Active New Top (30 days) Compact Card Gifting preps: What are your top picks for unprepared loved ones? pnwsarahContributor - December 20, 2020 Hi Prepared Friends, I’m trying to decide what I should gift to my dad and stepmother this Christmas to enhance their preparedness. My dad likes camping and backpacking, so they have that sort of gear, but just for one. They also have one of those pre-packed 72-hour kits that is largely full of garbage (which I bought them a couple of Christmases back in the interest of getting the bases covered quickly and within my budget). They live five miles from the San Andreas Fault in a household that also includes three medium-sized dogs, and they commuted to work in their own cars pre-pandemic. I can spend about $120. I was going to focus on water, get two Reliance Rhino-pak aquatainers, and then figure out what to do with the rest of my budget, but those now seem to be hard to find, and the 7-gallon aquatainers are far less portable, so now I’m not sure if I should keep the focus on water or start somewhere else. If you were me, what would you prioritize? What have you prioritized in gifting preps to family members? Read More 11 11 Advice My BOB is heavy and not even fully stocked Jesse Smith - December 20, 2020 Hey everyone- I have been prepping in my head for years, but it was usually #badprepper ideas like I’ll just loot things I need as soon as SHTF. I started really getting worried leading up to the election and was googling and found this site. I went on a crazy spending spree and now I feel like I have a mostly complete Level 3 BOB. The problem- it weighs in at over 30 lbs and I still feel like it needs some moderately heavy items to get it all the way there (sleeping bag, tent, etc.). I’m interested in feedback on what the most cost-efficient way to upgrade some gear to make it lighter or what things I can ditch/ replace. Really love this site and am excited to continue to learn and improve! Here is the link to my kit: Read More 13 18 Gear Feedback and feature updates for this forum John AdamaStaff - December 20, 2020 In this thread we’ll share updates we’re making to the forum (in comments below) + it’s a good place for you to share any feedback about how we can make things better. Read More 19 18 Meta Had “The Preparedness Talk” LNMOt - December 19, 2020 We had a long time friend come up to visit us recently. None of our friends are aware of our preparedness. The conversation went in a direction where I thought it would be a good time to start talking to our friend about preparedness. The conversation went well I think – I did my best to explain the importance of being prepared and self reliant. Hopefully at the very least the discussion got him thinking – and perhaps he will continue to take steps in the preparedness journey. He could also just think I’m crazy! I did send him the link to this website 🙂 curious to hear if anybody else has had similar conversations with family or friends and how they went? What approaches worked well and which ones didn’t? Read More 10 4 Why did you start prepping? LNMOt - December 18, 2020 Wanting to hear feedback from this community as to why each of you decided to start prepping? Was it a particular situation you experienced? A book you read? Discussions with a family member, friend or neighbor? For me, I had toyed with idea of prepping for multiple years and I even had a good stash of freeze dried food and a biomass stove. Lots of camping gear. But COVID-19 was ultimately what did it for me – seeing how quickly and easily things could truly fall apart. It was eye opening. Read More 16 24 My two rural retreats in Australia Downunder - December 17, 2020 Hello, and thankyou for accepting me into your online community. This post is just to introduce myself and give some background about myself and my prepping journey. I’m mid 50’s, married with two adult children and one grandchild. I followed my elder brother into prepping in the early 1980’s, buying my first rural retreat as a 21y/o, then lost some interest as I started a family. Later on in life I returned to prepping, and now own two rural retreats, one close to the coast, and one in the mountains. They are about 50 miles apart in a direct line, but further via road. I live in my house in a coastal city several hours drive from my retreats. My primary focus has always been on financial security, even when I wasn’t actively prepping. I earn an average income, but live a frugal lifestyle and have been lucky enough to have always made sound financial decisions. I’m a self made man, determined and very mission focused. And I’m a good networker, which has saved me many thousands of dollars over the years. I consider my 3 main preps to be: debt free, a solid network of useful friends, and a big bank of paid leave from my employer, which I can take to alleviate extended periods of sickness or unemployment. My prepping plan is to enjoy the good life in my home on the coast, but have two fully stocked rural retreats to withdraw to if required. My primary retreat is mostly complete, it has a 3 bedroom cabin, and two 20ft shipping containers that serve as a bunkhouse, workshop, storeroom and bathroom. Water is provided by direct river frontage (clean water from the mountains with no farms using chemical fertilizers upstream) and 4 water tanks collecting rainwater. Power is from 600w of solar panel (enough for our modest needs) and an 80w panel serving the shipping containers. Cooking is lpg camp stove, gas bbq or open fire. This retreat has rice, pasta, tinned food to last my group of 8 for a month, and non perishable items to last 12 months. The bulk of my 12 month food store I keep at home. The retreat is private, at the end of a secluded track, surrounded by much larger properties raising beef and lamb. My cabin is situated in a position that would allow us to escape into the surrounding hills if required. My secondary retreat is 3 acres, a couple of miles from the coast, in a rural area approx 15 minutes drive from town. It has underground grid power, but off grid for water and septic. I am still developing this retreat, having only built a 55m2 metal shed and installed a 15,000l water tank. This shed will become a workshop/toolshed when I build the main house in 4 years. I will use a combination of grid and solar lower here, and the plan is to grow a lot of my own fruit and vegetables, and perhaps eggs and chicken as well. My main prepping focus currently is to finish the fitout of the cabin on this retreat, plant an orchard, and to develop some medical skills. Looking forward to learning from all the experience on this forum. Read More 10 13 The importance of knowing your way around matthew.Contributor - December 17, 2020 Sorry this is such a long post. The idea was inspired by a recent thread about roads vs interstates, and then again in a thread about cost-free preps. It got so long and specific it felt like it should be its own topic… One incredibly important aspect of prepping, in my opinion, is becoming keenly familiar with the road and highway system in one’s town and region. Too often people rely on their phones and navigation devices to get them from point A to B, and it seems to me a real, yet avoidable, vulnerability. While such devices can be great for avoiding traffic jams and road closures, it’s a real fool’s errand to rely on them completely. Networks can fail or get overloaded, devices/batteries can die, and it wastes time to type in/search for your destination – all things you want to avoid during an emergency. An important (and free!) prep is getting to know your way around your immediate area and region. Knowing how to get yourself to nearby hospitals, your bug-out location, or simply out of town – without having to reference a map or a device – is a crucial prepping skill. Once you have those routes memorized, then work on a secondary route, and perhaps a third, recognizing that roads/passes/bridges could become un-passable and require you to take an alternative route. From there, getting to know your area’s transportation system is vital. Highway systems are called “systems” for a reason, and while they might not always make obvious sense, upon studying them they reveal themselves. Additionally, there are all sorts of embedded codes one can learn to aid this process (for instance, with the US Interstate System, odd numbered highways always go north/south, while even numbers go east/west (this is a pretty well-known example, but these sorts of codes go much, much deeper). The road and highway numbering system in the US can be extremely useful once you understand it. The same can be said for most urban grids as well, though those vary town to town and are much harder to memorize beyond your immediate region. There are several websites and resources that shed light on these systems, but here’s a good place to start: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/interstate.cfm Another important thing to understand is the natural geography and barriers that inhibit our road system. Rivers, bodies of water, mountains, etc, play a significant role in how we get around, making bridges and mountain passes natural chokepoints that can bottleneck traffic. Recognizing these chokepoints is vital when making decisions, especially when evacuating an area. For instance, if you are trying to get from Oregon into the state of Washington, or vice versa, you will have to go over one of nine bridges over the Columbia River spread out over 300 hundred miles. Knowing where all nine of those bridges are, and the distance between them is vital if one hopes to make good decisions in case the preferred route becomes inaccessible due to structural failure or impossible gridlock. I highly encourage anyone who imagines needing to flee a disaster to spend some good time studying maps and trying to memorize the road system of their area. Accompany this with going for day trips to test your knowledge (and do some exploring, which is fun!). While out, try not to look at maps too much, or if you do only use paper maps and a compass (no devices!). Familiarize yourself with landmarks, and try to keep tabs of your internal compass (ask yourself periodically “which way is N/S/E/W?” and try to keep tabs on that). If you get lost try to figure it out, it can be fun with the right attitude, and you just might find your new favorite place. Our GPS navigation devices can be great tools, but don’t allow them to inhibit you from forming a true understanding of your surroundings. Be ready and familiar with paper maps and analog navigation tools, but challenge yourself to committ as much to memory as possible. If you are fleeing a hurricane, or rushing your kid to the ER, relying on your digital navigation devices could slow you down and do more harm than good. Read More 14 11 FEMA’s 2021 “Ready” calendar now available Bob - December 16, 2020 https://www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/2020-12/Ready_2021-messaging-calendar.pdf The 2021 calendar on readiness/preparedness themes just arrived. It is well worth the time to glance at and perhaps save. For visionaries and planners, September’s theme of national preparedness is ideal for TP.com. It’s like making a guaranteed sales call with immediate contract. Read More 7 2 I’m building a physical prepper business where people can ship us things to store Joseph Ross - December 15, 2020 We just started a website to put together a community of the prepared. The initial idea was to provide a place for people to go who might occasionally need relocating ( hurricane, flood, tornado). This gives them a prepaid long-term place to go without having to purchase or maintain property away from their home. Since then we have added a prepper dedicated storage facility. Its a simple concept. You ship us what you want us to store, we put it in your unit, we mail you a key, then you can either have it shipped anywhere you want when you need it or pick it up in person. our website is http://www.graywolfpaylake.com/bug-out The website is new and as you can see needs some work. But I was hoping to get some advice on how to better provide for people that need a bug-out location or storage. Any input is greatly appreciated. Read More 12 16 Do you buy honey locally? How and why? Liz Klein - December 14, 2020 I have seen plenty of random articles that say honey never expires. But then I heard a few preppers say you should only buy local because some of the cheaper honey you find in stores is fake or has bad chemicals. Is that true? Do you buy local and if so, how? Is it more expensive? Read More 16 18 Advice Fish antibiotics for humans? Winston Smith - December 14, 2020 Does anyone stockpile fish antibiotics? For years I’ve heard they’re the same thing as human antibiotics. I plan to stock up in the next few weeks. I understand this guy is pushing his book, but the information is very useful. Read More 13 30 Get home bag for harsh winter conditions LNMOt - December 14, 2020 Hello! I am relatively new to prepping and I am starting to put together a “get home” bag and was hoping for some suggestions and advice. I live in a rural area in the northeast with very cold and harsh winters and I have a 45 minute commute to work each way. If something happened and I had to make it back home on foot in the winter, or if I had to survive the night in my car due to severe winter weather, what would you recommend I have in my get home bag? Thanks in advance for your help! Read More 15 9 Advice How do you store your cans? Jonnie PekelnyContributor - December 13, 2020 My house is reasonably sized but has limited storage space. I’ve been accumulating canned food because of the pandemic, which I’m now also using as a backup food prep — I also have a bucket of freeze-dried food. The cans have mostly been stored in various cubbyholes: e.g. in the space under the couch, under the bottom shelf of my walk-in closet, etc. This works fine for a supply of cans I seldom use, but since I’m trying to rotate the canned food and use it regularly it’s becoming a pain in the butt to crouch on the floor of my closet trying to sort out which cans are which and trying to see the dates. I need a better system. What do you use to store your canned food? Read More 10 3 Prepping stocking stuffers Liz Klein - December 13, 2020 I’m wanting to share the gift of being prepared this Christmas and am having trouble thinking up some $20ish small gifts/stocking stuffers to give to family and friends. What would you recommend? My social circle is a mix of preppers and non-preppers, so I want something that just about everyone could use. Read More 10 17 AdviceGear Sealing push-pin style airflow vents on water containers JW - December 13, 2020 I have a 10L water container with the push-pin style airflow vent. I know this style of container was not recommended, but it was cheap. It definitely leaks when the container isn’t upright. I plan to store the container upright, but I’m just being extra cautious. I was thinking of sealing the push-pin plug by wrapping the plug with some Teflon tape. And then some scotch tape over the plug to prevent it from accidentally falling out. Has anyone dealt with this issue? Any ideas or criticisms of my idea? Would the teflon tape even work? Would it be considered food safe? Read More 7 3 National Space Policy and Preparedness Bob - December 11, 2020 https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/National-Space-Policy.pdf Good morning, Per title, it’s hot off the cyberpress, dated 9 December 2020. Of prepper interest, at least to me, is the page 17 section titled “Protection of Electromagnetic Spectrum”. Only 1 EMP sensitive item I depend on is probably subject to the electromagnetic interference. This is my old, smallest, lightest ,Grundig AM-FM-SW radio (uses 2 AAA batteries). So far, shortwave reception works. This might be a national trait. Phones: cell, sat, landline close down. Of course web access lost. Read More 10 2 Sutures: Can I use Vet/medical school practice ones to stock my first aid kit? lsmith - December 11, 2020 I’m having a difficult time buying sutures to stock my emergency med kit with. The only ones I can find online at Amazon are for either medical students or Veterinary uses. Are these appropriate to rely on for my med kits? Thoughts? Read More 10 4 BBC preppers going mainstream article Bob - December 11, 2020 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55249590 Good morning, The BBC, with global coverage, has the above article about preppers going mainstream. Article has a picture of some prepper gear and stuff. I like that textile item displayed on the wall. Hope it’s not used for a tarp. Article mentions the premier US preparedness website. Thank you John !!! ~ Bob Read More 9 1 What’s the best prepping advice you have ever received? Gideon ParkerStaff - December 10, 2020 Sharing the best advice that we have received will help new preppers and also teach us what others have found most helpful as they got started. The best advice my wife has ever received is: “Start with the basics” and “It doesn’t matter how much money you have if you don’t have food” The best advice I’ve received is the advice found in The Prepared’s Sane Prepping article. It really helped me out at a time when Prepping was overwhelming and stressful. It helped me have a level headed look at prepping and made it seem attainable for me. Read More 16 33 Advice Child needing regular hospital treatments Darren - December 10, 2020 Hi. We live in the UK and my 10 year old has recently been diagnosed with leukaemia requiring regular hospital visits for chemotherapy (around a 35 mile round trip each time). Does anyone have any experience or ideas around planning for this? Instead of getting away from a disaster, we are likely to have to drive into it and into a city to still access life saving treatments. Read More 7 3 Advice The point I wanted to make (but was cut) on this recent BBC podcast about prepping going mainstream John AdamaStaff - December 10, 2020 It’s a nice segment that went out to their worldwide audience. About 18 mins long: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3csz799, my part’s around 3:00. Another TP community member, Julie Fredrickson, also joined. EDIT to add: The podcast was popular, so they did a follow-up article with Julie and I https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55249590 There was a part of the interview that was cut for time. It wasn’t hugely insightful, but wanted to ramble the point here since it keeps getting cut from these interviews: When someone like Bill Gates says “we have major SHTF risks around disease/bioweapons and it’s important to prepare now,” we need to do a better job of listening and taking those people seriously. In that example, Gates has spent more money on trying to solve medical problems than any other individual in history. He’s abundantly qualified to make that statement. And he’s certainly smart, known to be rational, and has a track record of being right about these kinds of problems / solutions / the future. Yet people will hear someone like Gates say these warnings and dismiss it with a “hmph, so you’re a crazy prepper!” Crying wolf is a good way to lose credibility. But there’s a difference between people like Gates and someone like an actress who spouts anti-vaxxer stuff. But what’s happening is people hear one person cry wolf too many false times, then when another person cries wolf, they dismiss it and ignore who the new person is. “The last times we heard someone talk about a wolf, it wasn’t true.” Well yeah, but this is a different person, and in fact this new person crying wolf is a trusted wolf expert! A non-prepping example of this problem where people won’t let credentials override stereotypes: When Michael Phelps was “caught” smoking marijuana, people reacted with statements like “oh thats so horrible, how could he do that!” … well, maybe if the greatest athlete of all time is smoking marijuana, your stereotypes about cannabis were wrong? The evidence that the stigma was wrong is right in front of you. Dismissing the best people in society because what they say/do sounds similar to what the worst of society say/do is a recipe for disaster. This societal problem, a twist on the No True Scotsman problem, is one of the biggest meta reasons I’m pessimistic about the future — we can’t avoid massive problems if we keep ignoring the people best qualified to lead us away from / out of those problems! Another bit that was cut from the BBC interview perfectly demonstrates why people would rather put their head in the sand than face an inconvenient truth: Me: “We’re not talking about some theoretical alien invasion. These problems like worsening natural disasters and late-stage capitalism are happening right now.” BBC: “Here in the UK, someone is likely to say to you ‘cheer up love, it’ll be fine!’ A keep calm and carry on sort of thing.” Me: “That’s part of the problem!” Read More 14 8 Meta Catalogs with A+ tech information Bob - December 10, 2020 Good morning, The catalogs with high-quality and expensive products can also be loaded with high-quality technical information. One example is: https://www.streamlight.com/ecatalog/2020FullLineCatalog/index.html DISCLAIMER: Not making recommendations or have any interest in company. I do use some of their products. At above link – hopefully it hyperlinks – is a half page chart titled “Different Lights For Different Hazardous Locations”. This tech info is super because it is to the point and product examples explain and clarify. …… Recently I posted a link to Forestry Suppliers of Jackson, Mississippi with their tech info in catalog. Some of the industrial safety products catalogs have charts on eg explaining the catagories of face masks like the 3M N-95 to the P-100. As I get to my pulp catalogs, will post those with decent web links with tech info. Again: I am not “pushing” ant company or products. ~ Bob Read More 7 2 I am an experienced outdoorsman with an eye for conservation and sustainable land use Thomas GomezStaff - December 9, 2020 Besides being a writer and researcher for The Prepared, I consult in the outdoor industry and work as a precision rifle instructor. I am an experienced hunter and angler and have spent thousands of hours in the outdoors catching fish, hunting, bird watching, and exploring planet Earth. Here to answer any questions about hunting, angling, or general outdoor activities. Questions related to gear selection, ethics, game recipes, stalking, training, mindset, and hunt preparation are welcome. Here are a few photos from a recent mule deer hunt in Central New Mexico. A tripod is an excellent tool in the woods. Approaching with caution and reverence. Solid kit. Mystery Ranch pack, semi-custom Remington 700 rifle, Athlon scope. Read More 15 7 ScenariosSkills Treking staff; the pike pole Bob - December 9, 2020 https://www.google.com/search?source=univ&tbm=isch&q=%22pike+poles%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjB8arstcDtAhUJ2qwKHXK-CVcQjJkEegQIARAB&biw=1280&bih=641 Good morning, For those who have basic plans to evacuate from home via walking, it can be advantageous to carry a stick, cane or pole of some sort. For my plans involving much walking – but no wilderness expedition – I have a 9 ft fiberglass fighter fighter’s pike pole. The fitting is a non-ferrous metal. Above link has some examples. For my situation, next to the Chesapeake Bay, weather problems involve lightning storms. Am mentioning this because metal can be dangerous when elevated over one’s body. Thus, aluminum shafts are “verbotten” and so too, even the non-ferrous metal tips. My pike pole is rigged with a sling made of an old cotton web belt and attached by wrapped 550 paracord. Without specific needs, a wooden pole from a hardwood tree can exceed requirements. A couple in our preparedness group developed something noteworthy. I forgot the actuals dims but for illustration, they have 2 each 7 ft lengths of PVC pipe. One is 1 inch diam and other is half inch diam. Fitting the smaller into the larger, they drilled holes at the top and bottom. The contraption is held together by a wing nut and bolt at both ends. For versatility, when not walking/hiking with their treking pole(s), they can disassemble the poles yielding 4 poles for a makeshift canopy tent. Thry, too, have paracord and web handles on their “walking sticks”. Read More 7 0 Everyday footwear matthew.Contributor - December 7, 2020 When I think of my own personal safety and vulnerability, and the absolute “must-haves” in any kind of emergency situation, a good pair of shoes or boots is very high on my list. I know what I’d want to be wearing if and when the SHTF (in my case a good pair of waterproof, lightweight hiking boots) but I am very aware that wearing such footwear all the time simply doesn’t make sense. Some professional and social situations demand for more formal attire, and sometimes you simply want to relax and “put your feet up.” But let’s face it, much formal attire is ridiculous and makes us very vulnerable. I cringe at the idea of ever wearing something that would hinder me from running, walking long distances, climbing a fence, etc. I know footwear choices are very subjective, and highly affected by one’s gender, style, career, and environment. That said, I’m interested in how others have approached the conundrum of needing to meet formal expectations while not wanting to put themselves in a vulnerable state. Personally, I am a big fan of Keen’s PTC Oxford series. They may not be the most stylish shoes around, but they get me through most professional and formal situations. I believe they were designed for service-industry workers who need comfortable shoes with good traction, and I find they give me comparable support to a pair of lightweight day-hiking shoes. Does anyone have any awesome everyday footwear advice? How are you approaching this challenge? I’d particularly like to hear how women are approaching this, as I understand the choices are likely fewer and the societal expectations are (unfairly) more demanding. My wife has really struggled to find an everyday shoe that fits all her needs. Read More 7 3 AdviceGear < Prev 1 2 3 … 51 52 53 … 57 58 59 Next > Recently Active Chickens for preppers: Important considerations - 9 hours agoNews for the Week 2024-04-15 - 3 days agoAlexapure - 6 days agoPlants with Saponins - 1 week agoNews for the week of 2024-04-08 - 1 week ago RULES This forum is heavily moderated to keep things valuable to as many people as possible. Full community policies are here. The basics: 1. Be nice to each other. 2. Stay focused on prepping. 3. Avoid politics, religion, and other arguments. 4. No unfounded conspiracies, fake news, etc. 5. Debate ideas, not people. FILTER Show all Advice Gear Meta News Scenarios Skills

Gifting preps: What are your top picks for unprepared loved ones?

pnwsarahContributor - December 20, 2020

Hi Prepared Friends,

I’m trying to decide what I should gift to my dad and stepmother this Christmas to enhance their preparedness. My dad likes camping and backpacking, so they have that sort of gear, but just for one. They also have one of those pre-packed 72-hour kits that is largely full of garbage (which I bought them a couple of Christmases back in the interest of getting the bases covered quickly and within my budget). They live five miles from the San Andreas Fault in a household that also includes three medium-sized dogs, and they commuted to work in their own cars pre-pandemic. I can spend about $120.

I was going to focus on water, get two Reliance Rhino-pak aquatainers, and then figure out what to do with the rest of my budget, but those now seem to be hard to find, and the 7-gallon aquatainers are far less portable, so now I’m not sure if I should keep the focus on water or start somewhere else.

If you were me, what would you prioritize? What have you prioritized in gifting preps to family members?

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Advice

My BOB is heavy and not even fully stocked

Jesse Smith - December 20, 2020

Hey everyone-

I have been prepping in my head for years, but it was usually #badprepper ideas like I’ll just loot things I need as soon as SHTF. I started really getting worried leading up to the election and was googling and found this site. I went on a crazy spending spree and now I feel like I have a mostly complete Level 3 BOB. 

The problem- it weighs in at over 30 lbs and I still feel like it needs some moderately heavy items to get it all the way there (sleeping bag, tent, etc.). I’m interested in feedback on what the most cost-efficient way to upgrade some gear to make it lighter or what things I can ditch/ replace. 

Really love this site and am excited to continue to learn and improve!

Here is the link to my kit:

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Gear

Feedback and feature updates for this forum

John AdamaStaff - December 20, 2020

In this thread we’ll share updates we’re making to the forum (in comments below) + it’s a good place for you to share any feedback about how we can make things better.

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Meta

Had “The Preparedness Talk”

LNMOt - December 19, 2020

We had a long time friend come up to visit us recently.  None of our friends are aware of our preparedness.  The conversation went in a direction where I thought it would be a good time to start talking to our friend about preparedness.  The conversation went well I think – I did my best to explain the importance of being prepared and self reliant.  Hopefully at the very least the discussion got him thinking – and perhaps he will continue to take steps in the preparedness journey.  He could also just think I’m crazy!  I did send him the link to this website 🙂  curious to hear if anybody else has had similar conversations with family or friends and how they went?  What approaches worked well and which ones didn’t? 

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Why did you start prepping?

LNMOt - December 18, 2020

Wanting to hear feedback from this community as to why each of you decided to start prepping?  Was it a particular situation you experienced?  A book you read?  Discussions with a family member, friend or neighbor?

For me, I had toyed with idea of prepping for multiple years and I even had a good stash of freeze dried food and a biomass stove.  Lots of camping gear.  But COVID-19 was ultimately what did it for me – seeing how quickly and easily things could truly fall apart.  It was eye opening.

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My two rural retreats in Australia

Downunder - December 17, 2020

Hello, and thankyou for accepting me into your online community.

This post is just to introduce myself and give some background about myself and my prepping journey. I’m mid 50’s, married with two adult children and one grandchild. I followed my elder brother into prepping in the early 1980’s, buying my first rural retreat as a 21y/o, then lost some interest as I started a family.  Later on in life I returned to prepping, and now own two rural retreats, one close to the coast, and one in the mountains. They are about 50 miles apart in a direct line, but further via road. I live in my house in a coastal city several hours drive from my retreats.

My primary focus has always been on financial security, even when I wasn’t actively prepping. I earn an average income, but live a frugal lifestyle and have been lucky enough to have always made sound financial decisions. I’m a self made man, determined and very mission focused. And I’m a good networker, which has saved me many thousands of dollars over the years. I consider my 3 main preps to be: debt free, a solid network of useful friends, and a big bank of paid leave from my employer, which I can take to alleviate extended periods of sickness or unemployment.

My prepping plan is to enjoy the good life in my home on the coast, but have two fully stocked rural retreats to withdraw to if required. My primary retreat is mostly complete, it has a 3 bedroom cabin, and two 20ft shipping containers that serve as a bunkhouse, workshop, storeroom and bathroom. Water is provided by direct river frontage (clean water from the mountains with no farms using chemical fertilizers upstream) and 4 water tanks collecting rainwater. Power is from 600w of solar panel (enough for our modest needs) and an 80w panel serving the shipping containers. Cooking is lpg camp stove, gas bbq or open fire. This retreat has rice, pasta, tinned  food to last my group of 8 for a month, and non perishable items to last 12 months. The bulk of my 12 month food store I keep at home. The retreat is private, at the end of a secluded track, surrounded by much larger properties raising beef and lamb. My cabin is situated in a position that would allow us to escape into the surrounding hills if required.

My secondary retreat is 3 acres, a couple of miles from the coast, in a rural area approx 15 minutes drive from town. It has underground grid power, but off grid for water and septic. I am still developing this retreat, having only built a 55m2 metal shed and installed a 15,000l water tank. This shed will become a workshop/toolshed when I build the main house in 4 years. I will use a combination of grid and solar lower here, and the plan is to grow a lot of my own fruit and vegetables, and perhaps eggs and chicken as well.

My main prepping focus currently is to finish the fitout of the cabin on this retreat, plant an orchard, and to develop some medical skills.

Looking forward to learning from all the experience on this forum.

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The importance of knowing your way around

matthew.Contributor - December 17, 2020

Sorry this is such a long post.  The idea was inspired by a recent thread about roads vs interstates, and then again in a thread about cost-free preps.  It got so long and specific it felt like it should be its own topic…

One incredibly important aspect of prepping, in my opinion, is becoming keenly familiar with the road and highway system in one’s town and region. Too often people rely on their phones and navigation devices to get them from point A to B, and it seems to me a real, yet avoidable, vulnerability. While such devices can be great for avoiding traffic jams and road closures, it’s a real fool’s errand to rely on them completely. Networks can fail or get overloaded, devices/batteries can die, and it wastes time to type in/search for your destination – all things you want to avoid during an emergency.

An important (and free!) prep is getting to know your way around your immediate area and region. Knowing how to get yourself to nearby hospitals, your bug-out location, or simply out of town – without having to reference a map or a device – is a crucial prepping skill. Once you have those routes memorized, then work on a secondary route, and perhaps a third, recognizing that roads/passes/bridges could become un-passable and require you to take an alternative route.

From there, getting to know your area’s transportation system is vital. Highway systems are called “systems” for a reason, and while they might not always make obvious sense, upon studying them they reveal themselves. Additionally, there are all sorts of embedded codes one can learn to aid this process (for instance, with the US Interstate System, odd numbered highways always go north/south, while even numbers go east/west (this is a pretty well-known example, but these sorts of codes go much, much deeper). The road and highway numbering system in the US can be extremely useful once you understand it. The same can be said for most urban grids as well, though those vary town to town and are much harder to memorize beyond your immediate region. There are several websites and resources that shed light on these systems, but here’s a good place to start: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/interstate.cfm

Another important thing to understand is the natural geography and barriers that inhibit our road system.  Rivers, bodies of water, mountains, etc, play a significant role in how we get around, making bridges and mountain passes natural chokepoints that can bottleneck traffic.  Recognizing these chokepoints is vital when making decisions, especially when evacuating an area.  For instance, if you are trying to get from Oregon into the state of Washington, or vice versa, you will have to go over one of nine bridges over the Columbia River spread out over 300 hundred miles.  Knowing where all nine of those bridges are, and the distance between them is vital if one hopes to make good decisions in case the preferred route becomes inaccessible due to structural failure or impossible gridlock.

I highly encourage anyone who imagines needing to flee a disaster to spend some good time studying maps and trying to memorize the road system of their area.  Accompany this with going for day trips to test your knowledge (and do some exploring, which is fun!).  While out, try not to look at maps too much, or if you do only use paper maps and a compass (no devices!).  Familiarize yourself with landmarks, and try to keep tabs of your internal compass (ask yourself periodically “which way is N/S/E/W?” and try to keep tabs on that).  If you get lost try to figure it out, it can be fun with the right attitude, and you just might find your new favorite place.

Our GPS navigation devices can be great tools, but don’t allow them to inhibit you from forming a true understanding of your surroundings. Be ready and familiar with paper maps and analog navigation tools, but challenge yourself to committ as much to memory as possible.  If you are fleeing a hurricane, or rushing your kid to the ER, relying on your digital navigation devices could slow you down and do more harm than good.  

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FEMA’s 2021 “Ready” calendar now available

Bob - December 16, 2020

https://www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/2020-12/Ready_2021-messaging-calendar.pdf

The 2021 calendar on readiness/preparedness themes just arrived.

It is well worth the time to glance at and perhaps save.

For visionaries and planners, September’s theme of national preparedness is ideal for TP.com.  It’s like making a guaranteed sales call with immediate contract.

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I’m building a physical prepper business where people can ship us things to store

Joseph Ross - December 15, 2020

We just started a website to put together a community of the prepared. The initial idea was to provide a place for people to go who might occasionally need relocating ( hurricane, flood, tornado). This gives them a prepaid long-term place to go without having to purchase or maintain property away from their home. Since then we have added a prepper dedicated storage facility. Its a simple concept. You ship us what you want us to store, we put it in your unit, we mail you a key, then you can either have it shipped anywhere you want when you need it or pick it up in person.

our website is http://www.graywolfpaylake.com/bug-out

The website is new and as you can see needs some work. But I was hoping to get some advice on how to better provide for people that need a bug-out location or storage. Any input is greatly appreciated.

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Do you buy honey locally? How and why?

Liz Klein - December 14, 2020

I have seen plenty of random articles that say honey never expires. But then I heard a few preppers say you should only buy local because some of the cheaper honey you find in stores is fake or has bad chemicals.

Is that true? Do you buy local and if so, how? Is it more expensive?

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Advice

Fish antibiotics for humans?

Winston Smith - December 14, 2020

Does anyone stockpile fish antibiotics?  For years I’ve heard they’re the same thing as human antibiotics.  I plan to stock up in the next few weeks. I understand this guy is pushing his book, but the information is very useful.

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13

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Get home bag for harsh winter conditions

LNMOt - December 14, 2020

Hello!  I am relatively new to prepping and I am starting to put together a “get home” bag and was hoping for some suggestions and advice.  I live in a rural area in the northeast with very cold and harsh winters and I have a 45 minute commute to work each way.  If something happened and I had to make it back home on foot in the winter, or if I had to survive the night in my car due to severe winter weather, what would you recommend I have in my get home bag?  Thanks in advance for your help!

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Advice

How do you store your cans?

Jonnie PekelnyContributor - December 13, 2020

My house is reasonably sized but has limited storage space. I’ve been accumulating canned food because of the pandemic, which I’m now also using as a backup food prep — I also have a bucket of freeze-dried food. The cans have mostly been stored in various cubbyholes: e.g. in the space under the couch, under the bottom shelf of my walk-in closet, etc. This works fine for a supply of cans I seldom use, but since I’m trying to rotate the canned food and use it regularly it’s becoming a pain in the butt to crouch on the floor of my closet trying to sort out which cans are which and trying to see the dates. I need a better system. What do you use to store your canned food?

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Prepping stocking stuffers

Liz Klein - December 13, 2020

I’m wanting to share the gift of being prepared this Christmas and am having trouble thinking up some $20ish small gifts/stocking stuffers to give to family and friends. What would you recommend?

My social circle is a mix of preppers and non-preppers, so I want something that just about everyone could use.

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AdviceGear

Sealing push-pin style airflow vents on water containers

JW - December 13, 2020

I have a 10L water container with the push-pin style airflow vent. I know this style of container was not recommended, but it was cheap. It definitely leaks when the container isn’t upright.  I plan to store the container upright, but I’m just being extra cautious.

I was thinking of sealing the push-pin plug by wrapping the plug with some Teflon tape. And then some scotch tape over the plug to prevent it from accidentally falling out.

Has anyone dealt with this issue? Any ideas or criticisms of my idea? Would the teflon tape even work? Would it be considered food safe?

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National Space Policy and Preparedness

Bob - December 11, 2020

https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/National-Space-Policy.pdf

Good morning,

Per title, it’s hot off the cyberpress, dated 9 December 2020.

Of prepper interest, at least to me, is the page 17 section titled “Protection of Electromagnetic Spectrum”. 

Only 1 EMP sensitive item I depend on is probably subject to the electromagnetic interference.  This is my old, smallest, lightest ,Grundig AM-FM-SW radio (uses 2 AAA batteries).  So far, shortwave reception works. This might be a national trait.

Phones: cell, sat, landline close down.  Of course web access lost.

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Sutures: Can I use Vet/medical school practice ones to stock my first aid kit?

lsmith - December 11, 2020

I’m having a difficult time buying sutures to stock my emergency med kit with.  The only ones I can find online at Amazon are for either medical students or Veterinary uses. Are these appropriate to rely on for my med kits? Thoughts?

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BBC preppers going mainstream article

Bob - December 11, 2020

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55249590

Good morning,

The BBC, with global coverage, has the above article about preppers going mainstream.

Article has a picture of some prepper gear and stuff.  I like that textile item displayed on the wall.  Hope it’s not used for a tarp.

Article mentions the premier US preparedness website.

Thank you John !!!

~ Bob

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What’s the best prepping advice you have ever received?

Gideon ParkerStaff - December 10, 2020

Sharing the best advice that we have received will help new preppers and also teach us what others have found most helpful as they got started. 

The best advice my wife has ever received is: “Start with the basics” and “It doesn’t matter how much money you have if you don’t have food”

The best advice I’ve received is the advice found in The Prepared’s Sane Prepping article. It really helped me out at a time when Prepping was overwhelming and stressful. It helped me have a level headed look at prepping and made it seem attainable for me. 

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Advice

Child needing regular hospital treatments

Darren - December 10, 2020

Hi.  We live in the UK and my 10 year old has recently been diagnosed with leukaemia requiring regular hospital visits for chemotherapy (around a 35 mile round trip each time).

Does anyone have any experience or ideas around planning for this?  Instead of getting away from a disaster, we are likely to have to drive into it and into a city to still access life saving treatments.

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Advice

The point I wanted to make (but was cut) on this recent BBC podcast about prepping going mainstream

John AdamaStaff - December 10, 2020

It’s a nice segment that went out to their worldwide audience. About 18 mins long: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3csz799, my part’s around 3:00. Another TP community member, Julie Fredrickson, also joined.

EDIT to add: The podcast was popular, so they did a follow-up article with Julie and I https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55249590

There was a part of the interview that was cut for time. It wasn’t hugely insightful, but wanted to ramble the point here since it keeps getting cut from these interviews: 

When someone like Bill Gates says “we have major SHTF risks around disease/bioweapons and it’s important to prepare now,” we need to do a better job of listening and taking those people seriously.

In that example, Gates has spent more money on trying to solve medical problems than any other individual in history. He’s abundantly qualified to make that statement. And he’s certainly smart, known to be rational, and has a track record of being right about these kinds of problems / solutions / the future. 

Yet people will hear someone like Gates say these warnings and dismiss it with a “hmph, so you’re a crazy prepper!”

Crying wolf is a good way to lose credibility. But there’s a difference between people like Gates and someone like an actress who spouts anti-vaxxer stuff. But what’s happening is people hear one person cry wolf too many false times, then when another person cries wolf, they dismiss it and ignore who the new person is. “The last times we heard someone talk about a wolf, it wasn’t true.” Well yeah, but this is a different person, and in fact this new person crying wolf is a trusted wolf expert!

A non-prepping example of this problem where people won’t let credentials override stereotypes: When Michael Phelps was “caught” smoking marijuana, people reacted with statements like “oh thats so horrible, how could he do that!” 

… well, maybe if the greatest athlete of all time is smoking marijuana, your stereotypes about cannabis were wrong? The evidence that the stigma was wrong is right in front of you.

Dismissing the best people in society because what they say/do sounds similar to what the worst of society say/do is a recipe for disaster. 

This societal problem, a twist on the No True Scotsman problem, is one of the biggest meta reasons I’m pessimistic about the future — we can’t avoid massive problems if we keep ignoring the people best qualified to lead us away from / out of those problems! 

Another bit that was cut from the BBC interview perfectly demonstrates why people would rather put their head in the sand than face an inconvenient truth:

Me: “We’re not talking about some theoretical alien invasion. These problems like worsening natural disasters and late-stage capitalism are happening right now.”

BBC: “Here in the UK, someone is likely to say to you ‘cheer up love, it’ll be fine!’ A keep calm and carry on sort of thing.”

Me: “That’s part of the problem!”

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Meta

Catalogs with A+ tech information

Bob - December 10, 2020

Good morning,

The catalogs with high-quality and expensive products can also be loaded with high-quality technical information.

One example is:  https://www.streamlight.com/ecatalog/2020FullLineCatalog/index.html

DISCLAIMER: Not making recommendations or have any interest in company. I do use some of their products.

At above link – hopefully it hyperlinks – is a half page chart titled “Different Lights For Different Hazardous Locations”.  This tech info is super because it is to the point and product examples explain and clarify.

……

Recently I posted a link to Forestry Suppliers of Jackson, Mississippi with their tech info in catalog.

Some of the industrial safety products catalogs have charts on eg explaining the catagories of face masks like the 3M N-95 to the P-100.

As I get to my pulp catalogs, will post those with decent web links with tech info.  Again:  I am not “pushing” ant company or products.

~ Bob

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I am an experienced outdoorsman with an eye for conservation and sustainable land use

Thomas GomezStaff - December 9, 2020

Besides being a writer and researcher for The Prepared, I consult in the outdoor industry and work as a precision rifle instructor. I am an experienced hunter and angler and have spent thousands of hours in the outdoors catching fish, hunting, bird watching, and exploring planet Earth.  

Here to answer any questions about hunting, angling, or general outdoor activities. Questions related to gear selection, ethics, game recipes, stalking, training, mindset, and hunt preparation are welcome.  

Here are a few photos from a recent mule deer hunt in Central New Mexico. 

A tripod is an excellent tool in the woods. 

Approaching with caution and reverence. 

Solid kit. Mystery Ranch pack, semi-custom Remington 700 rifle, Athlon scope. 

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ScenariosSkills

Treking staff; the pike pole

Bob - December 9, 2020

https://www.google.com/search?source=univ&tbm=isch&q=%22pike+poles%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjB8arstcDtAhUJ2qwKHXK-CVcQjJkEegQIARAB&biw=1280&bih=641

Good morning,

For those who have basic plans to evacuate from home via walking, it can be advantageous to carry a stick, cane or pole of some sort.

For my plans involving much walking – but no wilderness expedition – I have a 9 ft fiberglass fighter fighter’s pike pole. The fitting is a non-ferrous metal.

Above link has some examples.

For my situation, next to the Chesapeake Bay, weather problems involve lightning storms.  Am mentioning this because metal can be dangerous when elevated over one’s body.  Thus, aluminum shafts are “verbotten” and so too, even the non-ferrous metal tips.  

My pike pole is rigged with a sling made of an old cotton web belt and attached by wrapped 550 paracord.  

Without specific needs, a wooden pole from a hardwood tree can exceed requirements.

A couple in our preparedness group developed something noteworthy.  I forgot the actuals dims but for illustration, they  have 2 each 7 ft lengths of PVC pipe.  One is 1 inch diam and other is half inch diam.  Fitting the smaller into the larger, they drilled holes at the top and bottom.  The contraption is held together by a wing nut and bolt at both ends.  For versatility, when not walking/hiking with their treking pole(s), they can disassemble the poles yielding 4 poles for a makeshift canopy tent.  Thry, too, have paracord and web handles on their “walking sticks”.

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Everyday footwear

matthew.Contributor - December 7, 2020

When I think of my own personal safety and vulnerability, and the absolute “must-haves” in any kind of emergency situation, a good pair of shoes or boots is very high on my list.  I know what I’d want to be wearing if and when the SHTF (in my case a good pair of waterproof, lightweight hiking boots) but I am very aware that wearing such footwear all the time simply doesn’t make sense.  Some professional and social situations demand for more formal attire, and sometimes you simply want to relax and “put your feet up.”  But let’s face it, much formal attire is ridiculous and makes us very vulnerable.  I cringe at the idea of ever wearing something that would hinder me from running, walking long distances, climbing a fence, etc.

I know footwear choices are very subjective, and highly affected by one’s gender, style, career, and environment.  That said, I’m interested in how others have approached the conundrum of needing to meet formal expectations while not wanting to put themselves in a vulnerable state.  

Personally, I am a big fan of Keen’s PTC Oxford series. They may not be the most stylish shoes around, but they get me through most professional and formal situations.  I believe they were designed for service-industry workers who need comfortable shoes with good traction, and I find they give me comparable support to a pair of lightweight day-hiking shoes.  

Does anyone have any awesome everyday footwear advice?  How are you approaching this challenge?  I’d particularly like to hear how women are approaching this, as I understand the choices are likely fewer and the societal expectations are (unfairly) more demanding.  My wife has really struggled to find an everyday shoe that fits all her needs.

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AdviceGear