Category: Retreat Locales

Letter Re: Private Gated Communities May Not be Gated After All

Hi Jim, Due to the real estate slump and the poor economy, my wife and I are trying to unravel our mess of real estate investments. One thing we did, was to abandoned our McMansion in a rural area near Seattle, Washington. It was a new four thousand square foot custom home in a gated community. All the other houses were as large and some significantly larger. We had abandoned the house about a year ago after failing to sell it for what we owed, and have not made any house payments since then. We also chose not to pay …


My Tale of the Hurricane Rita Evacuation. August, 2005, by Dan G.

I was working in a pawnshop in Aransass Pass Texas, about 20 miles North of Corpus Christi, Texas. Two days earlier my wife and I watched the destruction of New Orleans on National Television, the news coverage was continuing around the clock as the drama unfolded. Gasoline had shot up from $1.56 to $2.99 a gallon overnight and of course I had to fill up that morning to get to my menial low paying job. Late that afternoon a rich looking couple driving a huge brand new pickup truck, came into the pawnshop. They spoke very loudly about how their …


Letter Re: Selecting Retreat Properties–Pros and Cons of Buying Remote and Off Grid

Jim– A note regarding my own experience with remote property ownership …I owned a wonderfully ideal 40-acre bug-out property in northern Minnesota for many years. It was very remote. Some of the closest neighbors did not even know there was a cabin back in those deep woods. It was backed up to a large, forested DNR property that was itself bounded by swamp. My other bordering neighbors were full-time residents who were kind of ornery (very protective of their property and thus unintentionally served as guardians of my property) and so that was a plus. We were a half-hour from …


Letter Re: Idaho and Washington as Retreat Locales

Hi Jim, I heard that Washington state joined the 10th Amendment movement. Funny, but we moved out of that state in February because it was seemingly so socialistic. Since then we’ve been actively looking for a small farm in Idaho but when I heard that news I wanted to see if you think it advisable to look into eastern Washington too. I’m amazed at all the properties for sale there. You can get so much more for your money there. But I wanted to check with you first. Thanks, – Evan S. JWR Replies: Keep in mind that just a …


Letter Re: Selecting Retreat Properties–Pros and Cons of Buying Remote and Off Grid

Jim: To follow-up on your recent article, a very big “Pro” to buying off-grid land that was not mentioned is that you will not have strangers having access to your property. I am specifically referring to the Meter Reader for the utility company. I have “country” property on the Grid and have to furnish the Meter Reader a key to access the property to read the electric meter. The Meter Reader comes once a month to read the meter. I have not figured a way to deny them access. (Maybe you have a suggestion on how to prevent the meter …


Selecting Retreat Properties–Pros and Cons of Buying Remote and Off Grid

I recently had a consulting client that hired me to do a search on his behalf for a rural retreat property in southwestern Oregon. In the early stages of the search, he asked about the pros and cons of buying undeveloped “off grid” properties that do not have utility power poles nearby. This summarizes my reply: From the standpoint of setting up a rural, self-sufficient retreat, an off-grid parcel is actually advantageous, for two reasons: 1.) They are generally more remote and away from natural “lines of drift” and hence are far less likely to be in the path of …


Letter Re: Advice on Silver or Gold Jewelry for Barter?

Hello Jim, Been learning a lot from Survival Blog, thanks for the great work. I’m just wondering if sterling silver and 14 karat [gold] jewelry (plain [rings or chains], or gemstones would make good bartering items? Have been thinking of selling them and using the money for preparedness, etc but wondered about this. Thanks very much for all the useful information. – Mrs. H. JWR Replies: Although at first blush keeping jewelry on hand might seem practical, in actuality its drawbacks outweigh its benefits. Perhaps metals, but gemstones are a definite no. Gemstones–either diamonds or colored stones–will not be trusted …


Three Letters Re: Hunkering Down or Storing Gear in a Commercial Building

Hello Jim: After doing Industrial Security in some of the roughest English Industrial Towns, we found that “moating” vulnerable doors and walls against heavy equipment traffic was a great help in preventing the equipment from prizing open doors, or more simply being run backwards through the doors and walls. The floors at the man doors and protected vehicle doors had a two foot deep by three-to-four foot wide ditch dug and a light weight (two inch in many cases) concrete topping poured over an infill of mostly styrofoam bead. When we needed to bridge in with heavy gear we used …


Two Letters Re: Voting With Your Feet–Comparing Economic Freedom in the 50 States

Jim: When I read that academic study of economic freedom in the various states, and saw the summary map, it was a strong piece of “ah-ha” confirmation for me. It immediately struck me that what a close correlation there is to what you had posted two years ago in your State Rankings on places to move with the best retreat potential. [in 19 western states.] Independently, you nailed those recommendations squarely, sir. Bonus Brownie points for you! Wishing You The Lord’s Blessings, – Ted J. JWR, I read through the PDF that you mention in your “Voting with your feet” …


Letter Re: Cloudcroft, New Mexico as a Retreat Locale

Mr. Rawles, I read your book “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation“, which is a very good resource. In it, you didn’t mention one area that interested me a little bit, and that was the area around the Lincoln National Forest, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico. I’ve driven through there a few times, and it might do well in a depression. Of course, it’s too close to the Mexican border, which might lead to a problem, though I’m not sure which direction the refugees will be heading. You probably heard that the mayor of Juarez has sent his family to El Paso …


The Incredible Disappearing Retreat in the Woods

Here is something that heretofore I have only shared with a few of my consulting clients: an approach at rural retreat construction that can make a rural retreat of 10 acres or more essentially “disappear”. If there is a thick screen of trees or tall brush between the public road and potential building sites at your undeveloped country retreat parcel, then your property might be a good candidate for a “hidden retreat house”. This is accomplished by making as few changes as possible when the parcel is viewed from the county road. No fancy entry gate, no mailbox, basically nothing …


Letter Re: Hunkering Down or Storing Gear in a Commercial Building

Mr. Rawles, As always I enjoy the site and the support you provide. I would like to mention a few items that have come up lately here in South Florida with regards to survival in an urban area. This may be of particular concern to any of your readers that live in urban areas or for those that are not yet at a point in their preparations, or lives, to be able to move to a better, less populous location. First, as has been mentioned on this web site, in your novel “Patriots“, and by every credible “prepper” in the …


Letter Re: Voting With Your Feet–Comparing Economic Freedom in the 50 States

Mr. Rawles, A study was conducted by William P. Ruger and Jason Sorens of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University on a ranking of states basis on personal and economic freedoms. It is titled: Freedom in the 50 States: Index of Personal and Economic Freedom. It encompasses items such as income tax, gun laws and homeschooling (among many other areas). My state unfortunately ranks in the bottom thirteen. As my family and I search for another income means it may behoove us to “vote with our feet”, as you say. Here is an abstract of the study: Abstract This …


Did the American Indians Have it Right?, by MMJ

In these trying times when civilizations are at the brink of disaster and many people are already in personal collapse, we should look back through history to find out how to salvage what we have and how to survive what is to come. [Minor rant snipped.] It seems that economic collapse is imminent and that at some point in the near future it is going to be every man for himself. As we watch countries collapse, global economies fail and people across the world starve and die, I ask myself has any culture or civilization in history gotten it right? …


Making the Transition to Country Life, by Bois d’Arc

Many readers of Survival Blog are either in the process of moving to a lightly populated area or actively planning to bugout to such an area when the balloon goes up. Twenty years ago I moved from the edge of a large city to a fairly remote property, and have been quietly setting up the doomstead and perfecting skills ever since. In the process, I became part of the fabric of country life here and have learned some valuable lessons which may benefit the rookie country dweller. Most full-time country residents are descendents of frontiersmen who ventured into the wilderness …