10 Reasons Why You Do Not Want to Bug Out

The plan seems simple doesn’t it? All you need for the best chance of survival for your family is a well-stocked bug out bag, a keen attention to your surroundings and careful monitoring of what is happening in the news. With these bases covered you will be a very informed prepper and will be able to get the jump on all of the clueless sheeple if something bad happens. You will load your family up with your bags and hike off into the sunset way ahead of the approaching death and destruction. You have a plan to bug out.

It sounds perfect, but in this article I am going to try and convince you how that might not be the best and first option you should consider. There are many reasons and situations I can think of why you do not want to bug out from your home. You may be asking yourself, how can I even say those words on a prepper blog such as this without getting struck by lightning? It’s true that hunkering down is not the option that gets the most press, but in my opinion during most (but not all) scenarios, it is the better choice. That is unless you are a combat trained Navy Seal. If you are like me, just an average guy with a family and a giant subterranean monster unleashed by nuclear experiments is not headed your way, you might want to stay put. Here are a few reasons why:

I’ll be the first to admit that a lot of these reasons are going to seem incredibly simple and obvious, but I think sometimes that is the best way to approach a problem. As a prepper you have probably started collecting some supplies to help you get through short and long term emergencies. Some of you have stored a TON of supplies because you have been doing this for a long time or else you are independently wealthy and you just blew up the Black Friday sales.

Even if you only have a week’s worth of food and water, that is nothing to sneeze at. Everything you have is stored probably in nicely organized bins for easy retrieval. You don’t have to carry it and the supplies aren’t subject to the elements. Leaving your home will make you potentially have to leave most, or all of your survival supplies at home. You could put them all in your best bug out vehicle, the diesel Ford F-250 with the trailer, right? Sure you could, but are you sure that truck will always be in your possession? It’s just better to stay at your home base because there are tons of advantages like… I’ll be the first to admit that a lot of these reasons are going to seem incredibly simple and obvious, but I think sometimes that is the best way to approach a problem. As a prepper you have probably started collecting some supplies to help you get through short and long term emergencies. Some of you have stored a TON of supplies because you have been doing this for a long time or else you are independently wealthy and you just blew up the Black Friday sales.

Yes, I know that some people sleep perfectly well in the woods and I can too, once I am exhausted from hiking all day. Honestly, you would have to agree that your old lumpy Serta Posturpedic mattress would be preferable to sleeping in the woods or an abandoned building or even a hammock. Why is that important?

Getting plenty of good sleep has a huge impact on our health. It not only affects your moods, but alertness and even immune system. In a disaster you will be stressed in ways you haven’t even considered. You may be working like a dog and having a comfortable and relatively safe place to rest your head, even if that is the living room floor will be an advantage that the people who think they can just bug out into the woods won’t have.

In times of crisis, you can almost guarantee that communities will band together in some ways. You probably don’t consider your small neighborhood or dead end street a community but let some disaster happen and you will see humans come together for support, safety and to help each-other out. Being around even just a few neighbors who know you can give you advantages if you need assistance for things like a neighborhood security plan.

Even neighbors you don’t get along with will probably overcome grudges if the disaster is severe enough. Of course there is the potential that your neighbors could turn on you for being the lone prepper but I think in most cases, things won’t go Mad Max for a little while. If it does you will have to adjust, but I believe that most people would benefit by banding with their neighbors for support. You could have an opportunity for leadership here or compassion by helping out others who haven’t prepared. It is much better to strive for this kind of relationship with people than head out the door and face the world with only what is on your back.

I bet that most of you like to keep the thermostat somewhere in the upper 60’s to low 70’s during the winter. There might be some play in that range, but there are no thermostats outside. Whatever the temperature is outdoors is what you are going to be living with. Can you start a fire or wear warm layers to regulate your body temperature? Of course, but the last place I want to be on a cold winter night is huddled up in my sleeping bag under a tarp even if I did have a nice roasting fire beside me.

There are some situations where you wouldn’t be able to start a fire. Maybe if it was raining and you couldn’t find any dry wood or tinder, or there were people that didn’t look so friendly following you. Staying in your home, even without power can give you advantages of shelter that you won’t easily find outdoors. You can seal off rooms and even your body heat will generate a little warmth. You can black out your curtains with heavy gauge plastic sheeting and even the heat from a lantern or a couple of candles can put out an amazing amount of heat.

The problem with most bug out plans are that you don’t have a destination. Where are you bugging out to? Do you think the National Forest is going to be reserved solely for you and your family? Do you think you will just set up a tent and start hunting for small game? In a large regional disaster, there could be millions of people leaving the cities. The concept is called the Golden Horde and they will be competing with you for natural resources. With even a few dozen hunters in the same area game will be depleted in days if not sooner. Then you will be stuck near a bunch of other hungry people who blame you for catching the last squirrel.

One of the advantages of staying put at home is the home field or defenders advantage. When you go out, you do not know what you are walking or driving into. The best you can do is recon very deliberately which will only slow you down more. By staying put in your home, you can set up a neighborhood watch with your fellow neighbors and monitor who is coming in. This gives you the opportunity to set up defensive positions and plans that anyone walking in with thoughts of taking advantage of you, won’t be aware of.

Have you ever been walking your dog and seen someone strange walking through your neighborhood? This was someone you didn’t know so obviously they fell under suspicion. Had they been one of your neighbors kids you would have recognized them, but this new person stuck out. That is what you will be faced with if you leave your home and go wandering through other towns and cities. In your home neighborhood you will be dealing with known people that you can grow a deeper relationship with. There is a built-in level of trust because they have lived near you for years. If you start walking into a strange town with your bug out bags and AR-15 slung over your bulletproof vest, you may not like the attention you receive.

Speaking of walking around in your bulletproof vest and gear, how many of you have walked for 3 days with your bug out bag? OK, now add a full complement of bullets and anything else you think you might need to defend yourself. It adds up quickly even when you try to reduce the weight of your bug out bag as much as possible. These weren’t meant to live for a long time out of. Your food will run out, possibly your ammo and that will help you with the weight, but in a disaster where you are walking out the door in full combat gear, do you think Walmart will be open when you run out of something?

Maybe you are one of the lucky ones that have a place to go up in the mountains. If you don’t get out before everyone else starts leaving, you could be stuck on the road. What if your old bug out vehicle breaks down? All those supplies you stored in the back of that trailer are either going to feed a lot of other people on the highway or you will most likely die defending them. If you aren’t already living at your retreat before the disaster happens, you will have to be incredibly fast to avoid getting stranded. Let’s say you are ready to go, do you know when you would actually leave? Do you know when the S has actually HTF and it’s time to leave or will you debate leaving with your wife and mother for two days because they think it will all blow over soon?

I have a decent first aid supply kit. I don’t have IV’s and a ton of medicine but I can take care of garden variety injuries pretty well. Imagine you somehow break your leg after the grid is down. Would you rather drag yourself into the house, or be stuck in the woods for weeks unable to move? Most hospitals don’t stick their patients out in the back yard for a reason so you will convalesce better with a good roof over your head that is hopefully providing some climate protections. If nothing else, it will be a relatively clean and safe place to get better that beats lying under a log.

I will write a post about reasons why you may have to bug out later, but staying home doesn’t guarantee you will be safe and secure either. I think each situation has to be taken into consideration as to what is the better option for you and your family. Naturally if there is a fire heading your way staying at home is stupid. It is something to think about that and that may help you begin to form different plans for different scenarios. What are your plans?

After Hurricane Ike, the wife and I decided to move out of Houston suburbs to the country. It WAS UGLY.

We now live in the country, have a way to grow food (although I suck at it), propane for the house, fireplace, propane generator w/7K watt capacity and 208v pig tail for the well...waters good, a way to get it out of the ground...even better.

We have chickens that lay eggs daily, horses and surrounded by forest on all sides. Lights out...it is difficult, but survival kicks in but quick. Food stored, ammo/arms to protect it.

All major arteries during hurricane Rita were blocked outta Houston. Thousands of people competing for the same stuff. Folks looting, fighting over gas, food, ice...you name it. Local grocery stores were stripped bare within hours. Folks were going in the Kroger buying birthday cakes and crap to eat because all can goods were gone. No water, no batteries, no nothing.

Trust me on this y'all...be prepared well in advance. When tragedy strikes....it's too damn late.

Bottom picture reminds me of the interstates going out of Houston when a hurricane was about to hit except that we did have median areas where people were cooking on grills because their car had run out of gas before they even got started.

No Kidding ... I’m Too Old, Out of Shape and I think everyone ELSE should move, Those that survive our first meeting will live long enough to drag their buddies down wind far enough that I won’t have to deal with the flies.
Second meeting those that disagree will get dragged by the ones that I will meet the third time, if it takes a forth or fifth time, I will drag the remains myself.
I hate Flies

In many human disasters, you see the roads strewn with luggage, clothes, etc.

In one of the best planned bug outs of all time, the westward migration, the trailsides were often littered with abandoned furniture and other items. People will lighten their packs and abandon gear they decide isn't worth carrying, or they will cache it if they plan on coming back.

Off subject a bit, but related.

Those wire saws are pretty useless. The Pocket Chainsaw is lightweight (shipping weight is 4.8 ounces) and just works.

Sportsman Pocket Chainsaw - Best Survival Saw 2015 (YouTube 1:00Min)

I keep one on my belt when working on the upper 6 acres of woodland. One of the best inventions made for keeping the trail clear.

Everyone in my family has a backpack in their car. Just replaced the Mountain House FD food in each of them. We call them Get Home Bags (GOB). Each bag is set up to hit the trail tomorrow (just like backpacking) and get home.

Anyone with an emergency bag can easily test them out on the trail. Take a long weekend and just do it. You will learn quickly what works and what doesn't. A good reference for hikers has been The Complete Walker IV. It is a bit granola like, however an excellent reference.

The most important attitude to have when setting up a bag is to get light weight. Cut down every ounce you can. I knew people years ago who would cut their wood matches in half. Some people are very OCD about it.

Just a few thoughts. YMMV.

**** “Super dome after Katrina? That place was a lawless crap hole.” *****

I was 15 minutes out and had volunteered for that duty, local cop turned me away just as the first tornado hit ... we beat feet, my friends that ended up there were forever changed.

I was lucky twice that day

"You may put yourself in a worse situation...Do you think the National Forest is going to be reserved solely for you and your family?"

True. If too many people were to try to camp in a national forest after a disaster, problems with sanitation, conflicts, potentially worsened forest fire situations, storms, cold, etc., would result. The area would be cleared and everyone sent packing to a desination with better infrasctructure (an existing, rehearsed plan).

My nomination for survival post of the year!

I have spent alot of time and energy accumulating “stuff” for a survival situation.

I could not carry a fifth of my foodstuffs in my vehicle, etc, etc, etc.

There is no doubt that staying at home is a dangerous situation. But so is traveling and being a target. Even more so.

I can hope only that despite my preparing, I will one day simply die in my bed.

But I admit, I might have to raise hell!

Katrina was a prime example of when you SHOULD bug out. People stayed behind because of their pets. An axe in the attic and a canoe strapped to the roof in case the levees broke. They weren’t worried about 100+ mph wind. It’s a pervasive myth that 2000 people drowned. In fact all those bodies were autopsied, and most died of BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA from collapsed structures and flying debris.
After the storm, animal rescue volunteers came from all over the US and found thousands of pets surviving on the decaying flesh of their owners.
I returned weeks later. The smell of those dead bodies will never leave me.

The best time to bug out is now. If you live in a city move to a rural area.

Agree 100%. I moved out into the country here in South Carolina in 2003.

I feel much safer here even though I moved out of a subdivision with close neighbors, etc.

I think the number of people around you, say, within a quarter mile, is important. 10-30 is much better than 1000.

The main trouble was the heat. It could have been worse but in the middle of September it still gets really hot in the Florida Panhandle.

Just something to kick around. If things hold together until next summer, I will be getting two of these for my home as part of the backup system. Each unit is a heat pump with roughly a ton of cooling or a ton of heating. Roughly.

This is from engineer775 Practical Preppers:

Solar AC Part3 ECO MODE (YouTube).

From the Practical Prepper website:

Air Conditioning.

I am looking at the off grid units, since I already have batteries and inverters.

Where I live it is pretty mild during the summer months, however the humidity will get you. I do have a very efficient central exhaust fan to cool the home and close up in the morning. These units will remove the humidity.

"Gear is heavy and a lot of gear is heavier."

True. Combat soldiers in training are built up for several months then consume nearly five times the number of calories recommended for civilians while in training. And that, from a very balanced diet. Yet, a few soldiers suffer broken hips from stress fractures during road marches (insufficient nutrition to keep the bones dense and thick enough).

While marching on a hot day, a physically fit person needs at least five gallons of water to march 20 miles. That's over 40 pounds of weight for water alone. Winter presents much more serious problems and much more weight to carry. Then, there's sanitation--much more of a problem than most people realize.

People will be very surprised at how little they can carry, for such a little distance. And how fast they get wiped out tired.

In my yout' I was an avid wilderness hiker and camper. You are absolutely right. Unless you are in really gritty tough condition, you will soon be sadly disabused by reality.

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