What have you done recently to prepare? Please include How-To's also

Palladin said:
Working on putting together a get home bag. Used to keep my ar in the trunk, on a police car type locking system, but now driving a company pickup, so it's just the handgun I have on me at the time and extra ammo.
So what are some suggestions for the bag?
Nothing elaborate, 3-4 days rations, water, knife, em tent, etc.
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Everything finallygotabeltfed said. Guy knows his stuff. Two things I can't live without are a boonie cap and a GOOD poncho. If you are going bald like me, the boonie keeps the horse flies off your dome. They will drive me insane without it. Also keeps the sun and rain off.

Don't go cheap on the poncho. Get one in camouflage or OD green and you have instant concealment no matter what else you are wearing. Very easy to rig a shelter with one if you have 550 cord or some small bungee cords.

A metal canteen cup for boiling water and instant coffee is worth its weight in gold also on a Cold morning.

Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk
 
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Ran simulated hike with BOB/backpack. Simulated weight for rifle and ammo, didn't carry one. Did carry sidearm (concealed). Did ~16 miles. Wasn't ever really out of breath while at a walk, and could maintain a pace and the weight, but the day after, muscle/joint and back soreness has me stacking advil and tylenol every 3 hours. No blisters, no dehydration, but I was pissing orange by last night. Doing it 5 days in a row? Keep drinking.

Takeaways:

A treadmill isn't the same, no matter what fancy speed changes/incline/whatever settings it has. At least it wasn't for me. Not even close.

Footwear counts. Don't skimp. For the whole family, it's going to be hard with a 10 year old who outgrows footwear 3x a year.

Bring NSAIDS. Meds will be necessary if you don't do it every day. 50 tablets each of ibuprofen and tylenol in your GHB/BOB is not unreasonable for a full sized adult. I will be taking the meds as a precaution during the travel next time.

Water although heavy, even with a camelback, is critical. You'll be lucky if you can stay even on hydration.

Filed under 'duh', wear a hat. (did this)

Filed under 'double duh', do not put sunscreen where it will drip into your eyes when you sweat. [sad2] No tear sunscreen...isn't.

A package of baby wipes goes a long way in wiping down, I'd suggest a pack in your BOB. Wiping with a little rubbing alcohol also helps evaporative cooling.

Unless you do this a lot, you will burn through your stored glycogen very quickly and work up a powerful appetite. After i got back, we went out to dinner and I demolished a 20 ounce veal chop after a salad and appetizer. [wink] Carry calories accordingly.
 
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In God We Trust said:
Pro tip on the TP. Ditch it and pack some paper towels instead. If TP gets damp, it's useless but paper towels will actually work better. They are easier to pack than a roll of TP anyway. Keep them and any other gear you want to keep dry in Ziploc freezer bags.

Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk
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this.

It's the grandma / old lady model [smile]. Always have some paper towels, ziploks and wet naps in your purse, er, pack.

Case in point: while on vaca my niece was shat on by a bird and started freaking out. I thought she was over reacting until I saw it--this bird was a frigin monster because she was covered in chunks of #2. Turns out we were in some sort of buzzard (?) bird sanctuary. So I go to the back pack. First I had some alcohol wipes, which are great little fire starters and medical sanitizer, but they were way too small to clean--fail. Then I pull out a wet nap that opened up to 1 ft square--perfect. It saved the day. She cleaned herself up, calmed down, and was feeling better. Then I pulled out another wet nap, handed it to her, and pointing at her head said, "just get that last chunk out of your hair and you should be fine." eww, lol
 
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JayMcB said:
Ran simulated hike with BOB/backpack. Simulated weight for rifle and ammo, didn't carry one. Did carry sidearm (concealed). Did ~16 miles. Wasn't ever really out of breath while at a walk, and could maintain a pace and the weight, but the day after, muscle/joint and back soreness has me stacking advil and tylenol every 3 hours. No blisters, no dehydration, but I was pissing orange by last night. Doing it 5 days in a row? Keep drinking.

Takeaways:

A treadmill isn't the same, no matter what fancy speed changes/incline/whatever settings it has. At least it wasn't for me. Not even close.

Footwear counts. Don't skimp. For the whole family, it's going to be hard with a 10 year old who outgrows footwear 3x a year.

Bring NSAIDS. Meds will be necessary if you don't do it every day. 50 tablets each of ibuprofen and tylenol in your GHB/BOB is not unreasonable for a full sized adult. I will be taking the meds as a precaution during the travel next time.

Water although heavy, even with a camelback, is critical. You'll be lucky if you can stay even on hydration.

Filed under 'duh', wear a hat. (did this)

Filed under 'double duh', do not put sunscreen where it will drip into your eyes when you sweat. [sad2] No tear sunscreen...isn't.

A package of baby wipes goes a long way in wiping down, I'd suggest a pack in your BOB. Wiping with a little rubbing alcohol also helps evaporative cooling.

Unless you do this a lot, you will burn through your stored glycogen very quickly and work up a powerful appetite. After i got back, we went out to dinner and I demolished a 20 ounce veal chop after a salad and appetizer. [wink] Carry calories accordingly.
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Good job. It's been a long time since I've done anything like that. I know I need to but am dreading it.
 
JayMcB said:
Ran simulated hike with BOB/backpack. Simulated weight for rifle and ammo, didn't carry one. Did carry sidearm (concealed). Did ~16 miles. Wasn't ever really out of breath while at a walk, and could maintain a pace and the weight, but the day after, muscle/joint and back soreness has me stacking advil and tylenol every 3 hours. No blisters, no dehydration, but I was pissing orange by last night. Doing it 5 days in a row? Keep drinking.

Takeaways:

A treadmill isn't the same, no matter what fancy speed changes/incline/whatever settings it has. At least it wasn't for me. Not even close.

Footwear counts. Don't skimp. For the whole family, it's going to be hard with a 10 year old who outgrows footwear 3x a year.

Bring NSAIDS. Meds will be necessary if you don't do it every day. 50 tablets each of ibuprofen and tylenol in your GHB/BOB is not unreasonable for a full sized adult. I will be taking the meds as a precaution during the travel next time.

Water although heavy, even with a camelback, is critical. You'll be lucky if you can stay even on hydration.

Filed under 'duh', wear a hat. (did this)

Filed under 'double duh', do not put sunscreen where it will drip into your eyes when you sweat. [sad2] No tear sunscreen...isn't.

A package of baby wipes goes a long way in wiping down, I'd suggest a pack in your BOB. Wiping with a little rubbing alcohol also helps evaporative cooling.

Unless you do this a lot, you will burn through your stored glycogen very quickly and work up a powerful appetite. After i got back, we went out to dinner and I demolished a 20 ounce veal chop after a salad and appetizer. [wink] Carry calories accordingly.
Click to expand...

Nice test..

I've been training with my son for a 14 day backpacking trip to the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico next year. Walking 16 miles per week now with 40 lb packs on. You're spot on with the above. Good sunscreen, (don't forget sunscreen for your lips) A Good hat that wicks the sweat away from your brow- I've been using this for training and it's great (mines black because it's more tactical [wink]) http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008J4GCJW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. Lots of water. I'll go through 2 liters or more in 8 miles depending on the heat. Given you can only carry so much water a good filter and or micropur tabs would be a smart addition. Good boots, good socks like Darn Tough Hikers and good sock liners Like Injini are critical to happy feet. Synthetic boxerbriefs are must to prevent chaffing. I also find that I too am ravenous after I walk

I spent a weekend away with the wife in NJ and was in the middle of reading "Going Home". I thought Crap what if there's an EMP and we need to walk back to the kids. I spent the day organizing all of the gear necessary for a 250 mile + walk. Food, Water, security, Shelter clothing etc.. It made me realize how unprepared I was for a situation like that and that I should have some sort of go bag( Like a Maxpedition Remora) in every car all the time
 
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In May I restocked my 1.5 and 3.5 acre lakes with channel cats and mostly hybrid bream. Next spring I'll put a bunch of large mouth bass in both. This will give the bream time to grow so the bass won't eat all the bream. Should have enough food from the lakes incase I run out of deer, squirrel and turkeys. I have 125 acres of trees (mostly) hardwood for heat and cooking if I need it. All I need to do now is to get mama to start pickling eggs which we get from our 24 hens. Next spring I'm planning on putting about 10 domestic geese and 18 white ducks for eating in the lakes. I also have a 35 foot bored well which I can get good drinking water with a bucket and rope if the electric is cut off. Now I have to figure out how to make enough electricity to run my freezers & lights without fuel. Wind or solar or both??? I reload and have enough to last a loooong time. Dillon XL-650.
 
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joseph said:
In May I restocked my 1.5 and 3.5 acre lakes with channel cats and mostly hybrid bream. Next spring I'll put a bunch of large mouth bass in both. This will give the bream time to grow so the bass won't eat all the bream. Should have enough food from the lakes incase I run out of deer, squirrel and turkeys. I have 125 acres of trees (mostly) hardwood for heat and cooking if I need it. All I need to do now is to get mama to start pickling eggs which we get from our 24 hens. Next spring I'm planning on putting about 10 domestic geese and 18 white ducks for eating in the lakes. I also have a 35 foot bored well which I can get good drinking water with a bucket and rope if the electric is cut off. Now I have to figure out how to make enough electricity to run my freezers & lights without fuel. Wind or solar or both??? I reload and have enough to last a loooong time. Dillon XL-650.
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please PM me the coordinates...

LOL, nice work.
 
joseph said:
In May I restocked my 1.5 and 3.5 acre lakes with channel cats and mostly hybrid bream. Next spring I'll put a bunch of large mouth bass in both. This will give the bream time to grow so the bass won't eat all the bream. Should have enough food from the lakes incase I run out of deer, squirrel and turkeys. I have 125 acres of trees (mostly) hardwood for heat and cooking if I need it. All I need to do now is to get mama to start pickling eggs which we get from our 24 hens. Next spring I'm planning on putting about 10 domestic geese and 18 white ducks for eating in the lakes. I also have a 35 foot bored well which I can get good drinking water with a bucket and rope if the electric is cut off. Now I have to figure out how to make enough electricity to run my freezers & lights without fuel. Wind or solar or both??? I reload and have enough to last a loooong time. Dillon XL-650.
Click to expand...

You need to buy a nice 12V freezer, skip the fridge. Then grab some 12V LED light strips and a spool of wire. Buy some deep cycle batteries, then solar panels and charge controller.

Keep the freezer full with either food or gallon jugs filled with water. This way you don't have to rely on the solar to charge every day, it can go a few and be fine.

Just get the panels last, because everything else is useful on a short term basis running off just a battery, which you can also charge with your car.
 
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Thanks xtry51 I am planning to look into the batteries and 12 freezer. I cannot invest into everything at once.
 
joseph said:
Thanks xtry51 I am planning to look into the batteries and 12 freezer. I cannot invest into everything at once.
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Oh I here that. Just saying I'd rather have a 12V freezer and a single battery that I can already charge with any vehicle, than have even one solar panel, lights and no freezer. Light is easy to make, cold food not so much. I see people buying panels first (even before a charge controller), which to me is bass ackwards.
 
joseph said:
In May I restocked my 1.5 and 3.5 acre lakes with channel cats and mostly hybrid bream. Next spring I'll put a bunch of large mouth bass in both. This will give the bream time to grow so the bass won't eat all the bream.
Click to expand...
What Hatchery did you use? I've been looking for cat fish and bass and all I've been able to find is trout.
 
Being a lazy, not very skilled prepper, this past weekend I took inventory of the household food, made a list of gear I think we need (water proof matches, flint, water purifier...) and ordered a sample of the mountain house food. I also sat for an hour with my teenage daughter and explained the operations of guns she has not yet handled and took her and my son (with his newly minted FID card) to the range for some fun plinking. And I bought my wife some Mace for her truck.
 
Picked up a Nightcore EA41 flashlight in my effort to start switching to more commonly used battery-flashlights (AA, AAA). Most of my best lights only run on CR123, etc. In a worst case scenario I have Eneloops and a Goal Zero solar charging kit (not the best, but better than nothing).

There has been back and forths all over the internet as to whether or not a locking-lid galvanized metal trash can protect against EMP. I keep a good deal of backup flashlights/batteries in one of these anyway.

Picked up a couple of 50+ gallon food grade water buckets (one from someone on here), and some treatment/preservation drops (Btw, I already have a Berkey filter for regular drinking water, and highly recommend having one - in addition to more portable options). Take a look at what happened in Toledo, OH, a situation that's still ongoing. Water is in the top two critical resources in any emergency or disaster.

Gas masks- without going overboard here, I do think it's worth having a gas mask on hand. More importantly, decent filters. I don't plan on burning or looting in Ferguson anytime soon, but if that is a sign of what's to come and I need to get through an area that's been gassed- I'd like to know I'm able to move and breathe freely.

I strongly suggest that people have on hand oregano oil and clove oil. Oregano oil, when used properly, will wipe out most any upper respiratory or viral infection. Standard dose I will take if I feel the onset of anything is 4 drops in a shot glass with water. It burns going down, but is highly effective. Clove oil in the event you have tooth issues but no dentist around. It will numb the surrounding area until you can get to real help.
 
not sure if it really counts as a SHTF item, but in a long term situation it would be worth its weight (ok maybe not its weight but a lot) in gold. I just grabbed a old treddel powered singer machine. Mostly its just a fun big heavy toy
 
spcantwell said:
not sure if it really counts as a SHTF item, but in a long term situation it would be worth its weight (ok maybe not its weight but a lot) in gold. I just grabbed a old treddel powered singer machine. Mostly its just a fun big heavy toy
Click to expand...

I think it counts.

It's a great piece of equipment for repair of fabrics and clothing. Can it do light canvas?

You also could repair other people's items for barter / trade.
 
Andy in NH said:
I think it counts.

It's a great piece of equipment for repair of fabrics and clothing. Can it do light canvas?

You also could repair other people's items for barter / trade.
Click to expand...

I don't think the current needles are strong enough but it's been decades since I tried to sow anything so I need to get it working and practice. The wife SAYS she can sow but we have a fancy electric one that she tried using once...

Sent from my KFSOWI using Tapatalk
 
I finally pulled the trigger on some plate body armor and a kevlar helmet - it wasn't thousands - but it's serviceable and will make me more survivable on a perimeter security watch.

I am also making up a list for my buddy who will be heading here when SHTF (I don't think it's if anymore).

Freeze Dried Food or bulk food as well as a list of gear I would like him to obtain. That whole interchangeability thing in mind for members of the group.

I also topped off my diesel tank and winterized it (cold flow improver and stabilizer). 80 Gallons/0.75gal hr = over 100hrs of 30A/240VAC plus my little gas unit that will run the heat, refer/freezers for 10hrs on 4 gallons, I always have 26 gallons minimum.
Used carefully, I could keep warm and clean for over 1 month with no grid. More than that - I trade with neighbors for home heating oil in their tanks they can't use.

In regards to rain catchment - I have a way that I could rig up and collect my rear downspouts to the swimming pool.
 
So while up here in NH today, tested my Honda EU1000i and it runs my boiler and circulator OK. Tri-fuel kit next. I have a quick disconnect on the 110v circuit to take it off the panel and onto the genset. Need to get the companion unit so I have 220 for the well next.

This is the first time it's been cold enough to try to see if the stove will heat both floors. Vermont castings Defiant (old style non-cat) with not so seasoned wood, the temp is almost 80 on the second floor, 75 on the first, and even the entry and the downstairs bedroom is 70. I know it's only 30 for a low up here on the northside tonight, but good to know that even with the stove cranked way down I can get a 50 degree gradient.
 
Jay, I don't think the EU1000i has a companion unit. The 2000i and 3000i units do, but linking 2 together will not give you 220. Wish it did.
 
I just finished a weeks labor at a friends home in Boony-ville Maine , built an outbuilding for the place that took about 60 hours. Deeply discounted rate. Part of which included a formal invite to move in when the end of the world gets here. - he knows ill not show up empty handed wrt food or weaponry.

I have my own , but I am collecting options. .. This one makes three that are viable.
 
I just got this anatomy and surgery book set:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/3836531062/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If you want a very detailed photo reference of anatomy I highly recommend it. It's a ridiculous bargain at $38 shipped for Prime. Two large hardcover color volumes covering everything and includes several sections of common surgery. Everything from C-section to clamping off blood vessels to amputation.

Note: This is a series from the mid 1800's so the procedures are not based on modern ER equipment or tools. Personally as an EMT I think that makes it even more relevant to a prepper as it's more of a SHTF circumstance. If you don't have anything I would recommend this along with a PDR (Physicians Desk Reference) and "Where There Is No Dentist".
 

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