There are some other things to consider. Locks and dams being just 2 of them. You might have to portage your boat around a few obstacles like those.
True – an abandoned lock is like a dam and requires a portage, which could be very time-consuming. Here it helps that my transport means in crisis is also my hobby in everyday life, so I have occasion to learn the location of such obstacles. As it happens, there are no locks or dams on the Mississippi River below St Louis, or on my local tributary.
If absolutely necessary, I can make a portage with my described set-up. Everything breaks down into pieces with the heaviest piece (the outboard motor) weighing 60 pounds. Of course, if I’m carrying over 1000 pounds worth of supplies all together, we’re talking a great many trips and a day long portage. I wonder if I could tie the two mountain bikes together to make a wheeled cart of some sort?
Why you have to evacuate is another one.
Well, that’s actually a hard question for me. In most disaster scenarios I can think of, I’d rather stay and try to help out in my local community than bug out with just a few people. I guess the turning point would be how others are behaving. If everybody around me turns predatory and it’s a survival-of-the-fittest, dog-eat-dog, thunderdome-road-warrior type situation, then I guess I’d rather compete in the wild than in a post-urban-wasteland environment.
Of course, even if you run for the woods, other men are still going to be your greatest danger. That thought contributed to my choice of the Arkansas River swamp as a hiding place rather than a more scenic and pleasant location, like a mountain lake - plus, it’s hard to beat a swamp for natural food production.
For example if it is because of floods you might not want to be on the water at all.
Another poster mentioned floods also. I’m not sure I see the problem. In many cases, being in a boat in times of flood would be an advantage. Are you thinking of navigation hazards? It’s true that floods can create some very devious death traps for the unwary, and they may be unexpected to someone who is not familiar with small boat navigation. However, this reinforces the advantage of using a recreational hobby as your transport means in the event of a forced bug-out. I think I’m aware of the dangers created by flooding, and I even go out purposely during big floods to get first hand experience (we call it “having fun”) with whirlpools and low-head dams and temporary cut-offs and the like.
Is there another flood-related concern I should be thinking about?
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