Bugging Out: Rivers, Bicycles, Railroad Tracks

This topic has intrigued me for some time. I'd really appreciate ATS's help brainstorming on this and bouncing ideas and opinions off each other.

After a man-made or natural disaster, the roads and freeways will most likely be clogged with a mass exodus of cars, stalled by sheer volume and lack of fuel. The roads are no go. Gas stations closed. How will people bug-out? Rivers, Bicycles, Railroad Tracks.

Despite the lack of glamor, simple means could be the best and only way away from disaster.

What role will railroad track, navigable water, canoes/kayaks play in situation x? How extensively will they be utilized?

Rivers:

Rivers are the original highways. We have thousands of rivers and tributaries all over the country, 13 are over a thousand miles long. If needed one can carry over half a ton of supplies in a canoe. They are like silent cargo barges. Kayaks move much more quickly and effortlessly than canoes. The major trade off is cargo capacity.

Bicycles:

Bicycles have a ton of advantages, of course some disadvantages as well, but over all I think they are better than foot march, quieter than motorcycles, and extremly stealthy compared to using public roads in a truck or van. And your can carry a decent amount of gear on them.

Railroad Tracks:

I tried to find how many miles of train tracks there are in the U.S, but no luck. The numbers is astronomical though, I'm sure. Most Americans have tracks going through the centers of their town. I see train tracks as a major escape route open and viable to most people.

They are of course all viable transport routes. I suppose it would depend on whether your proposed transport method went any where near to where you are planning to 'hole-up'.

Its no good taking a ton of gear in a canoe to find that you have to hike it another 100 miles on foot.

There could be a disadvantage in that rivers, canals, railways, etc do tend to have towns and cities along them, but again i suppose it depends on where your retreat is.

I would say in the initial first few hours of a situation x, stealth wouldnt neccessarily have to be an option as speed of escape + distance from scenario would be the priority.

BTW, to the bicycles you could add a trailer to extend the carry load, canals also have towpaths alongside them, ideal for cycling along. Also you could tow a canoe along behind your canoe that just carries your gear.

If I ever have to bug out it will be on a bike for definate, I can cover 100Km no problem and I'm used to riding with at least 8-10Kg in my bag, like Wotan said you can get a trailer to carry your stuff or you could get one of them braces which fits over the back wheel, either way you can lug a load over a good distance with half the effort of walking.

Even if you had to push up a steep hill the bike can take most of the weight to make it that bit easier on yourself. definetly the way to go in my opinion!

Just make sure you pack some leeches incase a tire blows!

In sitX if you are traveling these paths you are exposing yourself to those doing a little last minute 'shopping'. A very unwise move since an ambush can be laid anywhere along the way.

In true wisdom, one must travel the path seldom taken. Move at night, use animal trails. Don't skyline. and be prepared with machetes to do some bush whacking.

Travel rivers roads or tracks and what they don't take will be left in piles along the sides of these paths covered with brush so the next travelers don't see the trap.

Well I'll propably take my walk.
Mostly because there really arnet any rivers I can use near me, and I dont have a boat.
And I think the railroad tracks will already have alot of people traveling on them.

And I'd take my bike. And there fast on open roads and such.
But the only problem with that is my bike is that its hard to get over difficult train on them.
And you cant really go through forest on them.
Which is what I plan on using.
So I'll think I'll stay with using my good 2 feet.

You sure can go through the forest in them, I used to race through heavily forested areas with my mates when I used to be into downhill mountain biking, its not the trees you have to watch out for its the little concealed rocks that send you tumbling 450 degree's when you hit them, in a sitX I'd be a bit more cautious though

You just need a bike which can cope with that kind of stress, there not to costly nowadays

Well said fred, I used to ride duel slalom, A cheap hardtail will work and if its singlespeed even better, Less maintenance

The thing is though is to get a good fram, a decent wheelset and crank/bottom bracket, The other parts are superficial really.

I can strip and rebuild a bike in 4 hours, I am so good I was over qualified when I put in an application form to halfords to work in their cycle department.

I didnt realise they wanted someone who couldn't actually fix or repair a bike.

Keep in mind that cyclists get hit on the roads all the time. During a Sit-X people could be fleeing in panic. You really would not want to be on the road on a bike or on foot.

Another possibility would be a dirt bike or a 4-wheeler if you have one. Travel through the woods if at all possible.

yes, travel through the woods, You never know, You might bump into some ATS'ers allready there.

Aha! you confirmed my spuspicions, the people at halfords havent got a clue what there doing! I'm in the process of getting a new bike now since I totalled my other one a few weeks back (dont buy from halfords there bikes fall apart after 6 month).

I know that all to well Snap, I would use up all my fingers and toes if I tried to count how many near misses I've had this year alone, the best way to go is as off road as possible, especially in a sitX, drivers ignore the rules of the road now so in a sitX it will be magnified.

fred, have a look here if your looking for a new bike.
They're pretty much bombproof.
Allthough the listing could be a scam, ask the seller some questions....
[edit on 7-6-2008 by Dar Kuma]

[edit on 7-6-2008 by Dar Kuma]

Originally posted by fred3110
You sure can go through the forest in them, I used to race through heavily forested areas with my mates when I used to be into downhill mountain biking, its not the trees you have to watch out for its the little concealed rocks that send you tumbling 450 degree's when you hit them, in a sitX I'd be a bit more cautious though

You just need a bike which can cope with that kind of stress, there not to costly nowadays

That's the exact thing I'm thinking. A lot of people need to realise that bicycles are way ahead of the curve these days.
I just bought a bike for about $950 dollars and it weights next to nothing at all to carry. It has a front suspension for offroading as well as a ton of gears.
Rear suspension is an even better option for downhill pursuit/racing and an added bit of comfort on sht terrain.
To be honest in nightmare terrain, if you have the fitness, then carrying the bike is a lot wiser when going uphill.
Pedaling just tires you out more than walking or carrying it.

The one thing you need with a bike is good fitness and a correct set-up.
Get the seat/saddle the right height is crucial otherwise unnecessary calf fatigue sets in early.
Rookies complain about this but your seat really needs to be high so that your legs aren't bent when they pass the bottom of the pedal/cycle stroke.
This typically means you have to leave the seat and straddle the crossbar at a halt or lean onto one foot. The former is best IMO.
I'm getting my fitness back slowly but surely to top form.
The time is now to start getting used to the old ways of transport.

It hurts at first but the benefits in fitness gained and a fresh perspective on things away from our steel combusable friends is unparralleled.

Originally posted by Dar Kuma
fred, have a look here if your looking for a new bike.
They're pretty much bombproof.

Allthough the listing could be a scam, ask the seller some questions....
[edit on 7-6-2008 by Dar Kuma]

[edit on 7-6-2008 by Dar Kuma]

That looks like a pretty good bike but I'd snap that pretty quick the way I ride, a few years back I had one similar it had a re-inforced frame with no suspension and the frame snapped within 3 months. that bike would be ideal for road and flat dirt tracks but it might not be able to take the strain of purely off-road riding.

The kind of bike I go for is a jump style hardtail with a decent set of front suspension forks, disc brakes (if caliper brakes get wet the braking distance increases a lot depending on how wet they are) and a gear range from 6-9 on the back end and 1 large cog on the front, this makes it light, fast and able to absorb a good deal of shock so you can jump it or throw it over fences, it really depends on a persons riding style as to what kind of bike there comftable with.

I have to say though £50 for that bike is a bargain, I've seen Kona bikes going for thousands of pounds before!

I have a jump frame in the shed, an old heavy tools, I just havn't had the chance to build it yet as I have a bike Im using anyway.

This is a picture of my bike, I have changed the bar stem combo, It now has an x-lite fly stem with x-lite G-Force bars, Other goodies, Chris King headset and xtr V-brakes with raceface crank and chainring.
mavic d51 rims with syncros front hub and a dmr singlespeed rear hub.Its pretty much bombproof.



while suspension is good i dont think it would last, better keep it simple.



[edit on 7-6-2008 by Dar Kuma]

Hey nice bike!

Spooky build good dependable frames, the gusset on the front of the frame looks pretty strong to so suspension wouldn't really be needed unless you wanted to go for comfort, I like the one gear set-up, hows that work out for going up hills do you have to pedal hard? I bet that thing moves like the wind on flat ground!

The gear ratio is 42 x 16 so yeah, It does fly.
I can take it up short hills without any problems but any longer than say 500 yards I struggle with it.
I have taken out full suss bikes with 24 gears that cost thousands, While they are messing with their gears I am putting the power down.

Mine was the last spooky to be built, shortly after they went bust...


[edit on 7-6-2008 by Dar Kuma]

No matter what type of transportation you may choose be aware that you may have to abandon it without notice. Be prepared to hoof-it at a moments notice. Building up your hiking endurance would be a good thing.

I woudn't leave my bike ever, too many memories and good times involved with it.

Originally posted by Dar Kuma
I woudn't leave my bike ever, too many memories and good times involved with it.

That is some love and dedication.
I'd suggest you be prepared to hike while carrying your bike then!