Author: Pat Henry

Most of us who are into prepping are gathering some form of supplies. I always recommend gaining skills important to survival as well, but a good stored cache of food, water, means for shelter and security are at the top of my list. We consume things as humans and the natural tendency to prepare for emergencies, where the normal things we consume are unavailable, is to store extra. How much you are able to put away or feel is prudent to stock up on is up to the individual prepper. The common denominator is that we need to store these…

It’s like a bad scene out of a disaster movie mixed with your worst nightmare. Some event forces you and your family to leave your home with only your bug out bags on the backs of you and your family. The good news is you are prepared and have set aside provisions and planned for the trip. You also have a destination 50 miles away at a relative’s house that is waiting for you with plenty of security and supplies. You expect the trip to take 3 days of walking back roads. Not ideal, but certainly doable. The trip starts…

As a concealed carry license holder, I am always looking for the best way to carry concealed in whatever situation I find myself in. What I have found over many years is that this requires a little bit of flexibility and the method of concealed carry and more importantly, whether it will work for you, greatly depends on what you are carrying, where you are carrying and what you are planning on doing when you are carrying. Today I wanted to discuss some of the methods of concealed carry that I have personally tried and share some of the advantages…

Leadership is a strange thing. Many people throughout history have become reluctant, yet legendary leaders while others have been technically in a leadership position, but the results of their command were far from stellar. Several of the later type come to mind easily. Many preppers assume that during some catastrophe, we as a group will naturally be tapped to be the leaders due to our forethought, preparation, and skills – presumably for dealing with the crisis, that others around us simply don’t have. On the surface, I can see the merit in that idea because if I was in a…

Since I started the Prepper Journal I have always believed that everyone benefits from as much information, discussion and sometimes debate as possible. No single person has all of the answers, but I think collectively great ideas come to the surface. I have my own opinions on practically everything out there but I won’t say that I know all about any subject. I have also had my mind changed on more than one occasion by the thoughts and theories I have read elsewhere on the subjects we discuss about prepping and survival. To that end I wanted to share some…

Most of you have heard the news now of the devastating floods in Wimberley Texas that occurred over the weekend. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families who are suffering there now and can only offer our hope for their peace and healing. From what I have heard, this flood was fast moving after 6 inches of rain fell North of Wimberley last Sunday. The region is also known as Flash Flood Alley because of its reputation as the most flood prone area in the country. Even with that nick-name, this flood was severe and worse than all-time…

Pop quiz. If you had to leave your neighborhood and the route you normally take was blocked would you have an alternate way out? What if the alternate was blocked? What if all roads out of your neighborhood were blocked by military check-points? Would you have a backup escape route or would you be trapped staring at the lights ahead wishing you had made it out sooner? Most days when I am driving home from work my mind is on autopilot. I make the turns I normally make, engage my turn signal at the proper time and generally drive the…

I wanted to talk about bug out vehicles and create a different kind of list. This list will be the best bug out vehicles you can actually afford.

What are you prepping for? Is it a natural disaster like a wildfire, tornado or hurricane? Those are perfect examples of common events that occur every day. Nature has a way of dealing us unexpected circumstances from time to time and we, as humans try to roll with the situation as best we can. That is one of the benefits of prepping in that you are proactively planning for events, and the fallout of events now before you find yourself possibly affected by disaster. There are large and small examples of emergencies but prepping gives you a method of working…

Could the year you were born have any bearing on your chances of surviving doomsday? Are there any advantages for one generation over another when it comes to living through some apocalyptic event? Do these labels (Baby Boomer, Generation X, Millennial), that somehow became affixed to relatively random ranges of time, hold some clue as to whether or not you and a bunch of your high school buddies could make it through a zombie apocalypse or invasion of mutant bikers from mars? I was thinking about this topic from the singular perspective of my sometimes least favorite generation the other…

How many of you have played this game on a long car trip where you asked the people around you what is the worst way to die? A version of this goes something like; would you rather drown in the ocean or be burnt alive in a building fire? Gruesome stuff I know, but I think all of us face our own mortality in different ways at different times of our lives. We hypothesize situations that we could find ourselves in that would bring about death as a way discussing our fears in the hopes of possibly looking the boogie-man…

Planning a day hike can teach you so many skills that you can incorporate into your bug out plans. I have advocated that longer backpacking trips are extremely valuable for the lessons you can learn from them, which apply directly to any plans you have of strapping that heavy pack on your back and hiking into the local forest. A day hike gives you similar opportunities to learn, practice your bug out plan, and get some great exercise at the same time in the beauty of nature. What’s not to love? You shouldn’t just walk into the woods unprepared though…

Preppers are always looking to learn additional skills and methods for survival. In some cases, knowledge comes from reading prepper blogs like the Prepper Journal. Other times, you can obtain training from reputable instructors in disciplines like self-defense, weapons training, and first aid. Yet another source that many people use are survival manuals. Books are a great prepper resource in my opinion that you shouldn’t neglect as part of your prepping efforts. They might not replace skills you can acquire by other means, but they are something that you may be able to fall back on as a source of…

When the subject of Survival comes up in conversation, what do you think of? I am sure context plays a big part in the answer to that question, but for me personally it used to always conjure up the shipwrecked on a deserted island idea of survival. It was that or the lone hiker scenario where you are lost in the wilderness, miles away from civilization. I used to love watching Bear Grylls’ Man vs. Wild many years back on his first TV show where he would present just those types of scenarios and show tips on how to survive…

It is the final backup plan for a lot of us in the case of a disaster. A generous supply of cold hard cash to buy our way out of trouble, pick up as many last-minute supplies as possible or to acquire resources that are unavailable to anyone with a credit card in a world where the electricity is out and the internet is down. We frequently talk about having cash for emergencies, but how much cash should you have if the grid goes down? What will you be able to purchase with your doomsday supply and how long would…

I was honored to be invited to share my thoughts with Jeff Anderson of Modern Combat and Survival on his podcast this week to discuss a topic that is near and dear to many preppers out there. When it all starts to go sideways and the worst comes out in people…What are the best strategies for defeating looters when SHTF? Jeff always has interesting guests on his weekly podcasts and I hope I was able to contribute to the larger conversation in some small way. To hear our interview that really spanned a lot of areas, please visit the Modern…

One mans answer to the question of are survival skills better than having prepping supplies. In the Prepping community there are some topics that draw familiar responses from people of all walks of life. Naturally I am guilty of throwing out my own clichéd responses to these core conceptual questions from time to time – hopefully with enough of my own opinion in there, also hopefully unique enough to warrant someone spending five minutes to read or share what I have written. Topics like these either draw a lot of comments or none. You can tell how controversial your post…

For a long time; I along with countless others who are better informed than me have wondered at the strange nature of our governments actions upon the citizens they are supposed to represent and protect. If one didn’t know any better, it would seem that rather than being constituted to fight for the rights of their fellow countrymen, there has been an increasing shift at all levels of government that puts the needs, concerns and priorities of it citizens beneath government’s own –  almost to the point of outright animosity. Rather than providing for “the common defense”, it increasingly feels…

I recently returned from a trip out of town where I traveled with my concealed carry firearm. Sometimes I leave the gun at home when I fly but if my destination state honors my concealed carry permit and a few other factors line up, I will always fly with a gun. Now most of you know that I am not technically flying with any kind of firearm on my person. My weapons are locked as safely as I can manage in my suitcase in the bottom of the plane but for those who don’t know or are considering flying with…

Your body is one of the most important considerations of survival that we often overlook in favor of the latest prepper gear. Imagine a bug out scenario where you could be walking over rough terrain, possibly for hundreds of miles to make it to your bug out location or even back to your own family. If you get hurt or ill, life can become monumentally more difficult, and if you are forced to rely on your body more than usual such as in a bug out scenario it has to be taken care of. So how can you keep your…

I routinely think about the potential of bugging out with my family. When I do consider how this would work logistically, I probably paint a rosier picture than is prudent from the standpoint of the circumstances that would necessitate me having to resort to this option. If my family is bugging out, things are very bad. If I am bugging out, it is with the plan that we won’t be coming back and the situation on the ground at my home is one that is not suitable for living any more. As it stands right now, I don’t have a…

Charity is a virtue that we all have to some extent. The amount of charity we are willing to dispense may have its base in our moral or religious values or it could simply be at our discretion based upon our perceived ability to be charitable or willingness in any given situation. We discuss charity on the Prepper Journal from the standpoint of actions you can take after a SHTF or TEOTWAWKI event to help those who are less fortunate than ourselves. We make plans to set aside certain items with the idea that we will be charitable in some…

Preppers try to plan for all manner of situations in which their lives or health could be in jeopardy. We take steps to mitigate the bad effects of disasters so that our family will be as least impacted or safe as possible. When we start to make plans for situations where one or more members of our group are separated from us, the possibilities are endless. How do you prepare for every conceivable option possible for someone who is away from you? Is the main goal for those away, to get to your location? Do you rendezvous at a central…

As editor for the Prepper Journal, I think it’s fair to say that I might think of Doomsday more than a lot of people. I think all preppers do to varying degrees. I try to imagine a world on the other side of collapse; a future that is soaked in chaos and anarchy, of people on the edge of survival. I think about these things not because I am a deviant psychopath bent on seeing the world burn while I assume some throne atop the wreckage of civilization; I think about the worst our society can become so I am…

Where to begin prepping? I imagine a lot of people are like me when it comes to how you were introduced to the subject of prepping. In 2007, there was no Doomsday Preppers TV show that I could look to for ideas, perspective and some humor. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for really, but it all began for me with a sense of urgency. It wasn’t like I was experiencing cold sweats at night in bed or anything like that, but I felt that as a father and husband I needed to get ready. Ready for what? I…

Many of you have thought about where you should store your prepping supplies. As you accumulate more food, gear and tools, you may find yourself getting creative with the space you have in your home. In the beginning, my main focus was food and the logical place was to simply put more food on the shelves. That was fine to a point, but if you have enough food for a year, the shelves in your kitchen won’t likely hold that many groceries. At some point you may want to consider alternate storage options. There are a lot of articles on…

Or how can I build a bug out bag without breaking the bank? Do you have your bug out bag packed and waiting for you in the hall closet? Is your bug out bag tested and ready to go at a moment’s notice? Do you have a bug out bag at all or wonder, what is a bug out bag? Maybe you are just starting on the journey into preparedness and like a lot of other people, you are focusing on getting your bug out bag ready and have encountered the dilemma that so many of us have struggled with…

If you have an AR-15 or any rifle really, and you plan on using this in a defensive role should the need arise, you need to consider what is the best scope for your use. Even if you have the venerable AK-47, the scope that you use will greatly determine your capabilities after your natural skill and training have reached their limits. A good scope is a huge benefit in allowing you to accurately acquire a target and with a properly sighted rifle and good fundamentals hit what you are shooting at. There are many different configurations that are possible…

There are many aspects of Prepping that we think of from a tactical perspective as being information we wouldn’t want to share with everyone. You don’t usually want to advertise to the world that you are a prepper in the first place because conventional wisdom would say you have supplies that others could want in a crisis scenario. To that end we discuss concepts like OPSEC or operational security – being those practices we employ to keep our supplies and activities on the down low. There is no sense telling your neighbors what you have and advertising your stash of…

If you have not seen or heard of MRE’s (Meal Ready to Eat) by now, I have to wonder where you have been. MRE’s are a military staple that has naturally bled over into the preparedness market because of their long storage life and simplicity. For the uninitiated, MRE’s are what our soldiers eat when they are away from base. MRE’s come from a long history of military food options that are meant to fill bellies and provide energy in a near bomb proof package that can be thrown in the back of a connex for 5 years and not…