Survival Fishing Button/Bug Out Bag Item

This is a great item to have in your bug out bag and in your cashes. It costs all of about a $1.50 to make and in a survial situation could mean eating or not.

To watch the complete video you can watch on my You Tube Channel

Be prepared, not sorry

Survival Retreat: Making A Plan

This is the next installation in the series of the Survival Retreat.

This has been a pretty talked about and sometimes heated topic this week. To be a part of a group or be alone? What kind of skills someone needs to have to join a group? How many preps to have etc...even though it was heated at times........We are talking and exchanging ideas and that is where knowledge comes from. To see both sides, evaluate, and make the right decisions for us.

Thank you to Deborah and Carolanne...you are amazing warrior women with vast knowledge and I am so privileged to know you.

Let's look at the questions you should be asking yourself, a potential group, or member to your group. In the last article we talked about how the retreat land/property is owned and held. Again I strongly urge that unless the person owning the property is a relative or a friend that you would trust with your life that you NOT buy into a retreat that you hold no rights/share to the property. I have seen people lose money and their preps this way and that is the reason I am writing this series.

MYTH: There has to be property purchased to have a retreat

For some reason there is this idea that you have to own or be a part of owning a mass amount of property. I live in Michigan where we have thousands and thousands of acres of state forest. I have lived in Alaska where 90% of the state is unpopulated. The most important thing you need is........

A Plan

I can not stress this enough...make your plan NOW!!! One thing that 9-11 taught me as a search and rescue person is you better have an emergency plan because when SHTF communications will me non existant or stretchy at best, travel will be a nightmare, and the media will be trying to control the sheeple hysteria. Make your plan now. If you are going to try to make it on your own or with a group make that plan. When SHTF what is the sequence of events and tasks that must be done? Where do you go? What do you do? What is the list of important things you must do in order. What is your backup plans B C D and E?

If you are staying in your home then your plan needs to consist of have your plan in place now for security, sustainable water and food, and a energy plan. You will not survive without these.

If you or anyone in your survival group does not own property take a hard look at what you do have. Who owns the largest home? Where is the largest piece of land that is not owned by anyone? Make that plan of when SHTF this is the rally point so if there is no communication capability everyone in your group know this is where everyone will gather.

Take some weekends and actually rough it (because welcome to WROL) and go into the state or federal area and find that rally point. Now I know I'm gonna have emails that give me crap about it belongs to the government blah blah blah..believe me when there is a collapse a group of loners in the state forest will be the least of their worries. They will be trying to control the hoards in the cities.

Find that spot that has adequate water and hunting capabilities. And squat...yes you heard me squat..... I have a shelter and fire pit that I use to go hunting and just get away. You better believe me I have preps buried and no one has ever disturbed it because it is that far in and it is camouflaged. It is a good part of a day hike in from the closest road which is a dirt road and 55 miles from a large city so that is my plan E. And this year I will be taking my group there so they can make their own shelters and this will be my whole groups plan E.

My point is you can have a retreat anywhere but...........you better have a plan!

Be prepared, not sorry

Survival Goddess You Tube Channel

Just wanted to announce that the new Survival Goddess Channel is up and running. I am really excited to have another venue to get the important information out on prepping and surviving the world changes to come. Subscribe so you don't miss out on critical information.

The new Survival Goddess You Tube Channel is up! 

Prepping On A Budget Part 2

I am really excited about the feedback I have been getting on this article and please send me your ideas!

Dollar Stores

I love these for first aid/cleaning products and water purification. I can buy two bottles of peroxide, a tube of generic neosporin, a gallon of bleach (for water purification and self defense)......All for $1 each. I also buy a package of Kotex pads that work as a great as wound dressings.

Second Hand Stores

I like these for clothing, camping, building supplies and believe it or not vehicles. Some second hand stores are non profit such as Habitat for Humanity, Boats and Car Ministries, and of course Goodwill. Builders will donate extra building supplies to Habitat for Humanity for write off's on their taxes. If you are building your retreat you can get cabinets, counter tops, doors etc. all at deep discounts.  You can donate your car or boat to the Angel Ministries and take $500 off your taxes, I have done this when I donated a Dodge Intrepid when it blew an engine. They rebuild and resell.

Craigslist/Backpage

This is a great place but buyer beware of what you buy and your safety. I'm sure many of you have heard about the Craigslist Serial Killer or the person that bought something that was totally a lemon. I will look thru these adds and you can find some gems. I purchased a Coleman lantern, cooler, and air mattress (all only used once) for $12. If you decide you have found something that you want to buy meet that individual in a very public place like MacDonald's and DO NOT GO ALONE!

EBAY

I have to admit I am an Ebay addict. If I haven't bought anything in a month they are sending me a "We miss you" email. I purchased my truck on there in 2004 and I still have it and drive it everyday. It is by far the best vehicle I have ever owned. I purchased 46 acres in Maine in 2001 sight unseen, lived there for a year and sold it at a $10,000 profit. Ebay is a gamble on what you get so you really need to do your homework. On the land in Maine I did a title search to make sure the title was free and clear and I did the same with the truck.

There are gems for prepping everywhere and the biggest thing I want to stress is do your homework and make lists! I make lists for absolutely everything. Lists for what I need in food, ammo, first aid, storage, clothes, etc. With making these lists it will help you keep your spending in check and show what you lack in so you can prioritize.

Checkout the Newest Page..........How I Prepped This Week

Be prepared, not sorry

What If You Knew....

As preppers we are always preparing for what we think will happen in the future, whether our scenarios of the future is a collapse of the power grid or economy, nuclear war, zombies, and the list goes on and on, we are are always preparing. BUT..

What if you knew.....

What if you knew for sure in 6 months to a year the scenario for which you are preparing is going to happen? What would you change or start doing right now at this moment?

*Are you going to bug in or bug out?
*Store more food?
*Store more ammunition?
*Learn new skills such as hunting?
*Create alternative power sources?

I urge you to spend some time considering this. We all would like to think we have more time to prep but we seldom give ourselves a date to be prepared by? I understand no one can be fully prepared for a life shift of this magnitude but seldom due catastrophes show themselves ahead of time or they wouldn't be a catastrophe right?

There are many shows out right now such as "The Walking Dead", Falling Skies, and soon "Revolution" that all show life being turned upside down and all the characters were caught off guard and thrust into this situation and having to cope the best they can. My personal favorite was "The Colony". To me this was about as realistic you could get (in a controlled environment) without the real thing.

This was a group of strangers that were thrust together after a virus wiped out 90% of the population. They all had to pull together to survive and thrive.

I asked you to sit down with pen and paper and write down what would you start doing at this moment if you knew in 6 months to a year your life would be the scenario you most fear? I would like to hear from you and ask you to share with others.

Be prepared, not sorry

Bugout Location Options

When considering a bugout location many people think rural or forest locations. Here are a couple options you may want to consider.

Bugout Boat

Remember the old Kevin Costner film "Water World"? In a WROL situation it may be quite as apocalyptic as that but here are some pros and cons and a link you might want to take a look at.

Pros:
-Isolation and relatively unreachable from the starving masses on shore
-Fresh water plentiful, assuming you have a sustainable way to disinfect it
-Fishing easily available as long as there's no environmental devastation or overfishing in your area

Cons:

-Entirely dependent on the water for your food, unless you can grow food on the boat
-Fuel/mobility issues (You would need solar and wind)
-Extremely vulnerable to inclement weather. (One bad enough storm and your floating BOL could be gone forever, maybe taking you with it)
-Cramped quarters/very little storage unless you're willing to tether a bunch of boats or platforms together ala Waterworld
-Limited access to plants you don't grow yourself
-Inability to keep livestock (maybe chickens?)
-What happens if you can't return to shore at all? What if the looters/raiders decide they want what you have, and camp on shore to wait you out? Hope you have enough to eat and drink until they get bored and go away--assuming they ever do.

I would consider this a short term solution unless you are on a body of water and boat that are both fairly large. Check out this link

Floating Cabin

Bugout Cave

Now I have heard a rumor that a large survival group purchased a area of land in Arkansas that is a side of a mountain with many large caves. Well it should be a good idea if our ancestors supposedly started there right? Well lets take a look.

Pros

-A large enough cave will give you ample space out of the elements and allow for you to have a fire.
-Very little maintenance needed

Cons

-Rocks may fall from the roof on you while you're inside.
-You may have to share your cave with the wildlife there has been there long before you (bats, rats, salamanders)
-Moisture dripping from the ceiling (but its better than being out in a cold rain)
-Caves may be very bad places to be in a thunderstorm. (the path of lightning as it travels down from higher up through the rock. As it travels past the cave, the lightning sometimes leaps through the air, across the cave where you might be sitting)
-Caves are a very bad place to be during an earthquake.
-If attacked you may not have an alternate way to escape.

Again these are suggestions/options that if you are considering as I always say..PRACTICE PRACTICE. This is not something where SHHTF and your realize you are claustrophobic or you are not a good swimmer.

Be prepared, not sorry

The Fallout From Aurora

It is such a tragedy what a madman can do to ruin so many lives. This horrific thing will once again fuel the gun control debate. Like the saying goes....

"When you take all the guns from the criminals you can have mine". The fact is criminals will always have guns even if there were gun control.

I'm sorry but I can't help thinking if there were one person in that theatre that had a Concealed Permit the loss of life would have been less. I hate to get on my soapbox here but

"Why does it take something like this for people to think about their safety?

And then a sadder thing is in a month, life will be consumed with the next tragedy and this will fade to the back. People need to say "you know what? I am not going to be a victim, I need to take charge of my life and well being.

Many Years ago I was married to a very physically abusive husband. When I decided I had had enough and was seeking a divorce he stalked, harassed, and terrorized me. Back then they didn' have domestic abuse laws, women's shelters, or help lines. They issued you a personal protection order and unless they caught him in the act there was nothing they could do. After he had slashed my tires for the 2nd time and of course was gone before the police arrived a officer said to me "Well your ok you have a PPO." I looked at him and said "What am I supposed to do with a piece of paper, beat him with it?"

I realized that this was never going to quit until I was dead unless I took charge of my own safety.

So I decided that I was going out without a fight and made a plan. First thing was my dad brought me a rifle from his huge stockpile of weapons. I had been raised hunting and shooting so I was lucky that I was comfortable in handling it. But he would harass me at work, follow me shopping, etc, so I knew I may not have a weapon with me if he attacked me in public. I enrolled in a self defense class. I knew I didn't have time to learn something that would take years to master, I needed something NOW. So I found a class that was run by a former green beret and he taught us a combination of Krav Mago (self defense system of the Israeli Defense Forces) and down and dirty street fighting.

The combination of the rifle and the classes saved my life.

First was the rifle. He came to my home one night with a huge Rambo knife but he brought a knife to a gun fight. Once he was staring down a loaded weapon he left never to return to my home because I stated "the next time he would be leaving in a body bag". The next was when he tried to jump me in the parking lot of my work. I dropped him with a broken nose and believe me once I had him on the ground I nearly kicked him to death. He moved out of state 3 months later and I haven't had to deal with him since. Violence is going to increase with high unemployment and skyrocketing food prices and women tend to be the first and easiest targets....

Don't be a victim...take a proactive role for your own safety.

Take classes, both hand to hand combat and gun safety glasses. Get comfortable with both so if you are faced with being in danger it comes second nature to you..you react automatically. Always be aware of your surroundings. I remember my instructor starting every class saying that. When your walking thru a parking lot who is around you, when you go into a movie theater were is the closest exit, walking down the sidewalk is there someone sitting in a parked car? He even went as far as to say "when you board a airplane count the seats to the nearest exit because if you go down there will be panic and thick smoke so you may have to feel your way out". My point is better safe than sorry and also taking responsibility for your own safety will give a that sense of empowerment that you will need when SHTF.

Be prepared, not sorry.

How Do You Keep Your Sanity?

You know we concentrate so much on the basics of what will be required for the day to day survival in the WROL situation, after I watched this video I began to think "How do you keep your sanity or derive any pleasure'?

Alaska Man Goes off Grid

This man is bringing a dog and a Kindle loaded with books to keep him from going stir crazy, but there will be a period of time of withdrawal from society that we will all go through. No computers, tv, cell phone and perhaps for some the only human contact will be in a self defense mode.

Our sanity is just as important to our survival as food and water.

As humans we crave that interaction with other humans, and that part of our brain that needs pleasure. To some people it's music, others its reading a book, or for some like myself going for a run with a friend. I have planned for so many things but no plan for keeping my sanity. In a WROL situation going for a run will not only expend added calories that would be fool hardy to do, but suicidal. There will be no extra power to run mp3 players or e readers. Remember watching Little House on the Prairie? At night they would read and Charles would play the violin. That was the entertainment and pleasure they had.

So in the post apocalyptic world...where will your pleasure come from?



I look forward to hearing your thoughts and ideas on this.

Be prepared, not sorry

The Physical Toll When SHTF Part 2

THE BIGGEST PREPPER CHALLENGE

As we discussed in the first part of this series when SHTF the physical demands of daily life are going to increase and if that day were to come today are you physically ready? If your answer like mine is "no" then I want you to participate in this challenge with me. It doesn't matter how much ammo or food we have stocked if we physically can't meet the demands to survive. Can you physically carry your BOB for miles? What about chopping wood for days on end?

Growing up on a farm and participating in high school sports, 4-H, and FFA I was in great shape. I continued to work out and up until a year ago I was running 5-7 miles 4 times a week with strength training 2 times a week. But like many people I had a injury and my workouts stopped, I gained weight, and started the mind games with myself saying "Oh I will start working out again next week" and next week comes and I justify not working out by telling myself I have too much work to do around the house or working overtime at work.

Excuses stop now

I love to run and used to run half marathons. It's funny how you can love to do something but sabotage yourself from doing it! One of the best marathoners in history (the penguin) when asked what is the hardest part of training for a marathon answered "getting out the door". He's totally right because once those shoes are on and your out the door the excuses stop and the hard part is over.

In training for half marathons I learned these guidelines which you will need to apply to this challenge.

1. Start slow and gradually work up - Starting any new physical regiment go to your doctor first and get a checkup to make sure your healthy enough to start your challenge. When you start your challenge start slow and work your way up. If you overdo it and are sore or injure yourself you are setting yourself up for excuses and failure.

2. Schedule your workout time - This is a must to ensure that you have that time for your workouts and also cuts down on the excuses. I work nights so I like to run in the morning after work. It's cooler at that time and it also helps me unwind and sleep better during the day.

3. Find a activity you enjoy - This an important component to your challenge. Find something you love to do. I love running, a friend of mine loves her Zumba classes. Let's face it if you don't like doing the activity it will seem like work and a chore and you will find excuses not to do it.

4. Set a goal and reward yourself - When I decided to take up running I set my ultimate goal of doing a half marathon but I had small goals all the way in my training. My first was a 5k and upon completing that I rewarded myself with a fleece running vest I had been wanting. The next goal was a 10k which I rewarded myself with a Columbia ski jacket that I wanted. Then the half marathon was actually the reward. I signed up for the Pacific Shoreline Half Marathon which is held at Huntington Beach California. It was a great weekend trip with 30,000 other runners, a beautiful hotel room that overlooked the ocean, a health expo, and the run was breath taking along the beach with bands every mile. Goals and rewards will keep your motivation up.

5. Make your workout social time - Most of my running time is done on my own but when I was living in Dallas every Saturday morning I would meet my girlfriends at White Rock Lake and we would run the lake (9.2 miles). It didn't even feel like a workout because we were too busy talking about our week, dating, etc. then on Sunday we would meet for yoga with brunch afterwards. Believe me workouts are way less painful when sharing with friends.

The Physical Prepper Challenge - Foundation

The three basics we want in this challenge are

Endurance 

Strength

Flexability 

When SHTF you will need all three of these elements so setup your Prepper challenge to include these.

My challenge will be structured this way.

Endurance - Running 4x's per week
Strength - Weight and resistance training 3x's per week
Flexability - Yoga 2x's per week

I will be making a Prepper Challenge page where we can share our workouts, goals, and experience. Keep in mind that these will apply to the physical demands of the WROL like carrying your BOB, gathering firewood, building shelter, etc.

Will you be the Biggest Prepper?

Be prepared, not sorry

 

Mother Nature Provides The Lessons For Prepping

Mother Nature Provides The Lessons For Prepping

As preppers we prepare for EMP's, economic collapse, and some even prepare for zombies but not too many give thoughts to natural disasters. Mother Nature can be just as deadly and unpredictable as the East Coast has been realizing over the last few months and these scenarios are played out over and over but yet many are caught unprepared.

A 5.8 magnitude earth quake rocked Virginia on Aug 23 and evacuated many locations in Washington and put 2 nuclear power plants offline. Hurricane Irene on Aug 29 killed 33 people, power outage to 4 million people, and caused 2 million to evacuate. Last weeks snow storm has claimed 15 lives with 2 million without power last week and as the writing of this post close to 200,000 were going on their 2nd week without power.

Don't say it can't happen where you live

I don't care where you live, it can happen to you. There is not a place in this country that is immuned to a natural disaster. It could be hurricane, flood, wildfire, tornado, snow storm, earthquake, or volcano (remember Mt. Saint Helens?)

I remember the great blizzard of 78 in Michigan. 55 people in Michigan alone died due to that storm. Many were without power for 3 weeks. Thank god my parents heated with wood, we had a huge pantry, and life really wasn't altered too much for us except for no tv etc. We had huge 55 gal drums and a creek running thru our property so we would fill these up to water the livestock and we heated over a fire outdoors to bath in. My father worked for the county and they had a generator so he would fill up containers of drinking water to bring home.

My challenge to you

The east coast has teaching lessons. Be prepared! This is the minimum you need to prepare for NOW!

*1 month food and water for each person in your family
You may think this is overwhelming but just work at it. How over wheming would it be if you are unprepared with nothing and your family is in jeopardy?

* Alternate heat source and 1 month supply for it
If you have a fireplace or wood stove have a 1 month supply cut and seasoned. If its kerosene again 1 month.

* Alternate cooking source
If you have a grill 1 month supply charcoal or gas. I strongly urge you to have a rocket stove. There are plenty of videos on to show you how to build one and I will be posting a DIY to make one.

*Bugout location with supplies
You may want to bug in but be prepared. There may be reasons that arise that you can not stay in your home. What's your plan B?

* 1 vehicle with a full tank of gas that can carry all the family along with bugout bags and some supplies
You may have to leave and you don't want a vehicle that can't carry the whole family or not have enough gas to get you to your bugout location.

Don't let this be overwhelming. Just work at it.

Be prepared, not sorry.

Where Do I Bug Out To?

Craftbyrd sent me this question:

"I have a question? Where is everyone going to bug out to? I'm being sincere here. I have always had this in the back of my mind. Get in the car and go but then the thought of what do I do when the car runs out of gas and where the heck am I going to go?"

This is a question that has a million different answers by a million different preppers and I hope my readers chime in on this and give their answers also.

My answer to this question has many different aspects to it. For one there is "no perfect bug out location" every location has it's pro's and con's. Climate, growing season, water availability etc. are all factors to be considered.

The first thing I would ask you is:

What are you used to? By this I mean where is your location now? Is it in a southern state where you have lived for years and know the area? Understand the challenges of living there such as hurricanes? You know where the fresh water is located? This is something that could be your saving grace. This is a huge factor because most people say " I will bug out to the wilderness where no one is" and the problems with that are:

They are not familiar with the area

They don't understand the challenges it offers

Where or how to obtain their food and water

A good rule of thumb is find a bug out location that is within 1 tank of gas from your current location. And I urge you to do this now so you have that time to:

Find your location

Know your location, where is the fresh water? what food options do you have i.e hunting fishing? what is the population in the area?

If you have to bug out for an extended period of time (weeks/months) these are what you need to have in that location.

Water
Food
Shelter

I am looking forward to seeing additional comments and answers from my readers.

Be prepared, not sorry

SHTF Is Not The Only Reason To Prep

As we are witnessing right now with Irene bearing down on the East Coast, prepping for the SHTF scenario is not the only reason to prep. This should also be a learning exercise for us all. North Carolina is under a mandatory evacuation order, so this poses several questions which you should consider no matter where you live because a natural can happen no matter what part of the country you live in.

I have to leave but I planned on "Bugging In" and all my preps are here so how much do I and can I take? What is my evacuation plan? Where am I going to, to ride out the storm? My BOB is stocked for 3 days but what if I can't return for days or weeks?

Katrina taught many people hard lessons about not having a plan and "riding the storm out". With many that decision cost them their lives and the ones that did survive had to endure looting, homelessness, and devastation that is still present.

No home or possessions is worth your life or your family’s life. 

As preppers we get caught up in how much food we have stored, how many weapons and ammunition we have stock piled, but very little if any thought has gone into having a plan for evacuation (bug out). With most people (myself included) you have 1 bug out plan, 1 route, 1 destination. You not only need a plan B but you need a C, D, E, and F.

All the questions I posed to you above, you need to have an answer and a contingency plan for each of them in 5 different scenarios. 5 different evacuation routes, 5 different destinations, etc. What if the roads you plan on taking are closed due to floods? What if you location is where the devastation is centered? What if you can't make it back home for weeks?

 Things to consider when making your plans, how quickly you can get out, do you have stores (cache’s) along your route, supplies that can last weeks if necessary.


This is my challenge to you and myself....Come up with 5 different contingency bug out plans.

Be prepared, not sorry.