I OWN SOME LAND
 

What do i do to get ready there if i have to bug out to my land, i have 35ac a hunting cabin on it an 10ac hay fields right now , a pond , a creek that run year round , the water ice cold in summer , anyone here in forum with some idea , list them, im a fast learner, thanks to all , good luck mick silver

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

also there no elec, are no running water in cabin , but a solar tank for the kitchen, wood stove for heat, sleep 8

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Assuming your shelter and water are secure and adequate my initial priorities would be:
Get 6 months supply of food on site.
Get your garden prepared and planted.
Obtain a supply of heritage seeds.
Get 12 months supply of fire wood cut and under cover
Purchase hand tools
Make any repairs and alterations to the dwelling
Set up your plan "B" in case you need to abandon your land
Prepare an escape route
Get familiar with the area on foot and identify potential resources
Get to know you neighbours

That should keep you out of mischief for a couple of weeks.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Look at micro-hydro.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

any free plan on a hydro generator

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

protect your water

is this pond completely on your property ?
take a hike to the beginning of the creek
and look for potential hazards ( factorys - livestock - etc )

don't be afraid to make some food/supply caches outside
putting all your supplies in the cabin might be a mistake

imho

a survivalist's dream

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

How much flow (Miner's Inch) of water does the stream have, do you have water rights? and how much head can you muster.

Go to Yahoo and look at the micro hydro group and they have some nifty stuff and info to share, but be warned, some of it ain't cheap.

With Real Estate rememeber the three most imprtant things LOCATION, LOCATION AND LOCATION. Is it in an area that gets extreme cold in the winter (Mountains) or is it in an area where you can navigate year round? Are the roads year round or seasonal?

How is the soil, can you bring in a crop and keep livestock?

In short, could you sustain you and your family there or is it a weekend retreat type thing without much support around, get to know the neighbourhood and its environs and see what is available.

Sounds nice, might have lots of potential.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Mic I am in a similar situation to yourself except my site is coastal. You are getting some pretty good advice imo. What is important is that you get the basics right from the beginning. When I started preparing my bug out location in 2003 I tended to spend a lot of time doing what I now consider to be stage three preparation instead of phase one. Problem is I have lost time money and energy having to redo things. An example being clearing a couple hundred metres round my homestead to give me a clear field of fire. Then when I developed my defense strategy I came to understand I was giving any aggressor a clear field of fire also. So Ive ended up replanting. I'm sure we would all like to know more about your specific situation like: Number of people you will be supporting, ages, what event are you prepping for (teotwawki, financial, peak oil, birdflu or what), climate etc. It will sure empower us to make more relevant comment.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

the pond is on my land , the creek come out of the side of the hill on the back side of my land , there 10 ac of hay field now my cabin is just a little off the hay field , you cant see it from the road , if you dont know it there , you want know , there deer , rabbit turkey , all game burds , i know every inch of the land i own , i have 2 out houses , cabin has 3 full bed , living room , new bath room , out house , just got that done , and a kitched , gas generator, four deer stand ,there would be around 10 people coming there , all close family , mom dad siter brother my wife 3 kids bother in law an sister in law just traded my brass boat for a tractor with bush hog , and few other thing that came with tractor , thinking about building a new metal building so i can build a big house in it for all of us , if any of you have some more idea let me know please ,

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

What's kinda funny is perspective. To someone living in NYC, a bugout is 2 acres of land in a rural town or country setting. To someone living in the rural town or country setting, a bugout is what you have. To someone living in a type of setting that you have, a bugout is someplace with 75 acres of remote acess land in western Montana with a cave on the property.

However, 35 acres is enough to help sustain living. I expect your stream isn't large enough for hydro-electric, but even if it could be made to operate even the smallest generator that could charge batteries, it would keep you off grid for a time. As others mentioned, water purification. 10 people living in a small area may also overflow you outhouse. Check out composting toilets. The largest ones can accomodate a family. Try to protect that water supply for those downstream of you.

Another question is if everyone who is coming to the bugout will be willing to live off grid and self sufficient.

I would also get books on raising produce and crops on that 10 acres, get some soil tests done to see what nutrients it has and what it is lacking, get hooked up with some compsoting agencies and take a truckload of compost out each time you go out to the cabin.

I'd get a book on forest management. You do not want to be cutting down sellable timber for firewood. You want to be culling unproductive trees. Those would be those that have forked trunks, bends and elbows, etc.

Take care of the forest and it will take care of you. It is almost like weeking your garden. The remaining trees will grow at a faster rate.

If a bugout situation ever develops, I dont' want to be in the traffic between NYC and either the Adirondacks or the Pocono's OR the north Carolina western mountains.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Some good comment there TonyG. I always look for the greatest opposition to come from within. I like the idea of the economies of housing 10 people within the one building, especially if heating is an issue during the winters. If you do decide to go that route give a lot of thought to the accommodation layout. Every couple needs their own privacy and space. I don't know your family but I can imagine that even within the closest family tensions can rise during a long winter when the food is becoming bland, kids becoming unruly etc. It is those sorts of issues that can be more deadly to a groups survival than an armed hoard trying to take your goodies. This is what I mean by the greatest opposition coming from within. I would give much more thought to getting the long term harmony right than ensuring the bad guys can't get you. I am not saying you don't give mind to the bad guys. Cover the needs of your group first; that's one of the things I believe is a basic and needs getting right first. You may need to have a group conference on this so everyone can put in their 2c worth.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Sounds like home away from home...Now get to stockin her up...!!!

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

It'd take some work but you might consider a root shelter seeing as you don't have electricity.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

i would like to learn how to make a water generator , with parts i can find around town , someone , anyone with plan , part list , way to build it let me know are make a post sure there are a lot who could use your ideas are thought on this , i know i could , like i say the water cold all the time , in summer ive drink the water in summer, that would make a nice food cooler , just if i knew how to make somthing like that any one with thought on that let me know , im trying to do a lot on as little money as i can , just like many of you in this forum , trying to stock food right now , whole family working on that , we all need help at time as theys , that one of the reason i came to this forum i knew there was alot of people on here that have been working on this for some time , thanks to all for your help mick silver

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

THere is alot of good hydro electric info on youtube and you'd be surprised how little flow you need to generate good power. Sounds like a great place you have.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

I've given this some thought too. My concern with having trees close to the house in a wooded area would also be a forest fire which could happen naturally or possibly started by someone intentionally.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

its springtime. time to plant a garden, where you do live, not at your bugout destination, and learn to garden. this is a skill that is aquired over long years not hoarded overnght.

other good survival skills include:

cpr and first aid
basic automobile maintenance
basic unarmed self defense
basic rifle skills
basic handgun defense skills
basic hunting trapping and skinning/game food prep skills
basic use of comm equipment like cbs and ham radios

A sharp mind in a healthy body, those are the first two elements of survival any day of the week. I would say a third is a good social network. Fourth is hoarding. People like hoarding because its easy, whereas, skill aquisition is difficult and laborious.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Depends on your location and wildlife availability for food and skins.... but in addition to what has been said, think about fencing a section for some sheep (wool & meat), goats(milk & cheese), cattle (beef & milk).... and possibly a horse or two... transportation and work. Not that you need to have them now- but plan for them. Find a supplier and prepare places. Animals make life possible.

You will need basics- cookware, dishes, stainless utensils. See the threads about food preps... salt, oil, etc.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

thorgrim my resolution of the cleared cover was to replant trees where I want an intruder to shelter. I have now created natural sniper spots for an intruder which actually makes him a sitting duck from the other "concealed" sniping positions I have prepared.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Nice! Sounds like you put a lot of thought into it and will be getting both the benefits of a cleared area and tree cover. This is something I never really thought of. It is nice to learn something new to consider for when I work on my retreat. Lets just hope things don't fall apart before I get around to it.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

I am jealous!

If I am ever going to buy a decent bug out location I'm going to need a lot more time. Say 4 years or so... :(

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

This "creek" sounds like a good flowing spring. Check the water laws in your state, you should be able to put improvements at the spring's point of origin. These would include improving the structure of the spring itself, capturing the spring into a cistern (built into the hill), which you then pipe to the cabin, or other building, and you have running, pressurized water. Overflow from the cistern can continue down the "creek." Make sure you check your neighbors downstream so you don't mess with their water rights.
The water coming directly out of the spring should be safe to drink. I would not drink water farther down, for fear of giardia or crytosporidium.
You could also build a spring house, to keep perishable food cool.

Good luck.

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

thanks for web site for the spring room , like i said before the water good and cool in the summer , and yes i drink the water , it run out of the side of the hill , and the cabin has a wood burning stove , for heating and cooking , just got this stove , still got my old stove down there if and when we add on to the cabin , hope someone find some plans on a water generator , was thinking about a car generator an make some wheel to catch the water to power it , has some one try that an if they have let me know , and if you have plan for it make a copy for all too see , thanks mick silver

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

thought i would ask for some more help , what well people do to keep cool in the summer , with no elec , mick silver

Re: I OWN SOME LAND
 

Loosing weight would be a good start.