This show, we find two groups, both with very different reasons and ideas!

First up is Kevin Coy and his wife Annissa in Washington State. They are preparing for the eruption of one or more volcanoes along the Ring Of Fire. Being not far from Mt. St. Helen’s keeps this possibility front and center. They have about 5 volcanoes nearby which could make the area ripe for an event. Kevin has been prepping for the evacuation of his family and all of the farm animals. His plan also does not plan on coming back to the house, EVER. This does not sit well with the misses, she has a very tough time with this. His son Travis, son in law Steven and daughter are involved with the preps. The responsibilities are broken down to Kevin being in charge of Mayhem and Chaos, Annissa is the strategic planner, Travis is food resupply, Steven has the defense and his daughter has weather info.

They have developed multiple bug out plans depending on the direction of the eruption and wind. They put up a small weather station to get wind direction and speed mainly which will help them decide on the direction of evac. They also have a small zoo with 12 pigs, 30 rabbits, 25 chickens and a goat. And yes, the animals go with them. They have several ways to get out, the main was the RV trailer and truck. Then they put together a plan with their sailboat. One of the sons, came up with the “Battle Bus”. It’s literally a conventional bus with sleeping bays, firing positions along the side and roof and a range of 1,600 miles. They plan to put a snow blade or cattle grill on it for ramming. It will carry food, gear and guns along with ? The last but not least was a small 8′ X 12″ house that will have the “home” stuff including a composting toilet. This 3,500 lb, Sugar Shack was done to help Annissa with leaving their family home.

So with all of these plans in place, now comes the test run. Well to put it mildly, it failed across the board. They planned on for 1 hour to leave. The plan to use the horse trailer for all of the animals, but they could not hitch to it. So they then started putting the animals inside the bus cargo bays, started, being the key word here. They put on Tyvex suits at the outset of the exercise to protect them, but no particulate masks or goggles. Annissa started bring up the 1 year of food from the basement of the house where it is all stored. Then they started trying to put the Sugar Shack on a conventional ramp style tow truck. That failed without the house being loaded, they finally had to abandon that. So two hours later, they are ready to ………. It just failed folks.

The Good and the Bad;

The Good;

• The planning and teamwork is a great thing to have in place.
• Animals for food and compost.
• 1 year stored food.
• Multiple evac plans.
• Tyvex Suits.

The Bad;

• House on the trailer is not going to work.
• No real water storage. You need water and so do the animals.
• ALL Animals in one vehicle.
• Masks and Goggles for protection.
• The boat is not a plan that was thought out.
• The bus will be useless without more people.
• The Sugar Shack is a boat anchor, throw it away.
• Communications seemed to be missing.

Well there is so much to say here. I love the animals, it’s such a great resource, but it can also be a burden as well. Transporting and feeding animals means storing food, bedding, medicines and tools for them. You need one trailer that handles MOST of the animals. A trailer that would be designed to handle the specific animals so that “Cage A goes in Slot B” on the trailer. You could make the “Battle Bus” into “The Ark”. Plenty of room for animals. Now the food. The food needs to be staged to load faster. Containers staged outside in a Go Shack might be an option. A place that is there only to stage gear for evac. The boat is not an option at all. With the animals make that impossible and if you have animals, you have to take them. I do believe that

Now onto the “Sugar Shack”. I fully understand why Kevin built this thing! This is a really tough thing for her, to leave the house…forever. The one thing that I have learned in 30 years of marriage is that I would do most anything for my wife, and if Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy! The one thing that I cannot get over is why there is NO pan to return. Now they may not be able to return for awhile or they may be able to return in short order, you just don’t know. If you focus on getting back as soon as you can, she will deal with that far better than never never land. If there are no major mud flows or explosive damage, you could return. I think you plan as they have for departure but also plan for how you return.

In respect to the “hour” to evac. Most volcanoes are monitored for activity as was Mt. St. Helens. They knew there was activity and started evacuating people before the event. Given that is in place, I would think that you may have several days to “pre-load” the animals, food and such and yes, then in that “Hour”, you could get outta dodge.I think with more planning and increasing infrastructure, this plan could be as smooth as glass. They have a great lifestyle and the self sufficiency is nice to see. I hope the best for these folks.

Next up is Bill Simpson in Portland Oregon. He is preparing for a Geomagnetic Storm that creates an EMP that knocks out power and communications. When this happens, all perishable food will spoil, heating and cooling will cease. First responders and medical help will be in short supply and the aftermath of all of this will be people. Mobs and scavengers will be looking for shelter, food and anything else they can get. In his opinion, a bunker is no place to live and come to think of it, neither is the land. So go to sea men!

He has spent 6 years and $500,000 on his MotoSailer named “Iron Maiden”, that is built of 3/8″ steel. His plan is to put to sea and stay away from land for years. Among the things that have been built into this boat is the addition of bulletproof glass and doors and a water desalinization plant for fresh water. There are modern radios and radar installed for communication, news and navigation. Stored on board is 2,000 lbs of canned and dehydrated food. Water from the plant is stored in tanks and used as needed.

The crew consists of Bill’s wife Laura, Grandson Billy and his friend Edmund. Also are relatives Clayton and Kelly. The plan is to sail with all of these should the event occur from 70 miles upriver on the Columbia river to the open sea. The weapons onboard consists of spear guns, flare pistols and Molotov cocktails along with strong language and grrrrrr from the captain. They are collecting seaweed and preparing it in place of fresh produce to stave off Scurvy that sailors have issues with for centuries.

One of the things that Bill points out is that since the boat is made of steel, it functions as a Faraday cage to protect the electrical items on the boat. They have a full medical kit including minor surgery as well. Practicing with chicken parts keeps their skills fresh. The other great thing about the steel boat is that ramming is very possible. Now icebergs would be another thing, ramming a wooden boat stripped down and tied into the river is no problem……amazing.

The Good and The Bad;

The Good;

• Putting to sea when turmoil on land dictates it, is a great idea.
• 1,500 gallons of diesel and the sail gives them range and speed when they need it.
• 2,000 lbs of food.
• Communications.
• Other help in the crew.
• Seaweed in diet is a nice twist.
• Water storage and desalination.

The Bad;

• Fresh food is not available.
• Water Desalination can break down and have other issues. Without another source you would be in trouble.
• Faraday Cage. Not sure how effective the boat really is.
• Engine breakdown.
• Pirates, yes Dorothy they do exist.
• Firearms for defense.
• Training for defense and ship skills.

I like the idea of putting to sea to reduce risks is not a bad idea. It looked like Bill has some real captains skills, but the crew has none. That could come to bite him later or sooner depending on situations. Water plants have broken down before and if there is an issue without repair, they would have to land and get water. There appeared to be no tools for purifying water or pumping it onboard. I do not think this boat IS a Faraday cage. The cage must be totally closed to allow no RF incursion. If a door is left open, the cage is open. The radar is no the mast, the radios are in the wheelhouse with glass windows, no Faraday there. So I think unless he stores those in a Faraday cage, they may be toast. The EMP event noted in the program, actually had no real proof that the Sun created it, it’s conjecture alone. We are not real sure what will happen, just what may happen. ALL electronics should be stored inside a real cage until needed.

So Pirates do exist and they would increase if the land gets tough to be on and there is booty on the sea. No firearms and training will catch up with you, not if but when. So a couple of carbines and shotguns would help. Scoped rifles lend little due to wave movement, it would take a great shooter to pull that off. An actual cannon may be a thought. I would do more planning on ports in the “What If”. What if we need water, where do we go? Fresh produce trading for fish….diesel parts or fuel. Assuming that everything will work as planned, you could stay at sea for quite some time. But even sailors want to go to port and walk on dry land. Leaving everything behind means there may be not return to the family stomping grounds, and the big question is, are we ready for that?

I think getting away from the panic and destruction from an event is a healthy idea, but if the life is then on the run, what is the quality of life. I am not planning on leaving the homestead here in the high desert of Reno unless it is a strategic move. In the event of wildfire, of course we would evac but my strategy would always be to return. I firmly believe that family, neighbors and community are one of the strongest reasons to remain. The power that this entity creates is hard to beat, especially with like minded individuals. Something to think about, the ol debate of bug-in or bug out…….

So what’s in your plans?