What is a prepper, an outdoorsman or a survivalist? (rant warning)
I spend a lot of time reading the internets on similar subjects to my own and I am starting to notice something fairly common. It appears to me that most of these preppers are planning for the apocalypse or some sort of massive social unrest. Now I get that history dictates that it will probably happen, but some of this stuff is just completely over the top. I see some people suggesting you keep 6 months worth of fuel, a basement full of food and 400 plus gallons of clean water. You’re kidding me right? Though I understand that it is a good idea to keep a 72hr emergency kit, you should be prepared to go back to the old fashioned way of living after that point. Seriously, why would I keep 40 gallons of fuel when a decent firesteel will last almost a lifetime and there is an abundance of wood around. Not to mention that most of these articles are going to tie me to one place which may put a severe hamper on my safety. Lets face it, if you have a stockpile of food, water, fuel and other supplies, then everybody in your neighbourhood is going to come knocking when and if something actually does go wrong. Personally, I would rather just pack my backpack and wander off, with skills of firestarting, shelter building, foraging, fishing and hunting/trapping you are much more likely to be successful.
The other topic that gets touched a lot is weapons and self defense. While I agree that these are great things to have, life probably wont be like fallout. You probably wont wander the wastelands with a machine gun doing quests for street cred. Not to say that having a firearm is a bad thing, but save your ammo for gathering food. When and if our society collapses you are going to have more people flocking to grocery stores and such to loot for supplies while you SHOULD be headed in the exact opposite direction where you will never see these people again. But if you did your research, practised your skills and studied your area you will be better off then the rest. Only then will you skills truly be put to the test.
STOP ACTING LIKE THE END IS COMING! This just puts everyone in the negative mindset that the end is near and you might as well give up because you’re just going to get killed by some vigilante gang of looters anyways (who will be the first to go because they will likely only rely on expendable resources). I would suggest the mindset of waiting out their impending doom and being the lord of your own kingdom in the bush. The thought of being the “end” should really be the thought of the “beginning” of thriving off of your new skills.
There are however some things that are stated across the board that I strongly agree with. Things like taking courses for disciplines like first aid, shelter and fire building, land navigation and other such outdoor skills. Doing so will ensure your long term survival even on minimal supplies. Bushcraft is the art of making nature work for you, if you look around, you will see that everything you need to survive is still all around you. Man made tools are ideal, but not necessary.
Hopefully this sets a few heads straight, but of course, you can’t get blood from a stone. Thats ok, the stockpiles will be a good distraction for the looters while we slip away.
ugh…
Category: Nonsense, Uncategorized
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I offer my insights with over a decade of camping and outdoors survival skills. I am well versed in first aid and construction methods based on available supplies and terrain as well as proper methods of usage and design of tools for these purposes. I offer a no fluff, no B.S. opinion on everything I see, do and use.Subscribe
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I could not agree more, I know a few people like that and I always ask them the same question…What are you going to do when the (food, ammo, water) runs out?
Its usually the same answer. I don’t know. I’ll usually go on mild diatribe on the necessity of developing these specific survival skills. As a matter of fact my last blog post covered that very topic.
Not everyone lives in a similar geographical context as you do. There are places in this world where there is no hinterland, no mountains, no caves or forests to turn to.
While this is true, it is not really the direction I was going with this article. It was more just a rant about those that are planning for the end, as opposed to the every day.
You do realize that everyone and their brother will “wonder off in the other direction” if something bad happens. People automatically flock to the country/mountains if there is a disaster/emergency because that’s what everyone says to do. Unless I am dealing with fallout or other natural/unnatural situation that warrants leaving, I’m staying put with my family where there is food, shelter, and most importantly, a line of defense. Just my two cents.
while a valid point, it is survival of the fittest on all fronts. In a true SHTF survival scenario, I dont want to be the one that has something everyone else wants.
I’m in a Catch 22 scenario. I’m not quite paranoid enough to stock up on ridiculous amounts of supplies (as you said, a 72 hr. pack should work), but a) I live in a condo w/ little to no storage space. And more importantly, b) in permanently wheelchair bound (T4 paralysis).
I was in the Marines & an avid outdoorsman before my accident, so I know some of the basic survival techniques. Unfortunately most of them entail activities which are now physically impossible (whether it be terrain or required motions).
I live in a suburban area that isn’t far from a major city but on the other hand it’s only a few hours to get into the boonies. Though the boonies are mountainous and definitely not W/C friendly.
So I guess I’m kind of hedging my bets as to how to best deal w/ going in the “opposite direction” and/or creating a defensive position (or both)!
If you can do an article or give insight as how a disabled person could deal w/ less than ideal situations, I’d be grateful.