5 Preps That Made My Trip To A Remote Cabin Successful

First we need to define what remote is.  Am I attempting to describe a place in the middle of the Alaskan tundra which requires an aircraft to gain access to?  No I’m not quite that hardcore, however this isn’t your cabin posted up 1/2 mile off of the go kart / candy shops / ma and pa diner beaten path either.  In order to access this cabin you’d have to exit the interstate, drive quite a few miles on a state highway, quite a few more miles on various local roads, turn off onto a gravel road and then continue for many more miles (whilst trying not to miss a turn).  No cell phone service, no stores around the corner, no other cabins within small arms range and I’m quite sure if you fell into a ditch and screamed for help nobody would find you for days or weeks.

Now that we have that established let’s go back to the beginning, that being the purpose for the trip to the cabin.  My wife and I wanted to get away for a few days and she wasn’t too keen on pitching a tent in sub-freezing weather (truth be told neither was I).  So I decided to rent a cabin out in the boonies and put special emphasis on making sure that while it had basic amenities it was still pretty rustic.  The plan was to spend a few days in the woods just relaxing and getting away from it all, no cell phone service or emails and definitely no crowded shopping plazas or highway traffic.  As with anything, no plan survives first contact and as such here are five preps that helped to make our experience considerably more successful (once it went to hell).

1: 4WD SUV.  I realize this is a rather expensive prep but let me tell you, if you are depending on your Honda Accord to bug out in after SHTF (while it’s better than no vehicle whatsoever) you might find yourself high centered on a rock and sucking wind.  My SUV isn’t new, rather 8 years old and paid for but I make sure to maintain it.  It has a large V8 and over 300HP, new-ish tires and a self contained air compressor kit.  Notice no zombie slayer bumpers, lift kit, KC lights, winch etc.  Just enough to get the job done and nothing more…but I digress.

So the SUV, while I didn’t have to drop it into 4WD some of these trails were muddy and very steep.  I was convinced there was absolutely no way a normal car (maybe a Subaru WRX) could navigate those trails, which at some points appeared to be of the logging variety.  The point here is that if you can afford it try to have some sort of all terrain vehicle.  It doesn’t have to be new but AWD/4WD is important as well as durability.  Mine is pushing over 110k and all I’ve done is replace the alternator.

2: A GOOD and ACCESSIBLE Flashlight.  A sweet $200 flashlight in your B.O.B. (in your trunk) doesn’t do you much good when you need quick access to light while driving.  While I do have a nice light in my bag I also have a couple within reach while driving.  I keep a cheaper Duracell light in my glove box and a Surefire in the door pocket.

How can I put this so that you understand, by the time we turned off onto the gravel road (with limited directions and in the middle of nowhere) it was dark as crap.  I had the box which my headlights illuminated and NOTHING more, there was no light from any other source.  It got to the point where I was driving slowly with my window down, stopping to flash my Surefire left and right to check potential signs or forks in the road/landmarks.  I remember my wife stating: “I feel like I should have my hand on my gun right now.”  Make no mistake, we were out in the sticks.  The easily accessible flashlight was invaluable in making sure we found our way and later on once we stumbled upon the cabin.

One last point:  my Surefire has a red lens which I can flip down on it.  Definitely a good addition for tacticool purposes.  Yes yes…I know about the “you can’t see blood with a red lens” thing, just saying it’s not a bright as white light.

3: My damn dog, which happens to be a slightly agitated German Shepherd.  Say what you want, a dog is better than almost any human side kick.  They hear better, smell better and are more in tune with their surroundings. They can run faster, jump higher and most definitely inflict more pain than a person could with a pepper spray gun.  I remember putting my GSD in the down position, getting a 30 yard head start and sprinting.  He was on my a$$ within seconds, it truly is no contest.

When we pulled up to our remote cabin the first thing I did was kill my lights and conduct a modified version of  SLLS (Stop, Look, Listen, Smell).  Am I crazy?  Maybe or maybe not.  What if there was some heroin addict waiting for me and my family to arrive at the cabin?  Not outside the realm of possibilities.  Once SLLS was complete I popped the back hatch and let my boy Zeus out.  He pulled 360 security with an intensity that is rarely rivaled.  Running, sniffing, observing, checking, looking back at me for approval.  If there was a human withing 50 meters of our position he would have known it without a doubt.  If there was a human which decided to pop out of the woods I can’t imagine what it would have felt like to get a bite to the arm or torso…pure suffering.  If you don’t have a good dog, get one!  My boy tears off tree branches to play with and put a landscaper out of commission who tried to get into my yard (uninvited) once.  A good dog is definitely worth the investment!

4: Snugpak Sleeping Bag!  As any good prepper would, I brought my B.O.B. and other necessary items with me for this trip.  Upon arriving at our cabin we discovered the bed and sheets/blankets were absolutely nasty!  My plan to get resolution for this is a different story but here’s the good news, I was able to break out our Snugpak’s and what followed was a  good night’s sleep regardless.  Always got to have a backup plan!

5:  Chem Lights / UV Paqlight.  Once it was finally time to bed down for the night my wife decided that we couldn’t sleep without some sort of night light.  I promptly broke out a chem light, cracked it and hung it near the door of the cabin.  She then inquired: “what’s that glowing on the outside of your pack?”  Glad you asked, that’s my UV Paqlight, all I have to do is hit it with my flashlight and it will glow all night long (which it did).  Make sure to have some chem lights and it can’t hurt to have a UV Paqlight as the last for quite a long time.