Bug Out Vest

[rob_s]

Josh, great post, especially this.

All this talk about traps, snares, and fishing makes me question how realistic some of you are. have you guys actually tried to set snares and get food?? How about fishing with a survival kit?? That shit takes time and training. We're talking about being mobile and getting to somewhere we need to be, right?? **** some fishing and snares. Take a couple Clif bars and carry on. I'm not saying that shit doesn't have a place in survival, just not in the role the vest would fill.

That fatbody fruitcake Andrew Zimmern from Bizarre Foods did a survival camp one night. Watching him stumble around trying to trap fish and get water instantly made me think "he must be from the internet!"

[6933]

Some of us actually live in the country and do set snares, fish, hunt, camp, backpack, etc. Setting a snare is about as easy as it could get. Finding the game path is the harder part. Guess it depends on how long it will take one to get to where you're going. Week? 2 weeks? Month? Cliff bars aren't going to cut it past several days. Snares can be quite small. Fishing line and hooks take up almost no room. I can pop some purification tabs, a couple of snares, and a fishing setup in one pocket; with room left over for my compass. I'm ready to eat and roll.

[rob_s]

It's the same old issue with all discussions like this. A lot is dependent on area of operations, goals, envisioned "shit" that is hitting what "fan", etc.

Even if snares, traps, fishing, etc. are "easy" for someone, they still take time.

[6933]

rob- Yep. Depends upon the who, what, when, where, and why. OP said a Bug Out vest so I look at it as a vest to keep in the car. At home, when it's time to Bug Out, setup would be different b/c I'm going to be carrying more than just a vest(if we are on foot). I like to hunt, fish, and camp so using these items are skills I started learning almost as soon as I could walk.

Are you on foot? How many with you? In a car? In a truck? Where are you going? Who/what will you have to go through, around, over, etc. So many variables. I see the vest as something kept in the car or used on a spartan camping trip.

Andrew Zimmerman-doubt he would last very long if he really had to make it.

[PA PATRIOT]

Working in a major city I have the opportunity to talk with Crackheads, Robbers, Muggers and the general scum of the street every day. One question I always ask is why they selected the particular victim they just robbed. I always seem to get the same answer, "They looked like they had something to take."

I feel during a true disaster carrying shoulder bags, back packs or other visible items will only draw attention your way when your trying to travel under the radar of the above mention scum.

Everyone here I'M sure if you become desperate enough will do acts you would never consider to survive so you have to ask yourself the following question, What would you look for in a person to make you take the chance of relieving him of his supplies. The answer you arrive at is not how you would want to look while traveling during a SHTF event.

[Abraxas]

Working in a major city I have the opportunity to talk with Crackheads, Robbers, Muggers and the general scum of the street every day. One question I always ask is why they selected the particular victim they just robbed. I always seem to get the same answer, "They looked like they had something to take."

I feel during a true disaster carrying shoulder bags, back packs or other visible items will only draw attention your way when your trying to travel under the radar of the above mention scum.

Everyone here I'M sure if you become desperate enough will do acts you would never consider to survive so you have to ask yourself the following question, What would you look for in a person to make you take the chance of relieving him of his supplies. The answer you arrive at is not how you would want to look while traveling during a SHTF event.

This is a great point. One that I have thought about before. And the best answers that I could come up with, depended heavily on Robs earlier point of how much of and what kind of shit is hitting what fan.

[6933]

I plan on traveling through rural countryside at night. Yes, there would be others thinking the same, but much less than on normally heavily traveled routes.

Bug out EARLY before the masses think to. Bug out through terrain most avoid. Be prepared for the few we encounter. Having lived in/packed in/traveled in/ hunted in rural areas, I feel we can travel them in a TEOTWAWKI situation. I regularly exercise, lift, pack, and camp so I think I could do it if necessary. I can nav. open/wooded country and a compass and maps I already have will allow us to nav. A well-appointed vest could make a huge diff. if caught somewhere other than home.

[zushwa]

So I had this big ass post typed up and something went to shit and it went bye bye. Here are some of the highlights, along with some responses to the newer posts.

You guys have hit most of the deciding factors on the head. There are tons of variables, so we need to decide what we want to accomplish. In the last few posts we've seen that in this conversation alone there is someone in a major city, someone in southern Texas, someone in Florida, and someone in the middle of bugger-eater land. All of our goals and expectations might be different, but I don't think so as it related to this piece of gear and what we're trying to accomplish (big picture). We all want something light and easy to wear/use that offers something easy to grab, and facilitates our safe movement from point A to point B. Is that broad enough to cover all of us?? I will also say working with, and supporting other equipment would be a benefit as well, right??

OK, I think we can all agree that having gear, conducting yourself, and limiting your movement to avoid contact with unknown personnel is probably best for our well being. We don't necessarily want to be a hermit, we just want to make contact on our terms. How are we sounding so far?

What don't we expect a vest or a bag to do?? Sustain us for weeks?? Fight a small army?? Provide for the entire family??

Within OUR OWN expected circumstances we need to decide what we need. For me, I can't post on here from just my perspective. I have circumstances, equipment, and training that others might not. I try to take that into consideration when making recommendations on gear loadout.

One of the reasons I don't recommend fishing and snares is because of time and training. If you already know how to trap, fish, and snare then you're right, it doesn't take up much space. It does take TIME. A good rule of thumb is 10 snares for one critter and 24 hours is a good amount of time to diffuse the human smell from the snares and even give yourself a fighting chance to catch said critter. That, to me, is a long time. Fishing sounds pretty easy, right?? First there's the act of fishing, which under the best circumstances guys have trouble doing, and since we're talking fresh water fish I'm assuming no one wants to do sushi, so we have to prep and cook the fish. That means a fire, which isn't always the best idea. It all takes time and effort. How much time and effort does that take compared to throwing in a few high calorie bars? The skills are great to have, but in the parameters of MOVING I just don't think the emphasis should be on those particular survival skills. How about training in land navigation and doing some cardio?? I'm sure people will say that's bullshit and I'm sure there are guys that have had better success, but they would be the 1%'ers.

If our mission for this kit is to safely move from point A to point B then I'm going to do it as fast as possible. I also often see people carrying kits with all this shit in them and they don't have a clue how to use it. It's like it's a security blanket. As long as my altoids kit is in my cargo pocket I'm fine in the jungle for weeks. Yeah, right. I can think of 10 items that most people MUST HAVE and they can't use effectively.

So back to the question about water. Water is always a point of contention. I'm in a semi-permissive and sometimes non permissive environment with water not suitable for drinking and I'd still only carry about a liter in a garment or small bag. But I also stay hydrated and have water in my third line and vehicle, as well as water filtration, purification, and storage on my second line.

Just so we're clear, I'm all for having plenty of food, water, shelter, meds, comms, and weapons. I'm just not going to hump all of it at once. This particular type of garment or small bag I am more concerned about moving fast from somewhere that doesn't have the above items, to somewhere that does.

This turned into a relatively long post. In reality we should be talking about "bug out basics" in another thread, but it has validity here too.

Sorry for being long winded. I kinda like the subject.

Later,

[rob_s]

Great post Josh. Especially the bit about the cardio. I've caused myself trouble here many times harping on that subject, so I'll leave it alone other than that.

[6933]

Booger eating land- Haven't seen it, only heard of it; elusive; think that's a Yankee thing.

rob- Not sure why anyone would give you a hard time about stressing cardio, or fitness in general. I can't see how anyone with any sort of common sense would try to argue physical fitness would not be a crucial factor in a bug out scenario; in so many diff. ways.

Since I received my stamp and 6933, I've been running around the land carrying the gun and some mags as well as practicing simply running, moving, etc. with it in a ready position. It is much harder than I thought it would be and I'm in good cardio shape. I've thrown on a loaded pack, carried the gun around, and it takes getting used to as well as being a serious physical exertion. I don't think most people realize how difficult land nav. would be with a full load. I'm thinking some type of bug out vest as well as a pack so we could ditch the packs if we had to(getting in to it and need to haul ass, etc.) and still have some needed gear.

I think physical conditioning and training with your gear is crucial. Along the same lines as stock/store what you normally eat.