Bug in or out?

cathalomurchu

Hello everyone! Well I somehow stumbled across this section of boards and to be honest, I'm delighted! I never knew there would of been this many people prepping in Ireland. I am sadly not a prepper as I'm still in school and have my leaving next year but I would love to get started.

I guess I'm writing this because I just want to know, if there was a SHTF scenario what would you all do? My take on it is that Ireland is TOO small of a country for everyone to bug out. There's not too much forestry and a lot of it is close to major towns and cities. I think the majority of people who are unprepared would make tracks for the high ground and try and live off the land, which sadly I don't see working out. Whereas in larger places such as the US it's a brilliant plan. Then you have the case of bugging in. and if you live in a medium to large town I don't see working out either because I would imagine you could be overrun quite easily.

I think it would be ideal to have land, not too big but just enough that you can be self sufficient for your family or group and guard it well. Build an inconspicuous cabin, out of sight and far away from any roads and bug out there.

Another question i want to ask is what is everyone's opinions on firepower? I am well for having firearms to hunt and defend your territory. If you had a semi auto .22 with a suppressor and subsonic ammunition you'd be no louder than a paintball gun. This eliminates drawing attention to yourself and you can still take down attackers and large animals such as deer.

Just my 2 cents basically, delighted to have stumbled across this forum!

Doc Ruby

Welcome, deeeepends, and we can't talk about guns.

Get started by educating yourself, both in school/third level and in the arts and crafts of survival. You can give a boob a grand's worth of gear and they'll crawl back out of the wilderness weeping, but all someone that knows what they're doing needs is a knife and maybe a firestarter and they'll swagger back wearing a tailored nettle fibre fabric suit toting a bagful of trade goods. The most powerful tool by far is what's between your ears, in every walk of life but most particularly when your life depends on it.

At this point in your life you needn't go too mad, just get a survival tin, maybe a few essentials in a backpack, worry about the acreage later. Learn, learn, learn, but avoid the kind of right wing nuts who are only too happy to trade their scant skills for a new convert, and this stuff seems to draw them.

There are many kinds of disaster and each has its own protocol - floods don't matter if you're on high ground, unless they outlast your supplies. Civil unrest might require you to head for the hills, but let's face it, that's not really an issue in Ireland. There are lots of different potential problems from being stuck in a car crash in the snow, to getting lost taking a shortcut over some fields, to full on pandemics. Just learn and understand how to deal with all sorts of problems, be ready to work with your community in the face of danger, and stay safe.

Tabnabs

Secondary school seems like a good age to get into the right mindset. It comes down to the basics, what are you prepping for? Realistically you can't prep for everything, so make a list of what is the most likely SHTF situations you would have to endure and act accordingly. If you live in suburban Ireland and have no practical experience of living off the land or self sufficiency, then you need to get the skills together to do this or accept it's not a likely outcome and prepare in the environment you do live in.

If you have questions, you've come to the right place

Danpad

Baby steps; it's no use preparing for a '28 Days Later' scenario if you can't make it through the snow and out of your drive because you don't have a snow shovel. If you're water was cut off for three or four days a top of the range multi tool is of no consolation. During a prolonged power outage and your brain tries to disengage from TV/internet etc, do you have a light source to read a book by? I suppose what I'm attempting to say is to prepare for more likely events and sitX type scenarios first and then when you get the 'bug' you could expand (your expenses...god knows I did!) for bigger, less likely emergencies (he says, checking sky news to see the latest move in the chess game that is Syria!!). But you get my drift. Most importantly, don't forget to live for the present, stay positive and enjoy life.

cathalomurchu

Thanks for replies everyone! Advice taken on board. I get outdoors in the woods almost once a week and I have most of the "Gucci" gear. I know the basics of survival, fishing, firemaking, shelters, hunting/gathering. I would love to spend some serious time in the wild. Going Wild camping for example and broadening my bushcraft skills.
I look forward to learning some vital tips from the forum. Thanks again!