Step Up Your Game: Become an Advanced Prepper
The goal for any Prepper is to be able to survive – and even thrive – in adverse circumstances. Basic preparedness for short term emergencies is something that can and should be undertaken by everyone (Level 1 Prepper), very few of us will be willing to spend the time, money, and energy into being prepared to handle literally anything that could be thrown our way.
Those of us who do take the time to get to this level of preparedness earn the title of Level 3 – Advanced Prepper for their efforts. But what does it take to become a Level 3 Prepper? What supplies and skills to you need to have to survive a long-term disaster?
Becoming an advanced prepper is no easy task, even for those of us who have spent years building up our supplies and working on developing our survival skills.
A Level 3 Prepper, is someone who has dedicated a substantial amount of time, money, and energy into being prepared for whatever happens.
Unlike Level 1 Preppers, who are really only equipped to make it through emergencies that are a few days long or Level 2 Preppers who can only handle disasters that are a month long or shorter, a Level 3 Prepper is ready to ride out the storm for three months or longer.
To be able to survive a disaster that’s three months long – or longer – a Level 3 Prepper must have not only adequate stockpiles of essential supplies like food and water but must also have the skills necessary to source these supplies in their environment.
A Level 3 Prepper has both extensive supply stores and an exceptional amount of survival skills and knowledge for when things really get bad.
Level 1 and Level 2 Preppers should be able to handle smaller-scale natural disasters, moderate economic setbacks, and other similar life disturbances.
A Level 3 Prepper needs to be ready for when SHTF…
When SHTF, our normal day-to-day lives completely stop, and we’re forced to figure out how we’re going to survive all on our own because emergency services and other hallmarks of modern societies will all but disappear.
Thankfully, events like this are not very common in the developed world, but they include disasters such as warfare, major terrorist attacks, chemical weapons, nuclear attacks, and major economic collapse, to name a few.
A Level 3 Prepper should be ready to hunker down in their own home or be prepared to evacuate their house and live off the land in these situations.
Although being an advanced prepper isn’t only about having an extensive stockpile of emergency supplies, there are some pieces of gear that advanced preppers store that sets them apart from their beginner and intermediate counterparts. In addition to the supplies that a Level 1 and 2 Prepper should have, a Level 3 Prepper should consider the following:
A central aspect of being an advanced prepper is pre-planning and foresight. As an advanced prepper, you should have a set of well thought out contingency plans for what you and your family will do during a wide variety of different emergencies, whether that’s a two-day blizzard or a nuclear powerplant melt-down.
Although your plans will certainly change at least slightly during a legitimate disaster scenario, having a dedicated set of plans that are pre-made for different emergencies can help you think logically and systematically during the height of a crisis.
Plus, if you take the time to sit down and write these plans, you will have a better understanding of what weaknesses you may have in your supply stores or skill set, so writing these plans can be a great exercise in overall preparedness.
Check out the following resources to help:
If things get bad and the power / internet are down – how would you handle things you may be unprepared for? How would you tell what medicines interact with others? What about that rash, how can you identify it?
I would highly recommend everyone get a library of valuable resource books in advance to keep in your home. A Prepper Library should contain valuable info on medicines and first aid, survival skills, and guides prepared by the military and other trusted resources.
If things get bad, having this information handy could be the difference between life and death!
Despite western society’s addiction to social media and internet access, we humans can, indeed, survive just fine without our electronic devices. Depending on your family’s needs and where you live, having access to electricity can be important during an emergency situation that lasts months or even years.
People who rely on medical devices, such as dialysis machines, CPAP machines, or other such electronics may need reliable access to electricity, so having no power for months on end would certainly be problematic. Additionally, if you live somewhere that gets dangerously cold in the winter or brutally hot in the summer, you may need to rely on electricity to power your heating or air conditioning systems.
Thus, having a generator and fuel that can power the most essential electronics in your household can be crucial during a long-term disaster. A dual fuel generator is the best, so you have more fuel options when things get bad. You can also store propane longer and more easily than gas.
Renewable energy-based generators, such as solar or wind generators are also useful for providing long term electricity, even after you run out of fuel.
If you’re planning to survive during a three-plus-month-long disaster, you’re going to need enough food to last three-plus months. Although you can ration out smaller food supplies to last you a longer period, this is no way to boost morale or keep everyone healthy during difficult times.
As an advanced prepper, you should be ready with at least a three month’s supply of emergency food stores. Having larger food supplies is great, too, but due to space and money constraints, this may not be possible for everyone.
In my humble opinion – the Augason Farms 30 Day supply is the best bang for your buck. Sure the taste may not be great, but I view my stash as an affordable 30 year insurance policy while my kids are still in the house in case things get bad.
A basic first aid kit with some simple over-the-counter medicines and an assortment of trauma and injury management supplies is adequate for a basic and intermediate prepper, advanced preppers should consider having a better stocked medical kit.
An advanced medical kit should have at least everything listed here, in addition to a wider range of different over-the-counter medications and a longer-term supply of any prescription meds you need to take to stay healthy. There are a few good pre-made options if you want to make things quick and easy – including gunshot trauma kits.
If you do find yourself in an extended survival situation – chances are you forgot something! In addition to survival alcohol you should also consider things of value to use for trade. A healthy stock of survival cash is a good idea – so long as people are still accepting bills. During an emergency this will probably be the first go to item for trading – traditional currency.
Until people get wise and realize that things are not getting better, then the value of the dollar will fall and you should look to other stores of value including precious metals and barter items. People will be hard up for things that have the greatest impact – food, water, medicine, etc. Consider stocking up on smaller items that are easy to trade.
This might sound a bit odd and frivolous, but alcohol can actually be an integral part of an emergency supplies kit. High-proof alcohol can be used as a disinfectant for wounds and can be used for medicinal purposes when access to doctors and hospitals is pretty much impossible.
Plus, you can start a fire with alcohol or use it to barter with to acquire more important resources like extra food or medical supplies.
Even if you don’t end up needing to use alcohol for these purposes, at the end of the day, alcohol can be a great distraction and stress reliever during difficult times, so it’s worth keeping it around.
The right equipment is important for emergency preparedness. However, what really sets an advanced prepper apart from a beginner or intermediate prepper is their survival skills. A Level 3 Prepper be ready to use the supplies they have and they should also be ready to improvise and seek refuge in the outdoors if their home is no longer habitable. A Level 3 Prepper should be competent with:
During a true long-term emergency, you’ll eventually run out of your food supplies, no matter how extensive they are. Knowing how to identify edible plants in your area and being a competent forager can be the difference between starvation and survival in a disaster situation.
In addition, if you find yourself in an urban environment – finding places to scavenge where others overlook is vital.
Be sure you can also scavenge for things like fuel. When things are bad and the gas stations no longer work – make sure you know how to siphon gas and ideally have the proper tools.
Especially if you’re a big meat eater or you live somewhere with scarce edible vegetation, you’ll want to become an adept hunter, trapper, or angler to help you supplement your food supplies during a disaster. Even if you do have enough food in your stores, being able to catch your own food can help extend the supplies you have while also raising group morale during hard times.
Should you need to leave your home to hunt, forage, or seek refuge, you’ll want to have solid outdoor navigation skills to make sure you’re traveling safely and efficiently in the outdoors.
Knowing how to navigate using a map, compass, and GPS can be the difference between finding a water source during a long-term emergency and getting hopelessly lost, so these are useful skills to have.
If you live somewhere with cold and snowy winters, having experience with winter camping can be critical during an emergency. Winter can be a brutal time to be outdoors, but if you’re forced to leave your house during the colder months, expertise in winter camping can make a huge difference.
If you do get lost or stranded in the backcountry, knowing how to signal for help can ultimately lead to a successful rescue. Thus, it’s important to know how to signal others by using smoke, mirrors, flares, and other devices during a disaster situation.
While basic first aid will suffice for an intermediate prepper, an advanced prepper should be trained to the level of wilderness first aid or wilderness first responder, with wilderness first aid being an absolute minimum. During a true emergency, you might be solely in charge of medical care for you and your family, so it’s your best interest to be as well trained as possible.
This is a great book to keep handy – Survival Medicine Handbook.
When SHTF, people will undoubtedly get stressed to the point of violence as they try to find resources and food for themselves and their families. Thus, it’s important to have a solid base of self-defense skills for protection during hard times.
Ultimately, being a Level 3 Prepper is about being ready for any and all emergencies that may come your way. While we can’t imagine all the possible situations that might occur, we can take steps to be prepared for survival, even during major disasters.
Advanced preppers separate themselves from the rest of the pack by committing to having extensive stores of food and gear supplies as well as specialized training in survival. Are you ready to take on the challenge and become an advanced prepper?
Good idea – yes I agree. I would prefer both however to keep things running at night if needed!
Unless you have an unlimited supply of fuel a generator is not a reasonable choice. Build a sustainable solar back-up I would feel, is a wiser choice.
Intelligence skills. Feeds into and is fed by comms. Having made those preps, keeping them from being taken. Knowing your area, the people in that area, who are assets and who are liabilities. Keeping knowledge about you to a minimum, ‘flying under the radar’.
Great suggestion! I should add that to the list.
Communications equipment is very important in any survival situation regardless of magnitude or duration. Walkie/talkies,CB,and ham radios can be real life savers.
Step Up Your Game: Become an Advanced Prepper
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