Backwoods Home Magazine, by Thomas Christianson

A couple of years ago, I ran across an online ad for a magazine called Backwoods Home. The magazine looked interesting, so I added it to my Christmas and birthday wish lists for a couple of years. My family decided to buy me other gifts instead, so I decided to take the bull by the horns. I contacted the Editorial and Advertising Coordinator for Backwoods Home Magazine, and asked if they would be willing to provide me with some back issues for review. They were kind enough to provide me with all four quarterly issues from 2021 (January/February/March, April/May/June, July/August/September, …




The Internet Gulag: Demonetization, Demonization, and Deletion

A wave of Internet censorship is sweeping the globe. This censorship is no longer just the nefarious work of totalitarian nations. Many western nations are experiencing their own brand of censorship that is being promulgated by ostensibly “private” companies. (Although many of these are near-monopoly utilities that could be classified as public accommodations.) The War on Guns Dozens of conservative, pro-gun videobloggers and news outlets have been demonetized by YouTube in the past two years. By flagging these sites as “not family friendly”, viewers must now toggle “Restricted Mode: Off” and even when they do, advertisements are no longer displayed. …




Some Sad News and a Prayer Request for Mama Liberty

I have some sad news: Mama Liberty, a friend here in the Redoubt, has posted word in The Price of Liberty blog that she is dying of an aggressive cancer, and that she will no longer be blogging. Please, please pray for complete healing for her. And if it is not God’s will that she be healed, pray that she should be granted comfort, strength, and peace in her final months on this mortal coil. Mama Liberty has fought the good fight for individual liberty for many years. Her wise writings have had a galvanizing effect on American Patriots. Many of …




JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

Books: The Simplicity Primer, by Patrice Lewis ZeroGov:Limited Government, Unicorns and Other Mythological Creatures, by Bill Buppert  Movies: My Friend Flicka  (not the more recent remake) Music: The Best of Mary McCaslin John Hartford: Life Love & Music 5 Essential Albums 1966-1969 Podcasts: Self Reliant School EP016 Interview With JoAnn Moser – Mason Jar Nation Pantry Paratus: Chaya’s Guide to Grease: Frying Food the Right (& Nourishing) Way Instructional Videos: Some newbies might benefit from this:  How to clean fish How To Clean Your Woodstove Chimney Gear: USB Reading Lamp with 10 LED Lights and Flexible Gooseneck FLIR Scout TK …




JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

Books: Ham Radio Study Guide: Manual for Technician Class, General Class, and Amateur Extra Class Get on the Air with HF Digital Movies: Sully The Martian Television: Designated Survivor Jericho Music: Holst: The Planets The Very Best of Enya Podcasts: The Survivalist Podcast: Episode-04- TSP Rewind – You Can’t Lose as a Modern Survivalist The Survival Show: Episode 286 – Debt, Finances and Precious Metals Instructional Videos: Building A Multi-Band HF Dipole Antenna AR-15 – Detailed Step By Step Assembly / Build Instructions (HD Video) Gear: Morovision IR-14 – Phoenix Junior IR Beacon Icom IC-718 Get On The Air HAM …




Letter: Fall Season Prepping

Dear Mr. Rawles and Mr. Latimer: Since the Autumnal Equinox has passed us by, may I offer a link to a relevant string of articles? I have been contemplating seasonal adjustments to my preps, and Cheaper Than Dirt has a series of blogposts that I found useful in provoking thought. I hope folks find this useful, as we tune our plans for the changing seasons. Thank you for your blog, and all you do. – Skyrat




Review of 2013 Self-Reliance Expo, Denver, Colorado, by L.K.O.

The National Self Reliance Organization (NSRO) sponsors the Self-Reliance Expos. The expo returned this year to Denver, Colorado on October 4-5, 2013. I also toured the prior Denver Self-Reliance Expo on Sep. 16-17, 2011 here and one last year (May 18-19, 2012) in Colorado Springs. Prior expos have been held in Salt Lake City, Utah (October 7-8, 2011), and during 2012 at Dallas, TX (July 27-28), Hickory, North Carolina (September 14-15) and Mesa, Arizona (October 26-27). Upcoming expos in 2014 will be held in Mesquite, Texas and back in Denver, Colorado. The next upcoming expo is featured here. As usual, several of the vendors at the expo were SurvivalBlog advertisers. d Multiple …




New Prize for Writing Contest Round 49

Mayflower Trading Company has kindly donated several prizes to add to the Third Prize package, for Round 49 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest, et sequitur. These are: A Nesco / American Harvest Gardenmaster Dehydrator with an extra set of trays, and the book The Dehydrator Bible. These prizes have a combined value of $210. This brings the combined value of the top three prizes to more than $6,000! Round 49 begins today and will end on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical …




Letter Re: Recommending Todd Savage of Survival Retreat Consulting

Hello Mr. Rawles, Just a note of thanks to you and your site for leading me to Todd Savage at Survival Retreat Consulting (SRC.) I read your novel Patriots and that gave me the incentive I needed to pursue a retreat for my family.  I researched the means available to obtain my retreat and that included SRC’s ad on your SurvivalBlog.com site.  I was impressed with Todd’s well thought out process and the advantage that his own experience in making the journey with his own family brought to the process.  With your recommendation as a tail wind, I hired Todd and …




Pantry Paratus Photo Contest Continues

A reminder: Pantry Paratus is excited to celebrate our second year on as an e-store.  We are looking to expand our digital marketing appeal with real pictures; so in order to do that we are hosting our first annual 2013 photo contest to celebrate all the harvest of this season’s bounty.  All the official rules are here, but the basics are these: -all photos must be original work and submitted to photocontest@pantryparatus.com between Friday, September 6th and Friday, September 20th. -there are two categories: “Canning” and “Food Preservation.”  The first one is easy to define, but the second one can …




Pantry Paratus Announces Photo Contest

I just received this announcement: Pantry Paratus is excited to celebrate our second year on as an e-store.  We are looking to expand our digital marketing appeal with real pictures; so in order to do that we are hosting our first annual 2013 photo contest to celebrate all the harvest of this season’s bounty.  All the official rules are here, but the basics are these: -all photos must be original work and submitted to photocontest@pantryparatus.com between Friday, September 6th and Friday, September 20th. -there are two categories: “Canning” and “Food Preservation.”  The first one is easy to define, but the …




Letter Re: Question on Preparedness Course

Jim: I’m planning to get the “Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course.” Does it have any details on the shelf lives of foods like beans, rice, canned goods, and vitamins? Thanks So Much, – K.S. JWR Replies: Yes, and in fact the shelf life appendix (in tabular format) is quite extensive, spanning 15 pages. You can of course print out a hard copy, for your reference binder.




Letter Re: Preparedness Course Question

Mr. Rawles: If I get the downloadable “Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course” can I print out a copy for my reference binder? Is that considered okay? (I have a giant binder with 4″ rings that my husband got in the Navy that we use for all our prepping references, except for recipes.) With My Regards, – Sheila C. JWR Replies: Yes, since you are legitimately downloading it, you are welcome to print out a reference copy for your own use.




From The Big City To Homesteading–Our Ten Year Journey, by Wranglerstar

Ten years ago, my wife and I, as young newlyweds, were living the American dream. Our future was bright. While my wife earned a lucrative salary and I built a successful online business, we were on the road to success.  Our urban lifestyle provided us with everything our hearts desired.  In 2006 everything changed.  With the collapse of the housing bubble and the economy in a tailspin, we woke up to the fact that our easy urban lifestyle was fragile and dependent on factors far outside of our control.  We began to be alarmed at the precariousness of our current …




Note from JWR:

I heard that fellow blogger Ron (a.k.a. “The Orange Jeep Dad“) will soon be leaving Phoenix, Arizona and moving his wife and family (they have six daughters) to their old family farm in Oklahoma. Established in the late 1800s, it has been abandoned since the 1980s when his grandfather became ill. Ron promises to blog about the entire adventure and include videos of how he and his family learn to farm, raise livestock, homestead, and homeschool. We wish Ron and his family the best for their move. Their new life will be quite a ride. And as one who has …