Bug Out Vehicles Ready for Press

The new book is now ready for the printer.  I've been working with my publisher for the last couple of weeks on things like the photographs inside, the bibliography and all the other final details that wrapping up a book entails.  If things go as planned, it will be available in September as originally planned.  To give you more of an idea of what's inside, here's the back cover blurb:

"A Cataclysmic Natural or Manmade Disaster Has Struck Your Town or City.

How will you evacuate your family to safety?  Do you have a vehicle or alternate means of transportation you can rely on?  Can the vehicle double as a mobile retreat, or do you have a retreat shelter prepared in advance and a plan to reach it?

Bug Out Vehicles and Shelters presents a wide variety of transportation options ranging from fast escape vehicles to self-contained mobile retreats.  Back-up vehicles that can keep going if your main option fails and alternative vehicles for a variety of challenging situations are also examined.  Temporary and long-term retreat shelters that you can set up in advance and stock with supplies are also included as part of a bug out plan that can make you a prepared survivor instead of a refugee. 

Vehicle types included here range from the kinds of cars, pickups and SUVs most people use for everyday transportation to alternative options like motorcycles, powerboats, sailboats, ATVs, and snowmobiles, as well as human powered vehicles such as bicycles, canoes, sea kayaks and rowing craft.  Mobile retreat options include manufactured RV trailers and motorhomes, Do-It-Yourself house trucks, camper trailers and utility vehicle conversions, and of course, liveaboard boats from motor cruisers to houseboats and bluewater sailboats.    Each vehicle and shelter type is examined with regard to the advantages and disadvantages it offers, followed by a number of key considerations and lists of essential equipment to help you chose and optimize it for your bug out needs."

And here is a snapshot of the Table of Contents page:

4x4 Tent Trailers for Hauling Your Stuff Off Road

Here's an interesting product if you're using a Jeep or some kind of off-road capable SUV or pickup as a bug-out vehicle and would like to have a minimalist type of mobile retreat in tow rather than camp in an ordinary tent or under a tarp on the ground.  This rugged trailer converts from its compact folded travel configuration that looks like this:

To this well-equipped backcountry mobile retreat that has many of the comforts of a small RV, including a stove, 12-volt electrical system for lights and fans, built-in water tank and fold out sink, and many other available options: 

It's a 4 x 4 Tent Trailer from OverlandTrailers.com. Designed to be rugged enough to go anywhere your vehicle can pull it, this trailer can provide extra gear carrying capacity and comfortable camping accommodations in places ordinary pop-up campers could never go. This was brought to my attention just as I was wrapping up the chapters on Mobile Retreats in my book, Bug Out Vehicles and Shelters.  I thought it would be of interest both to readers of the book and this site as an option to consider for those wanting something simpler than a traditional RV, yet with more comforts than an ordinary tent. Here's the description of the 4x4 Tent Trailer by the company owner and builder:   

"This model is our "4x4 Tent Trailer", they  are built to handle extreme off road abuse. The axles are heavy duty and have a 3000 pound rating. With 33-35-37 inch tires, with a dry weight of less than 900 pounds, and a storage capacity of over 43 cubic feet, it will transport all of your gear with ease to your off road destination."

This rig is not cheap when you add up all the options to equip it as shown in the photo above, but if you want to take many of the comforts of home down the roughest roads you can find, it may work for you as an off-road mobile retreat. Or it may inspire you to design and build something similar that meets your particular needs.  More information on all the options and configurations is available at:  http://www.overlandtrailers.com/