Follow the Yellow Brick Road – Part 3, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 2.)

The Weather

The next thing I look at when starting a trip plan is what the weather will be like at my destination as well as locations between my destination and home. For a shorter get-home journey these may be pretty much the same, but depending on distance, terrain and weather patterns you might experience very different weather in locations even 10 miles apart. For route plans that I use on a regular basis I’ll usually include monthly averages chart and just check the 10-day forecast shortly before I pack. Here’s a screen clip of the monthly average chart for Elk River, Idaho from U.S. Climate Data:

 

 

 

 

I paste this screen clip for the destination, my home location and for intermediate locations (for longer trips) into the Joplin route plan for destinations I visit on a regular basis. For one-off trips and the day before any trip I also visit Wunderground and look at the 10-day forecast. Here’s an example for Tacoma, WA:

 

 

 

Note that I’ve customized the Wunderground display to eliminate some non-critical information and reduce clutter. I paste the screen clip into the Joplin trip plan and synchronize my mobile device, and print off a separate hardcopy of just the forecast so I don’t have to re-print the entire route plan.Continue reading“Follow the Yellow Brick Road – Part 3, by J.M.”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug-out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those –or excerpts thereof — in the Odds ‘n Sods Column or in the Snippets column. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

We had a typical late May week at the ranch. We took the time for some hiking. Gardening took up most of the rest of our available time, and Lily will fill you in on that.  I cut and hauled nearly a cord of firewood. I had to repair yet another gate that our bull tried to wreck. That boy really throws his weight around!

I did a couple of half-day trips, doing some ammo purchasing for one of my consulting clients who lives within a couple of hours’ driving distance.

On Wednesday the 31st, I touched off our burn barrel for the first time in several weeks. I had to dispose of a laying hen that had mysteriously dropped dead. She was one of about 25 hens in our flock. While I was at it, I burned a rubber AR arm brace. That came off my last arm-braced AR pistol. (I had gifted, traded, or sold all of my others, in anticipation of the ATF’s new ban.)  Burning it generated a surprisingly thick stream of black smoke that smelled horrible. That brace was an all-rubber first-generation “ATF Approved” SIG brace. I even have a copy of the ATF’s approval letter for that specific model. It is a sad state of affairs when bureaucrats redefine something previously “legally approved” as a felony to possess!  I’m a member of the Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), so I might be exempted under the Fifth Circuit Court’s injunction ruling, but I figured it was better to torch a $90 brace, rather than risk having the ATF come and shoot my dog, stomp my cats, and throw me in jail. All that I kept was the brace’s velcro strap. So, in essence, I now own a $90 piece of Velcro. What a disgusting turn of events! This is what it feels like to live under the capricious rule of a tyrannical state. My contempt-o-meter is pegging!

The mosquito numbers have recently spiked, so we resorted to putting up the mosquito net over our beds. That is helping a lot. But we are still having trouble sleeping because there are so many hours of daylight at our latitude, this time of year. And it is still three weeks to the solstice!  On June 21st, we expect just over four hours of full darkness.

Now, Lily’s report…Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying,

Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.

Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.

And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.

Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.

And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.

Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion.

And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?

To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

And they shall pass through it, hardly bestead and hungry: and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward.

And they shall look unto the earth; and behold trouble and darkness, dimness of anguish; and they shall be driven to darkness.” – Isaiah 8:11-22  (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 2, 2023

John Randolph was born June 2, 1773, in Prince George County, Virginia. He died May 24, 1833. Randolph was an important proponent of the doctrine of states’ rights in opposition to a strong centralized government.

According to Britannica.com: “A descendant of notable colonial families of Virginia as well as of the Indian princess Pocahontas, Randolph distinguished himself from a distant relative by assuming the title John Randolph of Roanoke, where he established his home in 1810.

In 1799 Randolph was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and he served in that legislative body almost continuously until 1829. His political rise was so rapid that by 1801 he was chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and leader of the Jeffersonian Republicans in Congress. His debating skill and biting sarcasm made him a feared opponent through the years, and he anticipated the states’-rights theories of John C. Calhoun by passionately defending state sovereignty on every occasion. He thus opposed a national bank, protective tariffs, federally financed internal improvements (such as roads and canals), and federal interference with the institution of slavery—though he freed his own bondsmen in his will.”

—

Some unexpected news: I just heard that Iron Edison is going out of business. From their announcement:

“It is with great sadness that we announce the closure of Iron Edison after 12 years of operation. We deeply appreciate the opportunity to have served our customers throughout the years, and it is regrettable that we cannot continue our presence in the battery industry.

While our operations have ceased, we have a limited staff available in June to fulfill existing orders and liquidate our remaining inventory. Next week, we will be sending out an e-mail detailing our inventory liquidation sale, which may include both new and used equipment.”

My advice:  If you need any spares, then jump on them, ASAP. – JWR

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 107 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest.

But first, we are announcing the writing contest judging for Round 106…

 

Writing Contest Prize Winners Announced — Round 106

We’ve completed the judging for Round 106 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prize-winning writers are:

First Prize

First Prize goes to G.F., for: Pest Control for Keeping a Bug-Free Home.  (Posted April 26-27, 2023.  See: Part 1 and Part 2.) He will receive the following prize.

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  5. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  6. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
Second Prize

Second Prize goes to Captain Nemo, for A New Freeze Dryer, by Captain Nemo.  (Posted May 9-11, 2023.  See: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.) He will receive the following prizes:

  1. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795.
  2. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. A $300 gift certificate from Good2Goco.com, good for any of their products: Home freeze dryers, pressure canners, Country Living grain mills, Emergency Essentials foods, and much more.
  4. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!
Third Prize

Third Prize goes to St. Funogas, for Invisibility: Increasing OPSEC (Posted May 23-26, 2023.  See: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.) He will receive the following prizes:

  1. EBL is providing an EBL Voyager 500-Watt Power Station with deep cycle lithium batteries, providing reliable 120 Volt AC and DC (12 Volt and USB) power for emergencies or outdoor use. (A $399 value.)
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Montana Survival Seed is providing a $225 gift code for any items on its website, including organic non-GMO seeds, fossils, 1812-1964 US silver, jewelry, botany books, and Montana beeswax.
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.
Honorable Mention

Each Honorable Mention Prize winner has been awarded a transferable and accruable $100 FRN purchase credit toward the purchase of any antique or percussion replica gun from Elk Creek Company.

Honorable Mention Prizes go to the writers of these 13 articles:

More than $800,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

Round 107 is already underway and ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road – Part 2, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 1.)

Railroad tracks are another possible route that you could use to get home, but doing so can potentially be very dangerous – unless you’re in a grid-down scenario and you’re absolutely sure trains aren’t running then I strongly recommend you avoid them. If you can use them safely they could provide a possible route that’s typically isolated and free from obstacles. Railroad bridges are potentially less likely to be monitored or blocked, so if you need to cross a terrain feature like a river or steep gully while avoiding contact they may be a better option than road bridges. OSM and ORS do show railroad tracks as alternating white/black dashed lines is you zoom in enough, but they’re hard to identify on a wider-scale view.

A better alternative is to use the OpenRailwayMap (ORM) map, which uses color-coding to show pretty much every railroad track around the world on top of a gray-scale map. Keep in mind that the spacing on railroad ties can make it very difficult to match your stride for a comfortable walk, so you’re better off if you can find tracks with a wide right-of-way next to them. Since you’re never supposed to walk on them no available route planning software will include them in a possible route plan – when I’m route planning I’ll usually include a separate screen clip showing the major rail lines that I could use as alternate routes if the situation warrants it.Continue reading“Follow the Yellow Brick Road – Part 2, by J.M.”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. Most of these items are from JWR’s “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective. Today, we look at the impact of the pending Federal debt ceiling increase.

Precious Metals:

Why emerging markets are stocking up on gold.

o  o  o

At Gold-Eagle.com: Debt Ceiling Deal Keeps Dollar Locked in Devaluation Spiral.

Economy & Finance:

A video linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: Dave Brat: Speaker McCarthy’s Debt Limit Deal Locks In the U.S. Into a “Permanent Crisis Economy”.

o  o  o

US Corporations Are Filing For Bankruptcy At The Fastest Pace Since 2010.

o  o  o

Moody’s Analytics: Skyrocketing Rents Across U.S. Far Outpace Income Growth.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“By liberty is understood, according to the proper signification of the word, the absence of external impediments; which impediments may oft take away part of a man’s power to do what he would, but cannot hinder him from using the power left him according as his judgment and reason shall dictate to him.” – Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 1, 2023

On June 1st, 1907, English aviation engineer and pilot Frank Whittle was born.  He was the inventor of the turbojet engine.

—

Ready Made Resources is running a special on Elbit PVS-14 Gen 3 autogated white phosphor night vision monocular/weapon sights. They are giving a free upgrade from 1,900 Figure of Merit (FOM) to a hand-selected 2,200 FOM. (That is a $250 value.)  This special offer ends next Monday (June 5th, 2023.)  Please mention SurvivalBlog when you order, to get the 2,200 FOM upgrade. I should mention that Ready Made Resources has been a loyal SurvivalBlg advertiser since the early days of the blog — September, 2005. They have excellent customer service.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present the first entry for Round 107 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  5. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  6. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795.
  2. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. A $300 gift certificate from Good2Goco.com, good for any of their products: Home freeze dryers, pressure canners, Country Living grain mills, Emergency Essentials foods, and much more.
  4. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Montana Survival Seed is providing a $225 gift code for any items on its website, including organic non-GMO seeds, fossils, 1812-1964 US silver, jewelry, botany books, and Montana beeswax.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $800,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 107 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road – Part 1, by J.M.

In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s mantra is “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home”, and the entire movie is pretty much about her following a yellow brick road to get there. Many of us spend a good chunk of our lives away from home, whether it’s at work, on vacation, visiting family or friends, or just going on a camping, hunting or fishing trip. If you spend any amount of time more than a few miles (or kilometers) away from your home or bug-out location (BOL), there’s a chance that an emergency or disaster might strike while you’re away, requiring you to travel your own personal yellow brick road to get back. While there have been a number of articles by myself and others in SurvivalBlog.com about kitting out a Get Home Bag (GHB), less attention has been paid to planning how you would get back to your home or BOL. The purpose of this article is to provide some tips and guidance to help you plan your journey home from wherever you may be when disaster strikes.

Documentation

Unless you’re blessed with an eidetic memory or you only ever travel to one of two nearby locations, you’re going to need some method of creating, storing, organizing, and updating get-home route plans. I highly recommend Joplin, which is a free open-source note-taking tool that supports formatted text, embedded images, attached files, and many other features, and is available for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. It also supports synchronization of all notes (and hence your route plans) between multiple devices using a wide range of cloud services. This allows me to create and manage my get-home route plans on my desktop computer and easily access them on my mobile device when I’m on the road.

Note that once you’ve created a route plan you’ll need to run Joplin on your mobile device to synchronize a local copy, which you’ll want to do before you start traveling, since Internet access will probably be one of the first things to go in many disasters. I have a Nextcloud personal cloud service running on a Raspberry Pi on my home network for synchronizing Joplin (among other things), so I don’t have to worry about anyone else reading my notes, and Joplin also supports strong end-to-end encryption to protect my data in transit. I’ve created a Joplin template that I use every time I create a new route plan; it has predefined sections for everything I want to cover.Continue reading“Follow the Yellow Brick Road – Part 1, by J.M.”

May 2023 in Precious Metals by Steven Cochran

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance and the factors that affected gold prices.

What Did Gold Do in May?

Gold had a rollercoaster ride again in May, but when all was said and done, it had lost less than 1%. Gold prices hit an intraday high of $2,085 in Europe on May 4th but opened in New York at $2,055. It settled at the same level, marking the closing high for the month in the US.

Gold closed above $2,000 for the first time since April 25th on May 2nd. It remained above $2,000 through May 15th. It spent the last half of the month in a spiral downward, posting losses on 8 out of 10 sessions. It managed to overcome a nine-week low to end $14 higher on May 30th, bringing the closing price for the month to $1,977.Continue reading“May 2023 in Precious Metals by Steven Cochran”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, we look at ham radio emergency communications.

The Vintage Radio Enthusiasts Prepping for Disaster

Over at Commander Zero’s Notes From The Bunker blog: Article – No cellphone? No problem! The vintage radio enthusiasts prepping for disaster.

Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES)

Over at the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) website, there is a good description of program open to all licensed hams: Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES).

The American Redoubt Radio Operators Network (AMRRON)

In case you haven’t yet visited the site:, maintained by John Jacob Schmidt: The American Redoubt Radio Operators Network (AMRRON).

World Air Pollution Map

This Granite Grok graphic was linked at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: Where the Air Pollution Is.

The Least Populated US Counties

Roger sent us this: The Least Populated US Counties. And for those who want to dig deeper on population figures: U.S. Population Density Mapped.

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — May 31, 2023

Actor/director/producer Clint Eastwood was born May 31, 1930.

—

On May 31, 1921, the Tulsa Race Riot destroyed a 35-square block section of the city nicknamed “Black Wall Street.” At least 75 people were killed — mostly black. Some were shot and some died in structure fires. The initial shootout took the lives of 10 whites and two blacks. The riots that followed were more lopsided in the other direction. There were even firebombings and shootings from the cockpits of private planes. The incident left a stain on the history of Tulsa, largely because some Tulsa police officers were complicit and/or took part in the retaliatory murders.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present the final entry for Round 106 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  5. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  6. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795.
  2. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  3. A $300 gift certificate from Good2Goco.com, good for any of their products: Home freeze dryers, pressure canners, Country Living grain mills, Emergency Essentials foods, and much more.
  4. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. EBL is providing an EBL Voyager 500-Watt Power Station with deep cycle lithium batteries, providing reliable 120 Volt AC and DC (12 Volt and USB) power for emergencies or outdoor use. (A $399 value.)
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Montana Survival Seed is providing a $225 gift code for any items on its website, including organic non-GMO seeds, fossils, 1812-1964 US silver, jewelry, botany books, and Montana beeswax.
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $800,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 106 ends on May 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

More About Elder Care, by Hollyberry

When I completed my first article about mom’s health emergency, she was progressing fine and on the road back to good health. Two days after submitting the article to SurvivalBlog, my mom crashed hard. One of her  neighbors texted me, and left a voicemail. We were out walking the dogs and when I saw the text and heard the message, my heart sank.

Mom went to the hospital with breathing issues and pain, by ambulance. I waited a bit and called the emergency room and was able to speak with the nurse who assured me mom was stable and now comfortable and tests were being performed. She also said mom told me not to come down to New Jersey. Mom was admitted with congestive heart failure and blood clots in both legs. Not good but the overall prognosis was encouraging. Lesson learned: Keep praying. I can’t let myself relax too much and think everything is going well. It may be going well today but believe me, tomorrow can be a totally different story.Continue reading“More About Elder Care, by Hollyberry”