Modular Bug Out Ideas, Current BOB

When I started getting into Survival skills I built a BOB.  That's probably the first step that many people make when they get into "prepping" or "survivalism" (whatever you want to call it), and it's something that everyone should have.

As I've expanded my knowledge and skills (and stores) I've rethought a lot of my original ideas.  When I did my practice Bug Out during the last Tsunami warning (post) I decided that I wanted a more modular set up, that way I could pick and choose which 'modules' depending on the situation.  That led me to look at different packs, bags, and set ups.  I could tailor my pack out depending on the situation without having to dig through one big bag, it also makes it easier to find an individual item.

So, in that thread, here is my current pack out gear.

HPG Kit Bag, chest
I'd never heard of a "chest rig" before getting into survival skills (and Zombie forums).  Most chest rigs are for battlefield or tactical scenarios (or paintball), they have pouches for magazines, grenades, etc.  Well, I was looking for something that could be worn hiking with or without my main pack, that would keep some supplies handy so I wouldn't have to stop and dig through the main pack for a candy bar or my cell phone.  This HPG Kit Bag is perfect for that.  It's also neat because it adds flexibility, you could leave your main bag at camp and take this for a short hike.  This was also designed with Concealed Carry in mind, the pouch closest to the body has easy pull zippers and loops for carrying a pistol.  I didn't get the Kit Bag for that purpose but it's kind of a neat feature.  There's a cool quick-draw video on their website.  It's an extremely handy kit to have.

Snugpak waist pouch
It's a waist pack and belt.  I keep a lot of stuff here; knives, pouches, canteens, gloves, fire starter, first aid, and a poncho/rain jacket.  This is basically a mini-BOB, one or two of each item.  It keeps things easy to reach, easy to find, and adds versatility.  You see the trend here?

Snugpak pack
This is quite a bit smaller than most BOBs.  You definitely need a good pack but in a set up like this it can be smaller because you spread the items between the Kit Bag, belt, and waist pouch.  I put all the little stuff in those two bags and then just keep the big stuff in the main pack.  Food, hydration bladder, sleeping bag, tarp, extra clothing, etc.

Blackhawk thigh holster, magazine pouches, and Drop leg pouch
I put this last because firearms are the lowest priority and Hawaii has very strict laws against carrying firearms unless you're hunting (and licensed).  In most emergency situations they won't be necessary and could lead to legal problems.  In your State it might not be as big an issue, either way firearms should be a low priority.  Contrary to the popular internet-Rambo type, firearms are simply not as important as the rest of your preps.  Outside of a Zombie Apocalypse water, food, shelter, fire, and clothing, are all far more critical than firearms to staying alive.  By keeping firearms, ammo, mags, and accessories in a configuration like this (drop leg holster and pouch) they can be easily dropped or added to your pack out.

It also means I can grab grab any of these items and go for a hike minimal repacking.  I've also really cut down the amount of stuff in my BOB.  The BOB, or 72 hour bag, is supposed to have all the supplies for 72 hours.  The theory is that 72 hours should get you through the worst of any disaster.  When I first packed a BOB it had everything minus the kitchen sink but really, you don't need that much stuff for 72 hours.  Maintain your core body temperature, a little water, a first aid kit, maybe some food... and that's about it.  Everything else is just icing on the cake.  Obviously, there are things that make life better and easier, but if the goal is to survive, you really don't need much.  Keeping your pack light means you can travel faster, easier, and be more mobile.

I've rushed this post a little bit, I haven't had time to do the full spread and photos.  I'll try and do that soon.  And as always, if you have any questions or comments let me know.

Gear Review: Dewalt Steel Toe Work Shoe

Currently, my job entails spending half my time behind a desk and the other half of the time doing fairly dirty, rough, slightly hazardous contractor work.  So, I needed a pair of "shoes" that could do double duty, not look out of place with slacks and a polo shirt, but also protect my feet when I get put to work (the other contractors I work with keep a second pair of "safety shoes" in their car, I wanted to find one pair that could do both duties).

I picked up a pair of these Dewalt Steel Toe Work Shoes at Sears for about $69 bucks, they are all black and gray except for a few reflective patches.  They aren't as pretty as dress shoes but they look way more professional than sneakers, and don't stand out in slacks.  They are also non-slip, steel toe, shoes so they were plenty are plenty of protection too.

Overall, I have been very impressed with how these shoes fit and hold up.  They fit like a combination between a sneaker and a hiking boot.  My feet have been comfortable, secure and protected in these Dewalt's.

I think these shoes might be the best of both worlds, comfort and protection.  They're comfortable, light, and yet provide more than adequate protection in most any condition.  Plus, these things have enough grip that I wouldn't feel unprepared wearing these on a hiking trail on slippery rock or mud (we've got plenty of both in Hawaii) and yet they look good enough that I wouldn't feel self conscious wearing them to the board room.  No other shoe I've found has offered that kind of versatility.

For the price and the wide variety of uses, these shoes (short boots, really) are very hard to beat.  Fit and feel like a sneaker with the protection of a boot.  Also, I happen to think they look pretty darn good too.  Seriously, the best of both worlds without a huge price tag!

Homeopathic remedies

So, this is kind of weird story and it's a little embarrassing but I learned something that I figured I would pass on.  Not one of my proudest posts, but maybe the topic will make up for the content.

At some point during my travels over the past couple months I picked up a particularly stubborn fungus.  We're all familiar with athlete's food, jock itch, swimmers ear... we've all had it before, it's usually not a big deal.  However, this was something different.

This weird fungus I picked up was very specific and especially resistant to treatment.  It was only on the pads of my fingers and absolutely nothing I tried even slowed it down.  Within a week or so every finger tip had at least some peeling skin and it was getting pretty bad in places.  I tried every over the counter cream and powder I could find.  That over the counter stuff?  Two weeks of nothing other than watching it make mince meat out of my hands.

Finally, I got so frustrated that I googled anti-fungal homeopathic remedies.  I have nothing against homeopathic but I usually try the over the counter stuff first (when that takes care of the problem, I usually don't have to move on to the homeopathic stuff).   This was such a weird case, I wasn't sure what would work and what would just make it worse.

The most common advice I found?  Soak in vinegar.  The vinegar is so aggressive that it kills most of the fungus and creates a hazardous environment for the rest.  I soaked each hand for about 30 minutes a night.

Holy **** did that work.  Three nights of soaking my hands in vinegar made a drastic improvement.  Immediately, I could tell that it stopped progressing and the damage started to heal.  Three days!  I kept it up another couple days to make sure it was all gone, but it certainly did the trick.

Modern medicine fail, natural medicine win.  One more reason to get a natural remedies book or two to add to the library.

Now, it most survival situations people will be wearing boots or shoes or socks (and underwear) for long periods of time, questionable hygiene, fungus will be a problem.  With how common vinegar is, keeping it in mind as a remedy might just keep you whole in the long run.

The Traveling Wrinkle

So, my recent travels have given me a few things to think about.  I mean, how much good does all your prepping do if you're thousands of miles away from them?  And what can you bring with you through airport security?  You can't even take fingernail clippers or lighters on the plane.

Survival tin: Survivalist Boards, Altoids Tin

There are all sorts of links online for survival tins, either premade or directions for making your own.   I'll probably be making a generic one in the future, to put in my checked bags.  I thought about making one for this trip, but didn't have time to put together a good one.  Plus, I don't know where to go, have no knowledge of the local wild life and fauna, so what would I put in one?

So, what do you do?

Here are a few of the ideas I came up with:

• Bring warm clothes and a decent rain jacket.  Maintaining body temp is a key to survival.  Hypothermia is a real risk in any climate if you get wet or have no protection from the elements.
• Pick up some water as soon as you land.  Obviously you can't bring much with you on the flight, but you can get a couple big bottles at almost any gas station.
• You can put a good knife, a first aid kit, and some cordage in your checked luggage.  You need to do some research on what the knife laws are where you are going, a Rambo survival knife might not be the smartest option.  I opted for a good little folder just to be on the safe side.
• You can pick up a few staple food items when you land.  Trail mix, jerky, etc.  Personally, I didn't get much because, like the water, I can't take much back with me.
• Pack good shoes and socks.  And maybe a foot care kit (tape, vaseline, moleskin, etc.)
• You can pack a couple lighters in your checked bags, or get a couple at a gas station.
• Cash.  Carry plenty of cash.  'Nuf said.

So, in a true survival situation you should have the basics covered.  Maintain core temperature, hydrate, first aid, start fires, and have a few food items.  It's not a BOB, it might not get you as far as your stock pile back home, but will hopefully be enough to get you through a short term survival scenario.


(Or you can be lucky like me and have a super-massive Sports Authority right next to the hotel.  It has a huge hunting section, I picked up a badass camo shell jacket today.  Score!)

Tsunami Bug Out Pt 2

Alright, I'm going to go through the detailed plan/execution of my Tsunami bug out.

I previously mentioned how the tsunami bug out started.  It was basically a practice bug out to see how everything would work during a real bug out.  This post starts after I grabbed my BOB.

I planned on getting to the Pali Look Out.  It's one of the highest on the island that you can get to in a car.  If there weren't places at the Pali than I had two back up places to pull off the highway.  All those places have access to my favorite trail network, all were above the tsunami zone.  I was lucky to bug out earlier than most, and made it to the Look Out before it ran out of parking spaces.

Honestly, I figured the Pali would be full.  It was one of the highest places and I thought that most people leaving Honolulu would go there.  Luckily, that wasn't the case in this situation.  For me, the Pali was good for a multitude of reasons.  It was high, to get me away from tsunami waves, it had a clear view of the affected area, and it had direct access to the trail system that I planned on bugging out to.  The area is close to the mountains, good sources of water, and you can get away from more dense population areas.

These are a few things that I took note of during my "bug out":

• How few people bugged out to high ground.  I almost didn't, after all the false warnings we've had.  That Pali lookout is right above Honolulu, THE major population center, and yet it wasn't nearly as full as I thought it would be.  The actual parking lot was filled but there were still plenty of places along the road.
• How many people did not bring any supplies with them.  Out of all the people that made it to the Pali Look Out, I didn't see any that seemed remotely prepared for a large scale natural disaster.  There were families in their minivans, but few even thought to bring a sweat shirt or jacket (the Pali look out is one of the windiest places on the island and there were intermittent rains that night, lots of shivering people).  They would have survived the initial Tsunami, but few seemed prepared for anything more than an immediate emergency.  No extra food, water, or other supplies that I saw.
• How many people were drinking.  There were at least four groups I saw that were actively drinking in public during the emergency.  Having lived in Florida, through several hurricanes, I recognize this as something I call "The Jimmy Buffet Disaster Plan".  Drink as much as you can so that no matter what happens you're having a good time.  I hosted several "hurricane parties", so I am familiar with the concept (that was all before I started prepping).  
• Patience was a problem for most people.  The tsunami was predicted to hit at 22:38.  When nothing had happened by 23:00, a lot of people had already left the high ground.  It would have taken very little for the original prediction to be off, yet these people were already headed back into the danger zone.  I stayed at high ground for over an hour, which was still well within the "warning zone" of three hours, and yet when I left 2/3 of the people had already gone.  Our modern civilization has not prepared people for the patience necessary to survive a natural disaster.  These people waited an extremely short period of time and they could easily have been driving into a deadly tsunami wave.
• I realized I did not have any form of personal defense.  This being a short term natural disaster I didn't think it would be necessary, but after seeing that no one brought any supplies (and how many were drinking) I'm rethinking that.  (I bought some pepper spray and added that to my BOB, I think it's a better option than a gun for a short term bug out like a tsunami)

We were lucky that we had a three hour warning of this potential natural disaster, yet very few people responded to the threat.  I wouldn't have even known of the hazard if they hadn't used the air raid siren.  How good is prepping if you don't notice a warning or react when one is given?  A surprisingly few number of people left their homes for higher ground.  

I'm glad I decided to do this practice bug out, it gave me a lot of things to think about. 

Tsunami: Epic Bug-out Fail Pt 1

I'm going split this into two posts.  This one, the first, is kind of a lessons learned post.  The next will be more of an overall bug-out experience.

Alright, this post is going to be a bit more wordy than usual.

Last Saturday night, I was watching a movie and noticed this strange sound.  I muted the TV and the sound was still there, almost sounded like one of those old air raid sirens.  So I pulled out the laptop and checked the local news.  Turns out Hawaii was under a tsunami warning.

I went back to watching the movie.  The last three times we had a warning you could have stood in the surf and not noticed the 'tsunami' when it arrived.

Then I thought about it a little more and decided to "bug out" to high ground for two reasons; 1) it would be a good practice run, and 2) I can just see my obituary "Newbie Prepper Dies, Surrounded By His Supplies, Because He Stayed In The Tsunami Zone".  With that irony I'd never be able to rest in peace.

Lets just say that this was an eye opening experience for me.  Here is a list of the many thoughts, lessons, and issues that I came up with during my two hours "bugging out" in my car.

• I need to have a radio on or something as an early warning system.  If they hadn't rung the air siren I wouldn't have known we were in a 'Tsunami warning'.
• I need to keep my bags bug-out ready.  I thought they were until I actually went to bug out, that's when I went through a mental checklist of my BOB and started coming up short.   I have all of the essential items for my BOB but I'm constantly putting in new things, taking out others, repacking it... and then when I needed my bag I had to run around my apartment piecing it all back together.  Things I realized were missing: food, water, an emergency radio (waiting on dehydrated meals, canteens, and radio from Amazon), ax, sheath knife, and a tarp.
• There were a bunch of things in the BOB that I didn't need: a stove without fuel, empty water bottles, and bedding (I could just sleep in my car)
• In this situation, a BOB was kind of over kill.  I already have a GHB in the car, which already has most of the essentials, adding the BOB meant I had three or four of everything I might need.  I'm now thinking that I might need to put together some kind of 'intermediate' bag, something for short-term natural disaster preparation.  It could be a small bag with extra clothes, water, and food.  Kind of an add-on to the GHB.
• BOB accessibility is an issue.  I have too many smaller bags inside my BOB, makes finding an individual item a pain in the butt.  I'll need to figure out a better way of organizing it.
• I realized during this 'emergency' that there were a lot of things that I should have been keeping in my car all along.  I mean, I've got a GHB but I don't have a general vehicle emergency kit?  Flares, tools, jumper cables, a spare set of clothes, a good jacket, Fix-A-Flat, spare vehicle fluids, a couple gallons of water, hatchet, folding shovel... there are a lot of practical things that I should have been kept in my trunk.
• I was lucky that my car was gassed up.  At the first whiff of an emergency the gas stations were packed.  I'm not very good about keeping it full, it was purely luck that I filled the tank the day before.  I need to be better about that in the future.
• My cellphone, kindle, and laptop were all at half a battery.  At the very least, I need to get a car charger for my phone to keep it going in an emergency.
• I need to eat food more regularly.  I'm sure that sounds odd, but I usually only eat two big meals a day.  When I heard the siren I had just been trying to figure out what to do for dinner.  So, I need to eat more often during the day.  It's always better to start an emergency with a full belly.
• I had about $20 in my wallet.  I don't usually keep much cash on hand (I spend it), I need to pull out some cash and either keep it in my car or in my GHB/BOB for emergencies.
• A motorcycle might be a good idea for an urban Bug Out Vehicle.  I saw a lot of people on motorcycles and the flexibility of a motorcycle over a car or truck.  In a real emergency they could get through stopped traffic and park pretty much anywhere.  It would limit the amount of gear, I can fit a lot in my car, but it would be really nice to have that flexibility if I need it.  Food for thought.
• My BOB is pretty big.  That didn't seem like an issue when it was sitting in the corner, but walking around my apartment building?  I got a lot of funny looks, it was the opposite of subtle.  Looking like an idiot on the average day isn't that big of a deal, standing out during an emergency could be.  Nothing screams "I have lots of supplies" like an over flowing back pack. 

This was a pretty good example of how planning will only get you so far, you need to actually practice.  You can only plan for so much, reality always throws us curve balls.  I packed my BOB for any Bug out situation, for this mini-disaster scenario a lot of that stuff wasn't really needed.  Especially considering that I already had half of the stuff in the Get Home Bag.  

Overall, my biggest frustration was that I wasn't set up to step-up or step-down my bug out, it was either take too little or too much.  I definitely need to figure out how to add more flexibility to my bug out supplies, that way I can adjust to the situation quicker and easier.

I'm really glad that I decided to run this little practice bug out instead of going back to watching TV.  One of the last things I grabbed was a note book and some pens.  I took notes through pretty much every step of this bug out and I ended up with over two pages of issues, problems, ideas, and things to think about.

Laugh at my slapstick bug out all you like, I hope my embarrassing mistakes can help some others in their own disaster preparations.


Stay tuned for a follow up post about some more Tsunami adventures and thoughts.