Coming in July: THE PULSE: A Novel of Surviving the Collapse of the Grid

Most regular readers here know that I was working on a novel over the last few months since Bug Out Vehicles and Shelters was released.  Some of you may have already seen the book's Amazon page, but if not, here's a preview of the front and back covers.  I'll post more detailed information about this book here soon.  In the meantime, if you'd like a preview, the "Look Inside This Book" feature has been enabled on Amazon, so you can read the opening scenes and see if you'd like to read more.  The book should be available in print and Kindle form early next month.

From the back cover:

THE END OF THE ELECTRIC AGE

As massive solar flares bombard the Earth, an intense electromagnetic pulse instantly destroys the power grid throughout North America. Within hours, desperate citizens panic and anarchy descends. Surrounded by chaos, Casey Drager, a student at Tulane University, must save herself from the havoc in the streets of New Orleans. Casey and two of her friends bug out to the dangerous backwaters of Mississippi where they are forced to use their survival skills to seek refuge and fight for their lives.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Casey’s father, Artie, finds himself cut off and stranded. His Caribbean sailing vacation has turned into every parent’s nightmare. Warding off pirates and tackling storms, Artie uses the stars to guide him toward his daughter.

The Pulse is a compelling action-adventure novel that reveals what it would take to survive in a world lit only by firelight, where all the rules have changed and each person must fend for himself.

What if You Had to Bug Out in Winter?

I happen to live in a part of the Deep South where winter is rarely a serious consideration when it comes to outdoor activities and even survival scenarios.  Sure, we have some cold snaps around here and especially at night the lows can be uncomfortable if you don't have the right gear, but outright freezing to death is not likely.  Some of my best hiking and paddling trips here in Mississippi have been in the dead of winter, especially just after deer season closes and hardly anyone is in the woods.

But just last month I spent a few days in Tennessee and North Carolina, and while there had a chance to do some hiking in one of my favorite wild places in the East - the Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness Area.  The leaves were mostly in full fall colors in the lower elevations and were already gone above 4,000 feet.  That first week of November, conditions were perfect for exploring and camping and the mountain forests seemed benign and beckoning:

 But I've also hiked this area in December and January in years past, picking my times between winter storms, and as I walked familiar paths on this recent trip, I thought about what it would be like here in a bug-out context.  What would you do if circumstances forced you into prolonged stay in late fall with winter approaching, or perhaps even worse, if you had to suddenly leave the comfort of your home in winter?  The same area could very well look like this:

How would you prepare to operate in such conditions?  Do you have the clothing and shelter you would need to stay warm and dry, and have you tested it on actual trips?  Have you experimented with shelter-building and fire-making in winter conditions?  How much will cold temperatures and snow and ice slow down your rate of travel?  Will you still be able to navigate?  And if you are focused on keeping warm, especially at night, will you still be able to keep a low profile and stay out of sight of any potential threats?  What about staying hydrated and carrying enough food or finding sources to supplement your supplies along the way?  All of these things will become much more difficult in winter, and the consequences of failure could be much swifter.

If you live in a colder region than I do and there's a chance you may need such skills in a real-life survival scenario, now is the time to practice them.  As with any kind of survival training, familiarity gained by experience is the best way to build the confidence you need to know you can prevail if really put to the test.  You might even find, as many people do, that you prefer winter hiking and camping, especially if you love solitude and the challenges of staying comfortable in conditions that keep most people indoors.

For further reading on clothing, gear and logistics of operating in winter, there's an excellent post from earlier this week on the Warrior Talk News site called The Winter Warrior.  Much of what Suarez International Staff Instructor, Eric W. Pfleger discusses could be applicable to anyone considering bug-out strategies, and includes: clothing and footwear selection, hygiene, hydration and first aid considerations, and weapons care, transportation and counter-tracking measures.  It's an article well worth your time to check out.

Top 10 Bug Out Tips

Although most long-time readers of Bug Out Survival know the basics of bug-out preparations and why they may be necessary, I thought it might be useful to post this basic top ten tips list from the final chapter in Getting Out Alive: 13 Deadly Scenarios and How Others Survived.  As many of you who have read my newest book know, Getting Out Alive is not targeted at the hard-core prepper/survivalist reader, but Chapter 13, Urban Breakdown, paints a description of a situation in a city where leaving may be the only safe option.  The top ten tips for preparing to bug out and actually going through with it are a good introduction to the subject that you may want to share with friends or family, and can also be good reminders even to those who are prepared.  As this photo of a hurricane evacuation shows, chaos can reign supreme when things go wrong in a big city.  A real SHTF scenario would make this look like Friday rush hour traffic.  Those who live in cities by choice or necessity should always keep this in mind and not get complacent about the possibility of having to bug out.

TOP TEN TIPS FOR BUGGING OUT IN AN URBAN BREAKDOWN:

1. Understand the Risks.  Stay tuned in to current events, weather and science so you will be aware of any potential threats to normal life in your area.  Be aware of specific natural disasters, terror threats or political situations that can pose a risk where you live or work.  The more urban the environment, the more likely you will have to bug out if something serious happens as areas with large populations will be full of desperate people. 

2. Prepare a Bug Out Bag.  Once you accept the possibility that you may have to bug out someday, prepare your bug out bag in advance.  Gather the necessary gear and supplies and learn to use any items that you may not be familiar with.  Make sure all the stuff you need fits in the bag, and that you can carry it on your back while traveling on foot if you have to. 

3. Have a Pre-Planned Bug Out Location.  Being prepared to leave will do you little good if you don’t know where to go.  Scout the potential bug out locations in your region through the study of maps, research online and in books, and by on the ground reconnaissance.  Evaluate a bug out location based on remoteness and inaccessibility to the masses, natural hazards such as wildlife and climate, available resources such as water, plant foods and game and reasonable proximity to your starting point. 

4. Know the Best Escape Routes.  Know in advance the route you will take to your chosen bug out location using your available transportation options and back-ups.  Chose routes that are not likely to be the scene of mass evacuations and traffic jams, and practice traveling them so you will know the way no matter what the circumstance.  Consider unconventional routes that will allow you to avoid as many people as possible.

5. Keep your Vehicle Ready.  If a motor vehicle is part of your bug out plan, make sure it is well-maintained and that the fuel tank is kept topped off as much as possible.  Have the necessary emergency equipment to deal with different weather conditions and have spare parts that commonly need replacing and the tools to install them.  Include towing gear, a winch and bolt cutters to open padlocked gates. 

6. Consider Alternate Transportation.  In many areas motor vehicles may not be the best option.  Bicycles can get you out of a grid-locked city faster than sitting in an traffic jam with thousands of stalled cars.  If there is navigable water such as a stream, river, lakeshore or coast a boat may be the best option as there will be far fewer people trying to bug out by boat and it will get you to areas those without boats cannot reach.

7.  Be Prepared to Walk.  Always be prepared to bug out on foot if all else fails, including your vehicle.  In some cases walking may be the best option even if you have other choices.  Unconventional routes you can take on foot include railroads, storm drains and many other cross-country options.  With careful planning you can find a way out while those confined to vehicles remain trapped. 

8. Be Inconspicuous and Blend In.  Remain as unobtrusive as possible by not dressing in a way that says you are a prepared survivalist or openly carrying a weapon such as an assault rifle.  If you do, you may be detained by the police or other authorities, or have your weapon and other gear confiscated.  You could also be targeted by others who see that you are prepared and want your stuff. 

9.  Avoid Confrontations.  Although being armed is a good idea and suitable firearms for both hunting and self-defense should be part of your bug out bag, you should seek to avoid confrontations at all costs.  Chances are you will be out-numbered or out-gunned anyway.  Staying hidden, moving at night and choosing routes away from mass evacuations are among the best tactics for avoiding confrontations. 

10. Resist the Urge to Go Back Too Soon.   If all has gone well and you’ve reached your bug out location safely, stay there and try to remain out of sight until you are sure that order has been restored and that it is safe to return to the city.  It may be lonely out in a wilderness of forest, desert or mountains, but you will be safer there than among a lawless population without adequate resources.

Next Book: Bug Out Vehicles and Shelters

As I've mentioned recently, I'm currently working on another book project that will be a follow-up to Bug Out: The Complete Plan for Escaping a Catastrophic Disaster Before It's Too Late.  Some of  you may already be aware of the title if you've visited my author's page on Amazon lately, as the new book is now listed on Amazon along with the cover.  Here is the first version of the cover, which will be changed as the vehicle shown is not really representative of the type of vehicles the book describes, but was simply used by the designer to have something to tie the concept together:  

As you know, the original Bug Out covers bug-out vehicles and transportation options in Chapter Four.  I feel this subject easily merits expansion into a full-book, however, as your means of getting out of a danger zone to your safe bug-out location is a large part of any bug-out plan. 

Bug Out Vehicles and Shelters: Build and Outfit Your Life-Saving Escape will cover not only the kinds of vehicles you might chose to make your escape, but also those vehicles that can be set up to become mobile retreats on their own.  These escape vehicles and mobile retreats will include options for overland travel as well as on the water, depending on your particular needs.  In addition, there will be a section on a variety of shelters both movable and fixed that can be set up in advance in your bug-out location.  This sort of pre-planned bug-out retreat will enable you to be even more prepared for a stay away from home than you would be if you were simply carrying everything on your back, and will also make the bug-out option more viable for families.  As was touched on briefly in Chapter Four of Bug Out, there will be a section on additional equipment or back-up alternatives such as bicycles, ATVs, canoes, kayaks, etc. that can be used when conventional vehicles cannot.

The reason I feel a book is needed on this subject is to provide much more detail in how to choose, outfit and use these various options.  It is this kind of knowledge and preparation that will make your bug-out plan work and that will separate you from the refugees who might be haphazardly fleeing a SHTF scenario with no idea where they are are going.

But whether they are ever needed or not, unlike many other forms of prepping, you'll likely find that researching, acquiring and setting up bug-out vehicles and shelters can be an enjoyable form of recreation in an of itself.  Writing about them is equally enjoyable, but it's hard to sit at a computer and do so without wanting to shut it down and bug-out if only for a few hours, as many of these vehicles are also a great means to escape the everyday world and head out into the woods or onto the water.  But since it is scheduled to be published in September this year, I've got a lot of work to do.  Look for updates in the coming weeks and months.

Short-term Bug Out Scenarios

Keep This in Mind: Bugging Out Does Not Always Imply a Long Stay in the Woods:

Not all bug-out situations will involve long-term escape and evasion in a remote stretch of wilderness or other uninhabited area.  Some people may get the impression that bugging out means an "all or nothing" strategy of backwoods survival, when in fact the chances of having to implement such a serious bug-out plan are much less than the possibilities of a short term bug-out escape. My philosophy has always been to be over-prepared for any given endeavor, whether a long-distance sea kayak trip, a backpacking trip or an offshore sailboat passage.  If you feel confident you are ready for an experience of much greater duration and difficulty than what you will likely run into, then everything else will seem easy by comparison.

With regards to the self-sufficient bug-out bag, the idea is that if you are prepared and equipped to survive as long as necessary while on the move in a remote area, you will thus by default be equally or more so prepared for events of shorter duration.  You may not need to hunker down in the nearest river bottom swamp or retreat to a mountain wilderness at all.  Perhaps you simply need the gear to travel cross-country to reach your own pre-stocked cabin, or the home of a friend or relative in an area unaffected by the event that forces you to leave.  By having the gear and having a plan of action that includes knowing where you can go and how you will get there, you have taken the necessary steps to look out for your own evacuation and security and you will not become a refugee as so many who bash the bug-out option would have you believe.  Refugees are the unprepared who are waiting to be rescued or herded in buses or other means to a safe area, leaving their fate in the hands of the authorities and others.  If your bug-out bag includes everything you need to survive an extended stay in an uninhabited area and you have the skills and knowledge to do so, then any thing less will be that much easier.

Having a well-thought out bug-out plan prepares you for the worst-case scenario.  That doesn’t mean such an all-out SHTF total breakdown scenario is bound to happen, and the plan or parts of the plan can serve you well in a lesser event.  You may simply need to get out of the danger zone of a terror attack, or retreat from an approaching hurricane, or leave a city that has broken out in riots.  The bug-out bag can also serve as a get home bag in certain situations where you may be traveling and some event happens that would make it difficult to reach your family and get them to safety if not for the gear you are carrying. 

With this in mind, the well-stocked bug-out bag will have everything you need to meet the essentials of survival: proper clothing, shelter and the means to make fire, as well as food and water for the first 3 days.  But it should go beyond what is often called a “72-hour bag” and include essential survival tools to include a hunting weapon and other tools to procure more food, purify the water you will have to use when you exhaust your supply, and construct more substantial shelters if needed.   With this sort of bug-out bag and the skills to use what it contains that you should practice in advance, you will be prepared three days and much more if necessary. 

Guest Post: The Survival Sewing Kit

Julie Eason, of Serious Sewing.com wrote to suggest a guest post on what to include in a well-stocked survival sewing kit.  As some of you may know, I included sewing needles and heavy-duty Dacron thread in the checklist at the back of my book, Bug Out.  I've also mentioned needles and thread as part of the components of an ultra compact, minimal EDC bug out kit.

Knowing how to make simple repairs with a needle and thread is essential to maintain your gear and clothing.  You can progress way beyond that if you take an interest in it and learn to make your own gear, probably better than most of what you can buy.  Among other things, I've made my own buckskin moccasins, archery quivers, hats, rifle slings and cases, water bottle holders, canvas bags and even the sails for my boats, including the one I'm building now.

In the following article, Julie Eason goes into detail about what to include in a minimum survival sewing kit and why.  This is cheap to put together, weighs almost nothing and will take up little space in your bug out bag, so I think it's very good advice:

The Well-Stocked Survival Sewing Kit

Guest Post by Julie Anne Eason of Serious Sewing.com

When most people think of things they need to survive an emergency, a sewing kit isn't usually at the top of the list. But whether you're in a long-term TEOTWAWKI or a short-term natural disaster, things are going to need sewing. Obviously, your clothes need to stay in good repair. But don't forget about other fabric or leather based items as well--tents, sails, shoes, water skins. Some form of rudimentary sewing skill is necessary for a comfortable existence, and you're going to need supplies. Here's what you should have on hand in a survival situation.

Several sizes and styles of needles: Not every needle is suitable for every purpose. Fortunately, needles are cheap and small, so stock up on a package of different sized sharps and ball-points. Sharps are used to sew woven fabrics (the kind that don't stretch) and ball-points are used for knits (stretchy fabrics.)

You'll also want leather needles (called glover's needles.) These have a special point shaped like a triangle. It slices easily through leather (and skin-so be careful!) Speaking of skin, a few suture needles are a good idea, too, in case you need to perform medical stitching.

Curved needles, sail needles and large-eye harness and tapestry needles will also come in handy for all kinds of projects.

Several sizes and types of thread: Now is not the time to buy wimpy thread. Invest in several large spools of thick mercerized cotton thread, called "hand-quilting" thread. Also, you'll want several thicknesses of waxed linen thread for sewing heavy-duty items in canvas or leather. Some silk thread is also advisable for suture sewing.

Sharpening stone: Needles may be difficult to find, so you'll need to take good care of the ones you have. You should have a sharpening stone on hand anyway for honing knives and axes. The same one can be used for keeping needles in good working condition.

Scissors: Yes, you could use a knife to cut thread. But cutting fabric and leather is much easier with a pair of scissors. These can do double duty in the kitchen, too.

An awl: An awl makes a hole without cutting the fibers. This is especially important for repairing broken grommets in canvas or anytime you need to sew leather.

Small containers of beeswax and pine pitch: Run your sewing thread through a cake of beeswax a few times before sewing and your seams will last much longer. The wax conditions the thread and makes it less vulnerable to light damage and abrasion. Also, the wax will spread out a bit and fill your sewing holes, making a more water resistant (not water proof) seam.

Pine pitch is great for sealing a patch on shoes or anyplace a repair won't have to bend. It's flexible when warm, but will crack in cold weather if you bend it. You can make water-bearing bags and cups with pitch-sealed leather as they did in Europe 600 years ago.

Straight pins and small spring clamps: Pins hold your fabric together while you're stitching. But sometimes you need to work on a thick seam. That's when the spring clamps come in handy. Just a couple will do.

1/4 to 1/2 yard pieces of fabric: If you're not on the move, you can stockpile larger quantities of wool, linen, cotton, canvas and leather for making clothing and household items. But for an emergency kit, just roll up a few pieces of canvas and linen. Not only will these serve as patch material, but you can also strain liquids through them and even use them for bandages if necessary.

Small container of strong shoe glue like Barge cement: Your shoes and boots are going to wear out and need patching at some point. Barge cement is designed to hold shoes together without nails or stitching. Have a small tube on hand; it's useful for all kinds of repairs.

If you're not on the move and there's room in your kit you can add things like zippers, buttons, hooks & eyes, grommets and elastic. But usually these items can be recycled from other cast-offs. One pair of worn-out blue jeans can be a gold mine of recycled materials--fabric, buttons, zippers, pockets--just cut 'em up and reuse the parts.

Obviously a heavy-duty sewing machine and serger overlock machine are great to have on hand if you have the room and have electricity. But be prepared and learn some basic hand sewing stitches, too.

As with any survival kit--pack what you need and can carry. You never know when your skills with a needle will come in handy. They could even save a life.

Watch Your Step!

In the course of working on my new book, I keep uncovering more and more incredible stories of survival against seemingly impossible odds.  Most of these survival ordeals began because those involved put themselves in a dangerous environment, either purposefully seeking adventure or in the course of their work which required it.  Although some of these people ended up in a life-or-death struggle because of plain foolhardiness, lack of experience or ignorance of the dangers they faced, just as many made a simple mistake or two that any of us could make that led to unpleasant results.  Not surprisingly, in many cases the difference between getting out alive and not making it was determined by whether the person involved was alone or with one or more companions who could either assist or go for help. Without a doubt, it is unquestionably more dangerous to travel alone in an unpopulated environment, no matter whether in forest, desert, mountains, river, swamp or sea. 

The simple truth is that the smallest accident or slightest misjudgment can do you in if you are alone.  As I type this I'm sitting at the computer with my left leg elevated to keep the weight off of a broken foot.  Several days ago while working in the tight confines of the shed where I'm building my 26-foot catamaran, I stumbled over a Shop Vac hose that I had carelessly left in the pathway between the starboard hull and the end of the building.  Attempting to compensate with my hands full of tools, I twisted the other foot severely and took a nasty fall that sprained my ankle and fractured a couple of metatarsals.  It took awhile before I could get to my feet, but when I eventually did, it didn't seem too big a deal and later that day I was walking on it without realizing how bad it was hurt.  After enough time, however, the swelling began and it became nearly impossible to walk, although it is gradually feeling better after a couple days of keeping completely off of it. 

I mention this to make the point that when traveling in the wilderness, it only takes a single misstep to become incapacitated and unable to continue - especially if you are alone. I could have just as easily suffered this kind of injury from stepping on a loose stone, into a hole or onto some algae-covered river rock while hiking days away from a road, which of course could become a serious predicament, depending on the particular environment. But despite thousands of miles traveled solo in remote places by canoe, sea kayak and hiking with a backpack, I have never had a debilitating accident.  Certainly a big part of the reason is that when alone in a wild place, it's natural to have a heightened sense of awareness and to avoid taking chances that can result in accidents.  Two simple rules that I have always lived by in the wild are to never jump and never run (unless being chased!)  Jumping across streams, ditches and other obstacles is a good way to end up breaking a leg or something, as is running.  Instead, when far out in the wilds, it's best to move deliberately and to stop and think about the best way to get over or around obstacles.  Taking unnecessary risks is for adrenalin junkies, not survivalists.

Of course many would say that it's simply not prudent to travel alone at all, and there's truth to that, but limiting yourself to only doing things when you can find companions to accompany you will greatly decrease the number of good experiences you will have as well.  None of my long kayak journeys or many of my shorter trips would have been possible if I had refused go on alone.  And, the truth is, I love solo travel for the experience it provides that you can't get with a companion and the distractions of conversation and someone else's input on pace, when and where to stop for the night, etc.  I think it is the lack of these distractions that contributes to situational awareness when alone; I've noticed over the years that I've made more mistakes in the wild and on board boats when I was with others than when I was alone.  This doesn't imply that I think solo travel is safer, as it certainly isn't.  If you do get into a jam while alone, getting out will be much harder.  I just want to point out that traveling alone can be a good experience, and though it may make you nervous at first, it becomes more comfortable over time as you put your fears to rest while still remaining cautious and careful. 

Putting all this in the context of the blog, it's important to consider that if you ever find yourself in a situation that requires bugging out, you may be on your own and if you've never hiked alone or spent a night in the woods alone prior to the experience, this will greatly add to your overall anxiety.  I suggest starting small and trying a bit of solo camping to see how you like it. Just keep your guard up at all times, avoid jumping and running - and most of all - watch your step!  If you do this, you'll probably be safer than you would be at home, where statistics say that most accidents happen, just like the one I had earlier this week.

Interview on Modern Survival Online

I recently did interview answering questions about Bug Out and related topics for Rourke at ModernSurvivalOnline.com.  I like these interviews with other survival writers because the questions sometimes put a different angle on topics that I've discussed here and in my book, leading to answers that may cover something I've over-looked before.  You can read the full interview along with Rourke's comments on his latest post today, but I'm also publishing the questions and answers for my readers here:

• Rourke: What do you think is the biggest myth associated with “bugging out”?

During the course of researching and writing my book I spent a lot of time on various survival forums, blogs and websites to get a feel for the survivalist/prepper community and see what others were doing and how they approach the subject.  I was surprised, to be honest, at how negative most of the discussions and articles were on the viability of bugging out as a survival strategy.  Although the term “bugging out” may be relatively new in common usage, people have been forced to flee their enemies and seek refuge in the countryside or the wilderness for as long as there has been any semblance of civilization.  In many cases it has come down to getting out fast or staying behind and dying.

There’s a difference in becoming a refuge at the mercy of everyone you encounter and having the skills, equipment and advance plans already worked out as to how and where you will bug out.  Bugging out is not the answer for every situation, but to answer the question, I think this is the biggest myth – that you can’t do it and that you can’t survive in the wilderness.  I am always amazed by those who say that a well-prepared and experienced person cannot survive on the land.  I know plenty who can, and they don’t even consider themselves to be survivalists in any shape or form.  Keep in mind that this does not always imply TEOTWAWKI, and in most cases you won’t have to live off the land for extended periods of time.  It’s just that knowing how to travel and live in the wild opens up a lot of options that you otherwise would not have, and it could save your life. 

• Rourke: I have just started reading Bug Out, and was really taken with your background – specifically your immense traveling. What was your most difficult situation you found yourself in?

It’s kind of hard to pick one, as there have been a few.  Looking back at some of the things I’ve done, I’m amazed that I’m still here sometimes.  Most of my scariest mishaps have been on the water, simply from biting off more than I could chew for my skill level at the time.  But, that’s how you learn, if you don’t die in the process. 

• Rourke: I see survival & preparedness more and more in mainstream media. From television shows such as Dual Survival, to news reports on urban families that are storing food “just in case”. Why do you think survival is becoming so popular?

I think here in the U.S. there is a lot of fear and uncertainty about stability of the economy and fear of more government control, and loss of individual rights, which in turn could lead to internal strife and disorder.  There is the increasing fear of more widespread terrorism and the possibility of larger-scale war.  All of these things are fueling the fire of interest in survival.  But I think another reason for the popularity of such books and television shows is the disconnect with nature and the basics so many people feel in this high-tech world of easy living, insulated as we are from much of the “real” world.  We have a craving to learn to do simple things, like build a fire, forage for food or navigate across trackless terrain.

• Rourke: When considering a Bug Out Vehicle (BOV) - what are the top characteristics that should be considered in its selection?

 Whether the “vehicle” is a four-wheel-drive SUV, a motorcycle, bicycle, canoe, motorboat, or whatever – look for simplicity, no-nonsense rugged construction and ease of maintenance and repair in less than optimum circumstances.  My philosophy in choosing every piece of gear or any vehicle or boat is to pick the simplest and most basic one that will do the tasks I require of it. 

• Rourke: One of the categories of survival & preparedness supplies that I think are often overlooked in survival planning is communication. What kind of equipment do you recommend for bugging out?

 I’ve mentioned marine-band VHF hand-held radios on my blog, as many people may not consider them.  These radios, while technically illegal to use on land during normal times, could be viable in a bug-out situation, because they give you a longer transmitting range than FRS radios or most other hand-held units.  Many of the better ones are also extremely rugged, and can withstand submersion in water and still function.  The best ones have the option of using rechargeable or disposable batteries, making them suitable for long-term off-the-grid use.  There are also many channels available on the VHF band, so finding one that’s not busy should be easy, especially the farther you are from navigable water.

• Rourke: You favor a machete over a knife – can you explain the reasoning for this?

 Well, actually what I point out in my book is that I favor a machete over an axe or hatchet.  If possible, I would still have a knife, but yes, if I could have only one, I would take the machete because with care and skill it can do practically anything a knife can do, in addition to those much bigger jobs knives can’t do.  I could go on and on about the usefulness of a machete, and I have expanded on it some on my blog and will do so again in the future.  One thing I’ll mention here is that for the purpose of bugging out the machete offers tremendous cutting ability and versatility in a slim, easily carried and lightweight package.  You can slip a sheathed machete down in the bug out bag out of sight of others, and it’s so lightweight you’ll hardly know it’s there either until you need it.

• Rourke: One of the most talked about aspects of survivalism are firearms with a tremendous amount of varying opinions – What role do firearms play in bugging out?

 The primary roles, of course, are hunting and self-defense – from both human and animal aggressors.  My philosophy of bugging out is to remain as low-key, unnoticed and invisible as possible.  For that reason I don’t plan to carry offensive weapons as there is a limit to the weight and bulk of ammo and all the other essential gear you can take with you in a bug-out situation.  The best firearms for this use should be usable for both hunting and defense.  That’s why I like a matched lever action rifle and revolver in a medium caliber like .357 Magnum.  Sure, a semi-auto battle rifle would be better in an all-out gunfight, but a good lever action is pretty fast to handle as well.  I mainly like the lever guns for the slim profile and light weight, which like machetes, make them easy to pack and easy to carry in hand all day.

• Rourke: If you had to choose one firearm to Bug Out with – what would your choice be?

It would be hard to give up the short .357 Magnum lever action rifle, but, I would probably take a .22 rifle if I could have nothing else, simply because of the amount of ammo that could be easily carried and the huge variety of game of all sorts that can be taken with it.  I’ve taken various .22 rifles on a number of my trips and feel confident that a good one would be the best all-around firearm for wilderness survival if I couldn’t take a larger caliber rifle to go with it.  As for particular models, I like many of them, including the Ruger 10/22, the Marlin Papoose, the Henry Youth Lever (same length as my Winchester Trapper) and the Marlin Model 60.

• Rourke: What are the Top 5 items that should be included in Bug Out supplies? 

1. Clothing and shelter for the expected conditions in the region and the season.
2. A reliable means of making fire, long-term, for example Fire Steel.
3. A reliable means of carrying water and purifying water found, for example, sturdy Nalgene bottles and Polar Pure water treatment.
4. A machete if no other cutting tool, but a  fixed blade knife, folder or multi-tool would be nice to have as well.
5. A metal pot, as described in my book.  A metal pot that can withstand cooking in a fire will enable you to utilize all sorts of wild foods that must be boiled, for example, a variety of roots, inner bark, leafy greens, etc.

These are the top 5 considerations as far as what cannot be easily found or improvised in the wilderness in a hurry, when you are on the move and hiding out/evading.   

• Rourke: Is there a particular part of the country that you consider vastly superior than others for bugging out?

 That’s a tough call, because every region has its advantages and disadvantages.  Of course, I’m comfortable with the South, having grown up here.  Some may not like the snakes, bugs and heat, but at least you don’t have to worry about freezing to death and edible plants and a huge variety of animal foods are abundant.  But I’ve spent quality wilderness time in every region and have enjoyed them all.  Part of what makes a region more suitable is the presence of natural features such as rivers, swamps, rugged mountains or deserts that have limited human habitation since the days of early settlement and left large tracts of roadless areas that remain wild to this day.

• Rourke: From your viewpoint on the world today – what is the likelihood that there could be a major disaster that could create populations to be involved in a mass exodus from heavily populated areas? What might that disaster be in your estimation?

 When a civilization becomes as complex and interdependent as ours is today, there is always the chance of a major disruption, whether from natural causes or man-made causes.  I think war or major unrest from within would be one scenario that would make it unsafe to remain in heavily populated areas, as far as man-caused disasters.  Some kind of unprecedented natural event like solar flares that could take out the power grid would be a plausible natural disaster that could cause such an exodus, as large cities would be untenable in a long-term grid-down event, as we saw in a shorter duration event in  New Orleans after Katrina.

• Rourke: I see you have a new book coming out – Would You Survive? Please tell us about it.

The new book is intended to be more of an entertaining read than anything else, but it will also get you thinking by putting the reader in each of 13 survival scenarios that each present their own challenges and difficulties.  Some of these scenarios are the kind that you could find yourself in simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time, like an active shooter situation at a busy shopping mall.. Others could happen through over-confidence in one’s abilities or ignorance of the dangers of a given environment, for example, the desert, tropical rain forest or Alaskan bush.  It’s been an interesting project to work on, as my research has led me to read many books and dig up lots of survivor’s stories from all sorts of related situations. 

• Rourke: Any other new projects on the horizon you would like to tell my readers?

 I am working on another possible project, but it’s much too early to announce yet until I have time to develop the idea.

• Rourke: Thank you.

Interview with Jim at Survival Weekly

Jim at Survival Weekly, as site dedicated to all aspects of prepping and survival, has posted a review of my book Bug Out and the questions and answers to an interview I did with him that you may find interesting.  No worries about sound quality here as this interview is in writing.  Here is is from this page at Survival Weekly:

Author, adventurer, photographer, and all around wilderness expert. Scott B. Williams has truly been there and done that. He has traveled the world, living in some of the harshest climates known to man. All the while, practicing wilderness survival skills, learning what works and what doesn’t. His new book, BUG OUT, which I reviewed here, is part discussion on assembling a comprehensive bug out bag, and part travelogue of the best areas for bugging out in the United States. Scott was kind enough to sit down with me and answer a few questions. 

You have spent a considerable portion of your life in the outdoors, living off the land in a wide range of locations and climates. From your personal perspective, where did you have the toughest time? By that, I mean where did you find it the most difficult to obtain what you needed to survive?

It’s hard to rate one type of environment over another in terms of difficulty of living off the land, as they all present their own unique challenges. Of course, growing up in the Deep South and being accustomed to hot weather and sub-tropical conditions, I’ve found it easier to adjust to places like jungles, tropical seashores and islands and the deserts of the Southwest. For me personally, some of my trips in the high country of the Rockies, for instance, demonstrated that it would be difficult to survive there unless you really have your skills honed, especially in the cold months when you have the constant threat of hypothermia and food is harder to find. On the other hand, many of those cold locations are plentiful with big game, so if you have the means and the skill to take a larger animal and can preserve the meat before it spoils, you could be set for awhile. But these environments are not as easy to just walk into and start foraging and hunting small game as some of the other regions of the country.

I think we can all agree that knowledge/experience will usually trump gear/gadgets. The latest whiz bang gizmo may be all but worthless without the knowledge to operate it and an understanding of the principles behind it. With that said, there are certainly many pieces of equipment out there to help make a bug out situation a little easier. Any recent innovations you’ve come across worth mentioning?

I’m generally against gizmos and gadgets, mainly because they will likely fail when you become dependent upon them. But as long as it’s working, I particularly like things like the compact hand-held GPS units that are now available pre-loaded with detailed topo maps. Such a device can give you a lot of confidence and more freedom to travel in really trackless wilderness with the assurance that you can get where you’re going, even at night. I like the fact that I can locate an interesting point in some swamp or mountain area I’ve never been to at home in advance on the computer, then plug in the coordinates and use the GPS to go right to it.

Another useful gadget I like a lot is my Casio 1500 Pathfinder multi-function atomic watch that has a built-in electronic compass that has proven extremely accurate. The watch is solar-powered, so it never needs batteries, and it includes a barometer and altimeter function.

Another fantastic piece of technology that is incredibly useful for those of us who go to sea in small boats or kayak remote coastlines is the hand-held, reverse-osmosis Desalinator, which enables one to drink seawater and has saved many lives of those stranded on life rafts or in similar situations.

You’ve mentioned your preference for a machete over a large sheath knife both in BUG OUT and on your Bug Out Survival blog. I find this interesting as it is a unique perspective in my own studies of survival texts and I tend to agree with you. Could you explain to our readers why you have such a high regard for having a machete in a bug out bag?

Again, having grown up the jungle-like hardwood bottomlands and swamps of the Deep South, I have been around machetes all my life, and have long recognized the need for a blade that is big and heavy enough to quickly cut a path through briars, cane brakes and other thickets that would otherwise be difficult to penetrate. I also spent some time in my younger years working on a land-surveying crew, where we frequently had to cut thousands of feet of sight lines every day through these kinds of obstructions. Then, after that I saw the endless and creative ways the natives of Central America and the Caribbean use the machete and then tried some of these myself. I have found no tool that can substitute for a good machete. It’s lightweight, easy to carry, mostly maintenance free and can double as a formidable weapon.

One of the topics you address in BUG OUT is the fantasy versus reality of living off the land. I feel this chapter should be required reading for anyone entertaining thoughts of heading for the hills in a bug out situation. In your experience, what are some of the most common fallacies people have when it comes to roughing it in the wilderness?

People seem to fall into one or the other extremes: those who think they can head out in the wild like Tarzan with nothing but a knife, or a mountain man with a rifle and a bag of salt; and those who have formed the opinion that it’s absolutely impossible for any modern human to live off the land and without supplies to last months or years survival is hopeless.

I wrote Chapter One to address these ways of thinking and present my opinions. I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking that a bug-out bag is a guarantee of success and that by having it they will be able to just head for the hills and find the living easy. That’s why throughout the first part of the book I stress skills over stuff, and suggest extensive planning, location scouting, and even trial runs and test trips to sort out the gear in the bag and practice the skills.

But one big reason I wrote the book is to open people’s eyes to just how much uninhabited land there is all around them, even in a heavily-industrialized nation like the U.S. I wanted to present bugging out to the wild as an option and show that it can be done with the right skills and gear, and that there is hope, and you don’t have to just give up if you don’t have or can’t afford a well-stocked retreat somewhere in the countryside. No survival plan can be guaranteed to succeed. But those who are open to all the options will have a better chance than most.

What would you say are the three most essential things to include in a bug out bag?

This can vary with the region you live in, of course, but it’s always helpful to remember the “Rule of Threes”: 3 hours without shelter, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food, and plan accordingly.

1. Shelter from the elements – at minimum a parka or poncho – preferably a good tarp and sleeping bag as well.

2. A reliable means of making fire.

3. Enough water and high-energy food to get you through the first part of the crisis and sustain you until you can begin trying to find more of both in the wild.

At the back of BUG OUT, you have a fairly extensive recommended reading list. If you could only pick two or three books to suggest concerning wilderness survival, what would they be?

The one that went with me on all my long kayak trips and many other excursions was How to Survive on Land and Sea, by Frank C. Craighead, Jr. and John J. Craighead, Naval Institute Press.

There are many newer ones that look good too, especially John “lofty” Wiseman’s SAS Survival Handbook: How to Survive in the Wild, in Any Climate, on Land or at Sea.

It will be different depending on your region, but I always suggest a guidebook to the edible and useful plants of the area you will be traveling through or bugging out to.

You have an extensive background in kayaking, canoeing, and boating in general. From a practical standpoint, would you recommend that mode of travel for a bug out situation?

Absolutely, assuming your are already in a region with navigable waterways such as streams and rivers or estuaries and the seacoast. A boat can immediately take you out of reach of the much larger percentage of the population that does not have a means to take to the water, and get you to places where you will be inaccessible to many that might want to cause you harm. The places it can take you will also offer better resources for living off of the land by virtue of their inaccessibility without a boat. The other advantages of course, are that you can carry more stuff, depending on the vessel, and you can use it for hunting, fishing and foraging once you get to your bug-out location.

I’m partial to boats of many types because of my extensive experiences with them and the many miles I’ve traveled unnoticed, even through populated areas. Bugging out by boat is not for everyone, but if you’re willing to put the time in to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills, it could be one of your best options.

Any new books on the horizon? What’s next for you?

I’m working day and night on my next survival-related book right now. It will be published by Ulysses Press as well, and is scheduled to be released in February, 2011. The title as of now is: Would You Survive?: The 13 Deadliest Scenarios and How Others Got Out Alive. The book will be a mix of fictional scenarios that puts the reader in each situation, and real-life accounts of some of the most harrowing survivor’s tales in recent times. The goal is for it to be both entertaining reading and informative at the same time.

Money

One thing I forgot to mention in yesterday's post about an EDC (every day carry) bug-out kit is money. This is because I take it for granted that other people see the need to carry cash, while in fact, this is probably not true.  It's seems that more and more everywhere I look around me, people are using plastic in the form of credit or debit cards, to the point that many people, especially those under age 30, never have any cash on them, and if they do, usually only a few dollars.

Growing up in a mostly rural area and having been in many situations with a car breakdown or some other minor emergency, I've always made it a habit to have enough cash on me to get where I'm going by one means or another.  I can recall many cases where I needed cash to pay a shade-tree mechanic out in the middle of nowhere, or to pay for a tow or a ride.  These people don't accept plastic, by the way. You just never know when you're going to need it if you travel, and that just in the U.S.  This is even more important in many places overseas where you might need to pay bribes or pay for a guide or whatever.

But in everyday life, I can't understand why so few people have any cash on them.  People are so dependent on their plastic and so certain that the ATM will be working that they don't see the need for cash.  It's frustrating to stand in long lines at a store while people fumble for their debit cards and then try to punch in their P.I.N. numbers to purchase some item for $2.95 when they could just whip out a five dollar bill and be on their way - and out of the way of everyone else!  Carry some cash people!  I don't leave the house without at least $100.00 on me, and prefer to have 3 or 4 hundred, especially if I'm going anywhere out of my immediate surroundings.  It doesn't cost a dime more to use cash than it does to use plastic.  I think most people are afraid to carry cash these days for fear of being robbed.  But I'm more afraid of being stuck somewhere without it.

Lucas over at Survival Cache has some very good thoughts on this subject and points out 7 Reasons to Have Money in Your Bug Out Bag.

He also has a related post today on 3 Reasons You Shouldn't Stock Precious Metals.  This post reminds me of a quote I read somewhere:  "I used to invest in silver & gold.... but now I've diversified my portfolio to include brass and lead!"

Minimal Bug Out Kit for EDC

Bug out bag checklists usually focus on a full-sized kit of everything you would need for at least the first 72-hours after leaving home.  In the case of a long-term bug-out situation, the bag will also include things you will need to sustain yourself for much longer - such as tools and hunting weapons to make shelter and gather food in the wild.  It is this end of the spectrum that is my focus in Bug Out, where I assume circumstances that make you leave in the first place will be so bad you that you won't be able to return in a short time, such as 72-hours.

But what about all those times in everyday life when you will not have your bug-out bag nearby, perhaps when you're at work, or traveling on some form of public transportation, or just out for walk or some other recreational activity?  This is where the extreme minimum bug-out kit comes in.  Such a kit is so small and compact that it can be considered an EDC (Every Day Carry) kit, and will only contain the most basic essentials that could make things easier for you if you suddenly have to run or evade with nothing but what's in your pockets or on your key chain.

The idea is nothing new, really.  Tiny pre-packaged kits and Altoid tin survival kits have been around awhile.  Just as with the larger bug-out bag, I don't care much for pre-packaged survival kits of any kind, as they tend to include things you probably don't need and may leave out other items that could be really important.  Such a kit may be fine for some folks though.  Here are some examples:



Many of these kits assume this will be the only gear you have and some people buy them thinking this will be all they need.  Those of us who are prepared are usually never far from our more serious gear and tools, including things like knives, machetes, a tarp, some drinking water, emergency food and a handgun or rifle.

The kind of kit I'm talking about here doesn't try to be a do-everything kit, so I'm not including things like fish hooks or snares - just the basics that you need start a fire, patch up a wound, or treat a minor illness like diarrhea, a bad headache, or an insect sting.  This kit also includes cutting blades and other basic tools like a can opener, as well as needles and thread to fix clothing, footwear, gear or even sew up a wound.  Then there's the means to treat questionable drinking water and something for sun protection or making a tourniquet.  Best of all, it isn't any more bulky than the average wallet, and will fit easily inside a coat pocket or one of the pockets of a pair of cargo pants or shorts.

As you can see, when folded up inside the bandanna, it's hardly any bigger than a cell phone:

So what did I include in such a bare-minimum bug-out kit?  Here's the list:

Swiss Army Knife, a compromise from my larger Leatherman but still usable
Bic lighter (make sure to keep a new one that's full, not one used for lighting your smokes)
One Fire Stick broken in half for compactness
More than a yard of duct tape wrapped tightly around the lighter
Two straight-edge utility razor blades
Assortment of sewing needles
Dacron B50 bowstring thread (about 5 yards) for sewing and lashing
A few feet of Paracord 550 to replace a shoestring or whatever
Assorted Band Aids
Sterile pads, alcohol preps
Sterile liquid bandage sticks
Imodium A-D Anti-Diarrheal tablets
Anti-acid tablets
Ibupropen tablets
Benadryll capsules for stings and allergic reactions
Potable Aqua Purification Iodine Tablets (More compact than my preferred Polar Pure)
1 folded, gallon-sized Ziplock freezer bag for use as a container in which to purify water
1 Power Bar for quick, emergency energy
Small Ziplock bag to contain all of above except Power Bar and Swiss Army Knife
Bandanna - kit wrapped inside, can be used for head protection, a large bandage, or tourniquet

A business card like mine shown below makes a good way to safely carry razor blades and needles.  I use a short length of blue painter's tape to secure the needles and blades to the card.  This tape can be unwrapped and reused multiple times without leaving a sticky residue.  After that's done, the Dacron thread is wrapped around the whole thing:

Here's the Bic lighter wrapped with duct tape, along with the Fire Stick and Swiss Army knife:

And the First Aid supplies:

With the ability to carry so much useful stuff in such a small and lightweight package, it hardly makes sense to be without it.  The good thing about this kind of kit is that you can have it on you no matter what type of attire you're wearing or what activity you will be involved in.  I'm probably missing something you consider necessary for EDC.  I'd love to hear your suggestions and see photos of your own kits.

Dealing with Potential Aggressors in a Bug Out Situation

I just read a couple of very interesting posts by RG Padgett on his blog: Survive the Worst.  The author and his family ran into trouble when their living environment in an urban apartment quickly deteriorated because of a sudden influx of troublemakers into the complex, brought on by the manager's desire to fill a large number of vacant units.  He describes how this situation developed in his post Vote With Your Feet, and then offers some great advice on security and diffusing potential attacks in the follow up: Lessons Learned From a Real World Bug Out.  Padgett makes some good points here that are not often discussed when the subject of bugging out comes up. 

In particular, he stresses awareness of your surroundings and those who live around you, as well as awareness of warning signs such as symbols, graffiti, dress and habits of gang members and other potential criminals who might pose a threat.  He also recommends maintaining a low profile by blending in and not doing anything to stand out, yet also remaining careful not to show any signs of weakness, which is easily detected by human predators who might do you harm just as it is in the predator-prey relationship in the wild. 

These two posts bring back vivid memories to me of my experiences in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, in 2005.  At the time, I owned a small cruising sailboat that I was docking in a real backwater marina in a bayou near the western edge of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  My brother and his family lived in a house located just a few blocks off the beach in Gulfport.  In the last 24-hours of this monster storm's approach, when it became apparent that we were gonna get nailed by this one, I secured the boat as best I could with every anchor and mooring line I had on board, and my brother and his family took as many of their possesions as they could and left their home as well.  We all waited it out in Jackson, far from the worst of it, but two days later, as soon as enough downed trees were cut off of one lane of U.S. Highway 49 to make it somewhat passable, we were anxious to get back to find out if my brother still had a home, and if I still had a boat.

As far as getting there, we were better off than most, in that I had taken five 6-gallon jerry cans off the boat and had filled them all with gasoline while it was still available.  With my four-cylinder Mazda truck, we had enough range to get there and back with ease, as well and deal with potential contingencies.  We also had plenty of food and drinking water, as well as tools, weapons and ammunition.  I covered the jerry cans that were lashed in the bed of the pickup with a tarp, for concealment.  We had already heard reports filtering in on the news of looting, car-jacking and other craziness, and it made us nervous to be toting so much in the way of supplies when there were people who would do anything to get enough gas to leave the area.  At this stage of the game, a few National Guard troops were just moving into the area, but it would be much longer before security was restored. 

We made it to the slab that was all that remained of my brother's house, after having to park several blocks away and hike through the rubble of his devastated neighborhood.  The we made our way to the  closest point we could drive to the marina where I had kept the boat, and I off-loaded the rowing dinghy I had in the back of the truck and left my brother there to guard our stuff while I made my way down the bayou to see if there was anything left.  The entire area was an apocalyptic scene of 70-foot steel hulled shrimp boats thrown high and dry far into the woods, tangled up with cruising sailboats, vehicles and parts of houses.  I didn't expect much, and sure enough, when I reached the marina, there was no sign of my boat.  It would take much longer than a short foray down the bayou to find out where it had come to rest, but for now, I was nervous about leaving the truck for too long.

As it turned out, it was a good thing there were two of us and that my brother was armed.  While he was waiting, two men approached out of the woods and began asking questions, one trying to circle around behind him while the first attempted to distract him with small talk.  They were from one of the fishing vessels, and had obviously lost everything, but they weren't asking for help, just appraising the truck and looking at the tarp-covered goods in the back.  He had some nervous moments as they sized him up, deterred only by the .45 on his hip that he thought he was going to have to draw.  By the time I got back, they had disappeared into the woods again and we weren't sure if they were watching or not as we quickly  loaded the dinghy and got out of there.  This was certainly one case where a show of strength saved the day, and my brother's cool response diffused a situation that could have gotten ugly fast. 

Example of an Alternate Bug Out Route

Here's a photo I took yesterday of the creek mentioned in Chapter Four of my book as excerpted in the post I did a couple of days ago about unconventional bug routes for traveling on foot. This mostly hidden creek with concrete retaining walls built by the city flows through densely populated neighborhoods in Jackson, Mississippi, and leads directly to the swamps and woodlands bounding the Pearl River, just a few miles downstream from this point. 

Do you live in an urban or suburban area that may offer similar routes that most residents would never even consider?  If so, you should investigate them to see what they have to offer, because if you ever have to get out of Dodge in a hurry, a hidden path like this may be your best bet.  As the philosopher Lao Tzu said:
"Water flows in the places men reject." 

Bugging Out On Foot - Considering Alternate Routes

Okay, now that my book has been officially released, I'll be posting more related content here, including excerpts from the text and additional material to expand on some of those topics that I ran out of room for within the confines of a 302-page book. 

In Chapter Four, which covers Transportation To and Within the Bug Out Location, the last section deals with what could be a worst-case scenario - bugging out on foot, carrying everything you need on your back.  I say "could be" because in some cases the walking option may be the best option anyway.  But if you planned ahead and prepared, you'll more likely use some other method of getting out that will enable you to carry more gear and supplies.  Just as those of us who sail think that knowing how to swim is a good idea, having to swim is jokingly referred to as an ultimate failure as a navigator and sailor.  Having to resort to walking as a bug out method could be put in the same category, depending on where you are and the scenario.

If you do end up walking, however, it pays to think of the advantages this method of travel affords, rather than just dwell on the hardships and physical difficulties.  Among these advantages is the ability to use routes that no vehicle or even pack animal could negotiate.  Here are some thoughts from the book on this subject that will hopefully get you thinking about unconventional route options near your living and working locations:

The final transportation option for bugging out is simply walking. While walking may be slow, it is certainly sure and you won’t have to worry about fuel (other than food), mechanical breakdowns, or traffic jams. If you plan to walk, your packed bug-out bag, along with suitable boots and clothing as described in Chapter Two, will be all the gear you need. Walking gives you more route options than any other bugout method on land, as you can use bike paths and walking trails, cut through alleys in the city, and travel cross-country over parking lots and neighborhoods in the suburbs.

In most cities and towns there are many hidden routes you may not have thought of. Drainage culverts and ditches are among these. A good example is the small creek that runs right behind my fiancée’s house in the city of Jackson, Mississippi. Most residents of the area pay it little mind except when the creek gets out of its banks in heavy rain. When I first saw it, however, I immediately zeroed in on it as a great exit route. The creek bed has been paved and walled in by the city in an attempt to control flooding. As a result, it is mostly out of sight behind thick vegetation and the privacy fences of adjoining yards. Except in times of high water, the stream is only ankle-deep. The paved streambed leads out of the neighborhood, passes under busy streets in great culverts, and just a few miles down leaves the city to merge into the swamps of the nearby Pearl River. It would be a simple matter to walk out of town unobserved along this route. Such drainages can be found in most cities, either open and mostly above ground, or in underground storm drains that can be accessed by opening manhole covers in the streets. Like Jackson, many cities are built along the banks of rivers that periodically flood, and the buffer zone between the river and inhabited neighborhoods is often a no man’s land of levees, sewage lagoons, swamps, and woods.

In mountain country, many cites are likewise built in valleys along streams or rivers. The population situation may be reversed in these areas, with more habitable areas along the drainage and the wild areas on the steep slopes above. In this case, it may be faster to escape by simply hiking up the nearest slope and crossing the first ridge beyond the valley. 

If you’re going to have to walk out of town anyway, you might as well consider all these alternate routes that can get you to safety quicker than if you simply try to follow the roads that will be packed with cars and other vehicles. By doing so, you will be living in the bug-out mode immediately, with only the things in your backpack, as you slowly make your way to your pre-planned bug-out location.

Survival Myths Regarding Living Off the Land

The first chapter in my new book, Bug Out: The Complete Plan for Escaping a Catastrophic Disaster Before It's Too Late, is entitled THE FANTASY & THE REALITY OF LIVING OFF THE LAND.  I started the book off with this chapter because I see a huge amount of debate and misinformation about the subject posted all around the Internet in various discussion forums, blogs and websites.  Here's an excerpt from that chapter:

It took a long time for modern humans to progress from Stone Age hunter-gatherers to the creators of an artificial environment almost completely insulated and protected from the uncertainties of nature.
As a result, you cannot expect the transition in the other direction to be much easier. Knowledge has been lost, skills that are necessary to thrive in the wild are difficult to learn, and senses and instincts are dulled by lack of daily use in a world where survival of the fittest is no longer the rule.

Although many people today engage in outdoor pursuits like hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, and canoeing, they often do so with the help of expensive high-tech gear like satellite communication and navigation equipment, sophisticated ultra-lightweight stoves, freeze-dried foods, and clothing and shelter systems made of synthetic fabrics. Unfortunately, much of this equipment will eventually fail and may not be replaceable. This is not a problem in times of normalcy when resupplying or returning to civilization are viable options, but in a SHTF situation, you will far better served by cultivating skills and knowledge.

Our ancestors would be amused, to say the least, at the sight of a modern backpacker struggling along under the weight of a bulky pack almost as large as the bearer. They, like the few remaining bands of
aboriginal people still living in isolated groups today in places like the Amazon Basin and New Guinea, could get by with practically nothing but what could be found in their environment.

To approach the prospect of bugging out into the wilderness from a realistic perspective, you have to strike a balance somewhere between the naked native adept and the overburdened recreational outdoorsman when it comes to equipping yourself for survival. It’s also important to have realistic expectations about what life in the wild will be like, whether it is just for a few days or for a period of weeks or months.

I wrote this for the book because I did not want to mislead total newbies to the idea of outdoor survival that bugging out to the wild to live off the land after SHTF would be a picnic.  It seems that people fall into two categories when discussing this topic - those with Rambo fantasies and no experience who think all they need is a knife and a pocket survival kit, and those who think the only way humans can survive is to have a stockpile of every meal they intend to eat for the next five years or beyond.

The truth, of course, is that humans are incredibly adaptable, which is how we got to where we are now in the first place.  We can adapt to changing conditions, and while many individuals are unable or unwilling to do so, those who have the desire and the right attitude can and will be able to adjust to any living conditions ranging from modern comfort all the way back to primeval hand-to-mouth survival.  Don't ever forget that in the span of human existence, the time of the modern Industrial Age is but a few moments compared to the millennia that our ancestors lived a wild or semi-wild existence adjusted to as needed by changing circumstances.   If you think of this time-span in terms of the hours of a single day - our modern separation from nature began probably in the last hour before midnight - and during the previous 23 hours people lived as hunters and gatherers, subsistence farmers and nomadic herders before the invention of internal combustion engines and long-distance communication.

To suggest that it would be impossible for a modern human to survive in the wild or live off the land is absurd.  Sure, it might be hard, as generations of easy living have dulled our senses and awareness and knowledge that was once taken for granted has been lost.  But we have other advantages to make up for it, at least as long as they last - such as better cutting tools and hunting weapons, easy and portable ways to make fire, stay warm and dry, etc.  And even stripped of these modern implements and materials to make them, we can certainly re-learn the time-tested skills of making our tools from what is found in our environment as our ancestors did,  as many modern hobbyists and primitive skills enthusiasts do today.  For all our sophistication, who knows if we are more intelligent than the "savages" we descended from, but there's certainly no reason to think we are any less so.  If they could live on this planet using only simple resources easily obtained in nature - then at least a few of us can too.  

This is a subject I've been interested in my entire life, going all the way back to when I was seven or so, setting out in the woods behind my parent's house to hunt squirrels with an old Benjamin pellet gun.  I constantly thought about what it would be like to have to hunt to eat and how difficult or easy it would be.  I've experimented with it extensively since those days, in all sorts of environments ranging from the woods and swamps where I grew up hunting in Mississippi to places like tropical seashores and reefs, the North Woods, desert, mountain and jungle habitats.  Each environment has it's unique challenges, of course, and each environment also offers unique resources.  Will there be enough of these resources to feed and shelter everyone pouring out of the cities in an attempt to bug out after a SHTF situation?  Of course not.  But how many of these people do you really think are going to try to bug out and take care of themselves in the first place?  The answer is not very many.  Modern civilized people have been conditioned NOT to think in terms of self-sufficiency.  Instead, they will wait for someone else to come to their rescue, leaving the truly remote and difficult-to-reach uninhabited areas available to those of us who are willing to take our chances there.

If you have any doubts about your wilderness survival skills, now is the time to practice.  Even if you didn't grow up hunting, fishing or foraging for wild edibles, it's never too late to start learning how.  Do this long enough, and your confidence will greatly improve that you can take care of yourself and those dependent upon you if  you are ever put to the test.  Don't be like those who spend their days surfing the Internet for their survival information, echoing what others say by posting on forums about how it would be impossible to survive by bugging out because they personally couldn't do it.  Find out for yourself and prove it by doing.  And all this isn't to say you shouldn't have other preps and perhaps a "bug-in" survival retreat.  There's nothing at all wrong with having more than one plan and back-ups as well - just try to be as ready as possible by being willing to adapt - and willing to stay or go as circumstances dictate.

I'll be posting a lot more on this topic, and I look forward to your comments and questions, and accounts of your own experiences in wilderness survival or living off the land if you have them.

On Survival Fitness

Last week I posted about the importance of maintaining a positive attitude, and how attitude is just as important as gear and supplies in getting you through a survival situation.  Equally important to the survival mindset is basic physical fitness - another part of the equation often overlooked or pushed too far down on the list of priorities by preppers fixated on amassing stuff.  If bugging out is any part of your emergency survival plan, then maintaining at least a minimum level of physical fitness is essential to your success.  A bug-out plan means survival on the move, and any situation requiring such action will be both mentally stressful and physically demanding.  Even if your plan involves transportation by motor vehicle or boat, any long-term grid-down situation will require a lot of hard, physical work in one form or another. 

The problem for many people in our modern high-tech world in times of normalcy is that we don't have enough physical activity incorporated into our daily lives to maintain an adequate fitness level.  It gets worse the busier we get, especially with the demands of making money, spending time with family and other obligations and driving to and from all the places we have to go.  Sitting in front of computer certainly doesn't help either. During the second half of 2009, I spent more time at the keyboard than ever before in order to complete my forthcoming Bug Out book in time to meet  my deadline.  Fortunately, my other part-time work in the afternoons doing carpentry work and building my boat partially offset all that chair time.  Even so, I have to make an effort to do a maintenance workout with free weights three times per week and try to take a decent walk every evening. 

Back when I was doing my long-distance sea kayaking trips, as well as backpacking or bicycling at every opportunity, I never had to worry about staying fit.  My travel time has been cut dramatically lately, but I do plan to spend some time paddling, hiking, cycling and camping this spring.  The other big project is to complete my boat - the 26-foot catamaran that I've been building over the past three years.  My goal is to launch sometime before the end of 2010.  So if my posts here seem too infrequent, it's because I'm out doing something other than sitting at the computer.  After a bit of spring fever passes, I'll settle into a more regular writing routine. 

I urge anyone who is interested in survival, whether by bugging out or bugging in, to consider the importance of physical fitness and the implications a lack of basic fitness will have on you in a real SHTF scenario.  Like a proper mental attitude, physical endurance and toughness will get you through a lot of stuff even if you don't have all the skills and equipment you would like to have.  It's just another part of the necessary preps when putting together a survival plan.