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- Thread starter Angie
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Joe Williams
Shooter
- Jun 26, 2008
- 10,431
- 38
Step #1 is the mindset "I will survive, no matter what."
As for books, a good, basic primer to start with is a Boy Scout handbook.
As for books, a good, basic primer to start with is a Boy Scout handbook.
Tactical Dave
Grandmaster
#1 Be prepared.... haha In reality like above you have to have the will to survive.
In all seriousnes it's all about what you want. Some people start with or just have things like MRE's so that if there is a big natural disaster or something and you can't get to the store or the stores are looted or sold you you will be able to eat for a few day's (or longer).
There is a lot of good info on there but there are also people that have gone really far off the deep end and walk around wearing foil................
I hear the British SAS survival book is good.
Just depend's on how far you want to go.
In all seriousnes it's all about what you want. Some people start with or just have things like MRE's so that if there is a big natural disaster or something and you can't get to the store or the stores are looted or sold you you will be able to eat for a few day's (or longer).
There is a lot of good info on there but there are also people that have gone really far off the deep end and walk around wearing foil................
I hear the British SAS survival book is good.
Just depend's on how far you want to go.
I am posting a link to one of the best prep sites I have ever found.It covers nearly every aspect of being prepared from a guy who survived Katrina.From a basic bag to grab and run if your house is burning down,with things like a memory stick in it to prove to the insurance company what you lost...a lesson he learned from Katrina...to personal documents and clothing ect...To a full blown the world just ended how are you going to survive.
HURRICANE KATRINA
I have prepped a long time,this is one of the best resources I have ever found.There are even spreadsheets to help you check off things as you get them done.
hope that helps
ps.BSA handbook is a must have!
HYST
Page one...just for those curious.
HURRICANE KATRINA
I have prepped a long time,this is one of the best resources I have ever found.There are even spreadsheets to help you check off things as you get them done.
hope that helps
ps.BSA handbook is a must have!
HYST
Page one...just for those curious.
1. SURVIVAL IS NOT A KIT!
2. If you prepare to survive, you will, but survival means breaking even.
3. If you prepare to succeed, you can do much better than survive.
4. The best 'survival kit' is the kit you carry. If you have the greatest kit in the world, and you don't carry it, then it's worthless.
5. Skills and knowledge are more important than stuff.
6. If you're having fun, it's not survival, it's camping out.
7. Anybody who tells you that survival is 90% mental and 10% physical has never actually been in a survival situation. Those numbers can swing wildly...
8. The best way not to get lost is to never leave home in the first place.
9. Lazy people do not prosper.
10. In any survival situation, you should try to keep your friends alive as long as possible. They stay fresh longer that way.
We'll be expanding on and adding to this list as we go along.
2. If you prepare to survive, you will, but survival means breaking even.
3. If you prepare to succeed, you can do much better than survive.
4. The best 'survival kit' is the kit you carry. If you have the greatest kit in the world, and you don't carry it, then it's worthless.
5. Skills and knowledge are more important than stuff.
6. If you're having fun, it's not survival, it's camping out.
7. Anybody who tells you that survival is 90% mental and 10% physical has never actually been in a survival situation. Those numbers can swing wildly...
8. The best way not to get lost is to never leave home in the first place.
9. Lazy people do not prosper.
10. In any survival situation, you should try to keep your friends alive as long as possible. They stay fresh longer that way.
We'll be expanding on and adding to this list as we go along.
Everyone's needs are different, with the exception of water, food, and shelter.
Step #1: Imagine being stuck at home for a week without power (thunderstorm, ice storm, blizzard, hurricane..whatever). What would you need if you can't leave your house? Go get that.
Step #2: Imagine being stuck for a month. Same scenario. Now go get that, even if it's gradually.
Step #3: Repeat as necessary. This gets you through scenarios of short duration. For long term, you have to think sustainability. This means LEARNING. It's not about acquiring stuff. It's about acquiring skills. Think gardening, preserving food, raising livestock, health, security, etc. I'll recommend two resources that I think are invaluable. The first is the book " The Encyclopedia of Country Living" by Carla Emory. The second is the website "SurvivalBlog" by James Wesley Rawles.
Remember, One Step at a Time. Hope this helps, good luck.
Step #1: Imagine being stuck at home for a week without power (thunderstorm, ice storm, blizzard, hurricane..whatever). What would you need if you can't leave your house? Go get that.
Step #2: Imagine being stuck for a month. Same scenario. Now go get that, even if it's gradually.
Step #3: Repeat as necessary. This gets you through scenarios of short duration. For long term, you have to think sustainability. This means LEARNING. It's not about acquiring stuff. It's about acquiring skills. Think gardening, preserving food, raising livestock, health, security, etc. I'll recommend two resources that I think are invaluable. The first is the book " The Encyclopedia of Country Living" by Carla Emory. The second is the website "SurvivalBlog" by James Wesley Rawles.
Remember, One Step at a Time. Hope this helps, good luck.
WWIIIDefender
Expert
Start with yourself. Make sure your eating right no junk food just fruits and vegetables maybe throw in some fish or chicken and drink only water for 2 weeks or so. This will flush your system and clear your mind so you can consentrate. Then make a plan for preparing yourself. Knock of the items that can kill you first. Example stock water before food and so on.
An OLD Boy Scout Handbook!! The new ones, of course, have a lot of technological stuff that the old ones hadn't dreamt of yet, but if you can find one from the 20s, you will be AMAZED at what the kids back then had to go through for, as an example, their Survival Badge.
I'd also recommend the Army Survival Manual (FM 21-76??). Lots of good stuff that can get you through in a pinch.
That pretty much says it all. You have to be willing to make concerted effort to maintain that mindset. The mindset will drive you to learn skills and prep.
shibumiseeker
Grandmaster
Hi Angie, what follows is a collection of some posts I've made over time on this subject. My apologies as it is disorganized and incomplete, I'm working on making it a more useful guide:
Survival:
SHTF is not only about major collapse of society. You may be thinking of the concept of TEOTWAWKI, The End of the World As We Know It.
SHTF can be a loss of a job, a medical emergency, a regional disaster, divorce, home invasion, and so on and so on and so on. SHTF can affect one person or many. It can be The End of the World As We Know It (TEOTWAWKI).
I have survived several SHTFs in my life. House burned to the ground in February a few years back, no insurance, and I was camped out on my property for several months while rebuilding and taking showers outside in 20f weather. A lotta years ago my wife just walked out one day with no warning at all, seems she found a better deal. Had me walking around in a daze for a couple months and took a few more to get back to a semblance of normality. I do disaster response and Search and Rescue and have responded to numerous disasters. I get flooded in for several days every year or so, once was three weeks. Have to hike half an hour to get to the vehicle.
So yeah, I can survive SHTF. If we do have TEOTWAWKI, I will probably survive longer and more comfortably than most, but how long is something no one can know. I could also get struck by a meteor tomorrow and all my preps would be for naught.
Being prepared benefits a person on all levels, not just the end of the world or collapse of society. Survivalism is not about food, gold and guns, it's about a mindset of handling problems and moving on.
Attitude:
Being a real survivalist is not about living off the land, or storing lots of stuff or having lots of toys or whatnot.
Real survivalism is a MINDSET and an ATTITUDE and the DRIVE. It's about having flexibility to adapt to changing conditions, especially when those conditions are antithetical to continued survival.
In the 60s through the early 90s we were worried about surviving nuclear holocaust so many people's preps were geared towards that. Now people are worried about surviving economic crisis or the New World Order or whatever, so their preps are geared towards that. If it ever got to looking like China was seriously thinking about invading the US then we'd be worried about surviving that.
A survivalist does a realistic threat assessment and prepares based on those threats (which usually are not the big fear the public has at the moment) and recognizes that the mindset, attitude, and drive are the key components, and then gets the training or stores the supplies or buys the insurance or puts enough into retirements or learns how to live off the land, or whatever.
Want to know why I learned to live off the land when I was a teen? Because I was spending a lot of time out in the wilderness hiking by myself with crap equipment. It forced me to learn how to improvise and make do with what I could find at hand. It forced me to learn the skills to make use of the abundance around me. Else if something went wrong, I could starve surrounded by food.
Originally Posted By shibumiseeker:
..... I am pointing out that survivalism is more than the ability to live off the land. Without the mindset, attitude, and drive to survive then any skills or supplies you have are worthless.
Parana1 wrote:
”I agree. However, I don't think it is possible to live off the land very long without those those traits. “
Actually it is. Living off the land is just work. Lots of work. Once you've been trained to do it it isn't that difficult, it's just work.
Those traits could be what make you learn to live off the land if you were suddenly dropped into the wilderness with no prior training. Those traits could be the balance that allowed you to survive if you were captured by the enemy (whoever he is) and held in a POW camp for five years. Or in a concentration camp. Or if you got into an automobile accident and were left a quadrapalegic.
Living off the land is just a skill set. A useful skill set, granted. So is emergency medicine. So would be learning a completely new social structure if you were stuck in a foreign land alone where you didn't speak the language. Or learning the social structure if you were put in prison.
In the years I have been involved in disaster response, Search and Rescue, and emergency medicine, the things that I have seen time and again that make the difference are those traits I discussed.
Bugging out:
Bugging out in a vehicle is easy. Stock MREs, bottled water, and a few bulk water containers. Mix it up a bit with other foods. Specific containers are hard to say since vehicles are differen. Pack in a modular format that breaks your supplies up into complete units on a per day per person basis (one module contains one day's supplies for our 4 person family). Make your FIRST module Bug Out Bags for EACH family member, including little ones. Make a vehicle kit that includes spares for common fail items (fuses, belts, fuel filter, air pump for tires, etc) and the tools to use them. That should live in the vehicle anyway along with at least one day's supplies.
Make SURE you have paper county road maps as well as larger area topo maps, and a couple of compasses (they can fail riding around in the vehicle all the time) stored in the vehicle. On those maps mark routes to your Bug Out Location, and then ACTUALLY DRIVE THEM. Note choke points, potential problems (bridge out, flood zones, possible mudslide areas (we get them here in Indiana after rains!), dense woods where trees can completely block the road,etc. GPS is fine, but do not assume it will be working. Get some recovery equipment (good quality comealong, cables, jack, etc) and then learn how to USE it!
Keep in mind that living in the woods for a few months is a fine fantasy, but unless you have actually practiced doing so, it's a fantasy that is loaded with fail. I'm not saying it is impossible, just that it's a whole hell of a lot harder than it looks like from the perspective of a few days backpacking or car camping most people have. And if it is under adverse conditions it's even harder than that. Stockpiling enough food for several months living out in the woods requires a lot of space, and while you may THINK you can hunt to supplement, you'll very quickly find that after a week or so the game in your area is gone, and that is assuming that no one else is nearby for any length of time. Indiana simply does not have enough wilderness for a family to Grizzly Adams it after a major disaster unless you are the only people left alive.
You asked about lists online for stuff. Lists are fine, but I highly recommend TRAINING first, because once you have training, you can make your own lists. Too many people want to invest first in gear, when training will enable you to figure out for yourself what gear you actually need and what will work and what is just for posers. Above all, if you don't have it, get some emergency medical training. Simple medical issues can turn into major problems if not attended to.
That's what I can think of off the top of my head. I've been working on building more FAQs on these topics as I write them.
Preps:
If you are "freaking out" then you have already failed. Seriously. Stop, take a few deep breaths, then sit down and make a plan.
To truly stock several months worth of food takes storage space and strategy. The best strategy is to store what you eat and eat what you store. Anything else and you will be wasting money and food.
Take a look at what you eat on a daily basis and figure out what of that is perishable and what of that is storable. Then figure out how much you eat a day and how much space and cost it takes to store a week, or a month or a year's worth of that. Then go out and start buying more of those items each time you shop. Stick around here, read some of the recommended readings, and figure out how long some items will store and what items have a shorter shelf life. Canned goods like soups and stews take a LOT of space to store any significant amount, but they will last for many years. Rice and beans don't take that much space and will store for decades.
100 bottles of water, assuming you are talking about the half-liter bottles, is about 2 weeks of water. Stick around here and learn how to purify water, it's much easier to store purification supplies than bottles of water.
Food shortages in the US in the next few years are seriously unlikely for those who have money. The US is a net food exporter by quite a lot. Panic is anti-survival. The best reason to store supplies is to be able to take advantage of cost savings buying in bulk, to have food in case of job loss, and to have the ability to make short term problems (blizzard, hurricane, etc) no problem. If each and every person had 3 to 6 months worth of supplies on hand then most "disasters" would be relatively minor events.
Survival:
SHTF is not only about major collapse of society. You may be thinking of the concept of TEOTWAWKI, The End of the World As We Know It.
SHTF can be a loss of a job, a medical emergency, a regional disaster, divorce, home invasion, and so on and so on and so on. SHTF can affect one person or many. It can be The End of the World As We Know It (TEOTWAWKI).
I have survived several SHTFs in my life. House burned to the ground in February a few years back, no insurance, and I was camped out on my property for several months while rebuilding and taking showers outside in 20f weather. A lotta years ago my wife just walked out one day with no warning at all, seems she found a better deal. Had me walking around in a daze for a couple months and took a few more to get back to a semblance of normality. I do disaster response and Search and Rescue and have responded to numerous disasters. I get flooded in for several days every year or so, once was three weeks. Have to hike half an hour to get to the vehicle.
So yeah, I can survive SHTF. If we do have TEOTWAWKI, I will probably survive longer and more comfortably than most, but how long is something no one can know. I could also get struck by a meteor tomorrow and all my preps would be for naught.
Being prepared benefits a person on all levels, not just the end of the world or collapse of society. Survivalism is not about food, gold and guns, it's about a mindset of handling problems and moving on.
Attitude:
Being a real survivalist is not about living off the land, or storing lots of stuff or having lots of toys or whatnot.
Real survivalism is a MINDSET and an ATTITUDE and the DRIVE. It's about having flexibility to adapt to changing conditions, especially when those conditions are antithetical to continued survival.
In the 60s through the early 90s we were worried about surviving nuclear holocaust so many people's preps were geared towards that. Now people are worried about surviving economic crisis or the New World Order or whatever, so their preps are geared towards that. If it ever got to looking like China was seriously thinking about invading the US then we'd be worried about surviving that.
A survivalist does a realistic threat assessment and prepares based on those threats (which usually are not the big fear the public has at the moment) and recognizes that the mindset, attitude, and drive are the key components, and then gets the training or stores the supplies or buys the insurance or puts enough into retirements or learns how to live off the land, or whatever.
Want to know why I learned to live off the land when I was a teen? Because I was spending a lot of time out in the wilderness hiking by myself with crap equipment. It forced me to learn how to improvise and make do with what I could find at hand. It forced me to learn the skills to make use of the abundance around me. Else if something went wrong, I could starve surrounded by food.
Originally Posted By shibumiseeker:
..... I am pointing out that survivalism is more than the ability to live off the land. Without the mindset, attitude, and drive to survive then any skills or supplies you have are worthless.
Parana1 wrote:
”I agree. However, I don't think it is possible to live off the land very long without those those traits. “
Actually it is. Living off the land is just work. Lots of work. Once you've been trained to do it it isn't that difficult, it's just work.
Those traits could be what make you learn to live off the land if you were suddenly dropped into the wilderness with no prior training. Those traits could be the balance that allowed you to survive if you were captured by the enemy (whoever he is) and held in a POW camp for five years. Or in a concentration camp. Or if you got into an automobile accident and were left a quadrapalegic.
Living off the land is just a skill set. A useful skill set, granted. So is emergency medicine. So would be learning a completely new social structure if you were stuck in a foreign land alone where you didn't speak the language. Or learning the social structure if you were put in prison.
In the years I have been involved in disaster response, Search and Rescue, and emergency medicine, the things that I have seen time and again that make the difference are those traits I discussed.
Bugging out:
Bugging out in a vehicle is easy. Stock MREs, bottled water, and a few bulk water containers. Mix it up a bit with other foods. Specific containers are hard to say since vehicles are differen. Pack in a modular format that breaks your supplies up into complete units on a per day per person basis (one module contains one day's supplies for our 4 person family). Make your FIRST module Bug Out Bags for EACH family member, including little ones. Make a vehicle kit that includes spares for common fail items (fuses, belts, fuel filter, air pump for tires, etc) and the tools to use them. That should live in the vehicle anyway along with at least one day's supplies.
Make SURE you have paper county road maps as well as larger area topo maps, and a couple of compasses (they can fail riding around in the vehicle all the time) stored in the vehicle. On those maps mark routes to your Bug Out Location, and then ACTUALLY DRIVE THEM. Note choke points, potential problems (bridge out, flood zones, possible mudslide areas (we get them here in Indiana after rains!), dense woods where trees can completely block the road,etc. GPS is fine, but do not assume it will be working. Get some recovery equipment (good quality comealong, cables, jack, etc) and then learn how to USE it!
Keep in mind that living in the woods for a few months is a fine fantasy, but unless you have actually practiced doing so, it's a fantasy that is loaded with fail. I'm not saying it is impossible, just that it's a whole hell of a lot harder than it looks like from the perspective of a few days backpacking or car camping most people have. And if it is under adverse conditions it's even harder than that. Stockpiling enough food for several months living out in the woods requires a lot of space, and while you may THINK you can hunt to supplement, you'll very quickly find that after a week or so the game in your area is gone, and that is assuming that no one else is nearby for any length of time. Indiana simply does not have enough wilderness for a family to Grizzly Adams it after a major disaster unless you are the only people left alive.
You asked about lists online for stuff. Lists are fine, but I highly recommend TRAINING first, because once you have training, you can make your own lists. Too many people want to invest first in gear, when training will enable you to figure out for yourself what gear you actually need and what will work and what is just for posers. Above all, if you don't have it, get some emergency medical training. Simple medical issues can turn into major problems if not attended to.
That's what I can think of off the top of my head. I've been working on building more FAQs on these topics as I write them.
Preps:
If you are "freaking out" then you have already failed. Seriously. Stop, take a few deep breaths, then sit down and make a plan.
To truly stock several months worth of food takes storage space and strategy. The best strategy is to store what you eat and eat what you store. Anything else and you will be wasting money and food.
Take a look at what you eat on a daily basis and figure out what of that is perishable and what of that is storable. Then figure out how much you eat a day and how much space and cost it takes to store a week, or a month or a year's worth of that. Then go out and start buying more of those items each time you shop. Stick around here, read some of the recommended readings, and figure out how long some items will store and what items have a shorter shelf life. Canned goods like soups and stews take a LOT of space to store any significant amount, but they will last for many years. Rice and beans don't take that much space and will store for decades.
100 bottles of water, assuming you are talking about the half-liter bottles, is about 2 weeks of water. Stick around here and learn how to purify water, it's much easier to store purification supplies than bottles of water.
Food shortages in the US in the next few years are seriously unlikely for those who have money. The US is a net food exporter by quite a lot. Panic is anti-survival. The best reason to store supplies is to be able to take advantage of cost savings buying in bulk, to have food in case of job loss, and to have the ability to make short term problems (blizzard, hurricane, etc) no problem. If each and every person had 3 to 6 months worth of supplies on hand then most "disasters" would be relatively minor events.
#1...Don't get overwhelmed!
The most likely disasters we'll face in our part of the country are flooding,
power outage and tornados.
Keep a journal of all items that your household uses.
Start with a well-rounded 3-day plan, having it ready to go mobile is a good idea.
Work thru things logically. Water, meds, food, hygiene...
Then move on to prepping for longer periods of time.
The most likely disasters we'll face in our part of the country are flooding,
power outage and tornados.
Keep a journal of all items that your household uses.
Start with a well-rounded 3-day plan, having it ready to go mobile is a good idea.
Work thru things logically. Water, meds, food, hygiene...
Then move on to prepping for longer periods of time.
DougBarnes101
Sharpshooter
Angie,
I am far from being prepared but I am working on it. I believe that you have taken the first step in asking for help.
I believe that a real good site is "The Survival Podcast" Jack Spirko Is the person that puts this out daily and to paraphrase him start with the small things. When Krogers has a 10 for 10 sale on canned vegtables by some until you get a months extra food and then work for 2 months. It's the little disasters that are the most likely to happen. (loss of a job, power being out for a few days, etc) If we get thru those the rest are just the same but for a longer time. You can't do it all at once but if you do a little each week you will be surprised at how quick it adds up.
Just my
not adjusted for inflation
I am far from being prepared but I am working on it. I believe that you have taken the first step in asking for help.
I believe that a real good site is "The Survival Podcast" Jack Spirko Is the person that puts this out daily and to paraphrase him start with the small things. When Krogers has a 10 for 10 sale on canned vegtables by some until you get a months extra food and then work for 2 months. It's the little disasters that are the most likely to happen. (loss of a job, power being out for a few days, etc) If we get thru those the rest are just the same but for a longer time. You can't do it all at once but if you do a little each week you will be surprised at how quick it adds up.
Just my
not adjusted for inflation
redneckmedic
Grandmaster
This /\ /\ /\ /\ /\ /\
Every time you go to the grocery, but $20 in extra canned food, or rice or flour, whatever. The secret is to start and stay consistent.
E5RANGER375
Shooter
BACON
Cpt Caveman
Master
Good site by the author of Patriots
SurvivalBlog.com
The best way to get started is to start. Buy some extra canned goods each week, stuff you eat already. Start putting back water and band-aids, first aid supplies. Just get started! After a month of buying extra food you'll out live most of the country if the food supply chain breaks down.
I'd wager 90% of people in this country have very little if any food or water stored for emergencies. After you have some stock set back then you can start looking at water filters, tents,sleeping bags, packs and other things. Keep it simple, aim for a months supply of food and water then go for three.......
SurvivalBlog.com
The best way to get started is to start. Buy some extra canned goods each week, stuff you eat already. Start putting back water and band-aids, first aid supplies. Just get started! After a month of buying extra food you'll out live most of the country if the food supply chain breaks down.
I'd wager 90% of people in this country have very little if any food or water stored for emergencies. After you have some stock set back then you can start looking at water filters, tents,sleeping bags, packs and other things. Keep it simple, aim for a months supply of food and water then go for three.......
redneckmedic
Grandmaster
A flood would be low on my worry list. Plus you have plenty of warning for flood conditions. Basement is idea. Do some research on canning/jarring and mylar bags.
EvilleDoug
Master
DougBarnes101
Sharpshooter
Angie,
How about a heated garage? or an extra closet that you aren't using. For canned goods I saw a picture where someone converted a dresser and put it behind their couch. Also there are commercial items that you could look at in the future that would assisit in storing and rotating your canned goods.
How about a heated garage? or an extra closet that you aren't using. For canned goods I saw a picture where someone converted a dresser and put it behind their couch. Also there are commercial items that you could look at in the future that would assisit in storing and rotating your canned goods.
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