I've never really thought of myself as a "prepper", though I suppose I fit the general definition. Like hikermor and others I mostly come to it from a wilderness perspective. I started hiking, climbing, and whatnot as a young lad growing up in Oregon. Being prepared for the unexpected in the mountains just seemed like the logical thing to do.

Back in those days we never thought of Oregon as earthquake country (that was something they worried about down in California), but we did have the Columbus Day windstorm in 1962, and the Christmas floods in 1964, so I also had some sense of being ready for major disasters. These days of course we know the Pacific NW is definately earthquake country.

I've lived in Alaska since 1984. I'm getting a bit old for serious technical climbing, but I still spend a lot of time out in the mountains skiing and hiking, and on the water kayaking. I also participate (to the extent I'm able) with a volunteer SAR team. Alaska is definately earthquake country. And our climate can be severe at times. All of this tends to incline me to being ready and able to take care of myself and familly in unexpected circumstances.

Just this last week we had a severe windstorm in Anchorage. Lots of trees knocked down and most of the city was without power for at least a few hours. At my house, we lost power for about 48 hours. No big deal. We have lots of flashlights, headlamps, and spare batteries around the house. Cranked up my small generator now and then to keep the freezer and frig cold. Also ran my generator to help my next door neighbor keep his stuff frozen. No big deal.

I still don't think of myself as a prepper. I just like to be ready for the unexpected.