Category: Retreat Logistics

Letter Re: Gluten Free Foods at COSTCO

Dear Mr. Rawles, I follow you via RSS and have purchases your past archives from Amazon. Following the advice in your blog, I just got done on COSTCO.com purchasing some gluten free meal kits. I find it amazing they have these for people with food allergies and yet at rock bottom prices (even with the non-member surcharge.) I will sleep much better at night for my wife, 17 month old daughter and myself. God Bless you and thank you for your wealth of resources! Thanks! – Andy P. JWR Replies: As I highlighted in the Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness …


The Importance of Prepping Together, by F.G.

As I imagine many of the readers on this site, I once found myself somewhat isolated in my prepping, embarrassed to let on to how I felt, why I prep, et cetera . My family is very close, very involved in each others lives, and I couldn’t imagine or want it any different. My entry into this contest will be an explanatory background on myself and my preps, followed by a realistic guideline on how to “save the ones that matter” to you; or at least, my means of doing so. I am a young, 30 year old father of …


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 …


Two Letters Re: Prioritized Prepping

Jim: I couldn’t agree more with the article written by T.Z. regarding prioritized prepping. Many of us lack the needed organization and discipline to distribute our prepping budget evenly between the different survival categories and instead succumb to impulse buys – more ammo, more guns, more dried food, more camping gear. While stocking up on non-perishable supplies that will always have some use may seem like a good idea, what good are 50,000 rounds of ammo if your only water filter just broke, or you ran out of oil for your two-stroke chain saw? My way of managing these impulse …


Prioritized Prepping, by Z.T.

I, like so many people across the country, can’t walk out of my local sporting goods store without buying the limit of ammunition. Now, before you judge me, realize that most places limit you to small boxes of ammunition, and usually one two per caliber. Is it being prudent or just being obsessed? While the firearm and ammo situation is very much a media-hyped thing,  I have even talked about things you must buy every time you are out, like my article on Things Commonly Overlooked.  But what about those items that you pick up, look at the price tag, but pass …


How to Budget for TEOTWAWKI, by Louie in Ohio

Prepping is never far from my mind. A few months ago I was talking with a friend and the subject of TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We know It) came up. Tom (not his real name) said that he would like to prepare for upcoming emergencies but didn’t know where to start. The answer was simple; start where you are. Obviously most people cannot start with a full larder and weapons/ammunition cache. That is of course, unless you really do have all of that, in that case…well, that’s where you are. I asked Tom what scenarios he wanted …


The Family SHTF Operations Manual, by Col. H.

SurvivalBlog provides a wealth of prep-related information. Many here cut and paste critical essays to store as Word documents for safekeeping and later access when crisis times call for it. I suggest going one step further. Build a structured notebook of your family’s prep information, with each topic index tabbed for easy access and available for all family-tribe members to consult when the need arrives. Let this notebook become your family’s SHTF collapse response manual, your SOP for surviving a collapse. People panic and make fatal errors under crisis when they do not have enough information and do not know …


Two Sisters Like Peas in in a Pod, by Peggy W.

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My sister and I both retired due to disabilities are working as we can trying to prepare for the family. Often, we say did we really do that, like talking to a stranger in our local Wal-Mart and saying we would like some green beans and he happened to have about a bushel in his truck he had not sold so, we got them and yielded 14 quarts of beans we needed. Ask and ye shall receive hit us in the face so hard, Thanks be to God! We are on an extremely small budget but we continue to buy …


Stuff Hitting the Fan: A Position Paper – Part 4, by R.L.

(This is the conclusion to the article series that began on Friday.) Appendix A The following is essentially a “wish” list; however the items that are in bold are relatively important.  The tools and medical areas would be for a complement for 1-10 people.  The sundries area covers a family of six.  The food area is for one person for one year, multiply (or divide) as you see fit.  There is extra food included for charitable impulses.  Coordinate purchases among the group if you plan to congregate.  I live in Georgia, so the clothing and supplies are tailored for that …


Stuff Hitting the Fan: A Position Paper – Part 2, by R.L.

(Continued from Part 1) Level I Scenario In these paragraphs, we will look at the areas of primary and secondary importance as they can be managed in a Level I scenario. Water A person needs around two gallons per day for cooking and rudimentary cleaning.  For short term emergencies it may be possible to store up two weeks or more water, that much should be stored up anyway.  When you store water, treat it with iodine or Clorox or boil (iodine is better, boiling is best) and rotate water stores every six months, see level II instructions for disinfecting ratios.  …


Letter Re: Some Advice for Those Strapped for Time

Dear Sir: I have been reading your blog for several years but have not been able to convince my dear husband to stop laughing at me until very recently. We are very busy people with full time+on call sort of jobs, three busy kids and I’m also a full time student as well. We consider our time as important as our money. I know there are others reading that haven’t started yet due to lack of ‘spare time’. I have begun utilizing the ‘Subscribe and Save’ feature on Amazon.com. This feature allows me to pick out items we need to …


Emergency Preparedness: 101, by Jennie From the Flats

Wakeup Call  It was 2 o’clock in the morning when our two year old toddler woke me with a terrifying scream. She was just across the hallway, but I was disoriented for a moment and couldn’t figure out why I was blind.  As I realized the power was out, I looked for the battery-powered lantern I keep beside the bed only to find it missing.  The three year old had probably been playing with it again.  I felt my way around the house and hoped the lantern would still have power.  It clicked on and what a blessed sight that …


Am I Crazy?, by Crazy As A Fox

I am a Vice President o a very successful company in the western side of the Midwest.  I am in my early 60s, and after 30 plus years with the company – I will retire in next year or so with no debt, a good retirement plan, stable lifestyle – no worries, right?  So, why do some of those around me think I’m crazy (even me sometimes)?  Here’s my story.   I grew up a farm boy working the family farm with my grandma and grandpa, old school Swede – German homesteaders – milking cows, slopping hogs, baling hay, walking beans, driving tractors, gathering eggs, and yes, shoveling S#%*.  Small rural …


More All-American Makers

Several readers wrote to suggest some more American makers to add to my recently-posted lists: Alvord-Polk Tool – Aircraft quality reamers.  Brubaker Tool, Division of Dauphin Precision Tool, LLC  – Mills, taps and drills. Ames Corporation is the parent company for several brand names that make all American-made tools. These include: Ames tools – A variety of hand tools, hoses, wheelbarrows, etc. True Temper – Gardening, farming, landscaping, and snow removal tools Jackson Professional Tools (best known for their wheelbarrows.) Razor-Back Professional Tools – Shovels, rakes, hoes, hay and spading forks, digging bars, turf edgers, etc. Union Tools – Shovels, …


All-American Tool Manufacturers

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Following up on my recently-posted list of field gear makers that have all American-made products, I’ve compiled a comparable list of American tool makers. The Sell-Outs Some companies that have long been thought of as “American” companies now produce most or all of their tools overseas. For example, Craftsman (the Sears house brand) now produces many of their tools in Asia. Others include: Cooper, Disston, Eastwood, Greenlee, Lufkin, Milwaukee, Peerless, Porter Cable, Shurlite, Snap-On, Thorsen, Vise-Grip, Vermont American, Weller, Williams, and Winchester. The many, many others are almost too numerous to list. Some of the “good guy” companies that I …