Hey George! Yes thats the one, it's called Yorke Island.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iFAXhpIKOc

Now there are some advantages and disadvantages for using this as a location. Disadvantage: It's known. I wouldn't say super well known, but known enough that more than one group may consider this for a location. But the definate advantage is you already have shelters setup including underground shelter I believe.

If I had a real boat (I only have a canoe) then I'd love to go here for a night and check it out. Looks pretty awesome.

Geez Louise , you guys have different ideas than I do . For instance if you were going to haul up that far out , Michelle Pfiefer and a local billionaire family each own half an island up there too, I bet it is tricked out a little nicer than the leftover Yorke Island compound with wind or solar power. Just saying lots of luxurious vacation homes in the islands , I would think particularily islands the ferries do not go to that people yacht or fly in by float plane will be empty , a lot of those owners are in the USA or on the east coast and will be highly unlikely to be occupied if there were a real sudden emergency , just sayin ... if you don't have your own place that is properly prepared .

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Okay Screedcrete, I think you make an excellent point about improving health and physical condition now, while there is opportunity . Top 5 SHTF things that will take your life are at this present moment in history are all relating to poor health . As well that in an extreme crisis is likely to eliminate a persons chances at survival . So maybe part of your selection of your bugging buddies might be whom is training and can keep up with you as well as whom has skills and aptitude you will need . Very good point about a well planned cohesive group who are working together having a better chance than others who are not . I personally have heard of two preppers dying of cancer and three that are dealing with it, numerous others dealing with other health complications , but not a single person who starved to death or was taken prisoner or shot on this continents soils, to date . All I am saying is that guarding our health and readily improving fitness levels should be pushed up the priority list.
I personally would not head east because most lay people will think of the valley as some level of refuge to begin with, that is where they have seen farms say. Those who think they will find refuge with family further out of the valley or making it somehow out of the valley in what they perceive as wide open land in the Caribou or Okanagan are all bottle necking as you mention whether it is at Hope or West van funnelling onto the Sea to Sky . I still hold the water is less familiar to most people than land routes they are familiar with and in crisis I am willing to bet they revert to trying routes they are familiar with . I think unless a party is in your immediate area it would be hard to coordinate rally times and locations , I think it would be near impossible to predict and rely on .
So I will offer that someone like myself would more likely be dealing with crisis in place where I have built up my happy little permaculture farm , until it was apparent that we had to flee , all things I look at and think are reasons I should be relocating sooner rather than later from the outset now when we can be planning and prepping ahead.

Hello all,

I think bugging out as a group on foot is a great idea but here is a couple things to consider. I had spent many years in the Infantry carrying a heavy pack over a long distance and it sucks even when you are in shape. I would suggest you do a short practice walk( 5km) with your BOB minus your weapon of course and the boots you plan on wearing. If you are not used to carrying a heavy pack you will soon realize what you don't really need. If you are not used to wearing boots you will have lots of fun with blisters and shin splints. Food, water (min 4 liters), and ammo weigh a lot more then you might think and these items are a must. Like I said, I think bugging out as a group is a great idea, just do a practice walk first.

The bottom line is for a sucessful bugout you need to A. stay in shape. Dont just put the pack on, but hike and train with it on. and B. dont limit yourself to one plan/route. Have options. Each plan has both advantage/disadvantage. There is no perfect plan. Each plan is purely situational and the more u have, and the more adaptable you are, the better prepared you are. I myself have two plans already. Considering a third to take me out west instead of North or East.

Options!!!!! i agree 100%,buggin as a group is a great idea, allthough situations can and will change at any moment. Like Aaron said have more then one option "out" is the common sense approach. Like aaron i too am working on a third way out of my part of the concrete jungle. Easier said then done...... 🙂 But for what it's worth, i'm all for meeting more people to do this kind of thing with,as i would rather meet you and know who you are whenif the time comes, rather then have not meet any of you and we meet in an intense moment of stress...i doubt that would be very friendly.... you know??

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Fitness is a precondition of course. As is preparation in a variety of ways (hence the name prepper, after all!).

The more I think about it, the more boating west become a viable option. There are plenty of existing locations, and for those with land up north the option of boating up dodges many of the possible dangers that would otherwise plague our journey. No traffic jams, no roadblocks, few to no watchful eyes on our stuff, and frankly, no hiccups. A problem with this is obvious of course... who the hell has a boat(s) big enough for a group to go together? I sure as hell don't. We'd need either a big yacht, or we'd need a small fleet of ships, none of which is cheap.

But still boating west and north is definitely the best option. There are plenty of islands an inlets that are unwatched, waiting for a person to settle down and hide in. And no one would ever bother you, or even know your there.

If the we were to go west, there are some difficulties. In the event of earthquakes we could lose our transportation if we left it sitting on the dock. We'd also be vulnerable to waves, depending on the epicenter of the quake and the magnitude of the aftershocks. Also, depending on the boat we'd need to have our rendevous location set up before hand, as we can only pack so much into a small boat. A bigger sailboat or yacht would alleviate that though, and allow us to set up camp pretty much anywhere, but that comes with a corresponding pricetag.

The necessary size of the boat and having a preexisiting location are the burdens of this plan. I still think it is the best, but preparation is necessary. You can find a decent sized sailboat on craigslist for a few grand, although an industrial fishing boat would be ideal.

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Obviously one plan is not going to work for everyone , some have a specific destination with friends or family, varying starting points may dictate different target directions and modes of travel too . As I mentioned before I can think of circumstances where I am going to be very reluctant to leave the security of home, possibly until it is too late , but that is me and realizing that my preps are mostly for bugging in and that is not always the smartest idea , well I am thinking of relocating before things get too intense . In a time of turmoil it may be very hard to determine WHAT is going on without an expensive networking of HAM operators , so maybe making various team goals part of the pledge committing to a joint alliance , fitness training, firearms training, communications , lots of skills it would be smart to have multiple people commit to acquiring even if other people have them ( and those that do can help )
Screedcrete, have you been on the islands? There are islands where deer , goats and sheep are almost menaces , there are fish and shellfish as well. And fresh water , even year round fresh water creeks and lakes stocked with fish. There are ducks and game birds and records that native populations survived 3,000 years in some locations on coastal islands. For those who know their way around the water is a wide open transportation system with a heck of a lot less chance of happening upon a conflict situation. I would have an agreement with an offshore boatsman to pick up at varying locations in exchange for goods they will need ( think a professional water taxi and given the conditions of the situation, they might be glad to have such an agreement in their preps as well ) and I make sure I have extra fuel for their boat. As I mentioned there are so many holiday homes on some of these islands that others you may see will likely be scavenging there rather than seeking out conflicts until there is nothing left to salvage and desperation sets in. Islanders tend to be resilient and more inclined to work together cooperatively as a community now , so establishing some rapport and a plan in advance may be a positive option , rather than just show up and expect to be accommodated, it is perhaps a wiser plan. My own bug out plan is more parallel to that idea , that I am prearranged to be a contributing ally . Another thought , a horse can carry you faster and farther or carry packs you cannot. Those of you thinking of being on foot , they lack the stealth but have their handy points, you can also trade them or eat them if need be. I would likely fare better on horseback myself, were over land my plan. You can always set the horse loose at some point and carry on with your pack on foot if circumstance dictated it. Is anyone else an experienced with horses ?
You guys over estimate some of the security you perceive is observing your butt cheeks , but believe me , lots of variance to that idea. I am not at all suggesting crossing an international border to access the San Juan islands , plenty of Canadian ones, even a few that do not show up on Google earth : )

I think the island idea holds strong. Would I like to live on an island? No. I would prefer it to be a resting point as I go elsewhere, further inland. But would I mind living on a well provisioned and designated island on which we have a cache? Of course not.

There are plenty of islands large enough to support a population of a few dozen people, especially if its only for a short time. Next the isolation point. How many people do you think will want to go up the coast, towards colder lands and treacherous straits? A few bright eyes will have the brains to do that, probably having property set up ahead of time near the coast or a cabin further in one of the many rivers that dot BC's west coast. But a few is far preferable to a LOT which is the case if people go west, east, or northeast.

The state gains its power of deterrence by having people think it constantly watches. In reality, this couldn't be further from the truth. Even with the advanced surveillance state we now see around us, they are awash with information overload. Most data collected is useless. Certainly the vast majority of the eyes watching anyone going up the straight will be those of private citizens, already content on their little plots of land. Hardly our worst enemies.

Now an island IS a dangerous location in case of an earthquake, yes, absolutely. Hence why I would prefer the mainland as well. But we should not be discouraged from taking advantage of these treasure troves, should the need arise.

There is plenty of stealh on water. Its difficult to hear a boat moving when its a kilometer or two away. A canoe, though of course good to have, is not compensation for a motorboat, or something with considerable more storage room, like a sailboat. There is no comparison. If we want to cover any distance as well, we'd need to make time fast, and a canoe is slow going in comparison and runs exlusively on our own sweat.

Had I my own boat, I would go west for sure, and use it to travel inland farther north, where the land is less densely populated. There's a thousand different options from there and frankly its a helluva lot safer then going with the mass on the highway. My two cents.

I agree with Syn on the island idea. If we could find a community ahead of time, they would be very valuable connections. I also like the horse idea. Horses are much cheaper up north and as you described, are extremely useful. We can't breed ATVs, but you can breed horses.

Well horses can be a liability or an asset depending on how you are using them , skidding logs, plowing , pulling a cart, packing, working other livestock , even powering a wheel to draw water or grind grain are pretty traditional uses. Meat and milk too, nursing mares lactate and can be milked . Yeah they are a renewable resource.

Hey guys.

Since I originally brought up the island idea, let me clarify.

I mean Vancouver island, specifically north of nanaimo, for a few reasons.

Most urbanites from Victoria wouldn't go past sooke, as they consider it the sticks, not to mention the choke point issue leaving town there too.

Lots of game, water, hiding places, etc.

High enough to ignore the tsunami warnings.

Plenty of scrounging opportunities, not to mention barter.

Physical barrier from Vancouver.

Upwind and upstream from anything nuclear, power plant wise or targeted. Yes, not from Fukushima, but it had thousands of miles to dilute before it hit here.

I could go on, but you get the point.

Now to throw a wrench in all your plans. I don't know the areas well, but how come no one mentions the HUGE lake system to the north of Van. Namely stave, Harrison, Pitt, etc. probably relatively cheap to lease some land at the north end of the lake for a cabin. The bonus - they are NEVER shown on city maps, hence most people are blissfully unaware of their existence. Hence they would not think to go there. Thoughts?

Jonesy - Good thoughts.

About the lakes this is what I know about them. Others will know more.

Stave lake is man made. If the dam is opened then it turns into a dry mud pit. I've seen that happen often so no fish. Plus one of the prisons is up there. Don't think I would want to bring my family there.

Pitt Lake - there used to be 99 years leases but when they came up for renewal the first nations in that area wouldn't renew them so I don't think there is too much land to lease there.

Harrison Lake - Zoo around the lake in summer. The rest of the land is forestry and mining so again not much to lease.

But with any of these lakes WTSHIF you can go and be a squatter on the crown land...who's going to throw you off when the rest of the province (world) is in a mess.