Lean and Mean in action...

OK, so have been extremely busy this past months.  I have completely reworked my mobile gear between campouts and some weapons training, but haven't had much free time to write and document what I've done.   I said I was going to get "lean and mean", translation find ways to be very efficient in my load and gear.  Here are two classic examples to help fully explain the direction.

Propane, as a fuel source is big and bulky, and size is a critical factor in judging efficiency.  I only have so much storage space, and in the unlikely event that we have to evacuate, we could only carry a limited amount of gear.   As with any chemical, a liquid is dense and more efficient way of storing and transporting.

Looking at an equal size and BTU comparison the one gallon can of Coleman Camp fuel will power a camp stove longer then all 6 of these mini propane tanks combined. But from a size and weight comparison the Camp fuel is much more effect to carry and store.  With that as a motivation, I've moved from propane to Coleman Camp fuel (white gas) powered equipment.

Here you can see how efficiently the fuel stores, but a further benefit is that Coleman camp fuel has an almost indefinite shelf life.  Its not uncommon for second generation campers to find an old half used can in a shed someplace that was bought 20 years ago by their parents, and have it burn in both stoves and lanterns just fine.

So here is a side by side of the equipment involved.  As much as I love my Camp Chef camp oven/stove combo, the Coleman camp stove powered by white gas and the folding oven is a much smaller package, but will serve the identical purpose in the field. When closed up for storage you can see how much bigger the Camp Chef is then my white gas powered system.

Thats not to say i'm dumping my Camp Chef.  I LOVE that thing, and will continue to use it in my recreation camping, but it has given up its permanent seat in my trailer for the more efficient gear, and allowed me to add more equipment that I can keep at the ready.

Another place where I saved some space with an upgrade was my camp toilet.  I KNOW!  Why the heck am I packing a toilet for a bug out anyway.  Its not a necessity, use a tree.   Well it still more likely that the reason for a evac could be temporary and if I can afford a few luxuries, sitting comfortably would be one of them.

Plus IF you have any women in your group, having a "close relative" to a toilet will make you a hero.

So, here is my repacked trailer with the new toilet, and the new stove, as well as a few other swaps, and you can see how much space i recaptured for additional gear, compared to how much space i had in previous pictures.

Anyway, lean and mean...  So take a look at your systems and gear, if you can lighten the load, it may well be worth your efforts.

Its time to get lean and mean

The next few months I'm going to dedicated to shrinking my preps.  I want smaller more mobile, and more efficient gear.    I'm selling and trading some stuff, and as painful as it is buying new more compact equipment when and where I can.  For example, I already had some coleman dual fuel lanterns, but I'm dumping all my propane camp stoves and moving to a dual fuel camp stove. its smaller, the fuel last forever, and is more efficient.

I love, love, LOVE this camp stove.  Cooking in out is like being at home, but there is a problem. Just look at how big that darn thing is in my trailer (its the big black box in the middle, and that chem toilet too.  They take up way too much valuable space.


Well, I already replaced the toilet with a folding chair type that uses bags, and takes up less than a quarter of the space.  And I counted yesterday and i've managed to pick up 8 gallons of Coleman white gas.  Thats more then double the burn time from propane I would have if all my 20 pounders were full (which is rare).  So i'm now on the hunt for a dual fuel camp stove.

I won't abandon propane as a fuel source.  It still works great for camping and everyday outdoor activities, but this is a dramatic shift in priorities for my preps and will require some work and investment.

A camp cooking at home solution...

One of the best and oldest camp cooking methods is with a Dutch oven.  Unfortunately understanding temperature control and timing for cooking in one is more art then science. To practice using a Dutch oven on a regular basis like you would in a camp site of in the field is rather difficult in a urban environment.  Since i wanted to become proficient at it, I had a problem, and unless I was willing to kill some grass and clear out a spot for a campfire in my yard, practicing my dutch oven cooking was going to be difficult.  

I looked at tables for Dutch ovens but they were 80 bucks.  Now, i'm not cheap, but I do have higher priorities and I want to spend my prepping dollars carefully.  Since it was my prepping budget that would have to take the hit for this expenditure, that nice 80 dollar dutch oven table would have to stay on the shelf at Gander Mountain and I needed another solution.

Then it came to me that with some scrap wood, and some sand for the charcoal bed to rest in, I could make one myself.  So half an hour later, I had a nice little table built, a peace of scrap tin drilled on top to reflect the heat, and wood trim to hold in some sand.  The perfect place for me to work out my Dutch over recipes.

Now I can practice cooking my breads, cakes, cobblers, stews, and infamous sticky buns, all at home just like i would if I were camping at a state park, all without upsetting the Condo Nazis that frown at me every time I pitch a tent or set up my crossbow target in my yard

What to wear to "the end of the world"?

I know its not a fashion show, and it may seem like a ridiculous and silly idea to be worried about what clothes you have on in a crisis, but its more than a valid idea.  In fact its a rather prudent thought.  If I said I was buying a suit for work, or tennis or some party, or something to wear riding my motor cycle, it wouldn't raise a eyebrow.  So why is it so strange to think about clothes for a crisis?

The cold hard fact is humans are a rather fragile species, and to be honest, clothing plays a big part in protecting us in our environment, and has allowed us to solve problems almost no amount of evolution ever could.  Part of what makes a crisis "a crisis" is the loss of some of the larger "protections" we have come to rely on.  Roofs, walls, vehicles, electricity, heat, all enhance our natural abilities and allow us to extend our reach beyond what we can achieve and endure with just or bodies, but the first extension is the clothes we put on.


So the first question is what we want our "end of the world" clothes to do?  Keep us warm, protects from sun, wind, and rain, dry fast, be tough and durable, comfortable, carry stuff, hide us, and enhance our abilities to cope with the situation. When I focused on form, function, appearance, and quality, I found several makers of outdoor gear that had clothing lines that fit my criteria.

Now I know I seem to over emphasize the camping and outdoor solution, but what is designed to work outside for recreation, will also work outside if you were forced into that environment.  Even if you still remain indoors or with some type of shelter, clothes being over designed for the situation wouldn't be a bad thing.


I'm not even going to get into the whole "tactical" vs "grey man" debate.  I guess its a matter of personal preference, but i tend to come down on the grey man side.  In a crisis i don't want some LEO or militia type with an overinflated ego trying to push me around to prove he is in charge.  I want to be underestimated and overlooked, not seen as a threat.  I do have some multicam and military gear, and more "tactical" looking clothing, but its stuff I have for specific purposes and for weapons training and range days, its not what I want to have on during a protracted crisis.

Ok, so I'll cut to the chase of what clothes I bought, and why, and how I keep them ready for a crisis.


My pants are 511 tactical pants in Tundra.  I specify the color because I have bunch of 511 pants but THESE are the ones I bought to go in my evac gear.   I have 2 pair I have worn and washed a half dozen times, then I treated them with water proofing and put them in my stash.  Being this color they are they don't look military or too tactical (honestly ALL 5.11s look somewhat tactical), they mainly look like brown cargo pants, the color is earth tone enough to blend and hide me, and they don't show mud and dirt.  They are tough as nails, comfortable, and flexible.  They have all the pockets I need for weapons and gear of full military BDUs but attract none of the attention.

I also managed to find some hiking boots by Columbia that are the exact same color.   Waterproof but breathable and light weight, they totally fit the bill for non tactical looking, but tactical function clothing.  I broke them in on hikes and campouts, then into the box they went.

I tossed a couple of compression fit long sleeve mock thermals and bottoms for a base layer if its cold, and a couple of tan hiking shirts from Gander Mountain and 3 pair of wool hiking socks in.

Now I packed all the clothes (minus the shoes) into a space saver bag, vacuum sealed and compressed it, then put it in one of my totes.  I also did similar packs for my wife, daughter and son.  I redo his every 6 months since he is only 12 and growing quickly.  I also put in one size taller pants in his.

Again, and as usual, this is "field tested" gear we have been on weekend campouts in so i know the fit and function is what I would want, or better yet, need in a survival situation.  And I know its ready and packed if i had to evacuate.  I simply refuse to ever be standing around in front of some FEMA run camp waiting for help.   To that end, a small investment in time and money to have the right clothes prestaged and easily accessible could easily make the difference between getting out alive before a crisis vs getting caught by whatever force of nature is approaching, or it can mean survival over death while being bugged out after one.

My Barnett Panzer V crossbow

I wouldn't call this a product review. Heck, honestly I don't even know what I'm doing with the darn thing. Maybe I've been watching too much of "The Walking Dead".  All I can say is Archery was a bucket list item for years.  Not Archery like I did 35 years ago in summer camp, but real serious hunting type archery. What I do know is that after trying a standard compound bow, and a crossbow,  I prefer the crossbow and a lot of my firearms training transfers. So after playing with a few smaller ones, I jumped in with both feet last year.

Not knowing if this would be something I would really enjoy, I was reluctant to invest a large sum in equipment.  I though about used ones, heck you can find them on craigs list and ebay all day long right?  Well, after a crossbow lesson from a friend who works at Gander Mountain about the hazards of dry firing, and how many used ones they see with micro fractures, I decided new was the way to go.

With price still looming over my head, I began shopping.  The number of 800 dollar crossbows is staggering, and the options just overwhelmed me.  After much searching and researching, I picked an entry level Barnett Panzer V.  The brand  has a quality reputation but at just north of 200 dollars the price was not so staggering that I would be hurt if I didn't like the sport.

I won't go through all the tech details, but its a basic recurve bow with enough power and accuracy to hunt small game.  Thats my second target block in the pic.  I enjoy it so much I shot up my first target and had to replace it.  Also, while I now want a new and more powerful Barnett Quad 400, I have found there is a lot more strength and accuracy I can get this Panzer, and bolt choice has a lot to do it it.   I recently pick up 3 20" Victory Voodoo bolts, and my first shot literally blew straight through my target and the hay bail I had behind it.

Now these are not toys, they are serious weapons and dangerous with with just the practice tips on,  let alone a good set of broadheads.   Keeping in mind, this is both entertaining and a hunting tool I have chosen to use G5's Montec boradheads because they are one solid piece of metal with no moving pieces to break, thus the only maintenance is sharpening.   Contrary to the movies they have a audible and recognizable sound, and are not silent weapons.  They are also an addictive and entertaining hobby.

An Evacuation mock bugout drill

Sometimes I do little tests, sometimes I do big tests, but i'm always looking for ways to improve.  Thinking is nice, but all the thinking and simulations in the world can't replace a good old dry run as a learning experiance... and to do my last test I didn't even have to start my truck! 

 After several changes to my kits and gear in the last months, and some additions including creating my "chuck box",  I wanted to see how it would all work together.  I grabbed a couple of my kit totes and loaded them in my pick up just to check the weight.  (Its important that I can move all of them by myself in a crisis.)   I pulled my trailer and linked it to my truck and checked all my cables and safety chains.   I know my weapons and ammo will go, but in the spirit of OPSEC and being a good neighbor, I didn't want to be seen walking around with my firearms for no reason, so...  

"OK, I'm ready to go." My gear is packed for an evac.   Not in the 5 minutes to grab a BOB, but for the amount of gear, and the fact that I could be gone for 30 plus days under significantly more difficult conditions then I could ever face with a bag, i'm happy.   So what now?  Well, why drive, when all I really just want to test my gear in a real environment.  So I unhooked it and pulled it around into my back yard.  I could have driven to the nearest state park just to make it interesting, but I wanted to do a full dry run in one day by my self, so any road time is wasted time.

First, I got to test my new Camo paint job.  Since I pulled my trailer back to the woods behind my house, I was able to observe it at a distance and with natural foliage.   The new colors significantly reduces the visibility of the trailer compared to the original white paint.  If I had to stash it and come back later, I feel comfortable that now I can conceal it.  

I started by unpacking and setting up base camp.  First, I only put up the sleeping tents, and not my Coleman Weathermaster.  The Weathermaster is where the totes and gear would go and the screened room is a shaded area to purify water and perform other outside tasks without bugs.  I checked my inventories just like I was 100 miles from home and my life depended on just the gear I had...

• Solar panels & Goal Zero power gear
• Flashlights & comms gear
• Cables and power systems for the trailer power
• Propane heater, lanterns, trees and hoses
• White Gas & dual fuel lanterns
• Water filter and storage
• Personal hygiene, camp shower, towels, toilet
• Cooking equipment
• Security systems, perimeter defense equipment
• Tarps, ropes, pulleys, 
• Hunting, trapping, and fishing gear
• Camp and survival tools

Now bugging out is not my first response.  In fact, its something i would actively work to avoid. But if environmental conditions like a hurricane forced me to evacuate, i'm ready to do so.   I didn't find any significant gaps in my plan during this exercise, but in going through my camp kitchen I did find some excessive redundancies.  Camp oven, rocket stove, open fire grill, dutch oven, seems I'm a little heavy on the cooking systems, so i'll be making some changes to lighten that portion of my load.

Also, since this is my camping gear just stored in the trailer,  I have pulled out and "lived" with most of this gear on a bunch of weekend campouts, and one nine day camping trip this summer.  That has given me a lot of chances to sharpen my skills and fine tune my gear, but its all been piece work. This was specifically to see if setting it all up was truly viable.   We have been out in all my tents depending on the size of the group.   I have used my heater on a tent camping weekend with temps in the 40s.  I have used my sleeping bags on summer nights in the 80s and spring night in the 30s.   I have cooked on my propane stove, and used charcoal and my dutch oven on my deck just to get use to the speed of open flame and adjusting heat to bake.

I think its important to really see if you can do what you think you can, how you think you can, with what you have.   And the best way to know is to just go do it...  Even if its just for a day.

I don't know everything.

and one of the biggest favors I have done for myself is allow myself the luxury of ignorance.  By first recognizing my lack of expertise, I free myself up from any pride and hubris and allow myself to ask the dumb questions and look for answers.  Here are a few of the books i'm currently reading or recently finished in that quest for knowledge.

Since these are more reference then stories, there is no need to grind through cover to cover.  To make it easy, I typically scan the index and read through the chapters that interest me.  I mark and highlight points of interest, and treat them like text books. I try things that are shown and will come back and make notes in the margin.  I also keep some of them in with my gear just in case i was forced to evacuate, I would have them with me for reference and entertainment.

Perppers Long Term Survival guide - If i had to recommend only 1 book, it would be this one. Jim Cobb covers everything in just enough detail to get you started.   There is a reason why my copy is dog eared.

Max Brooks' Zombie Survival Guide  - Don't let the title fool you.  Max looks at zombie survival seriously in a real world context.  Replace the word zombie with hurricane or black out, and the lessons still apply. This is a classic edu-tainment book

When all hell breaks loose, by  Cody Lundin
This one ranks a close second on my list, but its actually a more well rounded book then the top one. Cody Lundin has done a great job of creating a book that gives you detail, yet highlights the critical points, and does so in bite size entertaining sections to keep you reading.  You can open to any page and not feel lost, and unless your a professional prepper, you will learn something before you flip the page.

Surviving the coming financial collapse - Fernando Aguirre lived through the 2001 economic collapse in Argentina.  The only thing bad I can say is I hate his font choice.  His lessons learned are priceless considering the biggest threat after a crisis is other people, its well worth the read.

It's a disaster! What are you going to do about it? - I picked this book up from my instructor  in a FEMA / CERT class I took.  Its more geared towards hurricanes and hail storms then SHTF.  Since the likelihood of these type of events happening on a daily basis is greater then a total collapse of society, it definitely has its place.


Navy SEAL survival handbook - This one is a bit techie and can be boring, but nobody does survival like SEALs

Camping for Dummies  - Unless you're an Eagle Scout, this one is a cover to cover read.  Its a plain spoken book full of lessons tip for the beginner.  Its also the one book I made my wife and kids read

Emergency war surgery  I actually have several medical books in this category.  It s a NEED, not a want.  This book (or one like it) and a military field surgery kit should be a part of any emergency cache.

Perppers home defense - Sheltering in place will require fortification in an urban or suburban setting.  While this was less helpful to me because of my extensive construction and security background, without question it focused on a hot topic.  anyone not in the industry will benefit from reading it

Emergency food storage and survival handbook - Geared much more for a shelter in place strategy.  This is my "go to" book when i work on my food plan.  With recipes, and storage planning guide, of all my books, this one focuses on the one thing you have to do every day, eat.


Now don't think i love just any book,  I have my share of duds sitting in a box waiting for an excuse to be gotten rid of, but these all have contributed and make great reference.  Feel free to recommend any great ones I didn't list or suggest more because like i said... I don't know everything.

It's all about tools

The old joke goes, "he who dies with the most toys wins"...  Well, its also he who goes into a crisis with the most tools wins, or better yet survives.  Now in all honesty, tools without skills or knowledge may as well be badminton racquets.  but after 30 years in the construction industry i know for sure, I KNOW how to use this equipment. And while learning bushcraft to deal with the "natural" environment is important, the cities and buildings won't just disappear leaving you in the woods.  You will have to deal with damaged structures, you will want and need to salvage supplies, you may need to rescue people.  And the time to prepare for that is now.

Now a lot of these are fairly common hand tools, so why have them separated in my evac gear?  Well, two reasons.  First, they are cheap and in an emergency i don't want to scramble around looking for stuff.  If time is short, pry bars and axes are not going to be my priority, so I'm time shifting.  Second, if i had to evacuate, having a small stash of repair, salvage, and access tools could be invaluable for rescuing other survivors,  unforeseen situations, or returning home.  If the crisis is weather, these tools would be on hand to safely get in my house, or salvage things, since my main tools would be buried deep within the damaged structure.

I have a larger crow bar in the bottom of my trailer, but these there are my go to access/wrecking tools. After my CERT class, I took a good hard look at what the most effective tools my selective demolition subcontractor used on the last reno job and asked him about them.  Both of these leverage tools offer maximum strength, but are light enough to carry all day if needed. These small bolt cutters are hardened and can cut almost any padlock or chain, and make light work of fences and concrete reinforcing wire that could be a big factor in a structural building collapse.

My big ropes that are stashed in my trailer, but I keep a multitude of pulleys, eyebolts and anchors that can be used for rescue, but also with my tarps to create temporary shelters.  I also keep a hardened cable to use with padlock to secure may trailer or a generator on site.

There are some other things that I also carry from electrical wire, to wrenches and drivers,  that i'm not listing, but are standard gear for the type of repairs that i may run into.

These axes really need no explanation, but obviously firewood and site clearing.  This mini shovel was a great find. Its small and light so it fits my space and weight requirements, but sturdy enough to handle any task that may come up in the field.

A lot of this is geared toward reacting temporary shelter in an evacuation, but the other key use is gaining access to possible secured but abandoned shelter oppertunities that may arise.  While i would hate to think about the possibility that there could be a situation where I was foraging through structures after a massive loss of life event,  having these tools on hand could be the difference between shelter and surviving the night, and freezing to death.

Maintain the balance between dark clouds and the rainbow

Prepping is a weight....

There is no question that thinking about the worst situations in order to realistically prepare for them is a burden, and can be depressing.  That weight actually increases as you get deeper into prepping, because you become aware of threats you didn't even know existed.

Until movies like Outbreak and Contagion, I would be willing to bet the average person had no clue what a pandemic was.  In fact, I bet most still don't.

Ask a guy on the street what a coronal mass ejection is, or how easy it would be for an Electro Magnetic Pulse or cyber attack to shut down the national power grid.  Then ask him how long it would take for the power to come back.  You would be amazed to find how many people think a day or two.

Simply put, you know too much for your own good.  In one of my favorite movies, Men in Black, agent K says the following...

"There's always an Arquillian Battle Cruiser, or a Corillian Death Ray, or an intergalactic plague that is about to wipe out all life on this miserable little planet, and the only way these people can get on with their happy lives is that they DO NOT KNOW ABOUT IT!" 

But this is the life preppers have chosen.  It is the path we walk, and after you start, guess what, you can't unlearn something, and try as you might, you can't go back.  There is no reset button, no do over so you can take the blue pill.   You know what you are facing...

So how do I do it?  How do I maintain a balance? How do i manage to live a happy and relatively content life while maintaining a watchful eye on the dark clouds on the horizon?  I "force" breaks in my thought pattern.  I make myself enjoy the rainbows.   Sure I watch the news, but i force myself to turn off my brain and play catch or play xbox with my son.  I ask my daughter to cook dinner WITH me and enjoy the time together.  I'll go roller-skating, not as a family (we do that too), but just my wife and I on adults only night.  Where we can have fun together just the two of us.  We cook a big breakfast as a family Sunday mornings with everything we all like.  Pancakes, cheese eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, fruit, you name it... and then we go to church and pray, together.

My point is, don't burn out, don't get frustrated.  Work hard at prepping, work efficiently at prepping, but equally as important is that you put it all down, and carve out time to mentally recharge and decompress.   Make sure the life you are living is worthy of the effort you spend prepping so you can continue to live it.

Off the shelf food storage

TV, always depicts Preppers with cases of MREs, and the big sponsors of any prepping show are the freeze dried food companies.   All thats nice, and has a place, but the majority of what i have in inventory is off the shelf food.  I apply the "store what you eat,eat what you store" philosophy, and rotate food by First in First out (FIFO), but i don't just sit stuff on the shelf.


Here are some off the shelf side dish packages i was packing away recently.  I use this method for pasta, rice, and a number of dry food types.  some of this is to extend the shelf life, but some is just to protect the food from dampness, bugs, mice, or any unforeseen pest or hazard.


After sealing small groups in foodsaver bags, i keep the packs in food grade buckets outfitted with the Gamma lid system.  Gamma lids are air tight, but resealable with a twist off lid that has a rubber seal.  Perfect for storing something for a long time, but you can open and repack them on a inventory rotation schedule  I typically toss a few bay leaves in the bucket before i seal it just for good measure.

A quick label that says what and the date packed, and these buckets are all set for my deep storage space.  This is different from a well stocked pantry, in that I don't plan to use this for months if not years.  A pantry, i may access on a weekly or daily basis while making meals, or just to fill the kitchen cabinets. While deep storage can be a closet, buckets stack under a guest bed, or anywhere that can hold my inventory.  It doesn't need to easily accessible, and this would be how i would store food at a cabin or remote evacuation location.

The most valuable prep I have is..

A good partner.  My wife doesn't always understand my concerns.  She doesn't always agree with me.  She will on occasion, grill me before or after a prepping gear purchase.  Not in a "we don't need it you are wasting money" way, but a probing "explain why this is the best solution, stay on your toes" way.

She isn't an "outdoor" girl.  She isn't ready to go off camping in the woods and rough it.  But she is smart, resourceful, she can shoot better then me, and agrees with my one simple philosophy on marriage.

Marriage is not a 50/50 deal. it is 100% all or nothing proposition.  If you go into it thinking 50/50, then you are expecting your wife or husband to meet you in the middle.  But there are going to be days when all you have is 25% to give and so will your partner.  You have to be ready to meet then where they are. To carry them AND the ball to the end zone. to deliver 100% when they have nothing, and know that when you have run your last mile and fall on your knees, they will be there to pick you up and carry you.

And so here is my wife, sitting in a tent, not complaining about bugs, not complaining about the heat, not complaining about eating camp food, not complaining about no indoor plumbing.  Here she is humoring me while I test my outdoor gear.

So what the heck does any of this diatribe have to do with prepping?  I don't know, but when the discussion comes of prepping groups, and survival teams, and all that stuff as they always do, I know I am never alone.  You can't do this alone. That doesn't mean you need to be married to Bear Grylls.  but you need a partner to support you emotionally.  Because prepping for the worst, means mentally taking on the stress of and facing the worst possible situation ever in your head at this moment, and trying to solve a future problem now.  Prepping means facing the beast, and the reality that darkness, death, and a crisis will come one day.  It is a weight and responsibility non preppers can not fathom. And even if your partner never buys a single can of beans, if they support you emotionally, and that allows you to move ahead and prepare, they have contributed more then the gold in fort knox.

Don't know where to start with a city kid? Try the Boy Scouts of America

Prepping in a urban environment has presented numerous challenges, not the least of these is children.  Getting kids interested in, and learning survival skills and critical thinking in this MTV video game infused world can be difficult. Adding to this complication is peer pressure and hopping your children find the right crowd.  Well here is my solution, and endorsement for the Boy Scouts of America.  IMHO Its a safe place for like minded kids, all learning valuable survival and problem solving skills together so there is no peer pressure.

Let me give you a little example.  I recently spent a whole week with our troop at one of the BSA canoe base camps.  Scoutmasters and volunteers only act in a support roll, the BSA troop & patrols are run by the boys.  They take responsibility for all their own needs in-between their training and activities.  Unlike a normal summer camp where meals are provided, this how Boy Scouts get their meals.  Each patrol gets a cooler full of ingredients 3 times a day.  They have directions and menus and set up their own kitchen.

Now this doesn't sound like much sitting at a computer in the comfort of your house, but to watch at a distance while 4 patrols of 11 year old new Boy Scouts make all their own meals for a week is impressive.  I watched them learn their own capabilities, trust themselves, and grow into a team through the course of a week.

There was a base menu for each meal, but they made a lot of their own decisions.  Sometimes they would get a container of peaches or something like that, and could at their choice could come to base camp storage and get a pie crust for a pie, a cake mix and make a crumbler, or they could just dish out peaches for desert to each patrol member.   Do we make eggs and toast for breakfast, or combine ingredients and make french toast?  Here are your potatoes boys... then they could fry them, mash them, boil them, wrap em in tin foil an "camp bake" them.  Their decision, their execution.

Now having seen the patrols in action on weekends is one thing, but over the course of 7 days, things real start to fall in to place. lessons get learned, leaders step up, but everybody grows.  Could you teach these skills to your child?  I guess so.  But its not like learning on your own, with your team.  And all this is between 5 mile hikes, canoe trips, archery, target shooting, fire building, rope knot classes, and other bushcraft skills classes.

Oh, did I mention the flag ceremony twice daily, oaths, pledge of allegiance, prayer of reverence before meals, and responsibility?   To me, BSA brings what is sorely missing in today's society, a code of honor.

Oh, and girls are no longer left out.  While they are not integrated into the boy scout program, the BSA has created the "Venture Scouts" program.  its co-ed and parallel to the regular scouts, so they do everything the regular scouts do and more including some high adventure activities. So if young ladies want more adventure then what the girl scouts offer, and some tougher leadership challenges, the BSA has a solution.

The bugout/camp kitchen "Mark II"

So if you have look around my blog before you may have seen my tote with all my emergency cooking gear in it.  Well, after a week of camping at the Boy Scouts of America Canoe base, I decide to adapted their trusty and time proven "patrol chuck box" concept and upgrade my camp kitchen.




I saw this interesting Stanley Fat Max tool box in home depot a few weeks ago and it caught my eye.  I didn't have an application for it, but i filed it away in the back of my brain and moved on. As I watched these groups of 12 year old boys busily going about their tasks in setting up camp, their tents, and their cook stations, it came to me.  That tool box would make the perfect camp kitchen storage system.

The tool box is wheeled and has three major compartments that slide out from the wheels to support themselves.  You can roll it right into a campsite and open it so everything is visible and easily accessible.

My nested camp cookware as well as all my cast iron pans and dutch oven fit perfect in the bottom section. The middle section has 8 compartments with removable dividers and is just the right height for spice shakers.    

 I also keep my cutlery, knives, and other small items there.  I also have one of the sections I use to keep camping items close.  A flash light, some Coleman lantern mantels, bug repellant, paracord, and other miscellaneous small items that I have a bigger inventory of in another tote, but might want at hand.

The top section is about the size of a traditional small tool box.  Its a full open compartment, and is perfect for long cooking utensil storage. Everything from Can opener to tin foil to turners and tong.

This system is a little bigger then the tote i was previously using, but the wheels and operation make it the perfect solution for my camp kitchen, and keeps everything organized, ready, and mobile if I ever am forced to evacuate.

Camping is camping...

OK, any time you can get out of the house and enjoy the great out doors is a good time, and it can always teach you something.  So i never pass up and opportunity to get out.

Now maybe its in the middle of nowhere, out roughing it with the Boy Scout troop.  Or maybe its at the local park for a community campout with free hotdogs and smores.  Either way, i have never had a "bad time" and i've never come home having not learned something that will make me better prepared for a crisis.  Heck, it can even be fun to pitch my tent in my yard and spend the night outside.

Part of the exposure of being in a urban setting is you never develop "woodsman" skills.  Survival is innate, but the skills to survive have to be developed.  Now i may not be Bear Grylls, but if i have to live outdoors after a crisis I know i have the skills to do so, with or without all my gear.

Anyway, my only point is I don't make such a big deal out of it.  I don't have to go far, or have some great plan, sometimes we just go.  Leave the HDTV, cell phone, XBOX and high speed internet behind, and spend time outside together as a family.

Never quit improving

My little camping trailer / bug out trailer has undergone some major changes and improvements in the last few months and now i have finally realized the vision I saw when I first drug it from under the weeds and debris many months ago. 

The bearings have all been repack and the bottom has been undercoated, its been completely rewired and new safety tow chains installed.  But the biggest and most dramatic change has been i finally got around to a much needed paint job.  The original white paint was sun bleached and weather beaten, it was so chalky it would come off on your jeans when loading and unloading.  It was just dead paint.  It was time for it to go.

After working out all the details and getting the propane storage tubes installed, and drilling and mounting the attachment system for roof top bag, not to mention researching a bunch of different ones to find the right solution for the curved top, she was finally ready.

My original plan was to go black, but when i saw Rustoleum's line of camouflage paints, I was inspired.  I sanded it down to rough up the surface, and shot a coats of their self etching primer.  Then laid down two coats of the Camo army green.  I cut out a dozen camo blob shapes from cardboard boxes, keeping both the shape and the outline.  Then over the course of two weeks I layered on both shapes and outlines using the rest of the Camo paint line varying the distance and intensity to fade some out, to blend some shapes together, and to overlap.   

I also picked out a few plants and sprigs and layer then on then dusted over them with paint to reverse shadow their leaf pattern.  The whole focus is to make it look like anything other then a trailer at a distance, and since "God doesn't paint in straight lines", I paid close attention to the corners.  I wrapped darks colors around them and at the bottom to break up the sharp visible edges and fool the eye with shadows. 

A quick wet sand, and then two coats of matte clear and she is all set for the summer camping season. So is it invisible? Not hardly, but it sure looks a lot more fun, and if I pulled it into a wooded area and placed it at the tree line then toss a Camouflage net over, is it a heck of a lot less noticeable then the big white box it use to be? ABSOLUTELY!

Now originally it had about 33 Cubic foot of internal storage space.  Quite a lot when you consider I keep all my camping and survival gear inside and ready, so this essentially IS my bug out solution.  Some people grab a bug out bag, I hook this baby to the back of my F150. But the addition of the tubes added the capacity to carry 16 one pound propane tanks outside of the main compartment.  If I were warming up a tent in winter camping, thats 30 day worth of fuel.   When the tanks were inside they took up about 2 cubic feet of space, but now their new location allowed me to reclaim that for other gear.  

The roof top travel bag is the Rola carrier with 12 Cubic feet of space.  Its positioned high, so i'll only put sleeping bags and other light/soft gear inside it keep the center of gravity low on the total load.  Again, I was able to reclaim the internal space for heavier gear.

Now, i'm slowly reorganizing my camping and survival gear to pre-stage much of what I need at the ready, and every time I pull it out for a weekend trip, I find a place for improvement.