achieving adventure

Your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) must be able to go the distance.

When disaster happens several things can lead to your success or failure.

Distance you need to go

The route that you have to go

Gas stations along the route

Gas station closures or lines

How to ensure your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) will go the maximum possible distance.

You can alter your vehicle to go further, or you can practice fuel management.

The following can help your vehicle go further on less fuel:

 

Smooth Acceleration and Deceleration

Ensure all panels are in place properly

Keep your engine tuned

Keep your tires inflated properly (check every week)

Keeping speed below 65MPH, but this may not be realistic for bug out

Low Rolling-Resistance Tires

Alloy Rims (low weight)

Change your air filter (engine management runs richer with dirty filter)

Keep your spark plugs changed or cleaned

Coast in gear, not neutral in newer vehicles

Don’t use higher octane fuel (doesn’t help unless you have a high-compression engine)

You need to be able to store more fuel:

Great fuel mileage can only take you so far when looking to travel large distances without refueling.

Raise your fuel storage to raise the distance you can go.  Some ways to carry extra fuel are:

Larger Fuel Tanks

A Second Tank

Jerry Cans

Flat Fuel Cans

Barrels

Roof Racks

Larger Fuel Tanks

Conventional tanks are between 350 and 400 miles in distance.  Long-range tanks can add about another 100 miles.  Bigger tank = more fuel = more fuel

A Second Tank

Many cars actually have space for this.  You just doubled your mileage.

Jerry Can Mounts

You can add 5 gallons per can.  You can add to the outer shell of your vehicle, so no interior room is lost.

Flat Fuel Cans

If you want something low profile to add to your roof or the back of your vehicle use flat cans.

These cans are also great for ATVs.

Keep 15 or 50 Gallon HDPE Barrels in Bed of Truck

Trucks have bed space to place barrels.

15 gallon barrels give 150-300 miles extra

50 gallon barrels give 500-1000 extra miles.

Pumps are a great idea (12v, battery, manual).  I don’t recommend siphoning, but it is possible.

Roof Racks

If you have a roof rack, you can use ratcheting straps to hold basic fuel cans down on your roof.

TPP122: High Mileage Options For Long Distant Bug-Out Vehicles (BOVs) from Ken Jensen

Keep Extra Fuel for Long-Range Bug Outs

If you keep enough extra fuel with each vehicle, you will be able to make a long range trip to your Bug-Out Location (BOL).  Using these options, determine how you will extend the range of any vehicle.

No vehicle is perfect for everything. This doesn’t mean it isn’t good enough.

Your vehicle can be good enough, but you need to consider:

Your Vehicles Capabilities

Where you are, where you are going, and everything between

Vehicle Capabilities to consider

Terrain during transit

Terrain at your Bug-Out Location (BOL).

Storage Room

How far you can go on stored fuel

How much storage room does your vehicle have?

Your vehicle needs to hold your family

Your vehicle needs to hold your gear

Your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) needs to hold your family.

Each adult takes a seat.

Each child could take up more with a carseat.

Each child not in a carseat could take half a seat.

Car, SUV, Minivan, Van, ETC?

Another Variable: Will you take one vehicle or two?

Your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) needs to hold your gear.

Assumptions:

You have a Bug-Out Bag (BOB)

A pre-stocked Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV)

When SHTF, you will grab as much stuff from your home as possible.

Your vehicle must be able to hold all of your gear.

You will pack the back full

Everyone will stuff items under their seats

Can your suspension system handle this weight?

You may add a car-top carrier

You could add a trailer

121: Making The Most Of What You Have In A Bug-Out Vehicle(BOV) from Ken Jensen

How far can your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) go on stored fuel?

(I plan to go more in depth on the next podcast, but I will quickly cover a few points)

Most vehicles can go around 350 miles on a tank of fuel… 180 miles on half a tank.

Keep your tank full.

Get a larger tank

Carry extra fuel with you (safely)

You should make sure your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) works:

Where you are at

Where you are going

And any terrain that could be on your route

You need to choose a vehicle that can carry everyone and everything you need:

Don’t leave behind vital gear

Worse… don’t leave behind a family member or pet because you didn’t have room.

Be responsible… choose a vehicle for travel capabilities, storage room, and fuel consumption.  

Don’t become the guy with a supped-up Jeep that overheated or ran out of gas and broke down in stopped traffic.  That amazing off-road vehicle isn’t so amazing anymore… is it?

Bug Out Vehicles (BOVs) are great tools.

Advantages vehicles have over being on foot:

Carry more

Can go further

Travel faster

The combination of bugging out quickly, and the speed of a vehicle can get you ahead of everyone else.

A Good Bug Out Vehicle will Provide What You Need

Every good Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) must do exactly what you need.

They can’t break down when it matters.

Vehicles don’t have brains, so you must use yours.

Choose a vehicle that can fufill your exact needs and terrain.

9 Requirements for Choosing the Best Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV)

Almost no vehicle will have every single characteristic you want without spending several hundred thousand dollars.

You must understand each vehicle necessity and choose what is most important to you.

Reliable

Affordable

Terrain Capable

Full of Storage Room

Mileage Travelers

Repairable

Practical

Unrecognizable

Able to Carry Your Family

Reliable

You shouldn’t be concerned that your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) will break down on you.

Affordable

Your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) shouldn’t cost a fortune.  The best vehicle is the one you own.

Terrain Capable

Where are you? Where do you need to go? Can your vehicle get you there? Bicycles and Motorcycles aren’t practical for ramming through fences.

Full of Storage Room

Can your vehicle hold all the gear that you want to take?

Mileage Travelers

Your vehicle needs to go as far as possible between gas stations.

Sign Up for FREE for the best survival training at BESTsurvivalskillstraining.com

Repairable

Can you fix your vehicle? When parts are few can it be fixed by a mechanic?  How complex is the engine?

Practical

120: Bug Out Vehicle for Safe and Reliable Bug Out from Ken Jensen

Must be useful in daily life (families, groceries, normal daily activities).

Unrecognizable

Do you have a jacked-up Hummer, with a neon “zombie-response team” logo on it or is it a basic 4×4 pickup?

Able to Carry Your Family

If the vehicle can’t carry everyone that will be bugging out, and their gear, it is not a good Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV).

Decide What Vehicle You Own is a Great BOV

Figure out how to use your current vehicle as a Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV) first.

Stock it up with your gear.

If you have to get a new vehicle, please make sure it is practical for every-day life.

 

What 4th of July Means to People today

Summer

BBQ

Beer

Parades

Fireworks

We have let our family gatherings and cookouts get in the way of our Independence Day knowledge.

How Schools have taught Independence Day

Revolution was declared against the British

On July 4th, 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed

There was a celebration where the Liberty Bell got cracked from getting his so hard

What is the Declaration of Independence

It is a document signed by our local governing body that was done so to explain to the British King that we were tired of the British government overstepping its bounds and consistently overtaxing the people.

The first rough draft was written in the Green Dragon Tavern over a mug of ale.

This was the same as the Boston Tea Party

The Men / Signers of the Declaration of Independence

Men were revolters

Not considered stand up people

They were felons, traitors

Men of power and courage

Signed the DOI

Revolutionary War, The war for independence

April 1775, war declared on Great Britain

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere

April 18th 1775

Part of a planned early warning system

One by land and Two by sea – north church steeple

To Ride to Lexington to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams

Revere was caught off-guard

Then he rode, stopping at houses on his way to Lexington

Got to Adams and Hancock

Joined by rider William Dawes

Continued on to Concord

Hidden ammunition for continental army

Joined by Samuel Prescott

Intercepted by British battalion and all three arrested

Impressive turnout for war

People realized the length of it

Started waning off

Late 1776, Colonies began cash incentives

In 1778 started drafting

Many Americans (15-20%) Crown Loyalists, fought as a red coat

Native Americans were fighting on both sides

In Peace of Paris Treaty, the Crown Natives lost their land

The others made out better initially, but ultimately lost theirs as well

The entire reason why they fought with the Brits was because they wanted to save their land.

1781, war was unofficially over

1783 War was officially over when peace treaty was signed.

The liberty bell was not broken by the 4th of July celebration in 1777.

Improperly cast

Broken, recast, and broken several times

Bell was intact during the war

Wasn’t rang on the 4th

Was rang when the DOI was read aloud

Declaration of independence 

Signing is why we celebrate the 4th

First draft written by Thomas Jefferson in Green D ragon.

Dependence was actually declared on July 2nd, 1776

DOI still draft, signed only by John Hancock and Charles Thompson

Congressional Leader and Secretary of congress

John Adams wrote to wife Abigail predicting July 2nd would be a holiday.

Read aloud in the city on July 8th

Play the clip

Finally Signed Aug 2, 1776

Delivered to Great Britain that following November

Why the 4th

That was the day congress stopped hashing out the draft that was submitted on the 2nd

They agreed to the wording

This date was on the newest revision that was signed in august.

Wasn’t a national holiday until 1870 (century later)

Story is this

Bunch of guys ticked off at government

High taxes

Removal of liberties

Related Blog Posts:

What to Do for Memorial Day, Visiting a Memorial Cemetery

The Meaning About US Veteran’s Memorial Day, Honor, The Date, and The Story

What is the Meaning of Memorial Day for Many People?

Most people see it as Thank a Veteran Day.

Some people see it as Wear Something Patriotic Day.

Almost everyone sees it as Grill-Out With the Family Day.

Almost the same number of people will see it as Take the Family to the Beach (Lake) Day.

What Date is Memorial Day Celebrated and Why?

The holiday used to be on May 30th every year.

In 1968, it was moved to the last Monday of the month to give people a three day weekend.

There are some veteran groups that would like to see the weekend disappear, because it became just another family holiday, and the real meaning or remembrance is disappearing.

What is the True Meaning of Memorial Day?

Memorial Day isn’t about veterans, what you wear, grilling out, or going to swim.

Memorial Day is somber.

The purpose is to remember the fallen.

People fought and died for “liberty” and “freedom” for us!

A Memorial Day Story about the Sacrifice of a Soldier

Tommy (A true story), please share this with EVERYONE.

Tommy was 17 years of age.

He was in INDOC, which is where you are pledged to pledge.

At 18, he signed papers and swore an oath to defend the constitution of the United States.

This was against enemies foreign and domestic.

He meant every single word of the oath.

He CHOSE to protect us at great cost

If there was an order, he would follow it

He understood SACRIFICE

Salute him, applaud his service, tell him thank you, shake his hand, and MOVE out of his way when he walks down the street.

At 18, He went to bootcamp.

He drilled, exercised, and marched.

He had been tested in war simulations for what he learned, physical strength, and tenacity.

He passed… He was tough.

At the end of bootcamp he was proud and so were his parents.

He came home on leave.

He visited

Everyone hugged him and applauded him

They asked him what the army was like.

He went to school after leave.

He learned a useful trade

Then he visited home again

Then he was sent to join his platoon.

Almost immediately after, they were given orders to go to Iraq.

He wasn’t excited about this, but it was his duty and he never complained.

He did very well and gained rank quickly (pay and authority).

He was given a new job of Gunner for the Lieutenant’s Humvee because he was one of the best shots.

One day, they were travelling.  They were the second Humvee.

Sargent Gomez was driving.

The first Humvee was hit by an Explosively Formed Penetrator (EFP).

It is a malleable copper charge into the cab which does lots of damage inside.  It is kinda similar to an IED.

The medic ran over to #1.

#2, where Gomez, Tommy, and the Lieutenant were, was hit.

The EFP went through the driver side window.

It hit Gomez in the throat, ripped it out and exploded in the cab.

The percussion broke Tommy’s arm and injured his spine.

The medic ran over to #2 humvee.

Another EFP went off.

It penetrated two layers of armor, turned 180 degrees, exited two layers of armor, and hit the medic.

The medic was killed on the spot.

After hours of pain and agony, Tommy and a few others were rescued.

Choose the Perfect Bug-Out Location Every Time: A BOL You Will Love and People You Enjoy

So you found a place that sounds great on paper.  You even took a trip to visit it.

You visited the property a second time, and just fell in love with it.  You.  could see yourself there, and all the amazing things it has to offer.

YOU STILL HAVEN’T DONE ENOUGH RESEARCH!

Before slapping down thousands of dollars, do a little more digging.

Know your property

Know the area the property is in

Know the hazards in the area

Don’t discount convenience

Know the climate zones and growing periods

Choose a location with hobbies and enjoyment in mind

Choose your neighbors wisely

Know the Property, but You MUST Know the Area around It

Life altering decision

You are stuck with home AND surrounding area

Stuck with surrounding people

Don’t regret your decision.

Easy Ways that You Can Learn about Your Potential Home

In final stages of your decision making, consider doing the following:

Taking Vacations

Bed and Breakfasts

Renting

Taking Vacations

Taking them anyways

Center yours around scoping out your Bug-Out Location

What does the area have to offer in hobbies and adventure?

Bed and Breakfasts

Great way to:

have daily conversations with people that live there

gain lots of information about the potential location from locals

Renting

Rent a cheap, crummy apartment in the area

great opportunities nearly every weekend to learn the area and people.

Your BOL Could Be Amazing

take the time to learn the area that you want to move to before purchasing the property,

know exactly what you are getting into

simple, low cost ways you can experience the property and the area

Know the Dangers where Your Bug-Out Location (BOL) Will Be

Meant for when the Stink Hits the Fan (SHTF)

choose one that isn’t going to:

place you more in harm’s way

reduce your ability to respond to emergencies.

What Hazards are in The Location

Know benefits and hazards in the location you are choosing.  

What are the Natural Disasters and Regional Disasters?

Which disasters are possible?

Are you willing to accept that possibility?

What steps do you need to take to protect yourself from them?

Storms

Tornados

Hurricanes

Flooding

Wild Fires

Volcanoes

Water Supply Risks

Nuclear Accident Potential

Burglary or Mugging Rates

Are You near Medical Support

How important it is that you can get medical care? Yes?

An hour or so from a hospital.  Hospitals don’t show up until the town has about 5 thousand or so.

Hard work, wild environments, you can get hurt

After first-aid is performed, you may need more care.  Give thought to medical care when you decide your bug out location.

Knowing Your Location

Know your location by

Address

GPS coordinates

Same with your Bug-Out Location (BOL)!

Don’t be on the receiving end of a three-day manhunt resulting in a life threatening situation.

Be able to tell them to any emergency services when necessary.

Don’t Regret Choosing the Wrong Bug-Out Location (BOL)

What risks are available?

Am I willing to take that risk?

Can those risks or disasters harm me?

If I get hurt, can I get to medical care?

Can I bring the medical care to me?

Choose a Location with Conveniences

convenient to resources: modern conveniences to help you improve land

convenient to your current location: so you will be willing to visit.

Location Determines Convenience!

Dehydrating and Vacuum Sealing Meats

Question from Jimmy – from Alabama

 

Can You Dehydrate Meats???

YES!!!

Doesn’t hydrate as well as veggies

They are chewier

Cooked Meats – Dehydrate 135F-160F (consult manual)

Don’t go below 135F

Vacuum sealed, dehydrated meats are known to last up to 2-3 weeks at room temp

Refrigerating or freezing will maintain quality and lasts longer

Fats and proteins – broken down by O2 and Light

Causes Poor Flavor and Spoilage

They are perfect for stews, soups, or dishes where they are cut up such as beef tips or stroganoff

Tips when Rehydrating Meats before We Go Into Detail

Adding chicken/beef stock adds more flavor

Small pieces rehydrate more evenly

General Preparation for Dehydrating

Choose Choice/Tender Cuts to reduce toughness

Less Fat – Fat goes rancid

Cut into small pieces

Cook it – thoroughly

Drying makes it easy to set up meals

Dehydrate all ingredients

Add all of your ingredients

Make meals and vacuum seal it.  Freeze until you want to go hiking.

This is great for hiking meals for overnight or multi-week hikes.

Designed for use for month long hikes.

If you aren’t ready to make meals

Dehydrate ingredients

Freeze the ingredients you are not ready to use until you can make meals

Take it out and let it sit to return to room temp before opening (condensation)

At room temp – you can open it

Make meals and re-vacuum seal it.  Freeze if desired.

Meals preserved this way have been good up to 8 months after packaging them

Place vacuum bags in Mylar bags

When vacuuming, use O2 absorbers

3-mil bag

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Types of Meat to Dehydrate

Ground Beef

Sliced Ham

Shrimp

Tuna

Crab

Chicken

 

Dehydrating Beef

Called gravel by backpackers – doesn’t rehydrate well

Add breadcrumbs to the raw meat – allows liquid to penetrate it better

Turns out tender every time

Only use lean ground beef with fat below 15%

Lower is better

Usually labeled as ground round

Grass-fed beef is usually 7-10%

Prepare it

Each pound, ½ cup bread crumbs (can make them yourself)

brown over medium heat, fully cooked

blot with papertowels while cooking

press between papertowels after– remove oil

Dehydrate at 145F on sheets until hard

If drying for long term storage, no bread crumbs (soaks fat)

Dehydrating Sliced Ham, Lean Deli Roast Beef, Turkey, Chicken

Sliced 1/16 in thick

Slice into Strips of ¾-1”

Dry at 145F for about 6 hrs

Blot oil every couple hours while drying

Usually chewy when hydrated

Boil 2 mins to help soften it up

Dehydrating Shrimp

Frozen/Precooked/Peeled

Thaw in refrigerator or cold water

Slice into small pieces

Dehydrate at 145F for about 6hrs

No moisture remaining when cut

Dehydrating Tuna

Solid white tuna in water

Drain water

spread evenly on tray

Dry at 145F about 6 hrs

It will be crispy (yes it stinks!)

Tactical Communication Systems, Prepping Related Statistical Research, and Three Ways To Evade or Reduce Radiation Exposure in a Nuclear Accident

The Memorial Day Episode of The Prepper Podcast was Awesome!

Feedback submitted by Paul Freeland – From Kansas

https://www.speakpipe.com/msg/41623/25/56010/1432070036/72c93394fde630fe73cc7e05d41bfe35

Thank you for your Memorial Day Show.  It has reminded me just how extremely important our fallen heroes are.

You Can Create Cheap Tactical Communication Gear With These Awesome Tips.

Feedback submitted by Warner – From Belgium

https://www.speakpipe.com/msg/74127/32/56010/1444262585/f18afbe5d4d4135448ceea15414c492e

Warner’s Question about Tactical Communication Setups:

Pretty much all electronic hearing protection is generally Comtac or Peltor (500 dollar headsets).

How can I achieve the hearing protection with radio communication on a budget?!

My Answer about Setting up a Noise-Blocking Communication Setup:

Create a Budget Friendly Hearing Protection and Radio System with a Few Cheap Components

Breaking it down, you need to:

Know Your Radio

Have a good headset

Have a radio

Need a “signal converter”

First, You Must Understand Your Radio and It’s Connections

You can adapt almost any radio for use with headphones, but you have to know what kind of connection type it has.

A great resource for this is the radio connection chart at Planet Head Set.

Next, get an electronic  headset that is comfortable and reliable.

Get a good quality headset with a 3.5 mm stereo jack for iPod.  These are fairly cheap in comparison to some of the more digital ones that are designed for more.

For the headset you could go with the Howard Leight 1030110 Sync Noise-Blocking Stereo Earmuff

Third, You Need a Decent Radio that You can Program.

If you don’t already have a radio, then you will need one.  My guess is that you already have one, because you are an awesome super prepper.

On the off chance that you DON’T have a radio in mind, I will be explaining how to connect everything using Baofeng Radio since it is a cheap programmable radio: BaoFeng BF-F8HP 8W High Power – BaoFeng’s Best TRI-POWER (1, 4, 8 Watt) (USA Warranty) Dual-Band 136-174/400-520Mhz (VHF/UHF) Ham Two-way Radio – With Large Battery, High Gain Antenna, Earpiece, Charger, and More

The Baofeng Programmable Radio has a Kenwood K1 Connection which you can find in the Planet Head Set Chart I mentioned already.

Baofengs have amazing capabilities, but are super cheap.  You can program it to do almost anything.

Fourth, Design a Simple “Conversion Kit” to Connect Your Headset to Your Radio

Really, all you need is a touch mic.  You don’t need some fancy hands-free gadget when these work just fine.

No one will be able to hear your mic as long as you have phones plugged into it.  You will need one that your phones WILL plug into.

Another benefit of this setup is that you can unplug your headphones, and use it as a speaker.

Relying on Your Bushcraft Skills Instead of Breakable Gear

Interview with Brian Adey, Author of the book, The Adventure of a Lifetime

Background:

Brian an author, high school teacher, and outdoors man.  He has been active in the outdoors from childhood, but has been actively honing his bushcraft/survival skills for the past two years.  He is a firm believer in the saying, “Use your gear, but rely on your skills.”

He is Bushclass Basic certified through BushcraftUSA Forums, and is working on his Bushclass Intermediate certification.

Message Body and Questions:

How did you first become interested in bushcraft?

What is the difference or similarity between the term bushcraft and wilderness survival?

You believe in the saying, “Use your gear, but rely on your skills.”  Explain why you love this quote, and what it means.

What is the most important outdoor/bushcraft skill that someone can learn? firecraft.

Why do you think that skills are far more important than gear?

 

 

Where would you recommend people who are interested in learning bushcraft skills start (as far as training is concerned)?

* Knife use

* Firecraft

* knots

You have written a bushcraft themed novel.  Where can people find it?

Link to His Book: The Adventure of a Lifetime

What initially made you want to write a bushcraft-themed novel?

You have a helpful place for people wanting to know more about bushcraft.  What is it?

BushcraftUSA Forums – a wealth of bushcraft info, and free access to Bushclass USA (for members – free to be a member)

https://bushcraftusa.com/forum/

Just to make things interesting, would you be willing to Provide a Giveaway?

 

 

Link to His Book: The Adventure of a Lifetime

What Item willing to give away:

A paperback copy of my book and a custom firesteel with a hand-lathed zebrawood handle.

I have an amazing survival training site coming out at bestsurvivalskillstraining.com.  Would you be willing to contribute amazing content or a ridiculous deal for everyone that joins the site?

I can contribute awesome content!

114: Brian Adey Interview on Bushcraft from Ken Jensen

Where can everyone find you or learn more about you?

Bushcraftusaforum

badey

 

Random, Yet Amazing Things You MUST Know as a Prepper

Interview with David Kershner, Author of the 3-Part, and soon to be 4, Book Series “Foreign and Domestic”

Background:

David Kershner is a husband, father of two teenage daughters, avid outdoorsman (hunting, fishing, camping, hiking). Passionate about self reliance, self sufficiency, and preparedness. Grow as much of my own food as possible while stuck in an urban environment. Wrote a fictional series dealing with the collapse of the food system which leads to financial collapse and terrorism.

Each book provides information on a wide range of preparedness topics: food prep and storage (root cellar), heirloom seed procurement and harvesting, medicinal herb uses, emergency medical, independence, alt energy, BOB, BOL, Farming…

 

Message Body and Questions:

There are people out there that think that they HAVE TO HAVE carbs in their diets.  They love to make bread.  Packets of yeast last a year at best. What do you do?

Simple, make yeast water. Here’s how: Take some pieces of fruit, cut up, with the skin on. Fill a jar about half way with that. Then pour a couple cups of spring or filtered water over top until it’s about three quarters full. Just don’t use alkaline water. Put the lid on loosely, or some cheesecloth, and then let it sit somewhere warm for a few days. The yeast and the carbohydrates that are already in the fruit will start to react to one another. After a couple of days there should be bubbles, that’s how you’ll know if it worked. If you have some sugar you can add some to force a faster reaction. When you want to make some leavened bread, replace the individual yeast and water ingredients from the recipe with the yeast water and voilà, you’ll get a nice fluffy loaf… with a hint of apple, or pear, or peach, or raisin, or whatever you used. I’ve tried it. It works.

I have a podcast all about harvesting and storing water on episode 87, theprepperpodcast.com/087.  But you have a simple calculation to measure the gallons people can collect from roof tops.  How do people know how much they can catch?

Assuming that you are catching the rainwater that falls on your home, or some structure, measure the total square footage of all roof lines (Example: (length x width) + (length x width) + (length x width) = total sq footage). You don’t need to worry about the pitch. I have three rooflines that equal 812 sq ft. Now multiply the total sq footage by the average rainfall for the months where rainfall is being collected. In my area it’s 22.5 in. That gives me 18,270. Now multiple that by the conversion fraction of 0.623. That equation tells me that I can conceivably capture 11,382.21 gallons of water during those months. (812 x 22.5 x 0.623 = 11,382.21) Now go buy some rain barrels or an underground cistern to hold as much as possible and you and your garden will never be thirsty again.

If someone were thinking about stockpiling some barter items, what do you recommend? Where would you start?

I recommend that you start with the three “A’s”. Alcohol, ammo, and antibiotic. Granted in that order, the alcohol will lead to the bullet wound which will necessitate the antibiotic. After that I’d look to the three “S’s”. Seeds, sewing, sharpening. Most everyone will need seeds eventually, especially those that don’t know how to harvest seeds. Clothing will wear out and darning will become a necessity. Axes and knives and chainsaw chains (assuming there is fuel) all need to be sharpened. A modest supply of sharpening stones and files will be a sought after commodity. Other than that, every time you go near canning supplies, grab a package of canning lids. The rims and jars can be reused, but the lids are a consumable commodity.

In episode 82, theprepperpodcast.com/082 I talk about communities.   Before SHTF,