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4K views 13 replies 9 participants last post by  MikeK 
#1 ·
As much as we would like to have a nice home in the burbs and a well supplied fortress in the boonies, some of us need to be practical about such things! I am nearing retirement and as much as I would like a nice piece of acreage that has water, good fishing, good hunting, good growing season, and away from zombies, it just aint going to happen! Especialy since I cant afford it!

I am currently looking for property to retire on and have no intention of bugging out, so I have to consider such things as being close enough to civilization for food, supplies and medical attention just in case TS doesn't HTF and being far enough away to be somewhat defendable and meet some of my survival needs, if TS does HTF. I'm probably in a better situation than most, but survivalist Shangri-la is not within my grasp!

Is it within yours?
 
#4 ·
It has been my belief for many years that any place that would make a really good BOL would be a near perfect place to live year round. But if you do it isn't your bug out place, it is the place you bug out from when it becomes untennable to live there for one of the major reasons. Destruction by fire, volcano, earthquake, or take over by outsiders of whatever ilk and a few more reasons.

If it really is a good place, you shouldn't have to leave in any except the most dire circumstances.

That being the case, an actual BOL need not be another great residence, though that certainly would be nice, given the money. But a basic concrete masonry unit (fancy name for concrete blocks) shed or cabin, to get you out of the weather, and cached equipment and supplies nearby to keep you going until the disaster is over or you have to make a new start.

Most people simply don't have the money, or the need, in my opinion, for two equal places, one their main home and one their BOL or in older terms, their retreat.

The best survival rated home you can do within your means, and then the CMU cabin out in a remote area would work for most people. Including me.

The reason I say well reinforced CMU construction is the basic structure is fire resistant to the point of almost being fireproof, if only the shell exists, and everything that isn't concrete is steel, and very little of that. As I said, the things that can be stolen or destroyed would be cached in a manner that would make them very difficult to find. And several smaller caches are better than one big one.

The actual cabin and caches deserve another thread, I think.


Just my opinion and what I'm looking to do someday.
 
#5 ·
rokitman, Ive also looked at northern NV. I thought it would be easy to live off grid there with all the sunshine. I read online that NV has a pretty high crime rate, and ive got a house full of kids that I dont want to endanger. I cant find anything on the breakdown of rural vs urban NV crime rates. I wonder what some smaller communities in Northern NV are like? If you run across some info on it please post it here or contact me for an email address. I am currently overseas and will be coming to the states (for good) in a few months. Ive been gone all but 60 days since 2003,, Its time I found some peace and quiet.
 
#6 ·
Central CA is about as good as it gets out here. Gentle climate, low population density. Nice moderate sized towns like SLO and Santa Barbara. The drive from SLO to Monterey on CA Hwy 1 is one of the most beautiful on earth. Problem is that it is expensive! You might try going over the hill and look. The Hwy 101 corridor has a lot of small agricultural towns and ranch land off the beaten track.

We have a parcel of undeveloped land with a travel trailer in the southern Sierra between Tehachapi and Lake Isabella. Way off the beaten track. Would be nice to develop a full up BOL but there just isn't money with 2 kids going to college and a mortgage. I'm afraid that by the time we can afford to do anything with it we'll be too old to enjoy it.
 
#7 ·
Rural N. Nevada is a wild and uninhibited part of the country. Old mining country. The TV series Bonanza was set near Virginia City. Libertarian sentiment runs strong in the locals and guns are common. Easy to isolate yourself totally if you want. OTOH it attracts a large share of weirdos, meth labs and malcontents for that very reason. You'll find legal prostitution, Area 51, Route 666 and the Burning Man Festival kind of set the mood. There's a reason they touched off hundreds of nuclear bombs at the Nevada test site in the 50s and 60s. It was - and is still - largely empty.

Stay away from Pahrump. It is one of America's arm pits.
 
#8 ·
No way can I afford a BOL.

Plan A is for me to bug in. If a disaster takes out my house like the Mega Volcano in Yellowstone then I'm hitching up the travel trailer and heading to your house in Central California!!!! :D:

If I was rich I would be living on my BOL. But I don't really want a BOL that I don't actually live on full time.

What if the same disaster took out the BOL, or at least any way to get to it?
Then what?

I like the idea of my BOL being my trailer and I can go which ever direction I need to. I know, all the roads will be plugged. But before you say that realize I live on the edge of Boise Idaho with 1000's of square miles of empty BLM land next door. My Truck and trailer are heavily modified for off road.
 
#12 ·
Jerry, you bring up some good points! When I do find the property I'm looking for I will indeed look for a "worst case scenario" bol. Where I live now I have limited options because there are only three ways out and anyone of them could be easily blocked or quickly clogged. The area I'm searching has many more options and easier to get out of! Maybe I can find an old bears den near a creek loaded with trout for my extreme bol! :D:
 
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