Choosing the best location

If only we could. Most of us can’t afford to so we have to make do with what we have. We are adaptable. If we are unable to change the main aspect of our location, where it is, then we must change other aspects of it to bring it closer to our needs. Look at your place and think about it, ask others and create your ideal location where you are.

For those who are bugging out should look at your existing location even if you have a remote BOL. You may not be able to bug out as planned. You need to ensure your backup is viable.

I live on the outskirts of a medium sized town. The countryside is only a few hundred yards from my home but there are several streets and hundreds of homes between me and the open fields. My street opens on to that main road and anyone walking along the main road to the countryside can clearly see the street entrance although at the moment nobody bothers. It is not perfect. But I cannot afford to have a BOL in a remote country area although I would love one.

On the other hand I live in a cul-de-sac where there is only one way in by road and very few people come down the road under normal circumstances. It isn’t far from the countryside and there are a lot of elderly people there, people over 80 who are not the most healthy in that age group. I doubt that anyone is interested in coming down the street at all. I can’t count on this after an event though as everywhere will be explored in the search for survival and my street will definitely be one of those.

It does have an advantage though which is even people in the local area don’t know where it is. It will be those walking the route who will see it and we want them to be fixated on the local shops or the countryside ahead. We want them to just wander past and miss out on our homes.

Obviously we cannot just hide a street and I’ve plans to tear up the road and block it with debris and abandoned cars if the event is significant enough. I’ve looked at the local area via Google and by exploration and believe I can close off all the entry points and make it awkward to get in. Blocking off the road will do the same at the main entry point. Awkward but not impossible.

Then my home looks no different from any other home yet I have several caches put away inside and out. The plan here being to make my home look uninteresting and uninviting. I’ve plans to make the downstairs look trashed as in already searched and collapse the stairs and make it difficult for people to come up the stairs. Lethally difficult in fact and although illegal now I’m not expecting any issue when I implement this.

My biggest concern is that I want chickens, ducks etc. I’m looking at ways of doing this at roof level or in a neighbours loft while maintaining OPSEC. It means I can’t have a cockerel though because they are noisy. Some questions I don’t have answers to yet. Something s may have to be worked out in-situ as you can’t plan every eventuality.

In your case you should take a critical look at your current home as well as your BOL. List the disadvantages and then look at ways to rectify these defects and how they can be made into positive attributes. If you can then great, if not, then how can you find a way around them. For example if you don’t have a back garden, consider growing snails, if you don’t have the space for a cache consider making one under your neighbours decking. Consider the scenario after an event and how you will gain access to your stuff. Do you want to leave it there and dip in when needed. Consider how you can do this.

We all won’t be able to afford our perfect BOL but we can make do with what we have if we think about it.

There is one caveat though. Some places will be impossible for us to use after an event. These will generally but not always inner city homes such as flats. If you identify that is your situation then consider your options very seriously. You should move to another home, it doesn’t have to be too far away but it needs to be somewhere else. If you are working you should consider the money well spent if you are not then the whole of the UK is your oyster.

Finally, have your plans validated by a third party. Another eye can usually see things you have a blind spot for.