Not sure where you’re at but there is a lot of back country wilderness around here.
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Maple Valley, WA.
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Have you done a little theoretical mental exercise of taking the land area vs the local population and spreading that population out to determine the persons per square mile if a bunch of people did the “I’ll head for the hills” thing?
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You forgot Rule No.4 GeneC. Rule No.4 is to always improve on Rule No.1.
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If they all go to the national forests to the east of here it’s roughly 2 people per acre
Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest has a net acreage of 2,169,596 acres
The current metro area population of Salt Lake City in 2022 is 1,192,000
If they all go to the west desert to the west of here it’s roughly 1.5 people per 10 acres
in the northwestern Utah, the 7.7 million-acre West Desert District
The current metro area population of Salt Lake City in 2022 is 1,192,000
Take all of the open space adjacent to Salt Lake City
9,869,596 acres
and all of the current population of the salt lake valley 1,192,000
you have about 1.2 people per 10 acres.
This of course ignores the fact that some of that dirt is plain unihabitable. And also does not take into account “in Utah there is approximately 11.4 million acres , or 21.1% of privately owned land. Most private ownership is concentrated in the northern and central parts of the state”
Rough math, I’m sure someone will correct this math test.
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@David237 OH snap! Yes, I didn’t mention that! Guess I’d be to busy trying to stay alive I wouldn’t have time to review!
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Just thought you’d get a kick out of that one, lol. 
I find the whole premise of “bug out bags” foolish as heck. That’s not to say I think having an emergency bag in your car if you live in some remote areas, suffer harsh weather, or are worried your vehicle might break down is a bad idea. That’s completely reasonable to have an emergency bag to help you survive if you get stuck in the snow or your car breaks down at night.
Nope…what I’m talking about are all these people who have deluded themselves to believe the notion that possessing some bug out bag filled with their essentials is going to be their life-line to their existence. Don’t believe me? Ask yourself these questions. Where will you go? How long are you going to be there? how will you protect yourself as you travel from point A to B? What happens if you encounter someone on the way who wants your resources? How will you protect yourself and those with you as you sleep? what backup do you have if you become surrounded? what type of medical supplies do you have if someone gets hurt?
Now, all of these “preppers” have this idea that they’ll take off and hide somewhere using the supplies they bring along and frankly for lack of a better word, it’s naïve. My home has a swimming pool with 1000’s of gallons of drinking water. I have generators, a camper trailer, solar rechargers, ammo and firearms. I have neighbors, family and friends who all know to come to my home if there’s a problem and therefore I have my own security force in the blink of an eye. We have gardens, hunters, doctors & nurses, medical supplies and the resources to protect our group from threats. We have the people to ensure 24x7 security. My neighborhood can lock down our area surprisingly fast. So while the naive run away to hide in the woods by themselves and become victims of their own demise, my community instead chooses life and to ensure we have the means to outlast whatever nonsense comes our way.
That’s why prepping is such a silly idea because you’re leaving all your best resources behind to put yourself in danger thinking that being out in the open is a great idea. it also means others who see you coming might lay in wait and dispose of you while taking your resources as their own. All these keyboard tough guys think they can “survive” and frankly its just naive. Instead, create a plan with your neighbors/family/friends and build on each other’s strengths while securing your own safety and survival. It’s much more intelligent than thinking you can survive or your weekend skills will help you last for months in the woods.
As a side note, I applaud learning good survival skills. Learning multiple methods for fire starting, sheltering, water purification, navigation, and hunting/trapping are all good skills to learn and hone. This is especially true if you like hiking/biking/etc as you might use the skills sooner than later. I feel everyone should learn these skills at some point because they can be valuable. But these are survival skills to have in case of emergency, not to up and bug out on. If you want the smartest choice, plan with your environment for emergencies and stay near your resources. The only reason to really bug out is if you can’t stay IN your area anymore and then you need to take more than a silly bag or pack.
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Kinda makes sitting around the house look a bit difficult wouldn’t you say?
All taken care of, we talk about it, we train for this, we have the supplies and skills needed already in places we may end up, we actually know about this stuff. Some of us
have actually had to survive in conditions where mother nature and mankind were the enemy.
Me, I’ll keep my bug out bags stocked, ready and available.
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RE: Prepping
Bugging in is most likely the only viable option for most people in most places most of the time…and most likely the best option for most of the rest of people most of the rest of the time.
But, bugging out might in some scenario be the best option.
Earthquake in your US city making your home unstable/unsafe for the time being? Katrina-like hurricane screw up your whole state? Bugging out far enough to catch a bus/train/uber/hotel room outside of the affected area may be called for. Just as an example. IMO. (hopefully in some of these cases there is the option/foresight to bug out by vehicle so you aren’t on foot any of it, even the beginning)
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One should always have options. SERE, E&E, et al are all good things, so is being able to @Erik10 ‘lock down a neighborhood…’ etc. All good things. Naturally every strategy and tactical implementation thereof has its SWOT’s. Just because some ideas are discussed doesn’t mean the authors are ‘nieve’, ‘foolish’, ‘deluded’, et al. Some, in fact, are quite knowledgeable, informative and helpful. They know OWNTOW acronym- One Way Not The Only Way - is vital. Yes, some on this forum are ‘keyboard tough guys’, but others are accomplished experts in their respective fields of survival, emergencies, including mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery of disasters; that encompass everything from a little dumpster fire to an extection level event (ELE).
Some actually have been published in this field, some have advanced degrees like PhD’s! Who knew!
Some have even taught these very subjects in third world disaster zones, war zones, NBC environments, juantas, insurrections, fortune 500 companies and even 1st world governments.
I think the majority of the people on this public forum simply want to share ideas. You know, ‘cuss it and discuss it’. To perhaps point out things that might help others.
Be kind. Share your ideas nicely, tactfully, or at least try!
A persons value on forums like this includes what they say, how they say it it, and even more important what they don’t say. Just sayin!
And, yeah, I’ll keep my BOB’s, GHB, INCH, IFAC’s, pioneer tool bags, commo bags, QRF bags, palletized loads, pre-positioned supplies, cache’s, secured neighborhoods, alternate relocation areas, alternate transportation assets, etc.
Don’t forget Executive Orders (EO) that give government forces full legal authority to absolutely confiscate all supplies deemed necessary, by any force necessary, if necessary. And yeah, they have, you know, APC’s, tanks, killer drones, tier 1 operators… stuff like that. ‘Locked down neighborhoods’ can have another name; ‘TRP - Target Reference Point’.
Cheers 
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Clearly I’ve offended a prepper. so let me address it.
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a 5.7 Earthquake isn’t worth getting out of bed for. Basically, unless it’s a 5.9, we don’t even get up, nor will a 5.7 knock down your house if it was built to code in the USA. it typically doesn’t even crack most drywall if the walls were done right.
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“All taken care of…” that’s cute. A few of my friends are former operators. They love bursting bubbles and demonstrating how ill prepared people are by sharing some of their stories after all THEIR planning. I’d simply ask if you’re ready for hostile threats laying in wait to dispatch you for your resources? Are you ready to handle you being injured and immobilized and your other members being able to drag you from an engagement?
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I’m well versed in survival skills bud. That’s why I know alone, I could “Survive” in any environment, but I’m also smart enough to do a risk assessment and realize I have better chances fortifying with all my resources/people around me than without.
Bottom line bud, There are instances where people may be forced to leave their homes and move to a safer area. Maybe you and your family have to make your way to an area where everyone is congregating and securing and that’s fine…but that’s not bugging out. That’s moving to a defensible position. The point you’re not grasping is that all your training, practice, and “prep” can all come to a standstill with one lucky shot, injury, or episode of bad luck. Moving from one place to another is dangerous period.
I’ll give you this scenario high speed. Someone with skills can choose to dispatch you from distance and go in and take your resources. Another scenario is you have to send people out to hunt and someone can dispatch all but one of the hunters leaving one alive and in pain. Nothing like the psychological impact of hearing your loved one in pain and begging for help to make you come running. As you make your way to recover that person/persons, they dispatch more of you or go for the camp itself. Rinse and repeat till no one else is alive. That’s just one combative…now think of multiple. just remember if things ever do get that bad, people who are trained and skilled in the above scenarios will be collecting resources from ill prepared groups for their survival. I’m sure your bag of tricks will help you.
Wow, Your Cool. When I grow up I want to be just like you.
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To be fair, what can a regular person like myself or the other poster do to prevent such a threat/threats from running roughshod over us when we sit in our regular residence with a hundred times more resources to take? I mean it sounds like this person could just snipe us one by one through our non bullet proof windows and eventually enter an empty house and take everything
There have been several questions posed here about WWIDI exercises (What Would I Do If?). It’s food for thought. There have been times I’ve thought about a view point presented and went ‘Hummm?’ Trying not to throw the baby out with the bath water here.
It’s OK buttercup, you won’t be. Your poor decisions will prevent that.
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Good question…and the answer is, go meet your neighbors. Build a support community. Figure out who has what skills. Engage and find out who and what your neighbors know so you can start putting a plan together. Then throw a party and invite and get closer with them.
If your neighbors all suck, then look to family. If none are close, then consider how you’ll protect yourself and your family from threats and what resources you have yourself.
Your plan no matter who you are all comes down to taking the first step…start a plan. Once you do, then you plan for the contingencies. what happens if all the supplies you keep burns up or gets destroyed? Do you have backups? what happens if your seeds are destroyed by fire? Do you have replacements? Honestly it’s not difficult, you just have to start planning and then consider looking at it like a murderous starving criminal who won’t stop till they get what they want.
As we all should do.
My brother and I had a conversation once and he asked me, if I was intent on breaking into his house, what would I do? I told him I’d likely wait till his kids fell asleep and make my way into the baby’s room. Once there, I’d pinch the baby and wait in the closet with a knife. When an exhausted parent walked in to check on the baby, I’d dispatch the parent and repeat the process. After both parents were dealt with I’d have free reign of the house and could do whatever I wanted at my leisure. After that conversation, my brother put security on all windows/doors and always went into the kid’s rooms first. He checked it was clear before ever checking on his kids.
There’s a lot of what if’s and we can’t plan or prep for them all. Our best plan is to have the support and resources we need so if something unexpected does pop up, we can adjust accordingly without major headache.
LOL…Todd30 knows! I’d wager former military. He was being nice by not calling out medical emergencies and the rest.
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Hey GeneC, True and false. Bugging out puts you and those with you at more risk. Is the risk worth it? That depends on the situation. It’s all about risk assessment. Making my way 1 mile on a sidewalk and no pack versus making my way 1 mile over uneven terrain with packs puts the group at risk of issues (i.e. sprained/broken ankles, injuries, etc). If the risk of moving outweighs the risk of staying, then it’s dumb and reckless to move.
As for those PhDs, I know…it’s crazy. There are people who do specialize in this and I love chatting with them when our paths cross. I also know there are countless experts here who like to share their knowledge with the masses and it’s refreshing to see. What I don’t care for however is people who have adopted a reckless plan and jump on forums looking for accolades from unknowing people. There are valid reasons to leave your home/area especially when your plan involves getting to a more defensible position with more resources. However, if you choose to implement a plan that puts you at greater risk than another option, it’s dumb. That can be leaving your home to hiking to another location via some wooded path with what you can carry vs driving when your 4x4 might hold MORE resources. Everything comes down to risk assessment and what makes more sense.