Category: Retreat Groups

The Bookends of the Prepping Life: Investing and Diversifying, by Mr. B.

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I was a “closet” prepper until recently. Years ago, I began to slowly amass both long-life food and countless resources that would be necessary if basic commodities were no longer available. The spark, if you will, was in the wake of reading articles about global shifts that sought to deconstruct and reconstruct economies based on dangerous ideologies. I also purchased hard assets in case conventional means of buying ceased overnight, for I read of once strong banks and currencies collapsing or weakening with each financial year. Recently, with the events leading up and still being felt because of COVD-19, I …


Rural Land for an Urban Prepper, by J.D.

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Growing up in a poor family with very little expendable income I began mowing lawns at the age of 10 in order to afford some of the luxuries in life I saw my other friends have. At the age of 10 that was video games, books, music or movies. Later it warped into motorsports and “big boy toys.” Mowing lawns at the age of 10 consisted of me pushing my lawnmower, weed eater, and gas around town until I was able to drive at the age of 16. This was no small order for a young kid growing up in …


Starting an Old Engine, Part 1, by John Leyzorek

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I like old machinery. It tends to be simple, and rugged. Because it is considered obsolete, it tends to be available, cheap, and with a little tinkering it will often get the job done very well. I was unloading a truck and pulling saplings out of the ground with my 89 year old tractor just yesterday. I think this interest is practical, but many more pursue it as a hobby. There are numerous web-sites devoted to this interest, innumerable threads about “Look what I found in the woods”, and “Hear it start for the first time in 20/50/80 years!” Of …


Reaching Out to Others May Save Our Lives, by Ani

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Whenever I’d get upset about not understanding why someone was doing what they were doing or thought the way they did, a friend always used to remind me that “not everyone thinks like you do”. That adage sounds simple on the surface but I’ve realized that it is a profound truth and of critical importance to us preppers. At the time that I’m writing this we are immersed in the COVID-19 pandemic. I watched this coming, from the earliest days when the first reports of some strange new Coronavirus associated with the market in Wuhan was briefly noted online. That …


Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), by Pudge

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What are standard (or standing) operating procedures (SOPs), and why should you have them? According to the U.S. Army, a SOP is “a clearly written set of instructions for methods detailing procedures for carrying out a routine or recurring task or study.” Now what does this really mean and how can I actually apply this to both my daily life and also high stress situations? First, a quick background so that you can understand why this topic is so important to me. I’m an active duty Army Special Forces officer (O-3) with extensive experience around the world. I make my …


Post-TEOTWAWKI: Groups and Retreats, Pt. 1, by E.M.

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There are many articles on the internet concerning the benefits of forming a group of like-minded individuals who could support each other when times get “spicy” for months or even years, either in their own neighborhood or at a remote retreat.  These groups are sometimes referred to as mutual assistance groups. These articles are based on the premise that choosing a “lone wolf” approach after TEOTWAWKI is unsustainable in the long run, and that even expecting a single family to live and thrive on a remote mountaintop after a societal meltdown is unrealistic and ripe for tragedy in the long …


Picking a BOL by Pete Thorsen

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Many people think that there are very troubled times ahead for the United States. Some who think that realize if that comes to pass their current residence could make their very survival problematic. So what to do? Move now or if tied down, like because of a job, etc, then maybe set up a bug-out-location (BOL). Great but where would you go? And what would be the determining factors in BOL selection? The “where” and the many deciding factors will likely be different for just about everyone. And anyone who has ever been house hunting knows that buying a house …


Estate Planning For The Prepared, by David E.

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As Benjamin Franklin once observed, nothing is certain except Death and Taxes.  If you’re like most people, though, you find the topic of planning for your own passing uncomfortable.  In fact, it’s more comfortable planning for TEOTWAWKI than planning for one’s own death.  Many find it so uncomfortable that they avoid planning for it at all. A lack of a good plan, however, leaves your loved ones in bad shape: they could be saddled with months or even years of legal proceedings, have to pay onerous taxes that could have been avoided, and your years of preparing and saving could …


Commerce Model Prepping: A Re-Evaluation, by B.H. in North Idaho

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Editor’s Introductory Note:  This article serves as an update to B.H.’s original piece on this topic, published in SurvivalBlog back in March of 2013. Introduction Over the years since I first read the novel Patriots by James Wesley, Rawles and made the decision to embrace prepping my idea of prepping has changed. It started when I recognized that friends, acquaintances and strangers all had varying ideas and degrees of preparedness even within very similar prepping models. The greatest characteristic of Survivalblog.com is that there is something for everyone presented in articles and information. Regardless of your station you’ll find information …


Preparedness Lessons from the 1930s – Part 2, by J. E.

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(Continued from Part 1. This part concludes the article.) Twice a year the cabin was emptied of everything. The walls, floors, and ceilings were scrubbed with lye soap and a bristle brush. All the belongings were also cleaned before they came back into the house. This was pest control and it was needed until DDT became available. Even then, bedbugs, lice, ticks and other creepy crawlies were a fact of life and were controlled by brute force. Failure to do so left you in misery and maybe ill. Foods were stored in bug proof containers. The most popular was fifteen …


Prepper Complacency, by Wood Tamer

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In this writing I will be referencing Hurricane Michael. This is not just a narrative about my experiences with this hurricane but rather a reflection on my life experiences as a prepared individual, family, and neighborhood. Throughout my life I could probably be defined as an individual more prepared for unexpected events than most others. That was not necessarily by design but rather necessity and lifestyle. I was raised in a large family and we always needed to make ends meet. As an adult I have been blessed with an abundant life without much adversity or concern until I heard …


Displacement Planning – Part 3, by J.M.

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(Continued from Part 2. This concludes the article series.) Regardless of how you plan on loading equipment and supplies, it is critical that you document a loading plan. This should define what gets loaded in what order and where it’s loaded. How detailed this needs to be depends on your requirements – if you’re planning on walking from your location to a well-stocked bug-out compound, keeping a simple bug-out bag packed will probably meet your needs,  since you won’t need to pack much to get going. However, if any significant amount of packing or loading will be required prior to …


Our Path Towards Preparation, by SBC

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On our curious and sometimes convoluted path towards being prepared for TEOTWAWKI, I have sometimes impressed, often confounded and occasionally amused myself and family with our brilliance and stupidity. Here follows the outline of the story of our adventure in the hope that it will inspire or amuse or warn you and help your own journey be a bit easier and the load a bit lighter. We began our journey after Hurricane Katrina when FEMA so effectively demonstrated how inadequate the federal support system was dealing with large scale disasters. So what began as a ah-ha moment of “perhaps we …


Challenge & Password for The Prepared Family, by A. Jackson

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One of the best ways to improve your preparedness skills is by adapting military skills to preparedness uses. Today we’re adapting the U.S. Army Common Task of ‘Challenge & Password’ to the needs of the survivalist. Scenario Consider the following scenario: About six weeks ago it finally happened, the currency collapsed and since then the security situation has rapidly deteriorated. Crime has begun to run rampant as the populace grows more and more desperate to fill their and their family’s bellies. At some point most of the local police force realized that their entire paycheck couldn’t even buy their family …


From the Deep South to Northern Rockies: Pt. 2, by GritsInMontana

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(Continued from Part 1.) Critters Goats: My neighbors decided to be “goat foster parents” for the summer. (“It will be a great experience for the children!”, they said.) The plan was to return the goats to the rightful owners when September rolled around. My response was “That owner is probably three states away by now….” Sure enough, as fall approached, the owner was nowhere to be found and my neighbors now had to figure out what to do with their foster-goat-situation for the winter. You see, getting rid of a goat will almost always require some level of treachery and …