Prepper travels, day vs night.

[savageagle]

some of this is predicated on the notion that the military has been activated and to put it bluntly, they are not on your side. Why you may ask? Simple, because unless it’s caused by an EMP (Electra Magnetic Pulse) or a CME (Coronal Mass Ejection) the country will likely to be under Martial Law and that would put a lot of Military on the roads.

If the Military are involved, there are many more obstacles to overcome, versus just masses of starving people and roving gangs. Technology will be the key that changes the dynamics completely and multiplies the danger of being caught.

First off, let me say that anytime you are forced to travel, whether it is night or day, avoid paved roads at all cost! Roads are for those who want to get shot or killed. Roads are where you will find the roadblocks, the ambushes, and in many cases, the traps designed to lure you to your death! Always travel cross country, using paths and railroad tracks whenever possible. These will give you your best chance to avoid being seen by others.

If the Military is out and about so to speak, and they have air support, which is pretty much a given, you will want to travel by day. Why you might ask? OK, here is my thinking on this subject and I am sure others will have varying opinions. During the day, you can see further and can blend into the brush and your surroundings when needed. Remember the key here is to not be seen and to avoid all others. In the day, you can see them long before they see you if you are careful.

During the night, you could walk right up on someone before you even know that they are there. This wouldn’t be good if they are members of a gang. In the day, you can see better for navigating the terrain you need to travel. As well as helping you keep your direction of travel. All in all, daytime is the best time to travel if the Military is out.

Traveling at night would be good if you were only trying to avoid gangs and bandits. The reason you wouldn’t want to do it if the Military was out is because of their night vision and Thermal vision. At night they can spot people moving on the ground with no trouble at all. Again, if they are out, stick to traveling during the day. If the Military is no where to be found and you have reasons to believe that they are not an issue, then you may want to travel at night.

I would strongly urge everyone to have a night vision device of some kind. These can be a little expensive, but they are well worth their cost when the time comes. You don’t need the top of the line, and the monocular with night vision can usually be found for a reasonable price at gun shows, as well as online. Again, they do not need to be the top of the line; they just need to allow you to see in the dark, so get what you can afford. You may also want to get spare batteries for them as well. The idea here is to see trouble before you walk into it.

It all comes down to whether the Military is hunting people using air support or not. If you travel at night and they are out hunting, then you will stand out like a beacon in the night. Other than that, the night offers cover and allows you to cross open areas, that you would not be able to during the day. On the other hand, if you travel during the day, you have a much better chance of seeing them before they see you. In the end, it will be up to you, just do not underestimate the military technology, when it comes to tracking and locating people.

In the end, your best chance of survival is to not travel at all, but if you must, then consider all of your options and consider all factors, which threats you will face by traveling during the day or night. Only then will you be able to make the right decision on when to travel.

Again, just some thoughts on bugging out day or night?

 

[Squirtgunsquirter]

Awesome post!

My SF friend likes to say "We own the night" and he says that for the reasons you mentioned. Night vision.

On the subject of air support, I would add that individual (human) units will have IR beacons to identify friend or foe. The beacons, it can be as simple as a reflective patch, can be used as an identifier, something that we, as non military members, wouldn't have any knowledge of. So maybe one unit has three dots on the top of their ball caps, if you look at gear makers websites, and they make ball caps, the Velcro on top is there to attach reflective dots, or patches, to stand out for loitering air support. Not much use to us, but I could get my hands on some reflective dots and IR beacons and get to the bottom of it if we were interested in spoofing them. I would have to phrase it carefully, obviously, lol.

Personally, I want to own the night, or at least rent it from those who do. NODS is on my list, but its pretty expensive, and hard to justify to the wife.

I will get there.

 

[jontte]

mmmm,the wife...

 

[Squirtgunsquirter]

She handles the finances! I was thrilled to be able to build the AR, I managed to sneak it in over a few months.

I mean, I could just go and buy something, but if she says I shouldn't because of money, then she is usually right.

Night vision optics will probably be forever beyond my reach.

 

[jontte]

we have these things sold for hunters at 170 euros,I know it's nothing like the pro's use in mil ops,but it's affordable..

 

[Maverick]

some of this is predicated on the notion that the military has been activated and to put it bluntly, they are not on your side. Why you may ask? Simple, because unless it’s caused by an EMP (Electra Magnetic Pulse) or a CME (Coronal Mass Ejection) the country will likely to be under Martial Law and that would put a lot of Military on the roads.

If the Military are involved, there are many more obstacles to overcome, versus just masses of starving people and roving gangs. Technology will be the key that changes the dynamics completely and multiplies the danger of being caught.

First off, let me say that anytime you are forced to travel, whether it is night or day, avoid paved roads at all cost! Roads are for those who want to get shot or killed. Roads are where you will find the roadblocks, the ambushes, and in many cases, the traps designed to lure you to your death! Always travel cross country, using paths and railroad tracks whenever possible. These will give you your best chance to avoid being seen by others.

If the Military is out and about so to speak, and they have air support, which is pretty much a given, you will want to travel by day. Why you might ask? OK, here is my thinking on this subject and I am sure others will have varying opinions. During the day, you can see further and can blend into the brush and your surroundings when needed. Remember the key here is to not be seen and to avoid all others. In the day, you can see them long before they see you if you are careful.

During the night, you could walk right up on someone before you even know that they are there. This wouldn’t be good if they are members of a gang. In the day, you can see better for navigating the terrain you need to travel. As well as helping you keep your direction of travel. All in all, daytime is the best time to travel if the Military is out.

Traveling at night would be good if you were only trying to avoid gangs and bandits. The reason you wouldn’t want to do it if the Military was out is because of their night vision and Thermal vision. At night they can spot people moving on the ground with no trouble at all. Again, if they are out, stick to traveling during the day. If the Military is no where to be found and you have reasons to believe that they are not an issue, then you may want to travel at night.

I would strongly urge everyone to have a night vision device of some kind. These can be a little expensive, but they are well worth their cost when the time comes. You don’t need the top of the line, and the monocular with night vision can usually be found for a reasonable price at gun shows, as well as online. Again, they do not need to be the top of the line; they just need to allow you to see in the dark, so get what you can afford. You may also want to get spare batteries for them as well. The idea here is to see trouble before you walk into it.

It all comes down to whether the Military is hunting people using air support or not. If you travel at night and they are out hunting, then you will stand out like a beacon in the night. Other than that, the night offers cover and allows you to cross open areas, that you would not be able to during the day. On the other hand, if you travel during the day, you have a much better chance of seeing them before they see you. In the end, it will be up to you, just do not underestimate the military technology, when it comes to tracking and locating people.

In the end, your best chance of survival is to not travel at all, but if you must, then consider all of your options and consider all factors, which threats you will face by traveling during the day or night. Only then will you be able to make the right decision on when to travel.

Again, just some thoughts on bugging out day or night?

Like you alluded too, situation going to dictate. Civilian NV optics takes away depth perception, out were I'm at the lack of depth perception may get one killed plus the heavy vegetation would practically whitewash the view. In case of no moon dig in, with a moon travel if possible, civilian night optics may be more of a hindrance out in my neck of the woods. In the cities and towns NV might be a good option though if one has the illuminator on other NV users would be able to see you lighted up like a flood light.

 

[jontte]

right now,when I have my army gear at home,I kinda feel lucky that all is NIR-protected,it's an other ball game when my contract runs out and I have to return it,or they no longer feel the need for my services
have at least some cover in the dark...

 

[bigpaul]

travel 1 hour before dawn and 1 hour after, also 1 hour before dusk and 1 hour after.
hide up during the main hours of daylight as that is when movement will be most easily seen.

 

[savageagle]

One thing that I have never heard anyone talk about is the fact that if your using NV and your foe has NV too, he can see your illuminator if close enough and if it is the type that can be turned off, in that case he would not see you. My NV had a red LED at the front that would illuminate when on, I went in and disabled it.
I found this out last summer when we had a small exercise using paint ball gear. The moon was visible and "viking", our military trainer told us about this issue and told us to keep our illuminators off if we were going to use NV and he said you'll be surprized at what you see. The other team had 3 guys who had their illuminators on and walla, we could see all 3 of them. We ended up talking about this and redid the exercise.
Our group has flourescent patches on our tactical vests. It's actually just a 1/2 x 1/2 logo that lights up with any UV light and not so great an idea because unless you have a very high powered long range UV light you have to get too close before you can illuminate it and if it's foe you may be recieving some lead real soon.
Keep hopes up squirtgunsquirter, you may get one. Make it a high priority.

 

[Gazrok]

Even Gen1 nightvision is a complete gamechanger. We were doing some night paintball games in complete darkness, and man, we crept right up to the enemy's base, dispatching everyone on the way (we went on the outer perimeter, so the enemy was always silhouetted against the lit up false city, but we only had blackness behind us, so virtually invisible)...we even took out a group of 10 (just 3 of us though, 2 of us had longer range guns, and I had a full auto on mine)....but at the base, one guy had nightvision (just Gen1), and we might as well have been a parade.

Took us all out before we even knew what hit us. Right then, I learned the true value of a force multiplier like that.

The was at a MOUT facility in FL typically used for urban combat training. Had a little false city block with multi-story buildings, streets, lights, even a sewer system, etc. It was such a great place for a paintball event.

 

[Gazrok]

Night vision optics will probably be forever beyond my reach.

You'd be surprised at how they've come down. Maybe on your Christmas, Anniversary wishlist? That's how I get some of my prepper gear, hehe.

 

[bigpaul]

a lot of this stuff, night vision, radio communication etc. is something that some will only use in a SHTF situation so in reality it will probably remain on the bottom of my lists.

 

[Gazrok]

Very true, but it should be ON the list...

 

[bigpaul]

I cant see me using either.

 

[Gazrok]

Ideally, I'd need at least two sentry positions, to really monitor all of the ranch's perimeter. I'd have to build them on top of the roofs of the stables and the house. It wouldn't be difficult though, and would likely be built within the first week post SHTF.

 

[DrHenley]

I'm intrigued with night vision, but not intrigued enough to shell out money. I know someone who is developing his own nightvision equipment. I may get something from him just to support him.

 

[bigpaul]

not something I really want and its expensive over here.
i'm not really in a location that gets many visitors even now (not a tourist location)and post SHTF we'll get even less, British roads aren't like American ones, too many forks in the roads, roads that aren't signposted and too many other places to go through before they get anywhere near, plus its a small place "blink and you miss it" as we say over here.

 

[DrHenley]

LOL, you should see the "roads" leading to the BOL. From half paved public road to gravel/dirt private road to path through the woods. The main public road didn't even have a name until a few years ago. We just called it "The Levee."

 

[bigpaul]

I bugged out when I left the city 20 years ago.

 

[savageagle]

Night vision? 10 years ago I would not have been able to get. As for preppers having NV, It will not be needed unless in my case I have something to protect and watch over which I do. This home is built on a hill with a 300' driveway leading up to it. The well is located at the bottom 80' from the main road with 1 check valve and the tank is located up near the house. If it comes to people wanting to rob me for water from the well I'd be keeping an eye in the dark to protect my water. I would really like to relocate the well but financially it's not going to happen anytime soon. NV would be great if your trying to locate food at night to shoot and eat. Could be good if you have to travel and you'd want to recon what's ahead before you proceed. I have 2 and they both sit idle for now. I keep them because I know at some point they will come in handy.
If I'm going to have to confront someone in the dark I'd like to know who, how many and what they have to play with, ie, knives, guns etc. Who knows, if I see that there are more than I can handle and they have BIG toys to play with, NV will give me a head start to save my life.
The best one for me has been my SightMark 7x50 SM18014, high powered illuminator, square viewing window and a video output. It's not up but ready to be setup outside cabled to a viewing monitor inside. The housing is plexi-glass, water proof and has a small fan for ventilation to keep the inside from fogging up. When the need arises it will be mounted on a small platform mounted to my tower at 44'. It has been modified with a small 12v battery and an 8"x 8" solar panel and wired in where the batteries go. From my radio room I have a dedicated monitor where I view it. The illuminator is advertised as high power and it is. I can easily see things as far as 80' and I'm trying to design a place for another stronger illuminator. It's made in Russia and it's the best NV I've had. Many NV's have an issue where the center of the image is nice and clear but moving out from center the image becomes blurry. This one as said has a rectangular viewing window and is very clear and the outer area has some blurring but only the last 10-15% of the outer edge. 8 years ago it cost me $239 and recently I have seen them go for well under $200. If I had to get another it would be the same sightmark model because of the video output, the square screen and the higher power illuminator. The other NV I paid more for and it's only 5x50 and no video output and a poor illuminator.
I'm happy that I did get them and even though they sit idle now, they will get used post shtf and the usual exersizes every 3 months.