till the last minute.
And if you were speaking generically about "somebody" else, then sure there is that chance but most likely they aren't commenting or reading here.
And BoysMom, about you (or any one of us) being in Intelligence (Military or LEO? Not sure which you would think would be more likely) just from reading the posts and comments I would say No. Simply because there has been no continued suggestions by comments to partake in illegal acts. Maybe except to drink alot during ATF, though that isn't illegal.
LEOs and the .gov's time is much better spent frequenting "Hate Groups" and the truly fringe (right-wing) websites / message boards and infiltrating those. And they know it.
Sorry Nate, hope you aren't offended that I don't think you are extreme right-wing.
Heck, it is a running joke here in MI that the Michigan Militia has more undercover agents in it then actual civilians.
(Not saying that the MI Militia is a hate group, just that the feds are in it).
Actually, MR, I'm thinking for anything less than the end of the world, your 600 and 500 mile relatives might be just the ticket. You know, if something Katrina-like happened in your area (train derail is what I think about around here), that's a (long) day's drive to get to somewhere other than a motel.
I expect if there were MI folks around here, they'd be folks who weren't entirely happy with what they'd seen and preparing for the end of their terms. But . . . Billy D.'s been posting about that homosexual hate speach bill. So we can probably expect to see some gov't types trolling for targets around the web at some point if it finishes passing. Bush never saw a bill he didn't like to sign, after all.
Res,
That's too bad. Although given the scandal around here about administrator raises just now, you're probably well out of the politics.
Best of luck with the elk hunting. I bet you'll enjoy wandering around the hills, I always do. Sounds like you'll be fairly out there, maybe find some good bug-out spots.
I'm aware of a few with thermal springs lots of game, caves to hide in, clean water, fish, small amounts of placer gold.
Heck, who needs TSHTF? I might just turn mountian man on my own.
Hey Nate, what would be some good locations for my mountain getaway? I like Colorado and really need to go see the other mountains. Personally I want to move someplace that has mountains, (I love the view and environment.) but I'd like some insight into some good areas.
Nate, I have you primarily to thank (or curse) for my developing paranoia.
Right now I'm looking at property out in the country, reading several books including Joel Skousen's Secure Home book, and researching researching researching on the internet other self-sufficiency information.
I wasn't this way a year ago...
Billy D, older cars (meaning pre electronic ignition, preferably older) are less susceptible to EMP. My dream bug-out vehicle would be a mid-60's Dodge Power Wagon (4WD plus big winch and extra gas tanks). Keep a replacement set of the most EMP sensitive electrical parts in a shielded box in your garage, and even if something does blow, you can quickly swap them out and be on your way. The advantage is that there are far fewer vulnerable electric/electronic parts in the older vehicles, and they are much easier to work on.
If I'm not mistaken, it doesn't matter if there is power to a circuit when the EMP hits. As long as there is any component in which a current can be induced, it can still blow up sensitive parts.
Dystopia, the biggest problem we have here in the desert is (obviously enough) water. But other than that it makes a very good area to lie low and wait out the storm. And the water problem is not as insurmountable as it might sound to someone unfamiliar with the possibilities. There are remote and semi-remote areas where water is fairly close to the surface and can be reached by drilling a private well. Coupled with solar panels and a solar-powered well pump, problem solved! Not to mention the precious gem that is a piece of land with an artesian well is.
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