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Location: Personal Survival Plans
Discussion: Critique this plan
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survival plan
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 Salam9nder |
Critique this plan
Nov 28 2008, 10:51 AM EST What do you all think about using the Appalachian Trail as a survival resource/refuge during a zombocalypse? The intent would be to make it to a trailhead with your survival buddies, BOB, rifle and hiking/camping gear, abandon your vehicles and then hike the trail. The trail is isolated from major population centers and follows the ridgeline of the mountains in most areas, making it unlikely that you would encounter very many zombies or other survivors. You could observe houses and villages on the valley floor and make raids on unoccupied settlements to supplement supplies when needed. Streams and game are plentiful on the trail, so access to food and water is manageable as long as you don't have a sensitive palate. Time spent on the trail could be used to search for a long term stronghold - there are many cabins, vacation homes and isolated farm houses in the Appalachians. The biggest problem I'm having is how to stay safe at night, which is when any slow zombies who have been following but stayed out of sight will catch up and stumble into your encampment. If you are hiking with a group you could set watches and camp off the trail in an area with a lot of leaf litter and underbrush so the noise of the approaching zombie alerts you. If you're alone, though, sleeping on the ground will be deadly. Could you use a tent hammock in the trees? Could you build a tree stand every night and sleep in it? The tree stand is the best option I've come up with so far. Comments, suggestions? Do you find this valuable? |
 Ironback |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 28 2008, 2:04 PM EST Well thought out. Kudos to you for getting away from everybody else. That is until they read your post and start making their own plans. *chuckle* A few items I think you should address: 1) Do you know how to dress game? No! Not in a nighty, but how to skin them and not taint the meat. Popping that bladder and you just wasted an entire afternoon and now have a rooting carcass to deal with. 2) Ever think of taking refuge in a Ranger Station? I’m talking one of the ones they use during the summer months for spotting forest fires. They are up high, can be secured from below and have basic necessities. They even rent some of them out during the winter months. HAM radios are a necessity. I’ve spent time in one and getting rid of your feces is actually fun. 3) Being in the wilds is great for early Zed detection. You just have to make yourself aware of the animal sounds. Make it a habit to stop every 100 paces or so and listen. No animal sounds means Zed is close. 4) Get a large sheet of plastic to use in water reclamation. Dew in the summer and spring and for collecting snow in the winter. 5) The natives. Make friends with the other survivors that lived their before you came trasping along. I’m sure most of them know their way around the locale and can skin a deer or run a trout line. Who knows? Maybe they will teach you to do the same? That’s it for now. I’ll post more if I come up with anything else. This was just off the top of my head while sitting here. ~Ironback Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 28 2008, 4:02 PM EST 1) No, I have little practice with that. One time I hit a deer with my truck and took it to a friend's house so he could just cut out the tenderloins for me, but he showed me how to gut and skin the whole thing. So I've done it once with instruction and I get the idea behind avoiding the bladder, bowels and damaged meat, but I think I'd have to do it several more times to get the hang of it. I'm sure I'd ruin some meat practicing. 2) I only know where 2 fire towers are and neither of them are on the AT. If I saw one, that sounds like it would definitely be a good idea to investigate. To they typically keep HAM radios up there? 4) Yup, got some heavy-duty poly in my BOB :-) 5) I think the streams would be a big source of food for me. Minnows and crayfish are a super easy source of protein, and I know how to string a trotline. Hunting would be the problem for me - I've never hunted deer, except with my truck, heh. It would probably have to be a matter of opportunity for me to get venison. Thank you for the suggestions. I'm still struggling with how to keep safe at night if I'm traveling alone. Starting to think a commercial treestand might be worth the extra weight... Do you find this valuable? |
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Ironback |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 28 2008, 4:21 PM EST "Thank you for the suggestions. I'm still struggling with how to keep safe at night if I'm traveling alone. Starting to think a commercial treestand might be worth the extra weight..."You answered your own querry my friend. Just pray that you don't snore. ~Ironback Do you find this valuable? |
 Northenrgirl |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 29 2008, 12:47 AM EST I would imagine you already have the printed guide books, thought I would post a link to this e-book on the trail. Part 3 includes information on what water filtration they used: http://www.gallifrey.org/ATTOC.html The main concern I would have is the water.... I would be very careful with water near mountains. I know in Banff it is not recommended that you drink from any of the natural water (beaver fever, etc; the number one hiking injury is diarrhea!). I would treat all water that I needed to drink. More to carry sure.. but you don't want a sudden illness slowing you down! Looks like a great plan! I would try to find a high spot (trees etc) for the night. Hopefully you would have ammo you can use so you would not get stuck up a tree. Do you find this valuable? |
 cyberwulf |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 29 2008, 3:01 AM EST The only thing that i can add is that i have a lightweight treestand that can't weigh much more than ten pounds and it even comes with a comfortable folding seat. well worth the added weight. also at night try to pick a tree that you can get to other trees from just in case a few of the undead did follow you and you would rather silently disbatch them from the ground or a low branch. quickly climb to one of the other trees and then climb down to confront the abomination and kill it silently with a bat or crowbar. Do you find this valuable? |
 ganksaber |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 29 2008, 3:52 AM EST you are also planning on slow zeds and it's an okay starter plan until the zeds start to flock to your location then your stuck in the open or a cabin that you have had easy access to so the defence wont be that reliable and even if it is a decent set up you will be trapped Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 29 2008, 8:18 AM EST "I would imagine you already have the printed guide books, thought I would post a link to this e-book on the trail. Part 3 includes information on what water filtration they used:Huh, says he used water purification chemicals rather than a filter because the filter got clogged up to easy. I wonder what kind of filter he was using - I haven't experienced the same problem. It's always been a slow process, but not prohibitively slow. Then again, I've never tried to filter more than a liter of water at a time. Might be better to go with chemical treatment anyways since one can treat larger amounts of water - save the filter for emergencies. Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 29 2008, 10:48 AM EST "The only thing that i can add is that i have a lightweight treestand that can't weigh much more than ten pounds and it even comes with a comfortable folding seat. well worth the added weight. also at night try to pick a tree that you can get to other trees from just in case a few of the undead did follow you and you would rather silently disbatch them from the ground or a low branch. quickly climb to one of the other trees and then climb down to confront the abomination and kill it silently with a bat or crowbar."I found a 14 lb treestand for $50 - looked like a pretty good deal. I should do some more shopping to see if I can find anything lighter. I am loathe to add a treestand to the pack; the mantra for hiking is always "reduceweightreduceweightreduceweight." Serious hikers drill holes in the handle of their toothbrush to reduce weight. REALLY serious hikers consider the toothbrush a luxury item. I need to figure out if the extra weight is better than the alternative: trying to find a suitable tree every night and building a platform out of sticks and boughs. I was also trying to think of a simple and safe means of dispatching zombies that show up overnight while I'm sleeping in the treestand. My melee weapon is a machete, and doesn't have the reach to safely chop one in the head from a 10' platform. Fashioning a spear might work, but I'm not terribly keen on lugging a spear around during an extended hike. I was thinking of a device I've heard others affectionately term the "Yo-Yo of Doom." Tie a heavy (30 lbs?) rock to a length of para-cord, drop it on the zombie's head repeatedly until you crush its skull. Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Nov 29 2008, 6:22 PM EST "you are also planning on slow zeds and it's an okay starter plan until the zeds start to flock to your location then your stuck in the open or a cabin that you have had easy access to so the defence wont be that reliable and even if it is a decent set up you will be trappedWell, the purpose of using the AT is that it's so remote and hard to get to that it will be unlikely that you'd run into large numbers of zombies. That's assuming that their sensory abilities are similar to humans. If they have some sort of long-range, super-doppler radar ability to detect human flesh, then yeah, staying in one spot for any period of time would be dangerous. Either way, I'd rather take my chances in the mountains and rough terrain instead of a densely populated city. Do you find this valuable? |
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cyberwulf |
RE: Critique this plan
Dec 1 2008, 1:17 PM EST If you bring a whetstone or knife sharpener you could always cut yourself a new spear each night, obviously the problem with that would be breaking the blade though. i like the idea with the rock until some zombie falls on top of it. Do you find this valuable? |
 Max6110 |
RE: Critique this plan
Dec 1 2008, 2:50 PM EST Very good idea! There are many stops along the way to raid, its fairly isolated, and the hiking is pretty good. But what about Winter. Even down in the southern part of the Appalachians it still gets really cold. Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Dec 1 2008, 4:56 PM EST "Very good idea! There are many stops along the way to raid, its fairly isolated, and the hiking is pretty good. But what about Winter. Even down in the southern part of the Appalachians it still gets really cold."I've actually done some sub-freezing camping in the Appalachians, so I think I could manage it long-term with preparation. Some have hypothesized that the zombies would freeze solid during the winter, and if that's the case then it could be a big advantage; you'd be able to take up residence in a cabin with relative safety. You'd just have to keep an eye on the weather and head for the hills again when the thaw came. Do you find this valuable? |
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cyberwulf |
RE: Critique this plan
Dec 3 2008, 5:11 PM EST Watch your footing when you go out for firewood or food. If you step into a snowbank there may be a surprize inside that you will not like, frozen or otherwise. Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Dec 5 2008, 11:05 AM EST "Watch your footing when you go out for firewood or food. If you step into a snowbank there may be a surprize inside that you will not like, frozen or otherwise."Aye, that's a good point to keep in mind any time you're walking through tall grass, heavy underbrush or a snow drift - just because the zombie is covered with snow doesn't neccesarily mean he'll be harmless. Do you find this valuable? |
 Orangeampsforever |
RE: Critique this plan
Friday, 10:19 PM EST I love the plan.I keep a map of the area around Lake Tahoe in my vest. I plan to do the same thing. Get out into a desolate area with lots of game and natural resources. Do you find this valuable? |
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Salam9nder |
RE: Critique this plan
Sunday, 3:02 PM EST "I love the plan.I keep a map of the area around Lake Tahoe in my vest. I plan to do the same thing. Get out into a desolate area with lots of game and natural resources."Thanks - if anyone else comes across this thread, there's a much more detailed version of the plan on my profile page. Do you find this valuable? |
