Posted: 12/21/2009 2:46:51 AM EDT
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I live on a sailboat and part of the reason is that I can follow the first rule of surviving a long term disaster pretty easily. I keep her well provisioned and ready to untie in about a half hour if needed. Can go most of either coast between fill-ups or around the world under wind power trading diesel for electrons and electrons for fresh water.
I wonder if anybody else here has a boat based survival plan. Or am I gonna have the high seas to myself? 
Wanted: Cute independent Gun Geek girl between 20 and 40..... 
Uh oh...I just thought...Can zombies swim??? 
Might need a faster boat. |
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ThomasJefferson usually has great info on boats for SHTF.
I'm of mixed opinion on boats, particularly on big water. A boat on an inland reservoir or modest lake/river system could be really really good. However, I'm not convinced I'd want everything on one little boat on coastal waters. I've seen a little too much in the way of post-hurricane devastation, and regards Mother Nature's fury as one of the more frequent and nasty forms of SHTF events. Boats are really susceptible to a variety of problems from storms to mechancial malfunctions. I wouldn't want to be stuck on sinking or otherwise incapacitated vessel. Boats also need reprovision. This is of concern to me. I like independence, as in the ability to grow food, cut wood, generate my own heat, etc. I do know the oceans are full of food, but I hate fish!!! 
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I have a pocket cruiser. Its typically equipped for a two week stay and 200 mile rage. I of course can extend that stay time by taking more food and/or hunting and fishing. Of course, in my location drinking water isn't a problem, fresh water.
Being inland and with Dam locks and refueling to contend with, I pretty much see it as my short-term bugout option. I have about 70 miles up or down river without contending with locks and able to take it to some very isolated areas in the mountains. Being a pocket cruiser, I can also tow it which in a pinch is can double as a funny shaped RV type camper. I see a boat as an extremely viable option for certain scenarios. The biggest negative that non-boaters have on boats is security but I see it as just the opposite. There's no sneaking up on a boat and you typically have way more open distance in your favor than in vehicles. Car Jacks are very common while boat jacks are rare. Without and doubt, by the time some bad guys are doing river blocks, road blocks would have already been in place and probably the pickings getting slim for its way easier to block a road than a river. I think most people buy into its the path least traveled. About the only scenario other than a temporary bugout, I see the boat as an option is some EOTWAKI permanent live off the land thing which is surely would beat the hell out of a backpack and going into the woods. Short term regional, where one would make some good distance and typically stay in a hotel type thing, it would be my preference as well. The key to any boat, even a canoe, as a survival tool depends on what waterways you have in your area. Obviously for some folks it will be the best option in many scenarios and others a dead last option. A boat in the desert for example or on a pond, well, you get the point. Sailboats have a particularly nice survival aspect in that you eliminate or reduce the fuel need. Having sailed a lot in life, that of course, would be assuming one has the boat prepared for a long haul. Due to space constraints, that means you have enough warning to prepare for such treks. Technically power boats can do the same to a lessor extent by not only stocking more food but fuel in tanks/barrels etc. I always have had a liking for the small diesel pocket trawlers. Though slow, with spare diesel a 1,500 mile range is pretty attractive. Around my water, I can't count on the dam locks being working so one tank or even if I had a trawler or sailboat, that about covers how far I can go. Still being in the Smoky Mountains surrounded by mountains in total isolation is not bad, not bad at all. Tj BTW, Just as a humorous note, this time of year I'd much rather be trying to stay warm in my boat than a tent.
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One of the cruiser sites had a kick ass thread for a while about live-aboard folks after Katrina. Those who had done their part stayed floating and functional and were providing ice, air conditioned respite and comms to some of the emergency responders that showed up thinking to rescue them.
I figure a good sail boat can give you: Self-sufficiency Mobility with a bunch of gear and supplies and a moat. I guess it's like living in an off road RV. The key would be to un-ass the AO early enough that nobody stops you, and to be able to make myself usefull wherever I go to get away from whatever happened. We get pretty good practice each year in hurricane season
I think I'd have to stick with a sailboat because of the ability to move without diesel. |
sounds lik ean ok plan unitl the decon shows up to take your girl, your provisions, and your boat... or light it on fire, or blow a hole in the side of it and sink it... not flaming or criticising at all, i'm just a land lubber who's happy to stay on good old dry solid terra firma... and and fuck even the thought of sharks... i will be glad to trade you some of your ammo for a stunted tomatoe plant and some [funny accent]paaapper, have you ever seen paaaapper[/funny accent]  ...K. |
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I've often thought about this. I'm not too sure what kind of SHTF type scenario would cause me to jump in a boat and go, but living right by the Missouri river gives a few options. If need be I could load up my Kayak and head down river. Heading up river would require the stealing of someones boat, but there are docks near by. Then again, if the SHTF at the wrong time of the year and the river had any kind of ice jam, then I guess I'm walking. I could load up my Kayak with a week of supplies, maybe a little bit more depending on weight. |
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I guess I'm mainly thinking of it as a way to relocate me my gear and a dozen or so folks without needing to rely on roads that could be blocked or too congested. I figure eventually something here on the East coast is gonna get on the wrong end of some terrorist's NBC attack. I live in the bulls eye when I'm stateside so that's the kind of thing I plan for. A full on disintigration of rule of law would probably have me looking for passagemaking supplies and unassing the country for a while. Not sure where I'd go depending on the situation. Might consider crossing an ocean or two. Or maybe just emigrating to Texas once they secede.
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My ultimate TEOTWAWKI-after-I'm-a-stinkin-rich-surgeon fantasy involves owning a nice ocean trawler set up to take three Pinzgauers or Unimogs on the deck with a high-power crane to load and offload them and provisions onboard for 3-4 dozen people.
NOO It's nothing like a Noah's Arc complex.
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Quoted:
I've often thought about this. I'm not too sure what kind of SHTF type scenario would cause me to jump in a boat and go, but living right by the Missouri river gives a few options. If need be I could load up my Kayak and head down river. Heading up river would require the stealing of someones boat, but there are docks near by. Then again, if the SHTF at the wrong time of the year and the river had any kind of ice jam, then I guess I'm walking. I could load up my Kayak with a week of supplies, maybe a little bit more depending on weight. I've also been an avid canoeist most of my life too. Much of America was originally explored by canoe. The why I think helps with seeing the survival aspect. The canoe simply is faster than trekking on foot and one can haul much more gear than on foot. Now another aspect that's very interesting is that it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know water is a natural barrier and bridges a natural bottle neck. In some sort of large scale regional disaster, bridges are natural choke point to block and prevent the movement of people. We saw this during Katrina as the outlying cities blocked those from NOLA trying to get out after the hurricane and saw it again on Galveston Island after their last hurricane. Kayaks and Canoes can be hauled on top of about any vehicle and then deployed as needed. Scenario dependent? Well yes they are but then the same can be said of the monster offroad 4x4. I often get a chuckle thinking of this scenario where there's this guy with a Monster Truck 4x4 that during a mass exodus because he has this BOL way up some trail from hell that nobody can get to, decides to wait till the mass exodus rush is over before he sets out to his BOL. He hops in his big truck, the roads are pretty clear, and he's making great time to only come to bridge that has armed guards are preventing anyone from crossing a river. Tj |
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Before my daughter was born my wife and I used to spend our summer weekends on our 21' Donzi 210 XL Cuddy. It had a single burner butane stove, lots of storage considering the modest size, and was plenty big enough for the two of us.
Sold it after my daughter was born-damn I miss that boat  Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Quoted:
Before my daughter was born my wife and I used to spend our summer weekends on our 21' Donzi 210 XL Cuddy. It had a single burner butane stove, lots of storage considering the modest size, and was plenty big enough for the two of us. Sold it after my daughter was born-damn I miss that boat
Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile Good to see you posting! How life been treating you? Tj |
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I've chimed in on this with TJ before.. Incidently, I happen to be married to the girl that you are looking for- can handle sails in a gale, wins Gold medals at National long range matches & is beautiful to boot!
I have had 4 offshore cruising boats in the past- lived on them each for 1-2 years.. Cruising sailors in their own way are probably right in there with a back woods guy in self sufficency. There is a reason that "Moats" work & the bigger the better! Even though I have a great BOL here in Idaho, a sailboat on the coast if I was near one, would be a great option.... just make sure that you have all the navigation skills when the electronics go out.. TJ, Though I still have a slick little sailing canoe that I built & love, IMHO one of the best boats for SHTF is an Inflatable white water (class 4) self bailing canoe. I have been through some awesome water with it and deflated & rolled up it is easy (35#) to portage around trouble... |
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Quoted:
I've chimed in on this with TJ before.. Incidently, I happen to be married to the girl that you are looking for- can handle sails in a gale, wins Gold medals at National long range matches & is beautiful to boot! I have had 4 offshore cruising boats in the past- lived on them each for 1-2 years.. Cruising sailors in their own way are probably right in there with a back woods guy in self sufficency. There is a reason that "Moats" work & the bigger the better! Even though I have a great BOL here in Idaho, a sailboat on the coast if I was near one, would be a great option.... just make sure that you have all the navigation skills when the electronics go out.. TJ, Though I still have a slick little sailing canoe that I built & love, IMHO one of the best boats for SHTF is an Inflatable white water (class 4) self bailing canoe. I have been through some awesome water with it and deflated & rolled up it is easy (35#) to portage around trouble... He, he, he,
Needless to say, being right here where the Olympic white water events were held and friends with a guy who owns a rental company, I have experience on those too. Hard to list every neat boat in a thread. I use an inflatable (regular type) as a dingy on my cruiser. I keep it under my back seat on deck. Obviously their strength is how compact they are and ease of transport. Just as a comment on the self bailing inflatable canoe, though I can think of few small crafts I'd rather go down river in, when going up river the lack of keel on those makes them a pain in a swift current compared to a traditional canoe or kayak. Tj |
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TJ .... Yep roger that about going up stream! I had several Avons as dingys myself- tough & useful, but only with a Yamaha..
Just an addition for those that would need to traverse water in a SHTF. If bridges are down or blocked & it is life or death to get accross, it sure would be nice to have that inflatable in the back of the BOV! |
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Here on the east side of the Smokies I've had some really good canoe camping trips in Fontana Lake and others in the region. A canoe or kayak covers the miles much easier than hiking. Talk about stealthly movement; I've done dozens of midnight paddles during the summer full moons.
The other end of NC is even better. If you could work around the bugs you could paddle the blackwater swamps for a long time. |
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I think this concept has it's place...
Think about this.. You live in New York City.. All hell breaks loose and you need to bug out. Roads and bridges are blocked.. Im thinking if I lived/worked in NYC, I might just need to keep a quality inflatable boat in my bug out kit...... Andy.. |
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Quoted:
I live on a sailboat and part of the reason is that I can follow the first rule of surviving a long term disaster pretty easily. I keep her well provisioned and ready to untie in about a half hour if needed. Can go most of either coast between fill-ups or around the world under wind power trading diesel for electrons and electrons for fresh water. I wonder if anybody else here has a boat based survival plan. Or am I gonna have the high seas to myself?
Wanted: Cute independent Gun Geek girl between 20 and 40.....
Uh oh...I just thought...Can zombies swim???
Might need a faster boat. Just one thing... When you get to the island... don't just run right up to it.. Check it out a bit... Im thinking about the end of Dawn of the dead... Andy.. |
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As an alternative to a Canoe/Kayak as a portable boat, may I present, the Porta-bote.
http://www.porta-bote.com/ I've got a 12' version, with a 6HP Nissan Outboard. I've also got a rig to carry it & a 15' Canoe on my Jeep. You can carry a LOT of stuff with the pair. I've also towed a Sevylor Kayak behind the Canoe, but the Chain's getting a bit long at that point. While it certainly won't handle whitewater, and I wouldn't want to use it offshore, it's a nifty little setup. |
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Since you guys are bringing up unusual boats, when I was a kid my dad had a Grumman Multipurpose.
It was flat backed sail canoe with a 5 hp Mercury and rowing locks. It was aluminum with a trailer, yet light enough to be hauled by any car or carried over shallows, a pretty neat little boat. |
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Quoted:
I've chimed in on this with TJ before.. Incidently, I happen to be married to the girl that you are looking for- can handle sails in a gale, wins Gold medals at National long range matches & is beautiful to boot! I have had 4 offshore cruising boats in the past- lived on them each for 1-2 years.. Cruising sailors in their own way are probably right in there with a back woods guy in self sufficency. There is a reason that "Moats" work & the bigger the better! Even though I have a great BOL here in Idaho, a sailboat on the coast if I was near one, would be a great option.... just make sure that you have all the navigation skills when the electronics go out.. TJ, Though I still have a slick little sailing canoe that I built & love, IMHO one of the best boats for SHTF is an Inflatable white water (class 4) self bailing canoe. I have been through some awesome water with it and deflated & rolled up it is easy (35#) to portage around trouble... You're a lucky man. There aren't a heck of a lot of those type of girls around. Sounds like a keeper! I like the inflatable canoe idea too. It'd make a good way to get around a bridge blocked situation while bugging out. Probably not as useful as a good mountain bike, but close.
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