How to bug out?

[Scythe13]

Just a quick discussion about bugging out techniques. I'm probably going to make a massive post on this, but before I bore everyone with my thoughts, I'd love to hear some other ideas.

[Highlander]

We dont plan to bug out,...... but if we do have to bug out, then we only plan to be out for a short time, so we plan to be under canvas for a while, we know where I am going, we know its not far away, and we know we are walking there,... the site is very secluded and not easily approached.

We already have containers hidden close by with food, clothes and the canvas.. so its only a case of grabbing a bag each as we go out the door

The three German Shepherds each have their own back packs, and are capable of carrying a good weight each.

..... but as I say, I dont really think I will need to bug out,... lol, but you know us preppers...

[Scythe13]

Not many people with thoughts on how to bug out. Pretty unexpected.

Right, time for my rant/ideas.

First up, and although this is my first note, it's also the last thing you'll end up doing, but the first thing that will cause alterations to your plan. You'll understand why when I say what it is. One of the most important things is, you need to practice bugging out. Although it's super important, it's not the first thing you'll be doing.

The first thing you should be doing is getting a plan. Boring hu? I know, it's not loads of fun. But if you work it out so you can easily bug out of a city, where do you go? What do you need? What do you have cached along the route? Do you even have a route? Where are you bugging out to? What do you have there? How long do you plan to be bugged out for? See the need for a plan now?

Bug Out Planning:
Where are you bugging out to? A friends house? A Bug Out Location (BOL)? Or to a woods you know well and have prepped?
Where is that location in relation to your home? North, East, South, West?
What stands between you and that location? Rough city areas? Streams/rivers? Motorways? Fields? Another city?
How far away is that location? Is that distance a road distance, walkway distance, country lane distance, or a straight line away?
How long will it take you to travel that distance by car, foot, boat, bike, etc?
What do you need to carry with you to get to the location, considering your travel time? How much food? Is there a place to get more water? Safety items?
Next up comes contingencies. If route A is blocked, do you have a route B? How about Route C, D, Double D, E and F?
This is an annoying question, who is bugging out with you? How will all the above apply to them? What do they need, how fast are they, etc?

Once you have completed all of that, you now have a BASIC plan. No joke, this is basic planning. No doubt SD, NR and BP all have maps with 6 or 7 bug out routes (minimum), as well as bags ready and packed, along with 'points of interest' marked on the maps, along with locations of caches they've hidden away, and much more.

Brilliant, you now know where you're going and how you're getting there, right? Hu, you've not considered how you'll get there? You'll drive, right? But what if your car isn't working, has been stolen, or the roads are all jammed with traffic? Now realise why I asked how long it would take to walk the routes? What about a puncture in a bicycle? Are you really going to stop and fix the tyre? How many punctures are you able to fix?

What items you need to carry has been mentioned, so this is where the Bug Out Bag comes into play. There are numerous threads on BOB equipment lists and the alike. So I won't go into too much detail about them on here. What I will ask though, once your bag is complete, can you carry that bag, that distance, in that time on your plan? See where practice comes into it now?

Remember those contingencies? This is where you get to plan for them. Where are the bottle necks for refugees? What are potential attack points or visual black spots where you'll be vulnerable? Where will your line of sight be reduced a lot? How can you compensate for those things? Are there places you can go to that will allow you a quick overview of your route? I think of high towers, in this situation. Church steeples, and the alike.

Once again, here is where you'll need to practice more and more to better your movement, speeds, and ability with the tools in your pack.

On a last note, because the wife is probably bored of hearing the clicking of keys on my keyboard, have you factored in certain locations that you might want to visit en route to your BOL? Places like supermarkets, pharmacies, petrol stations, etc? If not, you might want to give it a go.

I hope you enjoyed this post, and I'll bring more thoughts on bugging out, to you all another time.

Enjoy.

[Skean Dhude]

The issue with testing a Bug Out Plan is it'll work,no problem. Sure you might forget something trivial but it'll be fine.

In a scenario thought there will be other people out on the roads. Cars will be blocking roads, people may even try and hijack you. You can't test that.

[bigpaul]

I always thought, you can use roads to bug out ONLY if you bug out BEFORE TSHTF, AS or after TSHTF everyone else will be too so better to take to alternate routes and parallel the roads, probably safer that way.i have taken this into account and planned accordingly.

[Midnitemo]

Armed trespass is something i'm not keen to do pre shtf but I have walked my route photographed interesting bits and bob's and noted any access issues to be overcome...full dress rehearsal is to risky but I feel I have it in hand.

[Scythe13]

As everyone SD pointed out, it will work, or will be 100 times easier at least. The thing is, many people who'll try to bug out will suddenly find the distance is too long for them to walk with the weight of their BOB. Or when they get to the destination, they realise there is kit they can't use, or forgot, or something they didn't think about.

The idea of the practice is to realise what you will need and whether you can carry it to you predetermined destination. Obviously a real bug out will be very different, but if you can't complete a 'dry run' bug out under near enough ideal conditions, then come TSHTF you'll have no chance.

If the practice is really hard work, it'll be 20 times harder WTSHTF.

If you plan to bug out in 10 minutes, and can't complete that while safe, secure, and relaxed, you'll be F**ked when you're worried and rushing to leave (that's when things get forgotten).

SD's right, you will try to bug out, but I disagree that it'll definitely succeed. It's much more likely to, but there are no guarantees, except that the real thing will be much harder.