Practice using your preps!
When the topic of survival comes up, people love to talk about bugging out. The fantasy goes something like this: You grab your go-bag, dramatically swing on a backpack like you’re in an action movie, and disappear into the wilderness, where you will single-handedly build a log cabin, wrestle a bear for dominance, and survive indefinitely on berries and sheer grit.
Sounds romantic, right? Well, reality begs to differ.
For most people, bugging out is more likely to result in bugging off—as in, getting lost, freezing in the woods, and realizing that your “72-hour kit” didn’t include nearly enough toilet paper.
Why Bugging In is Often the Smarter Move
While some situations absolutely require evacuation (hello, wildfires and toxic spills), in most emergencies, home is where the heart—and the supplies—are. There are significantly more scenarios in which bugging in is the more realistic and practical option compared to bugging out. Here’s why staying put is often your best bet:
1. You Actually Know Your Territory
Your home is familiar. You know which window sticks, where the best hiding spots are, and exactly how to navigate from the kitchen to the bathroom in the dark. That’s an advantage you don’t have in the middle of an unfamiliar national park, where you might quickly find yourself sharing a campsite with a very confused (and very hungry) coyote.
2. Your Supplies Are Already Here
You’ve (hopefully) got food, water, medical supplies, and maybe even a few morale boosters (chocolate stash, anyone?). Compare that to the haphazard contents of a bug-out bag, where space is tight and you inevitably forget something crucial—like, say, shoes.
3. Your Home is Easier to Defend
Woman in self-defense with a firearm
Four walls and a locking door are better protection than a tent or a makeshift lean-to. If security becomes an issue, fortifying your home is much easier than trying to create an impenetrable fortress out of twigs and wishful thinking.
4. The Logistics of Leaving Are a Nightmare
If you have kids, elderly family members, or pets, bugging out is exponentially harder. Picture trying to keep a toddler quiet in the woods while avoiding detection, or convincing a stubborn housecat that “we live in the forest now.”
5. Mobility is an Illusion
The idea that you can just hit the road and go “somewhere safe” assumes a lot—like working roads, accessible fuel, and a magical, undiscovered paradise where nobody else thought to flee. Reality check: If things are bad enough that you want to leave, so does everyone else. Traffic jams become parking lots, and that SUV with the full tank of gas? It won’t get far if highways turn into zombie-movie gridlock. Plus, walking out in the open makes you highly vulnerable—whether it’s to opportunistic looters, bad weather, or just the sheer exhaustion of carrying your life on your back.
Making Your Home a Fortress of Sanity and Survival
So if bugging in is often the smarter choice, how do you make sure your home is prepped and ready?
– Stock Up, But Smartly: A Costco-sized pallet of canned peas isn’t a bad idea—you need enough food to get you to harvest season. Having a solid rotation of non-perishable foods, water, and medical supplies is crucial.
Neighbors are an asset or a liability
– Secure Your Home: Reinforce doors, check your locks, and if you have an outdoor space, consider motion sensor lights or even good ol’ thorny bushes under windows.
– Think Beyond Food: Sanitation, entertainment (yes, you will need a deck of cards), and basic repair tools are all part of a well-rounded bug-in plan.
– Build Community: Neighbors can be allies or liabilities. Start fostering good relationships now—because nothing says “mutual aid” like sharing resources and looking out for one another.
Survival Isn’t About Running—It’s About Readiness
Bugging out is often painted as the ultimate survival move, but in reality, it’s the equivalent of jumping out of a perfectly good airplane and hoping you packed a parachute. Your home, on the other hand, is already your best survival shelter. By preparing wisely, you can turn it into a haven—one where you can ride out most storms (literal and metaphorical) with a solid plan and a warm cup of coffee in hand.
So before you go shopping for a tactical hammock and a compass you don’t know how to use, maybe take a moment to look around. Your best bunker might just be the place where you’re already standing.
