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Places to scavange after the collapse of society?

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#1 · (Edited)
Ok, what happens when you lose access to your food supplies? Have anyone here given any thought as to where to locate food when society finally breaks down? Super Markets would be picked clean but there should be areas that have might of escaped the looters and destruction.

Some Ideas:
Resteraunts
Gas Stations
School Caferteias
Some Industrial buildings have food/soda machines
Churches
Hospital Cafeterias
Small Airports
Warehouses might contain treasure troves of food
Anyother ideas?

I have a friend who went into an abandoned resteraunt that has been boarded up for two years now. He said there were dozens of number 10 cans full of beans, tomato sause, ketchup, greenbeans, and nacho cheese sause. He also found three of those table top can openers. There were also tons of dry goods that the rats had gotten into.

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#3 ·
Ok, what happens when you lose access to your food supplies? Have anyone here given any thought as to where to locate food when society finally breaks down? Super Markets would be picked clean but there should be areas that have might of escaped the looters and destruction.
If we follow this suggestion doesn't would that make us looters too?

Just a thought (and I'm very familiar with the "..if that's what it takes to feed my family..." argument).
 
#5 ·
Personally, I believe you will need to hunker down for a few months and up to a year.

By then, people will be dead or well away from any are you intend to scavenge. Personally, I'd be looking for tractor trailers. You never know what you'll find when you open one up, but when you do you will have ****loads of it. You might also be able to drive the damn thing.

You don't want to be caught scavenging. It's a great time for someone to stalk you back to your BOL. If martial law is decreed, expect to be shot at by soldiers. Ideally, you've been able to wait long enough as I mentioned above.
 
#8 · (Edited)
There is a difference between "looting" and "scavenging." Looters are stealing TVs and sneakers. Scavengers are trying to get things to survive.
Part of my equipment, in my shop because they are quite useful, is a set of bolt cutters. They would go in my BOV because I might need to cut chain, combination rigs along the road are almost always locked with padlocks. Would it be looting to open a clearly abandonded Semi-trailer in hopes of finding food?

Thanks,
Rob
 
#34 ·
Part of my equipment, in my shop because they are quite useful, is a set of bolt cutters. They would go in my BOV because I might need to cut chain, combination rigs along the road are almost always locked with padlocks. Would it be looting to open a clearly abandonded Semi-trailer in hopes of finding food?
Durring the blizzard of 77' here in Buffalo my mother gave birth to my brother. We went to the hospital but my father decided to drop off my brother Dennis and I to my uncle's house. On the way it went from slightly snowy to massive winds and white out conditions. We were pulled over by some local cops who forced us to go to a local fire hall. While we were running amok in the station(I was seven my brother five) the firefighters who were stuck at the station with us left the station armed with bolt cutters and fireaxes and looted several semi-trucks. We feasted on pan cakes, chilli, and I believe they scored coffee and hot chocolate. It was a two day paradice inside the station for the kids a nightmare for firefighters.:D:
 
#9 ·
When the SHTF, scavenging abandoned places is nothing to be ashamed of. Wary, maybe but not ashamed. I can't stand that Rawles BS about the political incorrectness of taking abandoned stuff that's not yours.

Looting (which is robbing) is a different matter but scavenging is ok in my books.

Places to scavange:

If you live near an agricultural area, grain elevators my still have some left over grains.
 
#14 ·
Oh I'm betting if you or your family were hungry, you would suddenly grey the definition between looting and scavaging, as would any one else in this thread. Don't kid yourself or us, the whole reason for prepping is to take care of you and yours should the need arise otherwise everyone on here would be giving us google directions to their BOL. Think about this, the donner party, knowledgeable people in the ways of self sufficiency but not too bright when it came to the weather, ate each other to stay alive. Wouldn’t wish it on the worst liberal but your kidding yourself if you say "not me"
 
#12 · (Edited)
Anybody that advocates anti-scavenging philosiphies is living under a false neo-modern enlightend way of thinking that is so prevailing among those in a society that don't what to give in to the fact that not all is as good and civilized as they perceive it to be. It is one of the last vestiges that most people of that type of thinking so despritely hold onto, reason being is that it means that they have lost control of the situation. That it is alright to take what one needs in order to live, JUST NOT FROM THEM !

This has been going on since the beginning of time and is still going on and will continue to go on until Jesus returns. Enlightened societies have always condemed those more barbaric ones because they took what they needed to survive first and live alittle better second. Only one thing though, those "enlightend societies" never care to remember just how they got started on the path to being stronger then everyone else, richer then everyone else and better then everyone else.....

They have changed history , replaced it with politcal correctness so as to ease their cosciences into believing that they are not as bad as the truth really is. In affect they are diluding themselves of the truth, that they are human and that humans do whatever it is that they need to do in order to breed,survive and thrive above any others that may wish to do the same . Factor in limited resources,food,shelter,grazing land ,limited wealth,disease,weather,etc,etc,etc....and that only translates into one thing....only the strong in any psedo-society survive and the weaker ones die off, that is until the weak of that society convince the strong that their time is over and that they need ony crawl back into their respective caves and do the rest of them a favor and just die so that society will be better off and that they can put their collective conciences to rest.










That is , until the whole process begins again, as it always has, as it always will.
 
#52 ·
roflmao ive seen the locks they use on our arms rooms the locks themselves are 1000 bucks a pop and flippn huge. thats just on the outer door. not to mention they use safe doors now on arms rooms. i wont go to much further into the details for security reasons but if the base is still operational and there are soldiers there you wont even have a chance to cut the lock.
 
#17 ·
waterheaters , truck stops, docks, farmhouses, pawnshops, banks if moneys still worth something, hotels motels, anything isolated like cabins,gunstores or the bigger places like Cabelas or Gander mountain, pretty much everywhere and anything. stalled cars not just trucks factories or even a power plant, railroads if u find a train ur set for a while lol, car dealerships try to get a nice one ha.

dont forget the bathrooms of any area you need TP and cleaining supplies etc.

to many to list and im tired lol make sure they are safe and no people good or bad are there if they are good then try to trade if bad avoid.. or if you have to fight. ALWAYS ALWAYS LOOT what the enemy provides. None of that Rawles goody goody stuff if u need it its yours if u dont need it sell it.

Its a waste to give it away giving frikken gold coins etc and all that was soo moronic ...thats one thing i hated about that book besides him saying riotshotgun every other sentence lol ITS CALLED A SHOTGUN! sorry got off subject. good thread i like this subject.
 
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#18 ·
Originally Posted by jandg View Post
If we follow this suggestion doesn't would that make us looters too?

Just a thought (and I'm very familiar with the "..if that's what it takes to feed my family..." argument).

would you rather have me scavaging (looting) there or at your BOL. Either one works for me.
Oh, I'm sure you wouldn't stop at either.
 
#23 ·
I actually meant to say "foraging" instead of "Scavenging". I read it in a fiction book somewhere and it fit nicely with my own mindset. I really don't see how a TV is going to keep a person alive, but the lady running down the street with a bag of flower is probably planning on eating it. "Foraging"=survival and "looting"= stealing. That is a personal guideline for me.

Thanks,
Rob
 
#20 · (Edited)
you can 'scavenge' pretty much every where even in garbages but be wary if you live in a city and remember that canibalism only stoped a few decades ago and that humans are made of flesh thus meat ! personaly if SHTF i take whatever i can and run my ass into the woods and stay the F away from 'civilisation' might even go way up north just to make shure nobody is around .

remember that when there is no civilisation only the strong survives ...

Edit:
i suggest you watch doomsday its a good movie and dosent lesinate on details of just how much barbaric ppl can be
 
#21 ·
Declan, This was your idea "If you live near an agricultural area, grain elevators my still have some left over grains." Just word on it, many farmers have pesticides put on stored grains as well as rodent poison, clean it really well or be sure it hasn't been treated prior to eating.

Of course if the SHTF close to havest time the grains are normally fairly clean as they would be sold to food companies. Better safe than sorry, cook a few up and feed them to the in-laws first. LOL
 
#25 · (Edited)
Two years is nearing the shelf life, need to salvage those and put them to use
(not store them)

the can openers are the big find

to put this operation into effect, you'll need multiple salvagers, one person cannot practicably carry two dozen #10 cans.

Ideally a cart would become available. Elsewhere others in this forum have suggested grocery shopping carts, i differ. Grocery carts are both two loud and too slow. I suggest instead a game cart as put forward by Jerry D Young, a member of this Board. Here is an example of one
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/guide-gear-deluxe-deer-cart.aspx?a=277921


Jerry D Young has posted a number of excellent salvage stories on this Board, well worth looking up.
Jerry's Fan Group here
http://www.survivalistboards.com/group.php?groupid=107

Here is another salvage story I like
http://www.tacticalunderground.us/forum/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=7345

you may have to register to gain access.
The companion two chapters are "Cole and Owen"
 
#36 ·
I just wanted to add that I draw the line at incidence of ownership.

If I can establish an owner that is an individual, and said owner has not expired due to PAW or has heirs, it is strictly hands off, malum cum se.

If it is abandoned then only wold I consider freecycling
 
#27 ·
I dream of this day!!

ok scavenge

military bases
gunshops
costco
supermarkets
liquor stores
clothes stores
book shops
drugstores
hospitals
fuel depots
car dealerships/ preferably bmw, landrover/ jeep/ maybe porsche for fun
blockbusters
best buy
tool shops
camping shops
anywhere I want!!

Oh and burn down my credit card company so I have no bills !!lol
 
#28 ·
The "in your face", "righteous" people are usually the first ones to get over their "morality handicap" so cut the bs, nobody knows what they are going to do in such dire situations until they do it.

I can't stand goody two shoes preaching fools. They're usually two faced back stabbers in my personal experience. All talk, no follow through.
 
#30 ·
Places to scavange after the collapse of society?
Not my home or my preps. I'll take you down before you can say shotgun.

However, if you and your family ask nicely, and perhaps offer to band together with us using your skills, etc., then I will probably help you out of Christian charity.

But taking from others is wrong, no matter what the circumstances. My wife and I would rather die than steal from others.

Now, taking when no one has a claim to said property or stores, or they are all dead or permanently gone, well, that may be a grey area for another thread discussion.
 
#38 ·
might sound stupid and i dont know if it has been mentioned but id hit the pet store too !

of course this is only in a doomsday SHTF no law is in effect kinda senario
as was mentioned above when it hurts another is where i draw the line in these cases
but you never gona know if your not in those situations anyway .
for me steeling is steeling . in dire situation the need of the sombody outweight the need of the nobody (i mean not present or dead) i would personaly prefer to gang up or band togeter in those situations anyway but in my case id probably hit the road way before that .
 
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