Water is still my primary worry.
Either I put in a generator that will operate my well (noisy... needs gas), a hideously expensive off the grid solar set up that will be a nice gift to someone if worse comes to worse, or a small diameter solar well/pump, which is prohibitively expensive to drill, and is also stationary.
Just a question. What is the usable shelf life of commercial bottled water? I could store/cache a bunch of that, it’s handy if bugging out (’cause I ain’t carrying a 30 gallon drum).
Also, even out here in the East Mountains, the limited waterholes will be traps, as they are easy to identify. Look up at the East side of the Sandias and if you see bright green (non coniferious) foliage, that is where the springs/acequias are. A regular neon sign, although some being a couple miles uphill make them a bit more remote.
Water has an unlimited shelf life it might go flat and need to be aerated, but it’s still good.
A solar set-up would be your best bet, but as you say it’s expensive.
Forever. Stash it near gila monsters to keep the mice down.
My garage alone will supply more than enough runoff in my area to fill the 7500 gallons of storage I plan to have in place this winter. Initially the storage is for watering my vegetable garden, as I live off a well and the cost of pumping becomes prohibitive in the summer. However, having that amount of water handy does provide me with multiple options, should the need arise.
The setup is not going to be cheap, but that is a result of my wanting/needing such a large amount. On the plus side - one time cost, long lasting, potable, and renewable.
Are you familiar with an item known as a "well bucket"?
If not, just check it out here:
If clean, forever. Just air it out to add oxygen and reduce plastic flavor. I have several different levels of filters and i plan to run prior filtered water through a lesser set of filters to remove odors and improve taste.
Someone was mentioning the other day that those school crossing signs have solar power. I wonder what they meant.