Bug Out Boat Survival: The Post Apocalyptic Survival Trailer Pod (Aftermath Survival Book 3)

by Ron Foster

  Food is everywhere if you know how to adapt and find it. How you find it and how you adapt to new diets is a survival skill that everyone has to contemplate and have a plan for. This is a very difficult thing for most people to comprehend because their planning has not gone any further than their backpack or long term reserve food supplies. What is it that you plan on to have as your staple diet when your food storage runs out? Unless you have already transitioned to and have experience with graduating from being a prepper to a self reliant homesteader type, this is a task that will badly confuse and horrify you in the realization that all your planning might be for naught if you have not studied what the end game is first before buying the goods and learning the skills to try to make it there.

  Sam had advised many preppers after hefting their bags for weight or looking at their lists of things they had purchased like survival fishing kits etc. to overcome adversity that he could not see any apparent methodology in planting other than to try to have a little piece of something for everything that they might encounter or need.

  This made no sense to Sam; every bug out bag list that he observed on the internet was a “catch-all” meaning that the contents of the bag were meant to be some form of solution for every environment but not any one specific environment. There is no sense thinking that you are happy and comfortable with merely having a survival fishing kit and bugging out to some unoccupied lakeside land you happen to discover in your travels to be your destination and thinking this will suffice your fishing efforts until you can get some better tackle.

  Yes, it’s true that a fishing rod and hooks and bobbers and such will be a more prevalent item that should be available if you had the means to barter or scavenge for it but why would you not have your own already if you knew this was your final destination? Could you not get rid of some other heavier equipment in your pack in lieu of that small weight that you would carry with you but just like your sidearm or rifle, was of the best quality that you could afford. Hell’s bell’s it was probably worth more than all that extra stupid expensive zombie ammo that you think you need to carry and weight yourself down with. Better yet, lose that thousand feet of paracord that you’ve got and get you a hundred or even a fifty foot trotline with the right sized hooks on it for a tenth of the weight. Start evaluating what is the first thing that you need as well as what you need the most of and I’m sure your packing gear list will change out of hand immediately upon the conclusion that it takes less to get by with than you imagined and in many cases the savings in weight will increase your chances in many ways to be successful to actually accomplish ideals and get rid of the other crap you got rid of and replaced with mission specific stuff.

  Take for example, now you got a hundred feet of trotline with a hundred hooks on it. Hopefully, you’ve chosen the right size hooks for the right size of species you want to go after; don’t be getting those leftover unsalable ones the big box stores get sometimes that have huge hooks for channel cats and such, keep it reasonable. While we are talking about reasonable, how is it that you plan on baiting a hundred hooks? Have you puzzled that out, dear prepper? OK, you say most likely you are going to catch one fish and cut it up and bait a whole bunch of hooks. That’s a plan but it’s a plan that counts on catching the first fish. If you are going to count on catching the first fish, what are you using for a bit? Does their so-called fishing survival kit at least have fish scented marshmallow baits, for example? Or are you going to be some kind of dumb cluck and think you are going to find a grasshopper or worm no matter what the weather is. It’s about planning, it’s about being realistic. There’s been many a day that I’ve been out fishing and didn’t catch anything worth keeping and that includes something I might study as using for bait. Are you dependent on a salesman’s or company’s offering of plastic lures and such? Or do you actually know what colors and types work best in your home waters or your bug out location? Think things through; talk things over with people that know the seasons and patterns of the fish and game you wish to pursue if you don’t have firsthand experience to judge for yourself how to stack the odds in your favor in selecting survival goods.

  “So based on that long winded answer you gave me Sam, you don’t know any better than I do, right?” Lori said a bit miffed that Sam had gotten so far off subject and drew it back to whether they sailed tonight or they sit at the beach and wait and watch for tomorrow.

  “I say we break the whiskey out and have us a drink. Toddy for the body, as it were as we ponder this problem. What time do you think it is, Lori?” Sam asked as she went to get the drinks.

  “It’s about eleven or midnight. I think. Hang on; let me look at my watch. Shine your little keychain light over here for a second so I can see it.” Lori advised.

  “It’s eleven fifty, Sam. I wasn’t far off at all.” Lori said.

  “Isn’t midnight or one or something supposed to be when the tide normally changes?” Sam asked unsure of some half remembered sea lore.

  “I don’t know, we have got to get us a tide table to follow from somewhere!” Lori said contemplating. “I do know the tides are higher during the full moon phase, if that makes any difference in our plans.” Lori said.

  “What about that drink I asked you about Lori? You ready for a red solo cup moment?” Sam said putting one foot towards the direction of the camouflaged dry bag hanging on their gear clothesline that displayed in various color waterproof bags their camping essentials for easy access.

  “As long as you are not planning on hollering red sails at sunup and red solo cups and noses, wanting to play to hard, I might consider it.” Lori said thinking that eight days was about the limit that Sam was going to leave that bottle of whiskey alone as long as he knew they had it. He might want catch up a bit too much.

  “How about we have one on shore and then we have us one offshore? I always told you I was going to take you on a moonlight cruise darlin’ and we could have us a drink and talk about how romantic it was! Well this ain’t no honeymoon out there but I guarantee you I am not going to worry about getting no ticket for drinking and driving this boat tonight, if you want to head on out. I say we go about a mile or so out and just kind of sit in the middle of it and see which way the water is pulling us and sort of go with the flow. It isn’t like I plan on turning on all those LED fishing and floundering lights we have on there. Ha! We’d have something on that mysterious mansion down there with that fire burning lighting up like a beacon like that. Remind me to stay away from those switches out there if we need something but I can’t imagine what.” Sam said referring to the blue LED lights he had around his boat and the two PVC poles that were not hooked up at the moment but were for shining underwater at night for flounder gigging.

  “Definitely don’t get near that light switch! It would be like a neon sign out there!” Lori said laughing thinking of Sam’s so-called fishing light that he overdid a bit because LED lights don’t draw too much power and he had hooked them up during daylight and only tried them once before they took their first night fishing trip. She remembered that little foray well: they had gotten the boat launched at dusk and went out on the Alabama River not far from a little local waterfront bar they often frequented that Sam had hit what he called his Frankenstein switch. The reason he had put that name on that is when he hooked all those lights and wiring together, the little cheap switches he was planning on using didn’t look like it was going to handle the amperage so he just made him one pout of a piece of copper pipe bent up to look like one of those old lever switches you see in old sci-fi movies when they put the juice to something and “holler, It’s Alive!” but when Sam hit the switch on that thing, which he was kind of scared of himself but wouldn’t admit to Lori, something was wrong with his wiring and instead of his lights just all coming on and staying on in a dim glow as he expected, the whole boat ended up flashing and dancing around with bright lights all over the place and looked like some kind of floating discothèque. Lori wouldn’t let him live down that lit
tle fiasco and kidded him often but Sam wanted to insist that it was her fault because she came up with the dimmer switch to add that had caused the problem.

  The friendly bickering and kidding each other about mistakes they had made trying out their latest inventions or toys was all a part of the fun for them but Sam was apt to overbuild something without Lori’s supervision.

  “Break camp?” Sam asked toasting his red solo cup to hers.

  “Road trip!” Lori said giving a cheers bump back.

  “Bug out!” Sam said and he and Lori set about breaking camp and getting out on some midnight water waiting for the tide to recede.

  “I tell you what; all these scrub oaks on the bank everywhere dang sure block out your vision of what’s on the shore and not let you bring your boat in. They aren’t worth a damn for slinging your hammock on either! You know what I saw once Lori? I saw this Hennesey hammock that a guy had managed to string over one of those sea kayaks with the outriggers and he didn’t need tree one to get it set up! All he did was rig him a couple of pieces of PVC pipe on each end of it with a couple of strengtheners inside, probably just another piece of PVC slid inside and glued or not glued with some high tech epoxy for strength. “Sam said describing the neat rigging he had seen.

  “That particular example of ingenuity got me to thinking. I don’t know why I have not thought of it before. I bet we could hang our hammocks on each side of the Pod Trailer and then we could add camper to its capabilities!” Sam said grinning.

  ”Cool idea Sam, you can work on that when you do your Bimini and Solar Panel PVC set up. I guess it’s true you can hang a Hennessey Hammock anywhere! “Lori said with a smile continuing the discussion.

  13

  ARRIVAL

  “Well there is the beach baby!” Sam announced as excited as his mate was to finally reach the ocean.

  “Wow, it looks wonderful.” Lori said as she relished the smell of a sea breeze and took the open expanse of water in.

  “Do you think we can go swimming today?” Lori asked giving a smile at Sam.

  “I certainly hope so! I think a week and a half in the woods and on the river is enough for any one person to need a bath. Yeah, we washed off some in the river and I know people swim in it all the time but except for that one area we came across had that cold spring emptying into it, that clear water swimming hole I wouldn’t have minded.

  I ain’t going for swim in that river even in brackish areas because of my fear of alligators! Of course in the ocean you have sharks and stingrays and jellyfish but I’d take that any day over a water moccasin snake to deal with!” Sam declared.

  Sam and Lori were big fans of theDr. Bones and Nurse Amy Doom and Bloom Pod Cast show. Two hazards one might encounter in boating on rivers in the south are poisonous snakes and fish hook accidents. Dr. Joe Alton was kind enough to write an article for me on treating this kind of injuries and his valuable advice appears in the back of this book. Nurse Amy also applied her expertise and designed a specialized Marine medical kit for this adventure provided by their company Alton Medical. I can sincerely say you will not find better medical kits anywhere, period. That is why we chose their products for this expedition.

  “So you just want me watching the beaches for just for people? Anything in particular other than them I should be looking for?”Lori questioned.

  “Naw, I don’t think so. Just be looking for anything out of the ordinary or just doesn’t fit or places that look like people have been living with piles of trash or something. Other than that, I don’t know.” Sam responded.

  “You told me earlier to try to mark us a map or something where we saw restaurants or landmarks at. Do you still want me to try to do that or we might as well just try to remember in this more populated area because there are bunches of beach bars up there it appears.” Lori said as the edge of town started taking up their vision with hotels and the beginning of resort and condo areas coming up.

  “Yeah, we’ll just have a little look-see and cruise about a hundred to two hundred yards offshore and go slow. I want to get out of the sun pretty soon if we can that will be for a couple hours I guess after we pass Destin.” Sam said trying to mentally envision what was between them and Panama City Beach.

  “Looks like they didn’t have too many fires down this way. Must have had some bad storms come through here. Look at all that beach furniture strewn up and down the waterfront in front of that hotel!” Lori said, pointing.

  “Well, we had that real bad storm last September that I swore was the tail end of a hurricane that came through even though the weather service on the emergency band said it was just a tropical storm front coming in.”

  “Well you know they localize all the news. They hardly ever say what is going on in other areas or states these days. I guess everybody’s heard boil more water and be careful about sewage so much by now they could scream bloody murder at the repetition of the message!” Lori said referencing the prerecorded messages that had been playing over the emergency broadcast system over and over again since the beginning of this disaster.

  Though the Powers That Be will tell you to tune in sometimes for a special message or Presidential address telling everybody that the country would be rebuilt, etc, and try to make it to a FEMA camp if you can. But it is by sectors only and with a work commitment because FEMA had run out of food a long time ago and were dependent on trying to revitalize big agriculture to feed the masses that now were dependent on the meager ration dole of the government and labor camps.

  Sam didn’t listen to the radio much but on late nights when the sky was clear they would search the airways trying to listen to the Ham Operators and get a grasp of what was going on but their little multi-band radio didn’t have that great of reception. Getting information that was garbled or in bits and pieces was nerve wracking to say the least! As for Sam and Lori’s position, it pretty much didn’t matter at all what the government radio station was saying unless it advised us something terrible like a foreign power was going to invade us, which was a long shot because pretty much all the countries in the world had the same problems America did with starving populations and no solutions.

  The days of living under pretty much any kind of government control or regular laws was over for them. And they both knew with the current state of affairs in this country, it would always be so.

  “Hey, look over there- A dolphin!” Lori gushed.

  “You saw one, Yay! That’s cool!” Sam said watching it cavort around before seeing another one surface not far from it.

  “Look there’s another!” Lori declared.

  “We need to be watching the shoreline!” Sam reminded her after a moment or two of letting her enjoy the spectacle.

  “Yeah right! Sorry about that.” Lori said as she raised her binoculars and went back to scanning the shore much to the dolphin’s dismay at losing their human audience to show their antics to.

  “Hey Sam, I see two kayaks on the shore and about a hundred yards from them it looks like one of those little catamarans is pulled up also!” Lori said as she scanned the hotel they were in front of for any signs of life or their owners being present.

  “Well they just got them pulled up on the shore. Their owners can’t be too far. What do you think, Lori? Do they look like they just parked them or do they have them rigged to go out?” Sam asked as he tried to study in the distance what Lori was describing seeing through her powerful binoculars to him all the while trying to keep an eye on the coastline and buildings they were passing himself.

  “The catamaran doesn’t have its sail on, it doesn’t appear but those kayak things look like sea kayaks instead of those little plastic things you see people playing with. Yeah, I can see them better now. They are fishing yaks. I don’t see any rods on them though.” Lori said as Sam slowed the boat and just sort of barely moved forward contemplating what their presence might indicate.

  “Let me see your binoculars for a minute. And keep an eye on the shore while I look at t
hose things for a minute.” Sam said reaching for the binoculars.

  “Good eye, Lori! Those are fishing kayaks. Nice ones too, by the look of them. Did you notice those suckers got trolling motors on them?” Sam asked lowering the binoculars and looking over at Lori.

  “I only saw the motor on one of them, though. The other just looked like it had those foot pedal thingies on them.” Lori said talking about how kayaks could be peddled these days like a recumbent bicycle.

  “I think that other one has got an internal motor. They both have wheels on them so they’d be easy enough to drag up and hide them from the beach. So I guess that’s a good sign because they are not worried about somebody spotting them there. On the other hand, if I needed myself to make an escape from something, I guess I would leave my boat next to the water!” Sam said handing the binoculars back to Lori and pulling the boat a bit more offshore and proceeding down the beach.

  “What do you think Lori? Got any more clues about why they weren’t drug up on the beach or up shore? Could be they are going fishing or just got back from fishing and wanted to carry their gear up first before dragging the kayaks up ? I don’t know.” Sam said pondering what their appearance might mean.