SurvivalBlog.com

Mr. Rawles:  
As a prepper living in the Redoubt, allow me to respectfully enlighten Professor Prepper from Montana with my own nickel’s worth on the topic:

I think you are a little high on the horse, pard.  I detected the hint of a threat towards those not already living in Montana, even though you lightly qualified with a disclaimer that “we Montanans” are American, and “we” do not want to take up arms against other Americans. I will concede, however, that you believe your intentions to be honorable, and you sure can’t be accused of not being proud of your state of residence, Big Sky Country.  I have hunted a few parts of it and concur that it is a magnificent piece of our country.

I am a veteran from the Viet Nam era, having served my country both here and abroad.  I am also a retired peace officer.  You might have heard that a lot of us have retired to the Redoubt, and for good reason.  That is a plus for you, believe me.  More importantly, what I am not is a whining, sniveling, malcontent…in fact, I am (no surprise) an armed, self-reliant, Christian, conservative, carnivore.  When I moved here after retirement, I remember being yelled and cursed at by a passing local motorist because I didn’t yet have my new state’s license plate; I guess he ASSumed that my old plate meant that I was a visitor, no doubt looking for some prime real estate to snatch up from under him.  Quite unnecessary and a testament that you really can’t fix stupid, no matter where you choose to live.  People like this brain-dead bozo breed like rats, and can be found anywhere, in numbers.  To be honest, WTSHTF, it is a guy like me, and my colleagues,  that you would want around to help out, not alienate by screaming obscenities from the highway.

I have a legitimate right to live within the borders of the USA, anywhere I please, Montana included, at least for now.  As you said, “Capisce?”  This is America, professor, not some fascist Third World lash-up that dictates where citizens can or can not live, or that they all live in the same manner and have the same beliefs, and contribute equally to society (that sounds vaguely communistic, no?).  And BTW, I will not tolerate being interrogated by self-appointed vigilante’s blocking my way to a place I have a right to travel to.  There are some people out here, professor, that will take that sort of behavior as a threat to life, and have a plan for that.

My friend,  there are many others, my own sons included, who are like-minded with us, but they are still fighting the fight from within the slave states they live in.  Those states were not always so.  These guys won’t be wearing a sign when they arrive, and it’s real hard to tell if they are or are not “the good guys”…you certainly won’t be able to tell by their shoes, either, trust me.  Many want to get to a redoubt state but can’t just yet.  Many good people are not on board yet, but are listening and learning.  Some are even making plans, but haven’t yet been able to pull the trigger for whatever reason.  And please don’t forget about the older folks, the young people, the single moms, the uncles and aunts and cousins, who may well end up to be refugee’s, fleeing for their lives to their loved ones in the Redoubt…if they can make it.  Many many people will simply abandon their old homes all over the US in order to live with relatives in a Redoubt state, “doubling up” for the sake of survival and practicality.

Keeping a watchful eye over natural resources and abuses by those who would take advantage is one thing…to be openly vigilante, before that becomes appropriate, is quite another.

Let me ask you this:  If heaven forbid your state, specifically your city, suddenly gets nailed with a nuke (you do have a few targets), or a pandemic,  or let’s not forget Yellowstone blowing up, or some other problem, and you had to bug out to say N. Idaho, how would you feel if you encountered a roadblock at the border.  You encounter hostiles (“we Idahoans”) who would not let you pass, perhaps because they think the state would become overcrowded with out-of-staters who would want to change things.  Some of those refugee’s would undoubtedly be liberals (yes even from Montana), some would be enviro-whackos, some would be felons.  And some would simply be worthless leeches, and none of those types are a welcome sight to the average middle class Idahoan.   Only a proper interrogation could tell, yes?  Sorry, that just isn’t a free country by definition.

I agree that in some parts of the country, celebrities and other pushy people have bought up real estate and have tried to push their weight around and in general be a pain in the rear.  They won’t last when the SHTF.  They are not relevant.  The tougher it gets, the quicker they will disappear to be in the company of their own kind.  They certainly won’t stick around to help out.

Having spent a little computer time on ancestry.com as a hobby, I can tell you this:  None of us are originals, no matter what state you may claim as your home base.  My ancestors are from Scotland and Ireland, and it was fascinating to find out how far and wide they migrated within the borders of America, after just a few generations from the time they hit the beach in the New World, and who they mixed with along the way.  What we can’t forget is that they left a place they used to call home,  because it became unlivable for them, and oppressive.

We shouldn’t be closing our state borders to fellow Americans, but rather building our population and industries and educating newcomers.. (like the weapons industry being forced out of the East Coast slave states).  Like the free-thinking people who would like to come here, in the same way the folks who are nanny-state residents by choice want nothing to do with the Redoubt mindset.   They are too deeply entrenched in their own brand of America.  But until the government dissolves, and restrictions are in place,  all have a right to move about within the borders of the USA. 

 Let’s face it, liberal folks in general aren’t exactly the types who are into self-reliance of any kind, being fans of big government taking care of all, or defending themselves with the use of force, especially the dreaded firearm.  In short they think we are nuts.  In short we think they are sissies.  Just like Redoubters would not live in Massachusetts because of the liberal mindset, those folks in turn would not live in the Redoubt because of … us.    Recently, Fox news analyst Juan Williams declared that in Idaho, there is “a machine-gun behind every tree”!   If it were only so!

But lest I forget, let us all be reminded that John Q. is not the problem.  Big, oppressive government is the problem.  History reminds us of that when we study other civilizations that are no longer on the scene.  Let us keep the enemy on the radar screen, and not ourselves.

None of what I’m saying means that you can’t “keep your eyes peeled” when strangers move in to the area.  We should all be vigilant to danger.  We should all be well acquainted with our neighbors…OPSEC.

I am sadly positive that yes, the time will eventually come when we will be confronted with the unpleasant tasks that a collapse brings with it.  That will include roadblocks, detentions, interrogations, and worse.  There will be many who will be out to invade and conquer, or become a burden to society either as cons or sluggards.  But we aren’t there yet, not by a long shot.  Better to practice OPSEC and for now be small, and gray, than to be confrontational and make enemies of the wrong people.

You mentioned all of the wide open space.  Same here.  There is plenty of room, and the Redoubt as a whole is lightly populated.  The reputation of the Redoubt is growing, and those who want to be part of it will come, and those who despise us now will avoid us like the plague in the future.

God Bless, – L.R.

I’m just putting the finishing touches on my signs. Do you like them? They say “Trespassers will be shot without warning.” I think that gets the message across. Don’t you?

So I’ve heard you are thinking of bugging out to Montana when the SHTF. Is that right? Well, I’ve got some advice for you: The first thing to remember is that Montana is already filled with people. Not as many as most other states, but still, there are many of us here whether you saw us or not the last time you took a family trip through Montana. Yeah, we are a big state filled with rivers, lakes, mountains, and wide open prairies, but those waterways and lands are not yours for the taking just because things have gone downhill for a while. But since we are all Americans, I’ll let you in on a secret. You can bug out to Montana, but you just have to know how.

First a little geography lesson. Montana is the fourth largest state, or rather the third since Alaska messes up all comparisons. But size is not quite everything. Montana is roughly rectangular and borders four other states as well as two Canadian provinces. But there’s more to that picture. The US states flanking Montana are, on the south and west, mountainous and wild with few roads. And to the east, huge expanse of openness across the Dakotas. To the north lie Saskatchewan and Alberta, both wild lands rivaling Alaska in remoteness and low population. In other words, Montana is buffered by some pretty significant geographic and geologic challenges meaning that unless you are already nearby, not only are you multiple-gas tanks away, but also at the whims of the weather since all access points into Montana present significant driving challenges at least four months out of the year.

And speaking of driving, you might want to take a hard look at a Montana road map. The paved entry points are few, and only two interstate highways, one east/west, the other north/south. And that’s for a state with nearly 2,000 miles of border! Many of the other paved access points into Montana are over passes including one stunning 10,000 climb that as you might guess opens late in the year and closes early. Additionally, there are many bridges as the roads wind through the mountains meaning there is only one way through the area and it has a significant constriction point. In fact my town of Missoula has the Hellgate Canyon and you can even go to Hellgate High School here. The name Hellgate describes the such a constriction point so named after the unfortunate results some early travelers experienced as they were forced into the mountain gauntlet on the east entrance to our fair city. Our city is close close to paradise, but to to reach it from the east, you will need to pass through the gates of hell.

Flatlanders and those with a head full of television shows and movies are used to options when approaching a roadblock. Around here, there might be a mountain to your right, a river and a mountain to your left, and a hundred miles of nothing behind you. You won’t be racing around or over any of our road blocks. And whether by design or luck, most of our towns are surrounded by plenty of constriction points. Take a stroll around Google Earth to see what you are up against when bugging out after the SHTF. And summer vacations do not qualify.

However, I’m happy to report that Montana is home to many fine people who will be quick to welcome new faces as long as those faces are attached to skilled individuals and not just another whiny mouth to feed. Surviving, and even just living in Montana is work. Glorious work, but still work. Unlike cities where convenience rules and internal combustion does the all the heavy lifting, we in Montana are accustomed to the arsenal of nature. Whether blizzards, wildfires, floods, or angry animals, Montana has them all. Drowning and falling are two popular check-out methods tourists use in Montana, and yes, we do feel bad, but just because there is no sign warning of the dangers in the river, or the crumbling edge of the cliff doesn’t mean it’s safe. Every year we lose many visitors to gravity or water with plenty of other deaths we never know what happened because we cannot find their bodies. Strangely, the same things we do here for recreation are the same things that kill city dwellers.

World class hunting and fishing are two of Montana’s exports. I’ll admit that yes, there is game everywhere. Some Montana cities are even culling the city deer herds because the numbers are just too high. And Montana is quick to capture and prosecute poachers and others who violate the rules and laws of hunting and fishing. You must understand why we have those rules and laws in order to appreciate them. Historically, humans took what they needed when they needed it. But that all changed when hunting became a source of financial income, and cities demanded more food, especially birds, big game with big antlers, and weighty fish. No longer were hunters subsisting. They were now in the business of volume and sales. It didn’t take long to deplete the game supply, and worse, the reproductive patterns of the animals were disrupted to the point that the few viable offspring were not enough to sustain the species. While the commercial hunters just moved on to different game in different places, the residents were left with nothing but scorched earth. So hopefully you can see that we are a little reluctant to loose sight of you while hunting. Unless you live around here, we have no reason to think that you truly appreciate what we have, and will take appropriate action if necessary. You are welcome take that however you want.

Montana is also filled with dirt roads and places where not roads are allowed. Those roads do go somewhere, and just because you managed to drive all night and cross into Montana unobserved does not mean you now own the land wherever you park your bug out vehicle. When a bug out location seems perfect, even too perfect to be true, it is probably part of someone else’s plan, or perhaps even the landowner’s. Federal land is considered up for grabs as long as you don’t infringe on another camp whether by presence, activity, or upstream effects, and that you respect the resources. You are not allowed to cut down trees to build a cabin. At least not right away. America is a great nation and we Montanan’s will not allow our wild resources to be looted, stolen or destroyed simply because of your poor planning, stupidity, or greed. Remember, Montana is what America used to be, and we will be keeping it that way. Capisce?

Sadly, it is a common occurrence here under the Big Sky to have out-of-staters throw their weight around thinking they own the place. Sure, some do when they buy large tracts of real estate and then upend the local ecosystem. We usually can wait until their dysfunctional lives implode, marriages fail, and the FBI moves in to commandeer their possessions and land. But in a SHTF scenario, we won’t wait for the FBI. Arrogance is a danger to us all so we just might have to eliminate or at least temper the arrogant threat. Sorry, but I think you understand.

So how does one come in peace to Montana? One way is that you are welcome to purchase your own bug out acreage and homestead it as you please, but that still requires you can get “home.” Nothing greases the wheels of a roadblock like being a landowner. But you will have to answer some questions first, so brush up on your trivia about where your supposed land is located. And there is always the relationship angle leveraging friends, family and acquaintances who have already exercised a previous Montana option. But of course this is America, and we Montanans are also Americans. We do not want to take up arms against our countrymen, but then again, we are expecting a certain level of appropriate behavior from our visiting brethren, and our rights have not ceased to exist just because your neck of the American woods is a little complicated at the moment.

Let’s assume you have successfully driven your BOV through the buffer states and now find yourself humming along the desolate roads of Montana (which are often desolate even when things are great which is how we like it). You come face to face with your first roadblock. It is a handful of old trucks (of which we have plenty) completely blocking the right of way 100% across and two or three deep. Let’s also assume it is summer, daylight, and the SHTF event is more economic then viral. As you slowly approach the obstruction, with your hands on the wheel and tinted windows rolled down (We’d hate to have to lower them ourselves from the outside), you notice the road behind you now has an obstruction as well. Yes, you are trapped. As you have nothing to hide you have no need to worry. But you must understand that we too have families that need protection. We simply cannot let anyone wander into what we have tried so hard to maintain, and that we believe to be worthy of preservation as representative of what makes America great.

Our questions for you will be simple. Who are you? Where did you come from? Where are you going? Once you pass that test, we would love to pick your brain for news about what’s going on in other places. In fact, depending on your experiences, you just might be the hero of the day joining us for dinner. Didn’t see that one coming, did you?

I told you we up here in the north are good folk. We have nothing against you, and if you belong here, then welcome home! However, if we detect that your motives are not pure, and you could be a liability if not an outright danger, then we may give you the option to turn around and try your luck in Wyoming, Idaho, or South Dakota, or just handle it ourselves in the old fashioned but effective ways early Montana settlers are famous for. 

Let me give you a couple other tips. I can tell an awful lot about you from your choice of footwear. The reason I am telling you this is to help you be honest. You can no more pretend you belong here as you could blend in while wandering the streets of New York City. You can fool yourself, but you cannot fool us. Everything about you is telling. The way you drive, where you walk, how you handle tools including firearms, and of course your reaction to what nature dishes up whether wind, wildlife, water, or whatever. Everything from your choice of hat to vehicle tires screams information about you. As does your knife, your backpack, even your water bottle. So don’t even try to lie. Honesty goes a long way around here.

While it is imperative that you roll with nature’s punches in Montana it does take some practice. Sorry to generalize, but most city folk are soft. They are too sensitive to temperature. They are not used to walking (and I mean miles), and they have lost their nature smarts. They do stupid things. They miss clues and cues. In a nutshell, they want things to be a certain way that nature has no intention of accommodating. You know what folks? Sometimes it is just plain freezing out. And sometimes mosquitoes and flies are annoying. And sometimes you lose your game to the bears, wolves, coyotes, (insert predator name here). Sometimes it rains and you get wet. And sometimes you are cold and miserable. And hungry. And tired. And sore. And concerned. And lost. But after a while living like this, it grows on you. You want it. Or maybe it’s more that you don’t care because the good outweighs the bad.

Bugging out to Montana is not like in the movies. I’ll admit that there will be many successful impromptu bug outs to Montana, but those first arrivals will set the stage for everyone else. The moment we Montanans feel threatened or used, then overnight Montana will be the hostile land that it once used to be.

Please don’t take it personally, but if you really want to bug out to Montana, you really need to already be here [when things fall apart.]