This is how it works. You carefully select some survival items, put them into a bucket or any conatainer that can be sealed shut, and bury it somewhere hidden from other eyes.

In emergency , you may retrieve it or use it where it is to make shelter. It is good if you are caught unprepered or only have your humble PSK. However, I when I skimmed through th eother thread about shelter or the hills, I can see that a cache can help there too. You hide your things, and go to the shleter. Nothing on you that deserves to be confiscated or looted. If you deicde later to go on your own, or the shelter is no more hospitable for some reason, you head to your secret location, retrive the cache and try the hills.

I think about 3 years ago there was a member here who talked about hiding things in 5 gallon paint buckets all over the place.

I mean sounds like a good idea except that it is not very practical in the city. This would be more of the suburbs or country side deal.

Now my biggest worry would be how the items are going to perform after being underground for a while.

One immediate problem, in at least a third of the country, is that for part of the year the ground is frozen, and that time of the year is when emergency items are most likely to be needed.

If you could, it sounds like an outdoor basement would be the best idea. You could still access it in winter, but it would also be visible too. Even if you hide the entrance, the temperature difference inside the basement would probably cause snow and ice to melt quicker above it, thus revealing its' location.

In Florida, this is impractical because of our high water table (don't worry though, in about 20 years, the booming population will suck every last drop out of the Florida aquifer, and our landscape will look like a teenager with really bad acne. Or maybe not).

Plus, it tends to get REALLY REALLY wet here. That tendency is increased in some years between June and December.

You might be better off storing it in a Self Storage Area, I don't think those got looted. Who would put a 72" plasma screen in self storage? Let alone anything truly valuable?

When was the last time any of you had a dog house burglarized? IMHO something like the Dogloo (you can Google this term), or even something you build yourself, has an attraction as a cache on your own property. 1) not apt to be lost in a fire or earthquake 2) you can make it as insulated as you want 3) if you don't own a dog, you can borrow a few dog toys and a bucket of dog poo as camo.

Don't forget to rotate your stock <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

If you dig below the frost line, and ensure that your container is properly sealed, no problem... batteries, water, or anything else that doesn't have a long shelf life aren't good candidates for caching.
Nobody ever said it was easy <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Troy

How are you going to get at them in February? I'm guessing a backhoe will attract some attention.

Too big of a hole and too long to build, everybody'd know it was there. The whole idea of a cache is privacy/secrecy, if your neighbors know about it, you've blown it.

Troy

Good idea, but go one better, bury it under the dogloo, get a big mean looking dog to live in it, and you've just added a certain amount of security to your cache as well.

Troy

Ever used a pickaxe, I have. Again, nobody said it was easy.

Troy

Chacheing is one of those ideas created by somebody with his Rambo headband tied to tight. I am amazed at firearm and knife forums where legal restrictions are agonized over in between 30 minute downloads of personal collections shown off like some bowling trophy. If you have the prescience to stockpile have the equal prescience to follow survival guru Elmer Fudd's sage advise- " Be wery wery quiet." You could also use ' the lizard's gambit ' in surrendering a few bottles of tap filled water juggs and a can of SPAMM if people suspect you have anything. Look bereft while they take it.

When our army reached Bagdad they found millions of dollars hidden in doghouses. Guess someone thought of this already

"When our army reached Bagdad they found millions of dollars hidden in doghouses. Guess someone thought of this already."

Those weren't dog houses, those were people houses... they just looked like doghouses <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

But if anyone needs dog poop for camo, just PM me! You pay the postage!

Sue

Yup, kinda reminds me of the freaky neighbors in the movie "The Burbs". Holes being dug in the back yard at midnight, in the middle of a rainstorm. Big dogs in the basement.

Parts of this post are hilarious. ROFL! At least, if you can keep your sense of humor, if all else fails, you can die laughing.

Being the leaner that I am , I now acknowledge the existence of two schools of survivals, the Rambos, and the ... squirrels , maybe. I am a mole or something like that, and so I do think that caching is an area that is worth "digging through". <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

OK. ETS is a "civilized survival " school. Why dont we think of "civilized forms" of caches ?? Lets say I leave a BOB in my dad's house, another in my sister's house, a third one in my locker in the local club ...etc. If a disaster happens while you are in the clusb, you are not limited to your few-ounces of PSK, you have a few-pounds of a BOB. Its a cache , but not buried under a bush, rather locked in a locker. Anyone seeing you leaving with it would instantly think it is your normal bag with nothing but a towel, deodorant, and comb.

Any thoughts ???

Everyone utlimately settles on their own kit and strategies. We discuss sleeping bags, forgetting that at twilight only one person can crawl into the things. If you wake up warm fine, if not then I was right. My being 'right' won't effect the rotation of the earth. If you want to squirrel stuff away and call it a cache, disbursal of resources or an eccentric hobby thats fine. If we ever have some global catastrophe I figure most ETS members will eventually gather in some unmarked Hole in the Wall. We can trade notes and share mutual failures and the one shared success: We had the prescience to prepare and muddled through somehow.

That sound like a more realistic sort of "cache" than under three feet of soil and six feet of snow and ice.

sue

That is a cache of a different colour, and not really what I think most of us think of as caching. It is more of a distributed, prepositioning of items at likely locations for you when you need to bug out, and/or places to bug out to. A lot of us have stashes like that at work and the like.

Yes, Susan, but it seems that "urban caches " like this are limited. They cant be randomized. The choices are rather fixed or limited for each one of us. So, can we scratch our heads a bit and come up with more possibilities ??

The idea is to have survival items scattered in numerous locations in the areas you think to be around, and be able to have access to them when you need them.

I once left two boxes of personal items for long times with a friend in another town. It is very possible to keep a BOB also. However, rotation of some materials would be a problem. You cant ask him to care for the BOB, especially if you are considered a freak for your preparedness. So, that kind of "cache" should be limited to "eternal" non-consumable items.

I think that burying/hiding is also possible for the peaceful non-survivlaist survival inthusiaists, if you want to be called that (me too) <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> ... How about having your garden tools or scrap lumber, and burying a BOB in the middle of all that mess. All you need is an ugly old bag and fill it with the items you have least interest . The knife you think of replacing ..etc. are good for that purpose.

Any more thoughts on non-Rambo type caches? <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

The main problems with caches would seem to be safety against theft and deterioration, and how likely you are to be in that area when you need it.

And if you are worried about deterioration in a friend's house, how likely are you to keep returning to a remote cache, dig it up (or whatever), replace certain items, then replace it? Not very, I would suspect. Either you won't have the time, inclination, or people will start wondering what you're doing.

At least if you have it at a friend's house, there's the possibility that they could SHIP it to you! (Bears & raccoons don't do UPS!) <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Keep it Simple. You're not going to cover all the possibilities, anyway. Stick with most likely scenarios.

Sue

Shipping a BOB to me was not one of the considerations when I started thinking about .. ummm. multi-BOB system <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (OK not a cache system) !! I think the idea is that in a catastrophe I may reach at my sister's house with little more than my PSK or even nothing. BTW, you ought to see my sis when she sits with my DW and ROFL while joking about me and my BOBs. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

OK. I arrive at her house , or my old dad's house , and although a shelter is available, having a good knife, a boncho, or whatever is definitely a boost in a bad situation. If my dad or sister were prepared, then I can assume they have some extra preps to divide or share. But you know how it is . Candles in my BOB maybe the only candles in the house in those times. That is not to mention the possibility of me grabbing the BOB and moving further. Why and how ?? Well, it is always possible that a mess happens and I dont get far or fast to the kids in their schools. I leave the DW, or one of the kids at my dad's, grab an extra BOB, and go back to search for other kids.

Besides, digging a cache from underground is , well, not normal, but having extra BOBs, isnt that a big deal IMHO. It only requires good planning and figuring out more safe places/points for caching than anything else.

Also being fairly fresh at this survival thing I would have to agree with you. However I think there are 3 schools of people on here.1) those who truly want to learn all the ways possible to survive a situation 2) those gadget geeks who rely entirely on gadgets and new fancy gizmo's to keep them alive ( they have moving parts made by humans...their gonna break!) 3) and then there are those bodies we are going to have to step over when it is all said and done...

I beg to differ... if you check out the definition of a cache, you just described it, pre-positioned items for use at a specifically defined point in time (even if that point is defined by "when I need it").
Caching was a militery thing 'til the survivalists got hold of it, then, suddenly, a cache wasn't a cache unless it was a hole in the ground filled with a bombproof container.
Also, distance hikers and bikers used caches on pre-planned trips for years (maybe they still do?) before it became the signature of the survivalist movement. At given points along established trails (Skyline Drive, along the Blue Ridge, for example) they'd have supplies left (often at Ranger stations or established businesses) to top off their supplies and gear during their trip.
As was said about the S word... cache maybe good, not neccessarily bad ... c'mon folks, yer chokin' on the P.C. pablum, spit it out for a while <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Troy

If you're part of 1. , you already know that caching is a viable idea... not a joke, not just something for the "crazys", and definitely not neccessarily a hole in the ground.
If you're part of 2. , you'd better know how to use a compass before you turn on your G.P.S., be prepared to hump the trail when your S.U.V. breaks down or runs out of gas, and get a clue as to how to light a fire when your "JetFire MegaLighter" konks out.
And if you're part of 3. , be fore-warned, I've got my work boots on.

Troy

Many local communities have caches for "disaster recovery". For those of us who live in an urban/suburban environment, we might not make it "to the hills". Or we may choose to stay and help out near home. If you need to go to your kid's school to retrieve your children, perhaps that is as far as you need/want/be able to go. Why not offer to help the school prepare their emergency supplies? Why not offer to help and coordinate some basic training for the school staff? (Some states have teacher mandates for first aid, CPR, AED, etc. Become a Red Cross instructor and volunteer to teach the teachers and other staff.) Offer to help maintain and rotate their stock. Coordinate donations of supplies. Write a grant for equipment and supplies and training. Be the school's ham radio operator.

Don't have small children? How about doing the same thing at the local community center or for your homeowner's association or apartment building?

By being on this board, you have a wealth of knowledge to share with your community. Why not do it now. Help others and you might also help yourself.

BTW, my immediate neighbors are part of my survival plan. They look after us, and we look out after them. We all have basic "earthquake supplies" (the PC term in the Bay Area), and have supplemented those with what we think we might need. We also store some supplies at each other's homes, just in case.

Like many on this board who work in public safety, my SO and I will be going to work in most emergencies. This is the life that we chose, and we have no complaints. My two trusted neighbors have keys to the house, and are welcome to whatever they need to make it through. The opposite is also true.

Surviving an emergency, no matter what it is, is made much easier with a small group. You have to sleep sometime, and maybe someone needs to say up and keep watch. Also, I sleep warmer with my SO with me, and so does she.

Hmm, I guess the boat I keep at a storage lot is a gasoline cache since I keep the tank topped all winter with added Sta-bil.

And the mixed box of ammo I keep at my friend's house (we hunt together) so if I forget my 35 Whelen or 300 H&H ammo, I don't have to fret that Wally world doesn't carry the ammo I need.

Caches don't have to be exotic. Just a little foresight. YMMV.

Cooperation is always preferable, but you really should be prepared to go it alone.

I don't mind helping out so long as people are willing to listen and it doesn't tax my resources. The problem I have with most of them is they aren't until it is too late.

Yes, I agree. I am the person, both in my neighborhood and my department that is always encouraging others to prepare. Fortunately, some of it is work related, so there is that benefit. My lady and I are both prepared to "go it alone" if necessary. I prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

After the 1989 Bay Area earthquake, I responded to our emergency operations center (as was required by my employer, in case of emergency). It is a mid-1960's "bomb shelter" with upgraded communications and supplies for 300 for 15 days. I was the only one there, as everyone else continued to use existing facilities, and saw no need to activate "that old place in the basement". Talk about a supply cache! But it was a bit lonely!

Wow, that is almost comical, but isn't that often the way it goes? One or two people take the time and feel the need, the rest just follow each other into whatever they come across.

What you should'a done is grab someone to cuddle and the two of you share the boodle. I know many ways to curb the loneliness. <img src="/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

You make an interesting point. Unfortunately, she was across town, working in the primary 911 center. She encourages the backup gun, extra knife, tolerates lots of water containers, but draws the line at the backup lady. <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

Yep, I got the same predicament here, only mine is in another state right now. Such is life... <img src="/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Excellent Points on which I Agree!

On a related matter, -I worry a bit on Geocachers, -the sport and activity is pretty popular and big, -inadvertently finding YOUR *Non* Geocacheing, Survival Cache!

Should such occur, -it's more than likely that a "given you", -has inadvertently hidden your Cache, -near where a Geocacher has or will hide his or her Geo / Non-Survival, -Cache. But I worry a bit about this possibly, somewhere, sometime, happening! Still of course, -No reason not to go about with Survival Caches. "Colliding with Geocachers is still rather unlikely.

Also, -accidentally happening upon a Geocacher's Cache, -the other way around now, -conceivably could provide you with some Useful or Survival related item. Though also quite likely not. [color:"black"] [/color] [email]Chisel[/email]

Cache'ing water is an old practise among desert explorers. The problem is more than once idiots have removed the supplies. A friend of mine was hiking and encountered a group who commented on finding a cache HE had stored earlier. They even offered him some, never looking at the owner's information clearly stated on the container. <img src="/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />