Yeah, MikeK pretty much hit on what I was going to say.
Whether you go and stay gone is more about the type of event than the type of bag you build.
There are loads of every day type emergencies that might require a temporary bug out (flooding, potential threats life wildfire, other assorted "evacuate the area" scenarios) without even entertaining the thought of taking to the wilds and never returning.
I for one am not going to take to the woods because flooding is endangering my town.
There are, on the other hand, lots of TEOTWAWKI events that, sure, I am leaving and probably never coming back.
Haven't considered a secondary citizenship. I live in a two region area. Desert and wooded mountains reaching 10,000ft. The media will lead you to think it may go down.
The whole concept of a BOB is, as has been pointed out, to get out of harm's way for a few days, but that's typically with the intent to come home after the threat has passed. What you're referring to is often called an INCH ("I'm Not Coming Home") bag around here, and assumes that you won't have a home to return to once you leave, which means no resupply or reequipping. That might be tools for some folks, more weapons and ammo for others, and perhaps supplies for maintaining a shelter, garden, etc.
Of course, that almost certainly means more bulk and weight. Personally, if I'm in an "INCH" situation, I'm really, really hoping to have access to a vehicle, but not assuming that I will.
I guess I've so focused on web searching the Bob idea, that I haven't noticed the "INCH" terminology. Fits though. I've come to a realization that with a bad back, I have too go light and make up for it in mental preparedness. With that you need only knowledge if your region, no?
Haven't considered a secondary citizenship. I live in a two region area. Desert and wooded mountains reaching 10,000ft. The media will lead you to think it may go down.
If I were worried about a soviet or nazis type totalitarian govt comming to power and my name on the short list.
A 2nd citizenship will keep you from being turned away when the border gets closed to refugees.
Look at the ship full of jews fleeing the nazis. Got turned around because we'll we had enough refugees. Many died in the arms of the gestapo.
if they had a passport they woukd have been home free.
Walking into the wilderness and starting over is a fantastic idea that a huge percentage of people will die miserably in the first stages of attempting. Can it be done? Of course. But the chances for most people are about as good as my chances of changing my occupation to pro football quarterback. Well, maybe a little better than that, but not by much.
I've lived rural with some part of the rocky mountains as my playground nearly my whole life. Most of the people I associate with are avid outdoorsmen. The problem is that they all turn into victims the moment their gear is taken away. I'm not speaking hypothetical, I've tested it time and again. In my spare time (which isn't much these days) I teach wilderness survival and bushcraft. If you want a fighting chance if you want to ever consider heading into the wilderness long term or permanently, here's your process to follow. Practice regularly. Take only what you would in your inch bag, BUT have someone else remove 3-5 key items. Go out, identify what's missing, and figure out how to do it with what you have. Do it again with a few more things gone, and again and again, each time learning how to improve your situation with less. The goal is to reach the point when you have no pack, bag, pouch, nothing. By that time you'll know very well what is most important, and you'll likely have a bag that doesn't even resemble much of what you have currently. Knowledge and skills are your best weapons. The rest are just gadgets.
Where do you hold your coarse at, what region? I'm in Az and not battle tested, but do feel that with patience and knowledge, it may be necessary. I am definitely interested in a.coarse or two. No kids or wife to worry about. About to retire and setting up a go wagon. How much it's your coarse, I've inquired to others, so I may have an idea.
Same here for the most part, I gear as get-home preps. But I live rural with most things off grid (still have a phone line for my internet connection). So I suppose I bug out every evening when I leave work.
You all have great points, ideas, and new(to me) synonyms for go out return or settle in scenarios. But recent global news, (rather real or media induced) shows Russia, Korea, China, and Iraq racing towards nuclear capabilities. Small towns probably have less worries, I am from a fairly big city, Phx/Az. As a border state, drugs, and sun scrambled brains, I may stay in state elsewhere or go into hiding. I am of no threat, I've just had enough of the desert, even in the city. I just want to become a naturalist, or off the grid. In thought, it'll probably make me want back in. Whatever, I just want out and have the means with some experience with a little extra information. Now for the knowledge. Someone once told me the difference between information and knowledge is experience. Bring it, life is a risk, death is certain. If I survive, I can pass on the experience to the next generation. May we hold on to our past. Our forefathers did the hard work so that we can have quality gear and lore. Nature is less forgiving.
I have Go/Bob bags for me-wife-baby. 72 hours, hopefully not needed. I also have a bag in my truck in case I have to walk home for whatever reason.
My wife has the super magic ultimate go item/s. She calls them credit cards. We will use those.
The main uses for the Go bags would be stuck in traffic like a dumbass, get to the hotel too late to get food, still inside a no electricity/comms zone (Actual money),ect.....
INCH? I'm not walking away from an INCH situation if I can help it. If I have to, the BOB will suffice. INCH, I'm loading the ole F250 down to the axels enough to make Fred Sanford proud.
I think that this discussion is a classic example of why most people have a variety of types of bags.
Sure, I could take to the hills with nothing but the contents of my BOB, but I would much rather have the contents of my INCH if I was not coming back. There is the simple distinction between being prepared to survive and being prepared to thrive.
There is gear in my INCH setup I do not carry in my BOB...in some cases literally stuff I do without for my BOB, in others it is a matter of the same gear but in greater quantities.
I mean, look at the actual reason there ARE so many different types of bags. A basic survival kit is not a BOB, a GHB is not meant to do the same job as a BOB, a 72 hr Kit is not meant to be a BOB, etc etc....
Heck, personally I went so far as to actually make up an Urban BOB that assumes all the roles a BOB has but with the assumption I am in an urban/suburban setting not a rural or wild one. I take it on trips and such as one part BOB one part GHB.
Simply put, I don't think one bag can mean all things to a person, let alone to a group of people. That is exactly WHY there are different types of kits; it all comes down to what you need it to do for our personal plan.
... I haven't decided if I'll take a stand against a governmental takeover or just head for the hills and see where the bones lie in the end. Maybe I'll just end up in my own country paradise. Who knows...
When it come's to buggin' I'm more of an INie than an OUTie. So, my rural self will bug IN unless/until there is a good reason to bug OUT. One reason is that I don't have a place to bug out to. I should find a place, though, cuz when you gotta go, you gotta go. :
My guess is that you will bug out to the woods, and then bug out from there, and then bug out from there, and then bug out from there. LOTS of reasons NOT to bug out.
If I bug out because I heard the govt is confiscating peoples' stuff, then I might can return after the threat is over. If an evil horde of mutant zombie bikers is coming, I may bug out until they leave. If they settle at my house, maybe I can find a way to fight and take it back.
So, whether you're coming back or not probably depends on why you left in the first place. If you live in the middle of a large city, then you might never want to come back. But if that's the case, my suggestion is to find somewhere to bug out to (e.g., a prepper group retreat, rural relative/friend's house, etc). Not just some currently unoccupied forrest land.
You all have great points, ideas, and new(to me) synonyms for go out return or settle in scenarios. But recent global news, (rather real or media induced) shows Russia, Korea, China, and Iraq racing towards nuclear capabilities. Small towns probably have less worries, I am from a fairly big city, Phx/Az. As a border state, drugs, and sun scrambled brains, I may stay in state elsewhere or go into hiding. I am of no threat, I've just had enough of the desert, even in the city. I just want to become a naturalist, or off the grid. In thought, it'll probably make me want back in. Whatever, I just want out and have the means with some experience with a little extra information. Now for the knowledge. Someone once told me the difference between information and knowledge is experience. Bring it, life is a risk, death is certain. If I survive, I can pass on the experience to the next generation. May we hold on to our past. Our forefathers did the hard work so that we can have quality gear and lore. Nature is less forgiving.
If I were you, I'd want the heck out of the Phoenix area too! I actually live in the far SE corner of the state. About 20 degrees COOLER than your area, which is a REAL blessing in the summer, and more of high plains than true desert. Yeah, we do have cacti, and mesquite, but also lots of grasses, and decent area for gardening and grazing livestock. Also, a much larger percentage of folks here who are "preppers", even if they don't recognize themselves as such...to them, it's just everyday living.
I have a BOB that I carry in the car in case I get stranded or truck breaks down and I have to stay overnight some place. I am currently working on an INCH bag; its been taking some time as I slowly acquire the materials. I attended a great emergency prep class, where I learned about the INCH bag for the first time.
One guy showed up with his. Now, he's a big guy and his bag weighed 65 lbs. He was wearing pants that had all kinds of pockets to stash stuff as well as his other clothing. Well, I'm still working on my INCH bag; giving it a lot of thought; cause I may NOT be coming back home....and I want to have just about everything for survival....except the kitchen sink...
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