The Prepper Podcast

Relying on Your Bushcraft Skills Instead of Breakable Gear Interview with Brian Adey, Author of the book, The Adventure of a Lifetime Background: Brian an author, high school teacher, and outdoors man.  He has been active in the outdoors from childhood, but has been actively honing his bushcraft/survival skills for the past two years.  He is a firm believer in the saying, “Use your gear, but rely on your skills.” He is Bushclass Basic certified through BushcraftUSA Forums, and is working on his Bushclass Intermediate certification. Message Body and Questions: How did you first become interested in bushcraft? What is the difference or similarity between the term bushcraft and wilderness survival? You believe in the saying, “Use your gear, but rely on your skills.”  Explain why you love this quote, and what it means. What is the most important outdoor/bushcraft skill that someone can learn? firecraft. Why do you think that skills are far more important than gear?     Where would you recommend people who are interested in learning bushcraft skills start (as far as training is concerned)? * Knife use * Firecraft * knots You have written a bushcraft themed novel.  Where can people find it? Link to His Book: The Adventure of a Lifetime What initially made you want to write a bushcraft-themed novel? You have a helpful place for people wanting to know more about bushcraft.  What is it? BushcraftUSA Forums – a wealth of bushcraft info, and free access to Bushclass USA (for members – free to be a member) https://bushcraftusa.com/forum/ Just to make things interesting, would you be willing to Provide a Giveaway?     Link to His Book: The Adventure of a Lifetime What Item willing to give away: A paperback copy of my book and a custom firesteel with a hand-lathed zebrawood handle. I have an amazing survival training site coming out at bestsurvivalskillstraining.com.  Would you be willing to contribute amazing content or a ridiculous deal for everyone that joins the site? I can contribute awesome content! 114: Brian Adey Interview on Bushcraft from Ken Jensen Where can everyone find you or learn more about you? Bushcraftusaforum badey  

Random, Yet Amazing Things You MUST Know as a Prepper Interview with David Kershner, Author of the 3-Part, and soon to be 4, Book Series “Foreign and Domestic” Background: David Kershner is a husband, father of two teenage daughters, avid outdoorsman (hunting, fishing, camping, hiking). Passionate about self reliance, self sufficiency, and preparedness. Grow as much of my own food as possible while stuck in an urban environment. Wrote a fictional series dealing with the collapse of the food system which leads to financial collapse and terrorism. Each book provides information on a wide range of preparedness topics: food prep and storage (root cellar), heirloom seed procurement and harvesting, medicinal herb uses, emergency medical, independence, alt energy, BOB, BOL, Farming…   Message Body and Questions: There are people out there that think that they HAVE TO HAVE carbs in their diets.  They love to make bread.  Packets of yeast last a year at best. What do you do? Simple, make yeast water. Here’s how: Take some pieces of fruit, cut up, with the skin on. Fill a jar about half way with that. Then pour a couple cups of spring or filtered water over top until it’s about three quarters full. Just don’t use alkaline water. Put the lid on loosely, or some cheesecloth, and then let it sit somewhere warm for a few days. The yeast and the carbohydrates that are already in the fruit will start to react to one another. After a couple of days there should be bubbles, that’s how you’ll know if it worked. If you have some sugar you can add some to force a faster reaction. When you want to make some leavened bread, replace the individual yeast and water ingredients from the recipe with the yeast water and voilà, you’ll get a nice fluffy loaf… with a hint of apple, or pear, or peach, or raisin, or whatever you used. I’ve tried it. It works. I have a podcast all about harvesting and storing water on episode 87, theprepperpodcast.com/087.  But you have a simple calculation to measure the gallons people can collect from roof tops.  How do people know how much they can catch? Assuming that you are catching the rainwater that falls on your home, or some structure, measure the total square footage of all roof lines (Example: (length x width) + (length x width) + (length x width) = total sq footage). You don’t need to worry about the pitch. I have three rooflines that equal 812 sq ft. Now multiply the total sq footage by the average rainfall for the months where rainfall is being collected. In my area it’s 22.5 in. That gives me 18,270. Now multiple that by the conversion fraction of 0.623. That equation tells me that I can conceivably capture 11,382.21 gallons of water during those months. (812 x 22.5 x 0.623 = 11,382.21) Now go buy some rain barrels or an underground cistern to hold as much as possible and you and your garden will never be thirsty again. If someone were thinking about stockpiling some barter items, what do you recommend? Where would you start? I recommend that you start with the three “A’s”. Alcohol, ammo, and antibiotic. Granted in that order, the alcohol will lead to the bullet wound which will necessitate the antibiotic. After that I’d look to the three “S’s”. Seeds, sewing, sharpening. Most everyone will need seeds eventually, especially those that don’t know how to harvest seeds. Clothing will wear out and darning will become a necessity. Axes and knives and chainsaw chains (assuming there is fuel) all need to be sharpened. A modest supply of sharpening stones and files will be a sought after commodity. Other than that, every time you go near canning supplies, grab a package of canning lids. The rims and jars can be reused, but the lids are a consumable commodity. In episode 82, theprepperpodcast.com/082 I talk about communities.   Before SHTF,

Legal Pitfalls when Purchasing Your Bug-Out Location (BOL) Purchasing a Bug-Out Location (BOL) is a perfect example of a property that can be placed at the muzzle end of a “legal firing squad” Not only will you purchase a property that you may not be too familiar with, but you also will not be able to manage the property as well as a local resident of the area. Avoid These Common Legal Nightmares on Your Property Because of the reduced management and amount of items that can cause you a headache, you should take the time to cover your behind.  Here are a few legal items to avoid when you purchase land. (Note: I AM NOT AN ATTORNEY AND DO NOT GIVE LEGAL ADVICE, this is only for personal information, always check with your laws.)  Boundary Conflicts – Fighting over property lines between neighbours. Multiple Property Sales – People selling the same property multiple times. Illegal Residents – Squatters or people staying on your property without permission. Property Destruction or Theft – Vandalism or people stealing your stuff on the property. Livestock Disputes – Fighting about who the livestock belongs to. Illegal Sales – Many different ways that people can sale illegally, such as some short sales. Land Use and Resource Rights – Getting legal use of your property, access to your property, and the resources on the property. Leasing of Land – What rights you have, and actions you should take when improving leased land. Home Owners Associations – Government in its lowest form.  Always opt-out. Don’t Get Stuck in These Situations Avoid any of these items when purchasing a property.  The items I listed are actually the most common cases brought to court, so obviously, are a big issue. Just knowing that these problems exist and what they are should help you identify them and, hopefully, avoid them. Simple Tips to Help You Avoid Boundary Disputes on Your Bug Out Location. Boundary disputes are extremely common in the court system.  It usually happens in rural areas, which is typically where you would have a BOL (Bug Out Location). Your Fence line is NOT Your Boundary. Learn It or Be Sued. Many people assume that their boundaries are where their fences lie.  If you think this is true, you could lose a bunch of your property. You may have access to water features, fields, forests or other amazing resource cut off from you if you don’t have valid proof that you own it. This is an easy thing to fix.  You can use a couple tools at your disposal to prove the land boundaries. Use a GPS for Easy Self-Surveying Take a field GPS with you and walk the property fence lines.  The GPS data can be uploaded and places on a public sourced map, such as Google.   You don’t even have to spend any money on this survey If you then look at public assessment data and past survey info, you can overlay the property lines onto the same map. Now you have the ability to see if the fence lines follow the property.   You don’t even have to spend any money on this survey, except for the cost of a GPS if you don’t borrow one! Hire a Surveyor for a Legal Proof of Ownership Just hire someone to give you a valid, legal survey for the property.  They typically don’t cost much more than $200-$800 based on location. Provide yourself with evidence of ownership This will provide you with evidence of ownership if someone ever tries to dispute it with you. While you are doing this, ask for the surveyor to pull the historic survey maps on the property.  This will be your proof of a legitimate survey,

Don’t overpay or regret your decisions. This may be simple, but many people do it wrong.  Don’t get too emotional when purchasing your property and well ahead of the time that you look at purchasing land, spend a bit of time assessing the area and the typical market value and assessment values, so you aren’t robbed in the transaction. Look at the wrong things, and you could pay down the road!!! You could end up at the wrong end of a disaster or lawsuit, so watch your back.  You need to do your homework on the following items. Price of the Property / Budget Property Layout Legal Problems Geographic Location and Environmental Risks Hobbies, Enjoyment, Lifestyle Current Residents Why would you need to consider all of these things?  Most people will maintain a bug out property for a while with the intention of turning it into a home, homestead, or farmstead.   Even if you decide that you don’t want to live on your BOL full time, when SHTF, you may be forced to.  If you follow all the steps I mention here, you will choose the perfect location for a Bug-Out Location or for a Homestead. Today, We will be covering price and layout. Simple techniques to assess price for your BOL or Survival Property Don’t lose the farm because you chose the wrong one!  Know what the heck you can afford and what you can’t. Simple and Amazing Budgeting For Bug Out Location Purchases If you don’t make smart choices when purchasing a Bug Out Location (BOL), you could eventually lose it because you couldn’t afford it in the first place. Do you want to know what you can afford?  I have a simple technique that can tell you something that is affordable according to what your income is. Don’t Listen to the Lenders! Typically, Lenders tell you that a mortgage payment with Principle, Interest, Taxes and Insurance (PITI) added together should be 28% of your monthly income.  Don’t do this.  This is an overextension of the typical person today.  This doesn’t even cover the total price. Your First Purchase Your first home price should not exceed your yearly income and the Monthly PITI should be no more than 20% of your taxable income. Your First Purchase Shouldn’t Break the Bank Your first home price should not exceed your yearly income and the Monthly PITI should be no more than 20% of your taxable income. If you make $50,000 a year, then you shouldn’t purchase a home that exceeds this cost (I give a 5% deviation here).  If you have a decent credit score, your mortgage will end up being $400 – $500 a month which will be somewhere around 10% of your monthly income. Always provide a down-payment of 20%. Always provide a down-payment of 20%, when you can.  This will bring the monthly cost down to 2-300 dollars.  It is totally worth it. If you have horrible credit and no down payment, then you may achieve 20% of your monthly income, but you should consider if this is wise. Don’t Endure Financial Strain after Your Bug Out Land Purchase I am assuming that you already have rent or a mortgage payment that is eating up some of your income. Your secondary location should be no more than half of your yearly income, and should cost less than 10% of your Monthly income.  So your BOL should cost you (assuming you still earn $50,000 per year) less than $25,000 total and less than $500 per month.  With decent credit, this would actually be around 2-3 hundred dollars per month. Cheap Land with a Large Down Payment will make your Bug Out Location affordable. You will have to achieve this one of the following ways. Choose Cheap Land – This option doesn’t mean that you don’t get what you want.  You can get creative on how you will achieve this with repossessions or land that needs some TLC or work.

Choosing an Amazing Bug-Out Location (BOL) 9 Cheap and Effective BUG OUT LOCATIONS (BOLs) The best bug out locations cost very little, they will get you through most disasters. Most are not what you would expect to be a good bug out destination. Possible Bug-Out Locations (BOLs): A Hotel Cheap Studio Apartment Your Family Your Friends Land of Friends/Family Campgrounds Wilderness Retreat RV or Camper Purchasing Your Own Land Hotels are Great for Short Term Bug-Outs If you have a small scale emergency, try a hotel. You should have contact information of hotels in your town.  Have information up to 2 hours in each direction from your home.  You will already be booked, while others are scrambling to find a place. Hotels are perfect for house fires, flooding, or something else that only effects your home. Keep an emergency fund in cash.  If you have a $1000 fund, paying for a place would be easy. Depending on the disaster, hotels may be covered under insurance. A Cheap Studio Apartment is a Strategic Bug-Out Location (BOL) A great Bug-Out Location (BOL) would be a place you love or that you like to visit a lot? If you can find a great studio apartment for a cheap price, it may be a good idea to rent it.  You can use the apartment as a vacation spot, and it is another location you can go to in an emergency. Your Family can Come to the Rescue Family can provide you with a place to stay. In most emergencies, you just need to find a place to go that has an established life support system. Make a deal with your family, before an emergency occurs: They provide you with a place to go, and you will do the same. Build up a good amount of gear or provisions to provide your basic needs, and bring it with you so you are less of a burden You Could Stay With Friends… For a While If you need a local place to stay for a short time: less than a week or two, then friends could help you out. Make a deal with your family, before an emergency occurs: They provide you with a place to go, and you will do the same. If You Can’t Use Their House, You May Be Able to Use Their Land Reasons that your friends or family may not be able to provide you with a place in their home would be: Financial shortcomings Lack of space and food Because they don’t like you (c’mon now) Your friends can still be good, helpful people.   They may have land that is large enough for them to provide you the ability to set up your shelter on their land.  RVs would be a great option in this circumstance. Recreation Vehicles (RV) or Campers are a Great Option RVs and Campers may be poor homes, but when you compare it to freezing your butt off in a tent during the icy cold winter, they are amazing. You could be having a decent night’s sleep on your tiny mattress, in an air conditioned shelter, instead of sleeping on the ground with all the critters and crawlers. RVs and Campers may be used on campgrounds instead of staying with friends or family With a small amount of work, they can go completely off-grid. Another use for that RV is a traveler and place to stay on vacations! Campgrounds are a Convenient Way to Camp Campgrounds may not be at the top of your list, but they aren’t all bad. You can comfortably us a Camper or Tent.  They have nice flat and level surfaces. AC is available as well at many of them.  Here are a few nice comfort items you can run from a camp-side power receptacle: Fan Small AC unit Basic Lighting Heated blankets Air Mattress Pumps Small Water Pumps Wilderness Destinations are Rough, but an Option Most people don’t go more than a few miles in.

Long Term Group Survival and Rebuilding after a Stink Hit the Fan (SHTF) Scenario Pay Attention to Three Things First to Ensure Early Group Success Although this is more about the long term, how are you going to get to “the long term?”  Individuals will see to their shelters early on, so you need to focus on three key areas as a community to ensure success. Attaining Food and Water A strong defense strategy Medical Capabilities Food Procurement and Water Source Location is Key Hunting parties and Gatherers will find early sources of food.  Ration food well! Water is extremely important, and you need to set up to an abundant supply, such as rivers, lakes, streams, underground springs, etc. Strong Defense Strategies will Help You More than You Realize At this time in the world, there are limited supplies.  Everyone will be fighting for those supplies.  You will need a great early defense strategy to protect early key people and your supplies and storage. Medical Capabilities will Keep You Alive This is a harsh time.  Everyone is tired, thirsty, and malnourished.  Sickness and injuries will be large.  Medical is a must. See to All of Your Needs in a Long Term Survival Scenario When you get past the initial stages of your group’s survival, things will settle just a bit.  Spirits will pick up, but everyone will still be struggleing.  People will naturally start falling into place. For the leader that is prepaired, you can use the group dynamic to ensure total survival.  You MUST pay attention to the following aspects of your community’s survival. Food and Water Shelters Security Medical Power Communication Food and Water: Keep Your Energy Levels and Hydration Up You need to keep everyone energetic and hydrated to ensure total productivity.  You do this by keeping people fed and hydrated.  You also do this by treating them as PEOPLE, not slaves. In the short term, you will be looking for water wherever you can.  Rivers, lakes, and streams are your best sources initially. You will need to send out hunters, gatherers, and trappers to obtain food.  You will need to ration, so you don’t kill out the population of animals in your area. Eventually the group will need to work on getting easier access to water supplies and filtration along with using land for food production. Skills Needed for Food and Water Builder trades, electricians, engineers or architects, and ditch diggers for water systems. Hunters/Trappers, Farmers, Ranchers, Military/Police for security, Veterinarians, auto mechanics for equipment, blacksmiths for mills or plows, and workers for gardening and harvesting are all trades that will be great for getting food. Supplies Needed for Food and Water Filtration Media and large containers for your water filtration. Land, plows, shovels, seed, scrap or iron, security items, and fencing for food. Keep the Elements off, and Have a Community Gathering Location Allow people to take care of themselves for personal, short-term shelters.  As a group, begin building community buildings and areas. In the short term, people will build or find their own shelters.  They will  create primitive shelters and use tents or tarps… whatever is available.  Some will have the ability to build nice solid structures. As the group recovers, they will need to focus on building more permanent shelters close to water and food sources and creating a center meeting point.  It could be a structure, or a nice outdoors area around a fire. Skills that Will Extremely Important for Community Shelter Needs Carpenters, builders, blacksmiths, lumberjacks, will be needed early on.  Civil engineers and security personnel will be needed as consultants for the strength and defense of the commun...

Interview with Sara F. Hathaway, Book “Day after Disaster”     Episode 13 Why are hydroelectric generators so highly recommended? Micro-hydro is one of the most efficient forms of electrical power generation. Lowest Cost per Watt of any other power generation. It is fairly easy to predict what your output would be year round, which can result in smaller battery sizes. They do have some problems: It only provides power with good flow with a decent amount of head pressure, which means it will cause problems for low flow or low elevation locations. Often I have seen that the spring or river needed is a long distance from the home it is meant to power.  This gets extremely expensive with wiring because copper is so expensive They are mechanical in nature, so they do break after a while. What are the basic mechanics of hydroelectric generators? Water is used and directed into blades called a turbine. The turbine spins and is connected to a shaft which spins a motor, sometimes direct coupled and sometimes using belts for converting low speed high torque inputs to high speed low torque outputs to the motor. How is the power converted from the generator to a useable current? The generator, if bought is usually a DC alternator generator.  This is just an AC generator with a one way switch on each phase. If built, the generator is usually AC, but then sent to a rectifier to convert it to DC. The DC is then usable by an inverter/charger which decides to either convert the DC to AC to be used, or to dump it to a battery bank for storage.  This same device can convert the stored  capacity to AC to be used when generation is down. Sometimes the controller will have to dump excess to a resister element.  There are actually hot water heater elements that were designed to convert this wasted energy to heat such as the 600 Watt 12 Volt DC Submersible Water Heater Element that I found on amazon, you can actually use an ac heater element, but as you drop voltage on those elements, you almost reduce the wattage rating by 25%! There are other ways to use a basic charge controller and consumer grade inverter as well.  It would be a little cheaper if you knew what to look for, but it can be a little more complex. What would be an easy way to create this system in a long term survival situration with only the materials you could scavenge? I have seen things built in buckets, using CDs and styrophone, and even articulated PVC devices, but I don’t think most of these are feasible for the type of systems I would build. Probably the best build would not be what you would call “easy.” One of the best builds would be a large waterwheel with a gear-ratio change driven by belts or handmade gears. The awesome thing about waterwheels is that you can couple them up to an alternator or even a mill for grinding grain. The same wheel could be used to drive a pump that will pump water a long distance… at low flow rates. If you were wanting something you could use until that was built, you could probably modify a bicycle to run an alternator, with a battery bank, and be very careful how you use your power. In our current world, if you wanted to reduce your electric bills by using hydro-electric power, what type of system would you build? The very first thing I would do it to make my home more efficient first.  Biggest bang for your buck. Then I would look at what my situation is.   Water flow spring, river, waterfall. Is it year round or seasonal How far am I from the source?

Gary Collins of The Primal Power Method about Nutrition and Preparedness Gary Collins is the creator of the Primal Power Method.  He holds degrees in exercise science, criminal justice, and forensic science. Gary was in Military Intelligence, worked for the U.S. State Department, the Dept. of Health and Human Services and was an FDA special agent. He is a master level personal trainer specializing in fitness nutrition, exercise therapy, strength and conditioning, youth and senior fitness. Simplify Your Life by Building an Off-Grid Home Building an Off-Grid Home is Simple, but Is It Easy??? Building an off-grid home is not as simple as most prepping websites want you to believe, because then they wouldn’t be able to sell you their crappy plans. Gary is building one. We talk about how his project is going, and what lessons he has learned along the way. Simplify Your Life with Off-Grid Living Gary and I talk about different ways you can simplify your life, and if going off grid is a good option for you.  We also talk about Gary’s future projects and announcements. How Big Should an Off-Grid Home Be? Gary gives tips on the size of an off-grid home, not only for comfort and realism.  But for entertaining guests, and for RESALE! Waste Treatment Systems for a “Sellable” Off-Grid Home Use septic systems for your off-grid home to make the permits and bank involvement much easier to deal with.  It is basically just a composting toilet in the ground. If you still want composting toilets, then have at it, but Gary warns against this. Amazing Security Systems are in Your Grasp! Gary explains the amazing wireless camera system that he uses, the Bushnell 8MP Trophy Game Camera, and how you can use it for monitoring your remote location. He sent me a link to the boxes he uses around his property as well: http://www.camlockbox.com/ He also explains the tough but necessary fence he had to build around his property to deter theft. Exit Strategies You MUST Consider when Building Your Off-Grid House We discuss the different things you should consider so your home is easy to sell, if you must.  Just because you plan to live there forever, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have an exit strategy. Gary Agrees to Contribute to my Upcoming Survival Training Website Gary has agreed to be a contributor to my survival skills training website at http://bestsurvivalskillstraining.com/. How can you connect with Gary Collins? For people just starting off, try http://www.primalpowermethod.com/start-here/ 107: Off-Grid Living with Gary Collins from Ken Jensen

Nutrition, Health, Exercise; and Their Effect on the Prepper or Survivalist Lifestyle  Preparedness is a huge undertaking.  The journey of preparing can never actually be finished.  It is a mountain without a top.  It is a lifestyle. The amount of things you have to do as a survivalist is so much, it can overwhelm you and destroy your health. If you don’t take care of your health, your energy levels, your mental clarity, and your quality of life will take a nosedive destroying your efficiency and preparedness levels. Gary Collins of The Primal Power Method about Nutrition and Preparedness Gary Collins is the creator of the Primal Power Method.  He holds degrees in exercise science, criminal justice, and forensic science. Gary was in Military Intelligence, worked for the U.S. State Department, the Dept. of Health and Human Services and was an FDA special agent. He is a master level personal trainer specializing in fitness nutrition, exercise therapy, strength and conditioning, youth and senior fitness.   A Verified Way to Kick Your Health and Self-Reliance up a Notch Today, Gary and I discuss many different aspects of health and wellness.  We discuss how fitness and survivalism go hand in hand. We explain the Primal Power Method and how it relates to the Survivalist lifestyle. Exercising for Fun and For Fitness 106: Primal Power Method and Functional Fitness, Gary Collins from Ken Jensen We discuss running for health, fat burning, and the ketogenic state.  I even discuss what a typical run day is like for me. Fat Burning and Performance Gain can oppose each other, so we discuss how to achieve both. “Bullet-proof coffee” is easy to make.  We discuss an easy recipe, but Gary disagrees with me on the usefulness of it. Exercise doesn’t have to be a drag!  I ask Gary how we can all create a fun plan for basic functional fitness, and a sport we both enjoy… Mountain Biking. How can you connect with Gary Collins? For people just starting off, try http://www.primalpowermethod.com/start-here/ Questions with Gary Collins For those who are unfamiliar with you can you explain the Primal Power Method and how it relates to the Survivalist lifestyle? I run a bit.  I can run over 10 miles straight and will be doing a half-marathon at the end of February.  I usually run in the mornings while my body is in a ketogenic state to burn fat a little more. I believe you call this, intermittent fasting.  So a breakdown of a typical “run day” goes like this: I wake up around 4 and drink a glass of water I run my mileage for the day On an intense day, I immediately drink a 4-8 oz glass of chocolate milk and eat a banana Skip that step on non-intense days. Next, I have bullet proof coffee, but I cheat a little. It is a tbsp. Kerry gold butter, 3-4 tbsp of coconut oil, a tbsp. vanilla, and 1-2 tbsp honey, 19 oz coffee Questions: Explain Ketosis and the Ketogenic state and its benefits and how intermittent fasting plays a role in this. How do I keep burning this fat, but at the same time, don’t lose the performance gain from the running? Do I destroy the benefits of the intermittent fasting as soon as I eat the banana and drink the chocolate milk? I know you are a member of the IMBA.  What kind of mountain biking do you do? How can others create a fun workout routine that will prov...

Get a Comfortable Bug Out Bag of Proper Size Are you a minimalist who keeps little more than a granola bar in your bag, or do you feel that you need to fit a Skyscraper, 300 band aids, an AK-47, and a puppy in it? If you follow my tips, it doesn’t matter what size Bug Out Bag (BOB) you want.  You will be able to find it. Get a Lightweight Pack that will Hold Everything You Need You need to carry enough gear that will cover most scenarios without overdoing it. When Feet Become Miles, Ounces Become Pounds If you go hiking much, you know one simple mantra: “When feet become miles, ounces become pounds.” By following this guide, you can determine what size pack is best for you. Nights Capacity Bag Weight (Gear Not Included) 1-2 20-50 Liters 1.5 – 4.5 Lbs 2-3 50-60 Liters 2.5 – 5 Lbs 3-5 60-80 Liters 2.5 – 5+ Lbs 5+ 80+ Liters 4 – 6+ Lbs Based on the chart I have given you, determine what you need in capacity. A few things to keep in mind: Bigger isn’t always better. Bug Outs are stressful and are not the time for added weight. My recommendation: Learn skills, reducing gear, reducing size and weight. The typical person would do well to grab a 50-60 liter pack for most situations. Proper Fit is Important, Choose a Pack that Fits You To obtain the proper fitting pack, measure your torso, NOT OVERALL HEIGHT.  This is the only real way to measure for one. Your body design is different than everyone else. Measuring for a pack is easy Most manufacturers will use a measurement from the the base of your neck to your hipbone. Women and Children’s designs are different than men’s.  The straps have different shapes and the torso sizing is different.  Don’t get the wrong pack because “it’ll be alright.” The following is a basic chart for a typical manufacturer: Torso Length Size Up to 15.5 inches XS 16-17.5 Inches S 18-19.5 Inches M / Regular 20+ Inches L / Tall   Get to Your Gear Easily when it Matters by choosing the right pack! You don’t want to unload every bit of the contents in your bag just to get to your gear.   When it matters most, you can get to your gear by choosing the right pack and understanding its parts.  Choose one that organizes and compartmentalizes everything so it is easy to get to your stuff. How to Pack Your Bug Out Bag for Long Distance Trekking Airlines don’t do it.  You wouldn’t do it to your automobile. Don’t place all of your gear on one side or in one pocket.  Give thought to weight distribution so you don’t strain your back and shoulders. Easily Carry Your Gear, With a Properly Packed Bag Hiking packs are designed for long trekking, and have a somewhat standard design based on years of research.  Many times they will have the same pockets on them.  These are the basic compartments of most hiking packs. Main Compartment Sleeping Bag Compartment Water Bottle Pockets Hip-Belt Pockets Top Lid Pocket Front Pocket Main Compartment Can Hold the Bulk of Your Items The main compartment is large and will easily carry the bulk of your items.   Because it is so large and has very little additional dividers, it is a versatile pocket for large items. But, it is a little more difficult to pack.   It is also more difficult to get to your gear quickly, so you will want to pack items that you don’t need constant access to in it.

Easily Choose Your Favorite Bug Out Bag with the Perfect Frame The perfect bug-out bag is essential for success If you are bugging out, you have chosen a bad situation over a worse one. Assume that nothing else will go as planned. Even if your original plan was to drive where you needed to go, you could end up hiking up the side of a mountain with a monstrous pack on your back. A well designed bag will reduce the amount of problems you will face in this extreme circumstance. Choose a Design to Meet Your Needs Every person is unique in their needs and their preferences.  There are advantages and disadvantages to each type of bag.   Choose the correct bag style, and boost yours. Tactical assault Backpacks It is obvious when someone has a tactical backpack on.  Most of them are all black, drab or olive green, or camouflage. They are extremely durable. Tactical Backpacks are great because they are designed to get to any and all gear at any time.  Almost every pocket unzips enough to open the bag all the way, enough to lay it flat on a table and work out of. They do have a few problems.   Many people that purchase them, don’t get one with a frame.  A few miles down the road, they will probably regret that. Tactical bags scream, “LOOK AT ME!  IM PREPARED WITH LIFESAVING EQUIPMENT!  TAKE IT!” Hiking Packs Hiking Packs usually come with the ability to carry a lot of gear.  Most of them come with well-designed frames to help carry the weight correctly. These bags are designed for heavy weight and are durable.  If you have 30 pounds of gear, then this pack is for you. The only issue I have with these bags is the amount of thought that will have to go into packing them.  They aren’t designed to get to everything at any time. You have a few pockets designed for this purpose, but the main pocket will be thoughtfully packed, and therefore completely unpacked when you get gear out of it. These are usually some bright color as well.  Instead, find dark, mute or dull colors that don’t draw attention to the eyes. Book Bags This is only on here because many people have these.  They are not durable, nor are they well designed.  Don’t waste Your Money. Duffel Bags People have decided to use this type of bag because it has much more storage room than a backpack.  The downfall of a duffel is the difficulty of carrying it on long journeys. This bag is a good option to go in a vehicle to help keep things organized. Whatever Packs You Have Why is this even a category?  I must be nuts to include this.  All I am doing is explaining why you would use a book bag or other poor design. Maybe you don’t have money for a new fancy bag.  Don’t worry about it!  USE WHAT YOU HAVE.  A poorly designed BOB is better than no BOB. Just remember to upgrade to something of better quality when you have an opportunity. A Great BOB Frame Can Help You Hike for Hours You are listening to the radio, when you hear about an uprising happening close to you.  You grab you duffel bag and a tactical backpack and throw it in your bug-out-mobile to get out of dodge. On your route out of town, you get stranded in a riot.  You left your car and your duffel because you decided to bug out on foot. One problem… 5 miles into your march, your our shoulders get sore, your back gets tired, and your knees get weak. Keep Your Bag from Being Your Weakest Link This is a common problem for someone that is hiking with a bag that isn’t designed for it.  You really need to keep a framed pack meant to distribute weight and keep it close to your center of gravity. If you don’t choose the correct frame for you, you could be the recipient of severe consequences. Frames to Help Stabilize Your Gear

Should You Bug In, or Bug Out? You have learned from the best… You have a well-stocked bug out bag.  You have a keen eye and can pay attention to everything in your surroundings. You listen to all the local radio streams and know everything that is going on around you. You can get out of dodge right away, before most people even knows what has happened. But leaving your home, also known as bugging out, is a big deal. You have a much better chance of survival if you stay in your primary residence, or Bug-In.   Only leave, as a last resort, when absolutely necessary. Terrible Disasters that will Require Bugging Out If absolutely necessary, you may finally commit to bugging out. The purpose of bugging out is to get out of the way of a threat or great danger that will become a real problem if you stay where you are at. These threats can be natural or social disasters.  If a disaster happens, don’t wait until it is too late to make a decision. Natural Disasters Happen, Be Ready for Them Natural Disasters are proven to occur, many times without warning.  You may be required to bug out in many different natural disasters. Fire Tornado or Hurricane Volcano Earthquake Flood Social Creatures create Social Disasters, React Quickly Because we are constantly designing and testing new things, people create their own disasters.  Because we are social creatures, we get caught up in “mob mentality.” Mob Mentality, our creativity, our social structures, and our own greed are the causes of a large number of disasters. Nuclear Disasters Economic Collapse Civil Unrest If you don’t choose quickly, you may suffer extremely! It is extremely important to decide early when to leave and when to stay.  You must be resolute in your decision as well. If you don’t know what to do before hand, you won’t decide quickly enough.  If you don’t decide quickly, you will probably pay the consequences. The problem could catch up to you. You could get stuck in traffic. You could fail to get the necessary gear. Getting Home is usually more important than the well-known “getting out of dodge.” Over half of your day is probably spent away from home.  You need a “Get Home Plan” just as badly as you need a Bug out Plan. Always be prepared for bad stuff to happen when you are NOT at home.  The same ways that you would plan to leave danger, you must be ready to go home. There are many reasons that you do not want to bug out. Don’t leave a comfortable home for sub-par shelter in a remote place that you don’t know. Just because you can bug out, doesn’t mean you should! 11 Reasons NOT to Bug Out Bugging out should only be done if absolutely necessary, which doesn’t happen very often.  Here are eleven reasons why: Gear is Heavy and You aren’t that Strong The strongest person alive can only carry so much gear in a bag.   You will run out of food, and the weight of your gear adds up quickly. Your home has the room for storing lots of emergency supplies.  Your bag doesn’t. Parked Vehicles Don’t Break Down Vehicles fail at the worst possible time.  Tires too. Even if you have the best maintained car around, you could get stuck in traffic with your vehicle and trailer full of food.  Say goodbye to your supplies. You have a better chance of leaving your vehicle stranded on road than making it all the way to your BOL. First Aid Needs a Clean, Secure Shelter I will take you to a hospital if you get hurt… not stables. They are cleaner and provide climate protection. When bugging out, you can be stuck out in the wilderness for days or weeks without the ability to move. Which one do you prefer???

Don’t Allow Fear to Define You If I allowed my fear to take over, then I never would have started my business. Fear would keep me from taking action.  People fear failure, because they don’t really know what it is. You Are Wrong, THEY Taught You WRONG! The basic definition of failure in Merriam-Webster dictionary is the “Omission of occurrence or performance or Lack of success or falling short.”   This is because, popular opinion dictates what is written… that and money.  Your parents taught this to you as well. Don’t Let THEIR Ignorance Define You Redefine the word failure. Instead of lack of success or non-performance, we can define it as just part of the process on the path to success Instead of something done wrong or messed up, we can redefine it as innovation lessons or character building exercises Thomas Edison’s teachers told him he was “too stupid to learn anything.” Oprah Winfrey was fired from a job as an anchor is Baltimore. Failure is a Learning Opportunity for the Awesome Learn from your failures.  This will provide you with success.  You now know what NOT to do. Fail NOW Before it is Too Late Fail while you still have the main availability of your current income streams. You aren’t getting younger.  Decisions and consequences get harder, the older you get.  If you put off what you need to do, the problem will grow.  If you get moving today, the results will get bigger as well. Our current situations in the U.S. are more forgiving that those you are preparing for.  It will not get “better” without work on your part. You aren’t emotional.  Doing it when times are decent and you have a steady income stream will allow you to make level headed rational decisions, and then learn from any mistakes made. You are learning new skills and knowledge when you fail. You can make it a learning opportunity because you are rational Who knows?  You may even accidentally succeed! Respect Failure, Don’t Fear Failure, Reduce Failure Don’t fear it to the point of inaction, just enough to understand the risks, how to mitigate them, your escape strategy. Everyone Can Use Failure and Jump Start Success, Even YOU If you overcome failure, stop making excuses, and learn from it, You would be amazed that your WIN is right around the corner. Feel it: Don’t move on too soon.  You need to allow yourself to understand that you had a failure.  Allow some time for it to sink in and for you to process the emotions. Don’t get attached to them. Reflect on it In your pause, reflect and decide what went wrong.  Was it careless, was it a trial and error. Claim Responsibility If it is your fault, don’t blame others.  If it is outside your control, don’t blame yourself. If your involvement was the cause of the failure, accept it so you can learn from it. Admit it Acknowledge your misstep, and move on so you can refocus going forward.  If you can’t admit it, you can’t fix it. Take Action Create an action plan with steps you will take to correct the problem, and how you will prevent it in the future. At this point, you don’t try, YOU DO. You learned from your mistakes and came up with a plan to fix it.  Now take action. If your actions fail, all you have to do is to come back to the steps for using failure. You Can Also Destroy Your Life and Any Chance of Recovery Do all of the following items if you don’t want to learn from your mistakes, and you never want to achieve anything. Move on Too Quickly Don’t dismiss the failure as small or trivial.  You won’t learn from something that you see as a minor issue. Blame Others and Make Excuses If you don’t take ownership, you can’t learn and correct the mistake. Really,

Christmas is an extremely important time of year! During Christmas, people have good will to others, and they tend to enjoy giving to others.  It doesn’t matter what religion you are, there is usually a great holiday this time of year. The holiday season is an excuse to be happy, and be with your family Time to shut everything down.   It is an excuse to stuff yourself.  You diet all year round, so take this time to make yourself fat, and tired due to overeating and relaxing. The holidays are an excuse to quiet yourself down Contemplate the personal, emotional, physical, and religious ideals that make this time of the year great.   What is important to you?  Are you happy or joyful with who you are and where you are in life?  If you were to pass on right now, would you be happy with your life? Christmas is a time to observe the amazing things people are doing Watch the good will others are giving to each other.  People show how much good can be done by the human race. Listen for awesome stories about people giving to the less fortunate.  Tell these stories to your children. Theft / Burglary are rampant during this season, but this is how to protect yourself. People are purchasing new items worth lots of money.  They place all this stuff in one central place, with a flashing, multicolored beacon to show where it is.  Home theft is a piece of cake during this time of year. Because of this, you should do the following items to make your home less susceptible to burglary: Always leave a light on in your home so you This will deter most people from attempting a break-in. Use an LED faux Television: You can make it look like an insomniac is at home with an LED box that flashes in such a way, it looks like there is a TV on.  A good one would be the FakeTV FTV-10 Burglar Deterrent. Lock your car while shopping This will reduce the chance that the unskilled thief will successfully break into your car and take your stuff. Hide your purchases Place all the items that you purchase in your trunk or in your hatchback with the roll out shade to cover what you have in your car.  This doesn’t help with keeping people out, but it does reduce the amount of people that will see expensive gear, thus reducing temptation to break in. Check your entrances Lock all the doors of your home and cars.  Use 2 inch screws on your strikeplates and locks to provide frame strength against “mule kicks.” Check your garage security Lock your garage and disable the manual pull.  This can be used by thieves. Lock your balcony doors Lock your balcony doors and jam them.  This is an easy entry point to the athletic. Secure your Windows Lock them.  Place 3m sheets or clear tinting on your windows to strengthen and raise thermal efficiency. Homeowners, Renters, Car Insurance You are the best driver on the road, but everyone else sucks.  Don’t get into an accident without insurance. Fires and Theft are rampant, so have homeowners or renters insurance to cover your home and stuff. Know what you have, so you know what is taken Use the Allstate Digital Locker app to organize your personal property by room, category, by item. You can also photograph items and attribute a cost and quantity to each one. The Biblical Story of Christmas Luke Chapter 2: 8-14 (Authorized King James Version):

You can’t beat today’s podcast before Christmas. Amazing Preparedness Christmas Presents for that Prepper in your life! Christmas is fast approaching and you haven’t figured out what to get your prepper spouse.  Or you want to help your children become more prepared and realize this is the perfect opportunity to get them prepared. There is only ONE MAJOR PROBLEM… No One wants a pack of Freeze Dried Food or a bag or rice or beans for Christmas! That is why I came up with an amazing list of really neat stuff that people would love to get, even if they aren’t “die-hard survivalists.” Preparedness is the Best Gift You Could Ever Give a Loved One. Giving preparedness to your family is probably the best thing you could give them.  There are many benefits of getting survival gear for Christmas. You get the FUN Prepping Gear You don’t have to follow your “5 year plan.”  You can look at the cool stuff that you WANT… just because. Introducing others to survival Even if someone isn’t a prepper, many fun gifts are survival-related.  If that person is a gadget nut, or even a hiker, you can hook them up with amazingly fun prepping gear. You can provide others with multi-purpose items I am giving my son something that he can use for preparedness AND to make money!  It is something he can use to build crafts, such as a survival paracord bracelet, and more. You can borrow the really cool survival items you chose The gift I mentioned for my son, I plan to borrow when I want to make the items that I need for my own preparedness gear.  This is a way for me to buy other people, what I want, and borrow it! Superb Stocking Stuffers for Prepping Prowess Small doesn’t mean “not-useful.”  Some of the most important survival gear can fit directly in a  sock on your Fireplace Mantle. Take notes, because you won’t want to forget these cool little items. Schrade SCPEN4BK Survival Tactical Pen with Ferro Fire-Starting Rod and Whistle Neat pen with the following: Glass Breaker Incorporated Whistle Fire Starter Replaceable Ink Cartridge Junk Silver These are essentially silver dimes, quarters, and nickels.  Don’t spend it though. UltraFire® Mini Cree 7w 300lm Led Flashlight This is one bright little flashlight!  You can also get a 3 mode version that is about 200 lumens. Zoomable Waterproof A perfect item for hiking and other outdoor sports, focus adjustable, support Zoom in and zoom out. Up to 100,000 hours long life LED Aluminum alloy body Coast HP1 Focusing 220 Lumen LED Flashlight 220 lumen light 1 hour 15 minute runtime using Li-Ion battery Uses AA or 14500 Rechargeable Batteries Aluminum Body Water Resistant One step up from the Cree Flashlight Sawyer Products Mini Water Filtration System This is good for outdoor recreation, hiking, camping, travel and emergency preparedness.