Friday, June 15, 2018

guest article-article 1 of 2 today


Cc:
GUEST ARTICLE-article 1 of 2 today 
Survival retreat considerations

The more I think on it, the more that I tend to favor the semi-nomadic survival retreat strategy. The hardened and well defended shelter approach, to me, seems largely impractical and unobtainable for the average survivalist. Of course, as I’ve stated many times before in the comments here, only those that go remote will have a shot at survival. However, the possibility of discovery still exists, and should this happen, you are compromised in the worst way possible. Better to have the flexibility to move on in the case of this unfortunate event. You will lose your husbanded labors, but better this than your life. Of course this strategy heavily relies on an effective cache system. It would also be ideal to own the land, as opposed to public land, in order to reduce the chances of your cached supplies being compromised.

I feel that post collapse desert dwellers will have a better shot at it than their wilderness brethren. The desert, being the inhospitable place that it is, will not be the first choice for many looking for easy pickens. Charles Manson, nuttier than squirrel feces in an almond orchard, though he was, knew a thing or two about a thing or two, and was said to embrace the concept of survivalism. As such, ole Chuck chose an area with the rather inhospitable name of Death Valley for his hideout retreat.

The desert dweller would do well to learn the concepts of Air Wells, Fog Fences, Dew Ponds, solar stills, solar distillation, and the reading of topographical maps. Know the location of the caves, as well as water sources in your chosen area. If your area permits successful foraging, then you’re ahead of the game. Otherwise, learning the art of stealth planting would extend your food supplies. Try to pick edible plants that are native to the area, which in all likelihood, are what you will be limited to growing. Keep it small, though in the desert, you likely won’t have a choice in the matter, and small it will be.

For shelter, this leaves limited options, since whatever you decide on must be crappy enough that you can abandon it at will, yet be good enough to protect you from the elements. Immediately, the wickiup comes to mind. There’s also its much simpler cousin, the debris shelter, that resembles a cocoon, and is small enough that it relies mostly on body heat for warmth. Some of the debris shelters that I saw, actually looked pretty cozy:


Having a few high quality tarps on hand can extend your shelter options. Caves of course are wonderful when you can find them. In cold weather, be careful about lighting fires in caves or under rock overhangs though. I’ve heard a few horror stories about the heat from the fire fracturing the rock, and burying the unfortunate resident under a few tons of stone. A cold weather sleeping bag would be a very nice item to have for the mobile survivalist. This would enable you to forgo the all telling fire for warmth. Though you still need a fire to cook and purify water at times. This is where the Dakota fire pit is advantageous.

15 comments:

  1. Yes, areas not frequented by the urban vacationing tourists or utilized much or at all by nearby country folk locals. (Fishing spots,camping spots,teen hang outs,etc) it should also be an area devoid of an economic value, thus not used-explored by capitalist ventures. For all the disdain of forest service, blm, etc. The federals keep the public lands from being over run by corporatists and inbred squatting soverigns. Rough 4x4 road access and multi miles from paved roads/utility right of way corridors. Outside of a line of sight from avenues of aproach if possible. Correct planning on a simple shelter and base, but not extravagant as it may be sacrificed (simple brush fire takes it out) caching deep and rule of threes and good to go.

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  2. I would think you could squat close to town. If memory serves me, the Atlanta bomber hid very close to the FBI headquarters and they were looking for him! He was caught by a local cop digging through a dumpster. The cop thought he was a vagrant. Having multiple caches seems the way to go.

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    1. I thought the dumpster diver was the Abortion Bomber??? I could be way off. I thought the Atlanta bomber was the patsy they tried to frame for the Olympics mess. A security guard, wasn't it, who turned himself in?

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    2. Correct Jim. The dumpster diver (eric rudolph) must have had some support-supplied-sheltered for a while but probably got put out by benefactor. Was hiding well in the woods but got exposed to an L.E.O contact. They always run people through the ringer to see what they can get on you, not friendly contacts anymore. Thus stay way clear of towns/people. It is literally illegal to be homeless/camp/dwell in vehicles. It is an eyesore for yuppies to look at, they then call their private security,a.k.a. the cops on you. The L.E.O.s will harass you away or trip you up/frame you for some unsolved crimes,etc. Go deep into hinterlands, cache deep.

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    3. One more thought.... https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/apr/11/american-hermit-caught-27-years

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  3. "For shelter, this leaves limited options, since whatever you decide on must be crappy enough that you can abandon it at will, yet be good enough to protect you from the elements."

    Excellent point.

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  4. Helpful tips for current or future desert dwellers...

    https://www.amazon.com/International-Killer-Desert-Survival-Tricks/dp/1497497205/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1529110984&sr=1-5&keywords=joseph+a+laydon

    Peace out

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  5. Well thought-out and presented essay - thank you! Great food for thought. Looking forward to any others you'd be kind enough to share with us...

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  6. Thanks to everyone, much Appreciated! This was just a comment that grew so long that it became a guest article. I see that blogger (unless Jim did it?) created a hyperlink within my article. Though it didn’t do this for the comments section.

    I do have some others in the queue. One of them is on simple shelters, the other on homesteading at sea. I’ll edit them down and post them at some point.

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    1. Hyperlink-I copied the e-mail, pasted to MS Word. Perhaps that is what did it? Hell, I don't know. I'm innocent, man!

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  7. Heavy duty teepee material - outside above ground pool bladder. Already circular in shape, when they develop leaks they are often thrown away. Cut away the walls (or keep and use the entirety as a short yurt). Very small, but would serve as a small shelter for very little cost.

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    1. Just don't use the Wal-Mart brand-probably one third the thickness :)

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  8. For the desert nomad with no home base, you should check out the book GOATWALKING - A GUIDE TO WILDLAND LIVING by Jim Corbett. Some of the book is for religious purposes, but the other is a book about wandering the desert with a small herd of goats. The goats are pretty much self sustaining, and supply the herder milk, and occasionally meat.

    It isn't my cup of tea, but it certainly had a viewpoint outside the norm.

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    1. Bought my copy three years ago, which is why it is today's featured book up top right.

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