Category: Retreat Groups

Letter: Advice on Establishing Retreat Group SOPs

Dear Mr Rawles: I wanted to reach out. I am now reading your novel Patriots and in it the topic of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) is addressed. Do you all have a good template example to help me get started in this arena? Thanks, – Jon B. JWR Replies:  There are no “one size fits all” SOPs. Your SOPs should definitely be tailored to your particular circumstances. Military SOPs are usually a good starting point.  (These include: immediate action drills, perimeter security (including challenge and password), patrolling, field sanitation, communications CEOI procedures, OPSEC, COMSEC, et cetera.)  I don’t want to …


Community Risk Mitigation, by T.P.

I hate it when I see statements on prepping site that make assumptions of our fellow citizens that are overly broad and frequently demeaning. You know the things I’m talking about. “They assume the government will save them.” “Sheeple.” “They refuse to prepare because of their narrow mindedness.” There is certainly a small subset of people who fit that mold. Most however are of the “ignorance is bliss” variety. They simply haven’t woken up to the risk. Prepping is simply a form of risk mitigation. It’s insurance. When my family woke up to the risk, we didn’t suddenly realize the …


Sarah Latimer: Unrealized Expectations – Part 1

A simple reach to touch and squeeze my hand, followed by a slight smile in the corners of what are usually distant eyes that at that moment were deeply focused on mine, brought me to tears. Last week, after my husband had prepared a sandwich lunch for his mother and me and I had fed her, done her hair, and given her a manicure, I prayed with her. I just gently touched her arm with one hand and went to our Heavenly Father with praises, intercession, and petitions in our Savior’s name. “Mom” is on hospice care and in the …


Letter: ShepherdFarmerGeek on Relocation to Belize

Dear Editor: SurvivalBlog’s spin-off site SurvivalRealty.com has just listed a unique retreat opportunity called Providence Belize. The Shepherdess and I a-l-m-o-s-t moved there ourselves last year, but God is clearly calling us to stay and stand where we are with the people He has led us to help. That said, we visited Belize once, for one day on a cruise excursion. It’s just beautiful (a subtropical paradise if you’re a gardener like me and tired of the drought conditions around Spokane!). Belize is a former British Colony. (It was called British Honduras, before 1973), and English is their primary language. I’ve …


Red List, Blue List, Black List, You List

There has been a lot of conjecture in the past 40 years in patriot circles about the existence of government “round up lists”. Large-scale disaster and war planning exercises, like REX-84 (Readiness Exercise-1984) and Jade Helm 2015, have stimulated endless discourse about whether or not the government maintains a so-called “red list” and “blue list” of people that they deem to be dissidents who they might target for harassment, travel restrictions, or even detention without due process of law. Because any such lists would presumably be developed and updated under the wraps of a security classification and the Need To …


Howdy Folks, And Welcome To Our Neighborhood!, by ShepherdFarmerGeek

I’ve been working on this article for a while and maybe now’s the time to share it. I would like to have a page of orientation information to post at our bugout encampment or in our neighborhood after we’ve implemented the Community Action Plan and the dust has started to settle. So this is my best attempt to put together some foundational ideas that should apply to every situation. I’ve deliberately tried to keep it conversational, simple, and friendly (maybe even slightly humorous), because there are a lot of “don’ts”. I’m looking forward to seeing what else the SurvivalBlog community …


Letter Re: Choosing a Partner for a Lifetime of Preparedness

Dear Editor: I have a response to Choosing a Partner for a Lifetime of Preparedness (A Cautionary Tale), by Bob C. from Oct. 9, 2015. H is article brings out the idea that beauty is way more than skin deep, an idea that I totally agree with and often share with young people. My husband and I are in the ministry and we often deal with teens who have not been taught the value of selecting a mate based on other qualities besides physical attraction. So, I think I understand the author’s point. I would just like to comment that …


The Harsh Truth About Bugging Out of Cities, by Patrice Lewis

A common concern among rural people in a grid-down situation is the concept of marauding urbanites swarming through the countryside looting and pillaging — the so-called Golden Horde. I addressed this issue on my blog a few months ago when a reader noted, “You can hide yourself, but not your garden. Are you going to take your beef herd into your house with you? In any long-term crisis situation, your cattle and garden will be indefensible and therefore gone in a matter of months. You cannot protect them from a determined large, armed group.” This reader respectfully listed what he …


Choosing a Partner for a Lifetime of Preparedness (A Cautionary Tale), by Bob C.

If you ask 10 different preppers this question you will undoubtedly receive 10 different answers. In the world of prepping this is tantamount to asking what a person’s favorite sports team is. The answers may range from building the right bugout bag, the right escape from the city plan, or buying land in the right location and building a retreat. Most of them may have completely valid points as to why what they say is in fact the most important thing to do but most of them fall short in one main regard. No matter what they do to prepare …


Sun Tzu and The Art of Prepping, by B.F.

Around 2,500 years ago, a Chinese general named Sun Tzu wrote a treatise called “The Art of War.” I first read it when I was in Officer’s Candidate School back in the 1970s. There are a number of translations and interpretations of the book available today. It is claimed that Marco Polo brought back a copy from his travels in the Thirteenth Century. I have also read where writers say that Von Clausewitz used Sun Tzu’s principles when he wrote “On War” and that (probably closer to the truth) Napoleon had a copy that had been first translated into French …


A Budget Disaster Response Kit, by R.S.

Opinions regarding civilian possession and use of firearms within our nation vary widely. Many citizens (including most preppers) consider them to be a vital component of personal security while others view them as a scourge upon our country producing thousands of deaths every year. However, among those in the latter camp (at least among my acquaintances) I have noticed a number who have begun to view firearms as a necessary evil in the face of increasing lawlessness and savagery. They still do not like the idea of possessing firearms but have become convinced they must do so as a form …


Wilderness Fire: An Unexpected Retreat From Our Retreat, by L.F.P.

We have a boat-in only glamorous camping (“glamping”) retreat on a large lake in the West on the very edge of Wilderness-designated public forest land. The nearest road is more than three miles away. We were there in early August on summer vacation from the city. Several small lightning-caused wilderness fires had been burning for more than a month during the ongoing drought conditions. These fires flared up in very rugged terrain due to a rare severe August windstorm with gusts above 60 mph. The smoke had started to get noticeable on the lake and light ash was raining down …


Letter Re: Multiple Families on Your Retreat

Hi. The article on Multiple Families was very good. We, too, live at our retreat. We’ve been working for five years to make this 9000 ft elevation retreat sustainable and may someday write about lessons learned, but for now we just want to respond to Farmer Brown. He was very generous to invite someone in to partner on the ranch, especially since the infrastructure he owns is a very expensive venture– one not shared by the new family. We believe we solved this issue in that we developed a co-op and invited a number of small families from our church …


Multiple Families on Your Retreat, by Farmer Brown

When our family moved to our ranch/retreat, we spent the first year living in a 30-foot travel trailer in the barn. With five kids, ages fourteen down to one years old, it was a tight squeeze. That was some good rustic living experience; we used a wood stove for cooking, an outhouse as our toilet, solar showers, and solar power. We gained a lot of new skills and gained the motivation to get the old farm house fixed up and livable. Living in the barn also gave us and the kids a new appreciation for hot water, flush toilets, and …


Survival and Prepping in a Homeowner’s Association, by M.B. – Part 2

Homeowner associations, property owner associations (POAs), planned unit developments (PUDs), or common interest developments (CIDS) may be in a unique position to take advantage of local planning, control, management, and oversight in providing both essential and recreational services to the members they represent, especially in times of disaster or severe economic downturns. The HOA should follow, at a minimum, the Community Associations Institute “Model Code of Ethics” for HOA Board members, which follows: “Board members should: Strive at all times to serve the best interests of the association as a whole regardless of their personal interests. Use sound judgment to …