What are your obstacles to evacuation?

[JojoZS]

I live on a peninsula, which is basically an island----2 ways in and out-----both are bridges, just 2 lanes-----I'm screwed.

[cjm3fl]

Well generally, the county I live in (Pinellas) is a chancre (yeah, had to look up that spelling) on that limp penis called Florida.
I have the Gulf of Mexico to my west, and Tampa Bay to the east and south.
There's only one bridge going south.
And the only 3 eastern routes in the lower part of the county are over long bridges into a bigger city.
North....all routes bottleneck just above the county's center.

Locally..even more screwed.
A large hospital is 2 blocks away on the same major road as my apartment complex.
I live in a small apartment complex (although this might be better then living in a large complex).

[Pezz]

Living in the Portland Metro area my biggest obsticle will be people. If possible I'll bug-in. If I have to leave I have two choices. One, bug out early before the screaming hoards. If I can't get on the road before most of the screaming masses then I'm better off waiting. I figure in three to five days most people will be off the roads. Then I'll just have to deal with abandoned cars and hungry / angry people on the side of the road, oh goody.

Maybe I should put a PA system on my vehicle and drive down the road telling people that there's a Red Cross mobile kitchen coming and to get ready. That might distract them...

[Meat N' Taters]

My woman's complaints.

[Irongen]

Living smack dab in the middle of the Metro Detroit area, I'm pretty well hosed as far as getting out of Dodge unless I have prior knowledge of the event. Even though there has been a significant loss of population in the area due to the economy here taking a dump, in a mass-evacuation type of scanario I have no doubt that all the roads leading out of the area would quickly become impassable. The side streets as well would become blocked in short order, so getting out will be a major undertaking. So, bugging in is definitely the order of the day. As cold as it sounds, after two to three months, enough of the remaining population should cease to be a threat (either through death via starvation or simply being too weak to be a threat for the same reason) that bugging out at that point would be a more viable option.

Yeah, it's a cold-hearted solution, but realistically that's probably what we'd be looking at in a full-blown EOTWAWKI scenario.

[Tater Raider]

I have a lot of water to get around here in River City (Mason City) that interferes with the roads. Once I find a way out of town I'm fine though. Iowa is laid out with a road, be it gravel or paved, each and every mile in grid much like graph paper, with allowences made for rivers. Back roads are my primary evac plan.

One of the benifits of living in farm land that is flatter than flat I guess.

Having said that, leaving the state going east or west is an issue because of a couple of major rivers with limited crossings. Best bet if that happens, for me at least, is to head north into Minnesota and then turn west.

I cannot see a situation coming up where I want to head east. Not even at gun point.

[KS Trekker]

Having three large dogs is my biggest obstacle to bugging out. The decision of whether to take 1, 2, or none would be tough. The next biggest obstacle would be getting to the Interstate.

[Glennbo]

Living smack dab in the middle of the Metro Detroit area, I'm pretty well hosed as far as getting out of Dodge unless I have prior knowledge of the event. Even though there has been a significant loss of population in the area due to the economy here taking a dump, in a mass-evacuation type of scanario I have no doubt that all the roads leading out of the area would quickly become impassable. The side streets as well would become blocked in short order, so getting out will be a major undertaking.

Exactly the same problem here. If I must leave home I'll be heading for a semi-BOL (relative's home) that's within walking distance of lake St. Claire (a major lake). That's 30 miles through pure urban nightmare. I figure it will take three days walking. I've packed my BOB accordingly.

If it's winter it will actually be easier. I'm totally prepared for winter hiking whereas most people are not, and therefore people will more likey be off the streets in winter than during the middle of summer (people are the obstacle). The colder the better as far as I'm concerned.

Car evecuation will be impossible, of that I'm sure. The Detroit area basically has no useful mass transit, and so EVERYONE get's around by car. That's millions of cars, one for every person...clogging every road.

A good bug out bicycle or motorcycle would be very useful. However I don't have one. It's presently my most urgent gear need. But even they can break down.

The only real "obstacle" that would prevent me covering thirty miles to the lake in three days would be other people. Desperate people. Armed people. There's a good chance I'd have to circumvent quasi-government "roadblocks" as well.

And I get mocked for having extra ammo in my BOB.

[sigboy40]

[And I get mocked for having extra ammo in my BOB.

Perhaps I missed something, but I havent seen you mocked for having the extra ammo. On the other hand, I HAVE seen you mocked for packing more weight than you, by your own admission, can physically handle. Probably best that you dont get the two confused.

[zombunny]

My biggest ones are: Bridges, rivers (Missouri and Mississippi), and urban setting. When I was working EMS at the racetrack I also had to deal with a long distance which was through 4 counties and 65 miles by interstate. I have maps in my bag and I used Google Maps walking directions to try to plot ways around the masses. Google Maps are a useful tool but they don't always give the best ideas so I took what they said and laid it out next to a real map to work out something a little better.

[Glennbo]

[And I get mocked for having extra ammo in my BOB.

Perhaps I missed something, but I havent seen you mocked for having the extra ammo. On the other hand, I HAVE seen you mocked for packing more weight than you, by your own admission, can physically handle. Probably best that you dont get the two confused.

That's interesting. I read your locked thread and some other posts on the subject, and I got the distinct impression that you were against extra ammo in BOBs. Maybe you should revisit your posts and reconsider the way you express yourself.

Fortunately you're here now to condescendingly chide those of us less physically capable than you. Probably because you're such an altruistic guy and you think it will motivate us to improve, NOT because it offers you an oppoutunity to knock someone else while highlighting your own physical superiority.

Having consistantly stated the truth on this forum: that I can cover ten miles a day with my BOB, I AM confused why you would misinterpret that since I never said it would be without stopping for breaks. And all the hikes with it that I've described have been the distance I cover without stopping for anything. That is generally 3-5 miles tops. Now you can go dig up a quote when I walked three miles one day before I stopped and say this proves I can't carry my BOB far enough. Perhaps your infantile sychophants will even hail your magnificent lawyering skills with their intellectual "Oh Snaps" and you can feel like a clever, tough guy.

Frankly your continuing attention to my personal hiking efforts seems a little bizarre. Are you secretly in love with me? I can certainly understand that. I'm a very fascinating fellow. I can try to be a role model for you if you like, maybe even do a little internet mentoring, but I'm afraid that's as far as it can go.

The only person who understands what I'm going to have to go through in an emergency is me. The only person who knows what I'm physically capable of is me. The person who has built their BOB accordingly is me, and I carry it a LOT for practice...more so than most people do. So I'm on the right path and getting stronger every day.

Another obstacle that may be worth considering is dog packs. There are a lot of them around here. Some seem as though they have formed instantly. Mostly they stay away, but they too could get desperate if TSHTF.

[Murph]

I think some people's biggest obstacle would be leaving their computer.

Or how butt-hurt they are over the internet.

It's hard to walk with butt-hurt.

[whisk.e.rebellion]

There's a good chance I'd have to circumvent quasi-government "roadblocks" as well.

And I get mocked for having extra ammo in my BOB.

Are you implying what I think you're implying? Cuz I'm pretty sure talking about using the ammo in your BOB against government officials is a no-no. That is, unless you're carrying 9mm and plan on sharing with the boys and girls at the roadblock.

[jrossetti]

[And I get mocked for having extra ammo in my BOB.

Perhaps I missed something, but I havent seen you mocked for having the extra ammo. On the other hand, I HAVE seen you mocked for packing more weight than you, by your own admission, can physically handle. Probably best that you dont get the two confused.

That's interesting. I read your locked thread and some other posts on the subject, and I got the distinct impression that you were against extra ammo in BOBs. Maybe you should revisit your posts and reconsider the way you express yourself.

Fortunately you're here now to condescendingly chide those of us less physically capable than you. Probably because you're such an altruistic guy and you think it will motivate us to improve, NOT because it offers you an oppoutunity to knock someone else while highlighting your own physical superiority.

Having consistantly stated the truth on this forum: that I can cover ten miles a day with my BOB, I AM confused why you would misinterpret that since I never said it would be without stopping for breaks. And all the hikes with it that I've described have been the distance I cover without stopping for anything. That is generally 3-5 miles tops. Now you can go dig up a quote when I walked three miles one day before I stopped and say this proves I can't carry my BOB far enough. Perhaps your infantile sychophants will even hail your magnificent lawyering skills with their intellectual "Oh Snaps" and you can feel like a clever, tough guy.

Frankly your continuing attention to my personal hiking efforts seems a little bizarre. Are you secretly in love with me? I can certainly understand that. I'm a very fascinating fellow. I can try to be a role model for you if you like, maybe even do a little internet mentoring, but I'm afraid that's as far as it can go.

The only person who understands what I'm going to have to go through in an emergency is me. The only person who knows what I'm physically capable of is me. The person who has built their BOB accordingly is me, and I carry it a LOT for practice...more so than most people do. So I'm on the right path and getting stronger every day.

Another obstacle that may be worth considering is dog packs. There are a lot of them around here. Some seem as though they have formed instantly. Mostly they stay away, but they too could get desperate if TSHTF.

I'm really opposed to feeding trolls so I really shouldn't do this, but Glennbo, I don't think Zombie Squad is right for you and I wish that you'd go away and post someplace else. Or at least, just stop posting here. My eyes hurt and most of what you say is really tl;dr.

[imrcly]

the best way to deal with a road block is go around it, if there is a a roadblock you are on a major route and so is probably everyone else.

[Meat N' Taters]

The road block might have delicious foods.

[dogbane]

I don't believe Glennbo was talking about shooting his way through roadblocks. Correct me if I'm wrong, Glenn.

Anyway, let's keep the pissing match to a minimum in the threads, especially my threads.

[Irongen]

I love the internet. Folks who aren't even involved in a discussion get to act all insulted.

I say we settle this once and for all, Jets / Sharks style. Danceoff!

[raptor]

Getting back on topic.

Marsh, water and development limit my egress routes.

Link to GNO Evacuation Routes

The good news is that there is a cohesive and effective evacuation plan that calls for the shut down of interstates coming into the city and using these lanes as contraflow lanes. This doubles the number of vehicles the evacuation routes can handled. The bad news is that we really need 4 times the capacity as opposed to double the capacity.

Travel times are approximately up 6 times normal travel times until clear of the contra flow. Exit from these contra flow routes are not permitted, so once you pick your route you are stuck for up to 70 miles.

Back routes, leaving early, evacuating by air or water are the ways to cope with this.

[J.C.]

I am being careful to pick out a BOL to which I can reasonably expect to get, even given general conditions of panic. I also live at the fringe of the suburban sprawl after which it is all back roads none of which pass through a town larger than a few thousand people. My route goes around larger towns. Basically I just worked google maps/satellite and a map of population density by county (though you can see density in the satellite images for the most part).

My biggest obstacle is that while I have picked roads that will have less traffic than others, there still be may be thousands of people trying to use them and they'll just become over-whelmed. Rather get out and walk 120 miles I'd prefer to leave in a 4x4. I've been looking at used Jeep Cherokees...they are not expensive to get one 8-10 years old with only 100k miles but storing it would be a hassle and I would not want it to be my everyday car for several reasons - mostly because I want it to be reliable as a BOV and while they can go 200k miles why take the risk.

Anyway none of this is accomplished...I'm in the middle of building a house and moving; I can't buy my BOL until after I close on the new house and get my current one sold or rented. But these are the things I'm thinking about while I plan it.

I could plan to bug out 700 miles across the country to land in rural Texas that I already own but there is just waaay to much that can go wrong with a plan like that and it would be too difficult to regularly visit and improve on my BOL if its that far away.

[wade]

People would be my biggest obstacle. The most direct path to my BOL is through the heart of Philadelphia. Granted I will be either on foot or bike and heading in the opposite direction of the areas evac route. I am still concerned about the mass amount of people that will most likely be occupying the streets. The route mainly snakes through corridors and alleys but at certain points I will be forced on to major streets that may present issues or at least limit my mobility.

[BigDaddyTX]

The biggest obstacles I see are my pregnant wife and frakking HOUSTON. Not a lot of ways to get out or around it that won't be clogged with people. That said, the plan in place is for her and the dogs to leave at the first sign of anything significant and head to her parents in San Antonio. I'll stay and take my chances, it didn't flood where I live during Ike, so I'm not too worried. If I waited too long, I might do something stupid like head to the North side and try to find a place to stay until traffic died down and I could actually get somewhere. I don't much plan on leaving.

For my actual BOL in a SHTF sort of thing? My largest obstacles are Houston and Austin. I know how to get around Austin, but it might take just as long as going through it.. my BOL is straight up 183, outside Lampasas. I don't think heading up to Round Rock would be that much of an improvement from going through Austin, that whole area has just gotten over populated.

[KS Trekker]

the best way to deal with a road block is go around it, if there is a a roadblock you are on a major route and so is probably everyone else.

Good point, and I think you have addressed the most common obstacle to bugging out - everyone else is trying to move in the same direction at the same time. I've given evacuation under these circumstances a lot of thought and the decision to go around obstacles (stalled traffic) would probably depend on the level of civil disorder. There's no sense in running afoul of the law and delaying your evacuation even more. Having lots of fuel on hand and plenty of patience will probably be the keys to surviving a mass bug out.

[ferretrodeo]

This is a major headache for me right now. When I lived in Alabama we were only a few hours from our BOL and I had 5 different routes planned and scouted out (one even involved a river-that would have taken more than a few hours though). Now that we have moved to the Peoples Republik of Maryland, we are 1,000 miles away. I shouldn't need to say that distance is my largest obstacle. I am setting up something in NC with a relative right now- she will let me store fuel, food, water, ammo, and a few other items at her place. I am still trying to plan out multiple routes. I am working on a few alternate modes of transportation as well.