SHTF Where are you going?

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An interesting thing was brought up by Byron Quick in this thread What would your all-purpose survival arsenal look like? .

So in an "End of civilization" scenario where would you go?

The considerations would be, defensability, and the availability of food, fuel, and weapons.

Id say your nearest Navy or Air Force base would be the best choice. Both will have fences and well built structures. Both will have a fairly sizeable arsenal on hand as well as large amounts of fuel, and at least some emergency rations.

Second, go with your nearest castle. Good bet is the enemy wont have access to heavy artillery or the skills to use it so castles are no longer obsolete. There are a lot of Civil War era forts scattered around the nation and these would do nicely.

Anything else you can think of?
 
My family owns a sizeable log cabin outside of Salida, Colorado...

We were sitting on the front porch one day, and my decidedly UN-tactical elderly grandfather says, to no one in particular, "You know, two good men with rifles could hold this little valley forever."

You could have knocked me over with a feather. He was right, though.
 
I always kind of laugh about this kind of question, I live in the 5th district Naval hdgts area, if that type of thing happens I always said I would go to the nearest 7-11 get a sixpack and head for the beach to watch them come in:D , with the amount of people here in the Tidewater/hampton roads area you would never be able to clear the area in time.
 
Id say your nearest Navy or Air Force base would be the best choice. Both will have fences and well built structures.
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And those fences are where your body would be left as a warning to others. The Marines at Naval bases dont mess around, even on a normal day of the week, a SHTF scenario would have them blasting at anyone that approached the gate without a military ID. Its also not a wise assumption to believe that the guards would just leave food, weapons and fuel behind. If its a perfect place for you to go to hide out, wouldnt it be a perfect place for them to stay and defend? Also, how would you defend the food, fuel and weapons, assuming you could get the guards to leave? They're typically stored far apart (on this base, the fuel bunkers are at least 3 miles from everything else on base, and the armory is not marked on any maps), so you could only be at one stash at a time, possibly miles away from the other. While you stood watch over the MREs, somebody else could be emptying the armory into a truck and you'd never know.

I'm in such an area that I might as well join Leadbutt on the beach and enjoy a cold one.

Kharn
 
I'd BOIP (Bug Out In Place) for as long as I could. The hordes of people fleeing the cities (and becoming refugees in the process) with nowhere to go will be a real problem on the road for at least several days.

The vast majority of city dwellers have only the gas that's in their tanks. Say roughly 300 miles range at city driving speeds. People really aren't bugging out anywhere and when they run out of gas, know no one, and are suddenly miles from hoime with no resources, you don't want to be anywhere near them.

After a week or two, I'd head to my uncles home in the mountains driving as far as I could and likely walking the rest. And all the wihile hoping this never happens in the winter.

Stay home as long as you can and never, ever, become a refugee.
 
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Total collapse? You'd better already be where you'd want to be. Think Friday 5PM rush hour, doubled and redoubled--and full of road rage. If you ain't already gone, you ain't gonna get there.

It won't happen overnight, though. A bit of forethought and an awareness of currewnt events will quite probably save your happy tail.

:), Art
 
Most think that isolated and wilderness living is easy. It's not.

With untrained family members it would even be worse.

Talk to professional hunting guides in remote areas, they will tell you how it is.

Most people will try and leave the urban areas. To where I don't have a clue. As stated above, until they run out of gas. There will be food stuffs for a while and other esentials left for what ever quality of life may be ahead.

First and quickly, hiding food and weapons in different locations can provide you with support in the future.

Moving at night to different locations can provide constant cover.

Look how long the US has been looking for the Iraqi boys. They were only found because of an informant looking to line his pockets with imperialist dollars.

Guerilla warefare has always been the way to go to punch and run and to survive.

Of course this would only be possible if they didn't nuke the area.

In that case if you weren't killed in the first blast, grab a beer and head to the beach, the radiation should get you within a week.

Being on the Atlantic coast the option of grabbing a long range vessel from the local marina would provide comfort long enough to find an island in the Bahama chain where the sea would provide food. Been there lots of times and there are lots of isolated spots.

A book given to me while recovering from surgery a couple of years ago addresses this scenario. I believe it was called "The New Madrid Run"
 
I agree with Art that it won't take the observant by surprise. As for me, I don't believe in being a lone ranger. The militia group with which I train has plans for if the PHTF, the first step of which is to rendezvous at one of three designated places in our training AO. I've got two members of that unit near me with whom I'll hook up prior to heading to the AO, which is about an hour away from us. We'll decide whether to go there immediately or wait if there's some impediment such as refugee traffic.

Minuteman
 
Also bear in mind that if you live in the city and your plan is to head for the hills (along with everyone else), the people who live there now don't want you there. Unless you already know people and have a place to go don't expect a warm welcome. If you are lucky you might be allowed to turn around and go away. They don't have the supplies to take care of you without putting themselves & their family in jeopardy. So unless you are bringing enough with you to provide for yourself for a very long time don't expect much interest in you joining them or being allowed to stay in the vicinity. Of course if you had enough forethought to plan for those supplies you probably also have a specific place to go where you will be welcomed.

Greg
 
I would get a bunch of guys and head to the hills. But first I would stop at one of their fathers store and get guns and supplies. If our radiator got shot we could pee in it and make it work again. We would call ourselves the "Wolverines" and we would fight a guerilla war against our enemys.
Then we would etch our names on a big rock.
:D
 
I believe a case would be in order, and I like the idea of sitting on the beach. But being landlocked, in the middle of the US, makes that a hard thing to do.:scrutiny:


Better just to sit back and watch the fireworks. I'll be the one in the lawn chair with the cooler, and beach umbrella, and lotsa firepower.
 
I agree with the Bahama run. It's about a 40 mile sail/motor to the nearest of the islands from where I am. There are a lot of little islands with very little population and some with no population at all. I'd pack as much as I could on some vessel (preferably sail) and take out. You can live for years on a boat with little more than fish and veggies and fruit you can pick up on the islands.

GT
 
I'd stay in my community and convince the local guard units (self propelled artillery) and the local communities in Burke, Jefferson, Screven and Jenkins Counties that mission #1 is defending the local nuke plant and its workforce. Closest interstate is 30 miles north and runs east to west. Only three roads come south and all have bridges that could be easily defended. The east is bounded by the Savannah River with only one bridge through that area. The west has several large creeks and one large river...again the number of bridges is small. Same thing to the south.
Winters are mild. You could survive a winter with several sweaters, longjohns, a coat, a couple of blankets and no heat if you had to do it. Long growing season. Plenty of game. Plenty of farms. Lots of livestock. 20,000 people in Burke County. About the same in the other three counties. Get some alcohol stills set up for fuel and trade goods. See if we can produce enough vegetable oil to use in diesel engines. At least enough for the SP arty. If things get really trashed nationally...have the capability of sending out a heavily armed convoy into Augusta and Fort Gordon after they've been largely abandoned and well and truly strip the place. Yeah, things like the gun stores, grocery stores and such will be empty but parts stores, plumbing supply, building supply, industrial supply etc.... Stuff that folks didn't get because they couldn't carrry it or use it. Lab equipment...if it's not burned to the ground...there will be lots of valuable materials lying around that so called survivalists didn't touch. Even if it's burned to the ground there will still be valuable material to be found. Steel, aluminum, copper. Broken glass is a hell of a lot easier to remelt and blow than to make the glass from scratch. The library.

The humans who are fittest to survive are those who cooperate best when cooperation is necessary. You've got a much better chance in a functioning community with electricity and doctors and food and heavy weapons(!) than running around trying to play Robinson Crusoe or Swiss Family Robinson out amongst the bandits.
 
I dunno, probably up to Duke of Lawnchair and Nippy's place? :D

ROADTRIP!!!!

Failing that, bunk down and hang out in my apartment.
 
Byron Quick: Have you been reading Larry Niven novels? Sounds like it :)

I'd bug out in place, as well. I have guns, food, and water right here, so I'd stay put behind my walls and let the panickers eat each other for a bit.
 
Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven is awesome! Great survival story! The cannibals really freaked me out though *shiver*

:D

I would probably hunker down in my apartment with my brother and a few friends until things calmed down a bit, then try to link up with my family down south in Olympia. We would most likely have to hike the 60+ miles or find some versatile transportation (motorcycles!).
 
Yep. I'd played around with survival what ifs in my head for some time. Didn't much like the odds for a bunker in the mountains with the family.

When I read Lucifer's Hammer, I looked around...nuke plant 11 miles as the crow flies...off the major highways. Closest small city is 30 miles away with interstates leading the hell away from here. Combat arms guard units and decent cops who know me. defensible points of entry for vehicle traffic. Pretty good folks. Hell, I'm staying put.


Just remember to avoid the sick and cook your meat very well done:neener:
 
Being that I live in brooklyn, getting out of the city in a hurry with everyone else would be foolish. I would go underground. :cool:

About 5 blocks from my home, there is a lift ramp that leads to the subway tunnels. From there I would be able to find a spot from which nobody could approach. I would have about a weeks worth of food, lighting, communications and my shotguns with plenty of ammo. Also a radio to hear whats happening on the surface. I would try to get family and some friends organized in the rush.
 
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