I was, and am, a big fan of Craig Caudill’s first book, Extreme Wilderness Survival. You can find my full review of that book here. When I learned Craig was working on a follow up book, it got my attention. I’ll admit, Ultimate Wilderness Gear wasn’t exactly what I thought it was going to be. […]

My wife stumbled on this last night and shared it with me. Honestly, I was pretty surprised at some of these numbers. I mean, prepper social media is filled with folks talking about how nobody around them is interested in preparedness at all and how everyone they know makes fun of it. These numbers here […]

Recently, I made my live television debut on WPTV, which is an NBC affiliate in West Palm Beach, Florida. As some of you know, I’ve been working with Sustain Supply, which is a division of Cyalume Technologies, on a line of emergency kits. Thus far, there are three kits available — Comfort4, Comfort2, and Essentials2. […]

No matter how long we’ve been prepping, we can’t know it all. Sure, common sense and a logical mind will go a long way toward filling in the gaps but having reference materials is always going to be welcome. When it comes to putting together a survival library, there are many categories to be filled. […]

This coming week, Tuesday, April 17, 2018, EMPulse2 comes out in print, available at all fine bookstores! EMPulse3 is in progress. This will conclude the trilogy. If there are any questions you have about something, someone, or some event in the story that you would like answered in this final episode, please ask! here or […]

A knife is a commonly carried self-defense weapon. That might not be the knife’s primary purpose but I’d guess that most folks who carry one would rank self-defense among the top three reasons why they have it. Yet, relatively few of those who pack a blade truly understand how to use it against another human […]

Guest review by Mike Travis When I think of a Gossman knife, I think of a blade that can chop through trees and split them into kindling. Scott is renowned for making extreme duty, hard use blades. Honestly, if I wanted to equip myself with the biggest, baddest and toughest blade I could get my […]

Enough with the recommendations about using wasp spray for self-defense! This is an incredibly bad idea all the way around.

In the last month or two, I’ve received more than a couple of messages from readers who are seeking more information on suggestions for senior citizens who want to prep for emergencies. Today, we’ll discuss a few things seniors can do to help be better prepared for disasters at home. We’re not going to get […]

I’ll tell you this right up front — the Lapwing is my first Nordsmith knife but it for damn sure won’t be my last. I’ve been playing around with the Lapwing for a couple of weeks now and it has become my go to fixed blade for all sorts of jobs around the house, especially […]

Recently, Amazon sent out emails to those who have pre-ordered Prepper’s Long-Term Survival Guide 2, letting them know that the book was “unavailable” and that they didn’t know when it would be in stock. A few of you contacted me privately asking for more info and I’m sure there are others out there wondering what’s […]

Date: April 28, 2018 Time: 9:00AM – 4:00PM Location: Guardian Range, Cottage Grove, WI (address provided at time of registration) Cost: $70.00

  In the last couple of days, I’ve seen a few references to throwing knives on survival-related social media. So, I guess this is a thing now? I don’t know, maybe I just never noticed or paid attention to it before. But, okay, let’s talk about throwing knives for a bit.

Pretty much anywhere you go, there are two types of restaurants. There are the large, flashy places that cater to tourists and then there are the places where the locals go to eat. Chain restaurants are successful because people know what to expect. The food might be just this side of crappy but you know […]

So, this meme crops up frequently on Facebook. And when I say frequently, I mean I see it at least once or twice every single day. My standard answer is this — If I’m told to pick out a handful of these items because I’m going to be stranded on a deserted island, I’m not […]

[This is the first in a planned series of blog posts. The intent is to highlight skills that everyone truly needs in order to be successful. These are strengths and abilities that should be practiced and honed regularly. The true survivalist knows that real preparedness includes day-to-day living just as much as it does planning […]

Should a major collapse occur, whether prompted by economic failure, natural disaster, or something else, we hope that we’ve taken all the precautions we can to provide for ourselves and our families. After all, many of us have spent years working on our preps, from food storage to bug out plans and more. The thing […]

Those who have been around for a while already know this but for the new folks, here’s the deal. Back in late 2015, my wife and I decided that from that point and all through 2016, we would commit to going on at least one hike a week. We both enjoy hiking and being outdoors […]

If there is a single bit of advice I could pass along to my fellow survivalists and preppers, it is this — be realistic. Understand that while working hard to increase your abilities is important, it is just as critical to know your limitations. If you plan to bug out on foot, for example, and […]

  As you might imagine, I talk or otherwise interact with a lot of preppers and survivalists pretty much daily.  I’ve always encouraged people to ask questions and I’m determined to try to help as best I can.  I don’t know everything, of course, and I’m still learning every day myself.  But, I feel we […]