Bug Out Bag - Revisited
By
“The Coach”
I recently wrote an article titled, Seasoned Preppers, “Bug Out Bag”. I thought I had a good idea about what to use as a Bug Out Bag when I observed a roller suit case at the airport, while I was picking up a friend.
“I was wrong!”
Readers of my original article commented:
“Kevin Mains” asked, what is in your Bug Out Bag? I will be addressing this in a separate article that I will be writing very soon.
“D” and “Aves Bird” stated that luggage bags with rollers are a bad idea. They state that the wheels on that type of roller luggage often break or come off.
Since I had not used one of these bags before, I did not know this.
The wheels breaking or coming off during an actual emergency Bug Out is TOTALLY unacceptable. Remember Murphy’s Law!
However, many of the commenters to my original article have given some great ideas on other options to utilize. Below are some of them.
“D” and “Sam” write a “Deer Cart” would be a good idea.
“Aves Bird” writes use several smaller bags and pack them inside the larger roller luggage bag. This way if there was a problem with the larger roller luggage bag, you could take out the smaller bags and continue on.
“Irish 7” writes he uses a collapsible, folding, luggage hand truck.
“Bill” writes, try a golf cart.
It appears to me that you could carry a military duffel bag very easy on the gulf cart.
“retiredtpt” writes, use a yard cart.
“Patriot One” writes, try a Storm Case and put it on some type of wheeled cart.
O
r try a Rickshaw.
But the last comment that “Patriot One” makes the most sense to me. His idea is to use a grocery store shopping cart.
I found this metal grocery cart on e-bay for $30.00. Yes, I know there are other ways of obtaining a grocery cart!
It was the comment made by “Patriot One” that got me to thinking. One of the most important things that you should do during an actual Bug Out, should you be unfortunate to have to leave on foot for whatever reason, is NOT to stand out. You should blend in with the other people that are also leaving. You should become one of the invisible people in our society.
If you plan on dressing in your BDUs and looking like G.I. Joe, pulling an expensive cart with a lot of items that other people need and/or want; you are making yourself a BIG target. You are going to stand out. You will even have the police stopping you and checking you out.
As far as what to wear if you have to Bug Out on foot. DO NOT wear BDUs! Just look around at the homeless people in your area. What do they wear? This is how you want to dress. You DO NOT want to stand out. If you like BDUs and have to have them, carry them in a plastic bag in your Bug Out Cart. Then, when you get where you are going, put them on.
What type of reliable cart should you push/pull if you cannot get out in some type of vehicle?
What type of cart do the homeless people use in your area?
Here in New Orleans, the only type of cart that I see the invisible, homeless, people use is the one that “Patriot One” suggests. The grocery cart!
The grocery cart is very durable. It can carry a lot of weight. You can tie and/or hang things from the sides of the grocery cart. You are pushing the grocery cart so your property is in front of you. If you pull some type of a cart, the items that you’re carrying in it are in back of you. That makes those items easier to steal without you noticing it. Also, if something falls out of the cart that you are pulling, you will probably not realize that it is missing for a while.
Another advantage that the grocery cart has is that you can put some of your weight on the handle to help steady yourself in case you have bad knees or if you need assistance in walking. Think of when you go to the grocery store!
When you think about packing whatever you decide to take with you, try dividing up your food, water, clothes, etc. into numerous bundles of equal size and then placing those bundles in plastic trash bags in the grocery cart. By doing so those small bundles become more manageable and pack easier. In addition, by placing them in plastic trash bags your items will stay dryer if it should rain. The plastic bags also keep the dust in the air off of the items that you have packed. Also people watching you cannot tell what you are transporting. If someone should run up to your cart and grab one of your bags and run away, you have not lost everything. Another advantage to using the plastic garbage bags is that you can reuse those bags numerous other ways, if need be.
You can even secure a pistol holster into the child’s seat area of the grocery cart. Then place some lightweight object over the handgun to conceal it. Your handgun would be almost immediately accessible if you need it and always in sight.
The one drawback of the grocery cart is the same one that the roller suitcase has. It is not built to go off of the street or sidewalk. However, how many of you senior citizens will be going deep into the woods. Or, would you just be trying to get out of whatever major city you are in, any way you can.
The larger pull carts, such as the deer cart or garden wagon, are great ideas and maybe the answer for you. But if you are a senior citizen, like me, with bad knees and a heart problem and decide you have to attempt to walk out of a TEOTWAWKI situation, a grocery cart seems more the ideal solution to my problem. How far will I get? I do not know but at least it gives me an option other than Bugging In!
I must admit that I do like the yard cart. If you have small children or grandchildren the yard cart would be something to consider. You could place two small children and the items need to take care of them in the yard cart. This beats hand carrying them in your arms. In addition, I think the yard cart would be easier to go off road and possibly take into the woods. If you decide that the garden cart is right for you, be sure to take a can of “Fix A Flat” and a bicycle air pump. These carts have inflatable tires. Again, remember “Murphy’s Law”!
A question came up that you should not plan on leaving wherever you are on foot. My thinking on this is that a wheeled cart of whatever type you decide on is just another option. You should ALWAYS keep all of your options open. Besides, if you are planning on using ANY type of gasoline or diesel motor vehicle in a major prolonged national disaster, you are going to have a problem. Gasoline and diesel fuel are a finite resource. In other words, sooner or later you are going to run out of whatever fuel that is required to run your motor vehicle. So, some type of wheeled cart should be a requirement in you Bug Out plans.