Traveling for Thanksgiving, Prepper Style.

Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, and with that there is a very good chance that many Americans will travel in order to be with family.

Some 43.6 million Americans are expected to travel at least 50 miles from home for the Thanksgiving holiday, a slight increase over the 43.3 million people who traveled last year, according to AAA projections.While it’s the fourth consecutive year of growth in the number of holiday travelers, people are still finding ways to economize during the Thanksgiving holiday travel period (Wednesday, November 21 to Sunday, November 25).

Most people drive rather than fly to their holiday destinations, but even more are driving this year: Some 90% of travelers will travel by car, a 0.6 percent increase. At the same time, the number of people flying is expected to drop from 3.2 million last year to 3.14 million this year.

Even while traveling precautions must be taken to ensure that if things go wrong while out on the road you and your family will be prepared to react.  Why put all the effort into prepping at home if when you take a trip, you simply leave that mindset (and most of your gear) behind?  Here are some tips you should keep in mind prior to making your Thanksgiving pilgrimage.

Prior to traveling

• Vehicle Maintenance.  This should go without saying but make sure your vehicle is prepared to travel.  All fluids are changed, tires in good shape, services complete etc.  Don’t make the mistake of gambling before heading out for a 500 to 1000 mile road trip, you’ll regret it when you are on the side of the road waiting for AAA to come tow your vehicle.
• Get Home Bags.  Much like bugout bags, these should have enough basic supplies to sustain one person for 3 days, in addition to other survival gear that you might choose to add based on personal preference.  Make sure not to leave these at home.
• External Fuel Supplies.  Based on what kind of vehicle you have this might not be possible.  If you have a truck or SUV with external hitch mounts it might be wise to strap a few extra gasoline containers down somewhere, you never know when they could come in handy.
• Tools.  Even basic tools can save the day and quite a bit of hassle while traveling.  Tire changing tools, a roll of duct tape, some wrenches and a socket set would be a good place to start.
• Map Recon.  While there is certainly nothing wrong with GPS I would have paper maps as well (backup plan).  Make sure to become familiar with the route and alternate routes.  Know where medical facilities are along your route along with planned fuel/rest stops.

While traveling

• Cash considerations.  Make sure to keep extra cash on hand, you might not be able to depend on a debit card for all of your transactions.  There might even be some places where you don’t want your card swiped.
• Avoid bad areas.  Seems like common sense but it is worth mentioning.  Even if you are armed, stopping at 2am at some desolate rest stop probably isn’t the smartest idea in the world.  Avoid areas that look like they could be suspect in nature.
• Personal Protection.  Make sure to research the laws on transporting weapons across state lines. If you can carry this is good way to make sure that your family is protected while traveling.  A gun left at home does you no good on the road.
• Keep it above half.  Do not wait until your fuel gauge is at 1/4 tank to fill up, never let it go below 1/2 a tank.
• OPSEC.  There is no doubt you might meet some other travelers while out on the road.  Keep the conversation vague and to a minimum.  While your license plate might tell them what state you are from there is no need to go into details about where you are heading, what you do for a living, and what town you live in.

These are just a few tips to keep in mind while traveling for the holidays.  I could literally go on for pages with lists and sub lists, which would mean you’d have to bring a full trailer in addition to the kitchen sink in order to travel.  If that is what you are comfortable with more power to you, I just covered the basics in this post.  Remember that everything SHTF related might not happen while you are at home securely tucked away behind sandbags.  The last thing you want is to be 1,000 miles away from home with a backpack and toiletry bag when something crazy goes down.