The Wilderness Survival and Disaster Preparation Thread

[Dave P]

As I am getting older, I find myself getting more less confident in society, and am finding people's disaster prep methods interesting and useful. Anyone else in the same boat?

I guess you can never be to prepared for the most part.

http://alpha411.blogspot.ca/2012/11/100-free-survival-downloads.html

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Anyone into this? What's in your survival gear?

My main bug out bag sits beside the gun locker, and one in each vehicle

Let the paranoia and fear mongering begin haha

[nzwasp]

This sounds like the start to an episode of doomsday preppers!

[Lex350]

Dave...I have to say as I get older I feel the same way about society. The only difference is, if the shit really hits the fan in some doomsday scenario, I really don't feel the need to stick around.

[BigMass]

I can see bugging out in Europe or the US where every 10km there is another small town and parts of the US where you can live year round in a t-shirt. Where are you going to bug out in Calgary? You get out of a city and get killed by -40 degree weather and are surrounded by hundreds of miles of nothingness.

[msommers]

Not necessarily. People did live here without furnances, cars, hospitals etc for quite awhile after all. You could easily fashion furs to stay warm if you know how to.

I think having survival skills is very important if you're an outdoors person. If you're stuck out in the mountains for whatever reason for a day or up to a week, it's good to know what you need to do and what gear is useful to have. If you're a concrete jungle dweller, it doesn't really matter.

But I think bug-out-bags are a little ridiculous.

[Dave P]

Originally posted by BigMass
I can see bugging out in Europe or the US where every 10km there is another small town and parts of the US where you can live year round in a t-shirt. Where are you going to bug out in Calgary? You get out of a city and get killed by -40 degree weather and are surrounded by hundreds of miles of nothingness.

When SHTF, I dont plan on staying in Calgary. Bugging Out, Not Bugging In haha. If you are prepared, the weather should not make a difference haha.

Doesnt have to be worst case senerio either. What if your stranded on the high way in a snow storm? Get lost on a hike? etc etc.

[vengie]

To me, having a dedicated "Bug out Bag" is a little ridiculous.

I do have survival gear in my vehicle for the What If scenario, just in case.

realistically if shit did hit the fan and I needed to leave town in a hurry, I could put together a bag with survival essentials in 20mins or less, and survive just fine in the wilderness.

To me, having essential survival knowledge, and what items are necessary is much more valuable than being paranoid/ sheltering yourself from the world.

[Kloubek]

The only survival tool I need is my shotgun. Before things get super hairy, it will protect my family and I. And if things are completely out of control and society has pretty much crumbled, it will be the last thing I see.

Dual purpose machine, all contained in a tidy 3 ft frame.

[DEATH2000]

Unlike Doomsday Preppers, I think being prepared for emergencies that are actually likely to occur is a good thing. Such as snow storms, wind storms, flooding, power outages. All are things you could reasonably expect in Calgary. In any of those, staying home is the smarter option. Your house provides excellent shelter and protection. I would only leave if I had no choice or if the destruction of my house was immenint.

Hurricane Sandy should have been a good wake up call for people. After 5 days people were eating out of garbage bins because they had no food left, and emergency workers couldnt get to them. I for one, do not wish my family to eat from garbage cans. Its a really good idea to keep a supply of non perishable foods (and a can opener) seperate from your normal groceries. That way you will have it when you need it, and not unessicarily eat it. As well you should always have a supply of water just in case. You never know when your water will get shut off. One gallon per person, per day is whats normally required and its not expensive. You can buy 10L of water at Walmart or Superstore for $6~. Having someing to cook hot food like the Coleman camping grills is important. I would much rather have a hot meal then a cold one.

Hurricane Sandy also occured in November and everyone lost power, including heat. I for one enjoy staying warm and being able to see. A good supply of flashlights or lanterns is important. Extra blankets are helpful. Propane heaters are quite useful, but pose a slight risk without ventilation. Best solution is a generator (left outside) that is able to power electric heaters.


Irene, Katrina, Sandy all showed how unpreppared most people are. Those people know they live in a Hurricane area and still do nothing to prepare. They are the ones expecting FEMA to ride in and save them and evacuate them to cushy hotels. It doesnt always work like that. FEMA and other agencies are not always able to get to certain areas right away. I would not want to rely on someone else for help. The City of Calgary, Government of Alberta, Federal Government, Canadian Red Cross, and other agencies all put out information reccomending people keep extra food and water and a first aid kit and other supplies at home in case of an emergency. How many of you actaully do?