Urban Survival Skills – Course of Action One: Retreat

If you live in an urban or suburban area and are largely dependant of grocery stores and the utilities grid for water and electricity then often the best course of action (COA) is to pack up and move to somewhere where you can survive better, be safe and provide for your family. The trick is when to recognize “when the getting is good”. For sure, there will be many people waiting it out; expecting the big government to rescue them and provide for them or just hoping that everything will return to normal. DO NOT be one of these people; you and/or your family’s survival may depend on this one decision.

Possibly the first element of your overall survival plan, where you can go and how you will get there, will be vital. Let’s assume that you kept your vehicle in good mechanical shape, ensured that you never got below ¾ of a tank of fuel before filling up, and have coordinated with whoever is at your destination so they are prepared to receive you and your family into their survival/family group.

The execution of moving to a different location includes what type of means (vehicle, bicycle, motorcycle, horseback or on foot, etc) and what route. You should have several routes planned. These would be referred to as your primary, alternate and even contingency and emergency routes. The first letter of each spells PACE which is an acronym we will be using from now on. Best case is if these routes were driven in the daytime and nighttime for familiarization and to reduce chances of getting lost.

Along all routes, you need to identify survival hides, or Hole Up areas, that if you have a mechanical problem with your mode of transportation, or end up on foot, these survival hides or hole ups would be used as a place to hide, re-group and re-plan.

Survival Hide Sites are places that offer cover and concealment should be defensible allow you to see anyone approaching and are used to remain over one period of daylight or one period of darkness before you move on. Survival Hole Up Sites have the same requirements as Hide Sites but are used for multiple periods of daylight or darkness in order to rest, recuperate, treat injuries or wounds, and/or forage for foods.

Summary:

• If your plan is to withdrawal or re-locate to a safer zone, then plan that movement.
• Consider PACE when developing your routes.
• Consider contingencies that may happen along your transit, such as vehicle breakdown, impassable roads, transition to foot movement.
• Ensure you consider all the survival gear and equipment, not to mention the survival skills that you will need not only to execute your withdrawal plan but to address contingencies enroute.