Group SITX emergency route planning.

Creating an escape plan for SITX

I am writing this after a fellow ATS'er urged me to after I shared the following with them in a U2U. So, without further preamble here it is.

Escape planning for SITX.

First off you need to know who will form the base of your group, and then gather together for an evening to go over the following.

Get a map of your SITX escape area, and maps to cover the route to your final destination, and work out a route. Along this route mark out 6 to 10 'emergency points'. Then as a group drive / walk / traverse this area and pick out land marks familiar to every one. Choose road signs, street lamps, walls, or even railings, but all agree on the emergency points selected.

Now, getting back together, give each member of your group a colour or a number (could even be both as colour / number is a good way to indicate hostile threat as you use right colour / wrong number combo to warn fellow group members of danger, such as a person being forced to follow the route against their will).
So, with colour and / or number selected, buy sticky patches, maybe 20 per person to keep in their BOB / emergency stash.

Now, when SITX goes down we will not all be in the same area, yet we will all know the route and the chosen locations to mark with our stickers to indicate whether we are alive and following the route or able to travel the route.

You see a sticker on a marker, you know how many folks are making there way to the SITX area. If you can, travel the route and mark off each one to indicate life, but if that is not possible, mark off at least two, so the group knows to wait for you at SITX area for a predetermined length of time before heading off into the wilderness further.

If you wanted to, you could adapt this to spray paint 'tags', IR markers, or any means of 'tagging' a location to indicate life.

Food for thought any how.

Some one just u2u'd me asking for a visual example. Sorry for the rough and ready nature of it!

Hope it makes it a bit clearer.

Now, along your route create or find areas where you can 'stash' some food / bottles of water for those times when the SHTF. This will make life easier if your on foot in less than optimum terrain.

A good stash is small enough to go unnoticed in a place where few would think of ever looking.

I seen some great 'mesh cages' made and floated in rivers, tied and camouflaged just to sit and float until they are needed. Very effective and efficient system all in.

Since you are planning an escape route- you have to have a place to goto. You will need to avoid highways and byways since these will be dangerous places. You will need to avoid population centers for the same reason. Those that did not prepare will be just as dangerous to your group as those that are plain criminal.


In my group's case, we have two diffrent destinations... both are being prepared. The Primary has livestock: Rabbits, Goats, chickens as well as home grown veggies and fruit. We also have plenty of Mre and other dehydrated foods and a well that is being outfitted for alternative energy.

Our route is for walking and it is a hefty walk- but doable over a week or so. Designed to stay off the beaten path.

If, for some reason we cannot make it to the Primary, we can go to another location that is being prepped.

We also have Cache boxes are quite helpful in route planning as well as restock.

[edit on 21-7-2008 by ShadowMaster]

[edit on 21-7-2008 by ShadowMaster]

reply to post by ShadowMaster


Good on you! thats whats called for - good forward planning.

As for the route you take, thats your decision, but I did the drawing as a rough guide to get the idea of what i was talking about across.

Hopefully that way no man gets left behind in your group.

Well, today we worked our cypher so we can mark areas in code to let others know that we had been that way. The only issue with IR Tags is that some may not have the ability to read and possibly those you do not want to be able to read.

We are going to start working on walking that route to become familiar with the path, and so I can teach how to take a bearing, map and compass and topo use. We won't be walking in a straight line to our destination, we plan on changing directions- I wouldn't want anyone to follow us easily.

We as a group work together twice monthly to get prepared. Each person has a specific job todo in addition to what other functions that they have with in. We are slowly picking up additional skill sets.

[edit on 21-7-2008 by ShadowMaster]