Weapons Caching

 

If you can do this, do this.

As a follow-up to the previous cache guidance, the topic of weapons comes up. And it should.

Firstly, I would never keep everything of any category I owned all in one neat package.

We all know

Two is one, and one is none.

But it's also true that five or ten is really spiffy. And thirty or forty is quite a party, if you have the means.

Anybody with enough Glock pistols and AR rifles, plus a basic load of ammo, to pass out in quantity is going to become the captain of the local pipehitting team in short order, if things go all the way to sporky.

And twenty guys shooting one rifle apiece is waaaaaay better than one guy trying to shoot twenty rifles at once.

But we're not going to rehash or rewrite the book on weapons caching here.

You should download it yourself:

TC 31-29A: Special Forces Caching Techniques

And this one too:

Modern Weapons Caching by Ragnar Benson (1990)

And, obviously, if you can squirrel away a buried 40' conex container with a Ma Deuce, M79s, and full auto weaponry in quantities to arm a battalion task force, without doing hard time in the federal lock-up, by all means do that.

Of rather more concern today is what else you should probably think about squirrelling away in your cache(s).

The Reasons To Cache Weapons

1) Because keeping everything in one place is short-sighted, and potentially fatal.

2) Because you may need them someplace else in the future, and don't have the ones you did formerly.

3) Because you'll be moving from Point A to Point B, because A is overrun or otherwise untenable.

Nota bene: Your Ultimate Survival hidey hole could be either of those two points. IOW, you could be trying to get to it from some Blue Hive hellhole; or you might have been there, and become dislodged. So having pre-planned, pre-surveyed, and pre-stashed supplies along possible entry and exit routes is always a good idea, whenever possible.

Not all weapons go "bang". And while firearms are great, whichever way you're headed when you need a cache, you might need something quiet, rather than a new rifle or pistol. Having the means to take game silently would be highly recommended about then. 

Some great choices:

A take-down bow or crossbow.

A fishing rig for the above.

A sling, or slingshot. At about $7@ at WallyMart, more is better.

Ammunition for the above: Bolts, arrows, hunting broadheads, steel balls, BBs, etc.

Spare bowstrings, slingshot rubber and pouches, and any other maintenance supplies.

Snare wire. (Hint: They sell green 20g, 22g, and 24g floral wire, as well as 18g and 16g jewelry wire in spools up to 100' long at Hobby Lobby, Michael's Crafts, and any number of other stores, some reels for as little as $4. For under $40, you could buy enough wire to make the squirrels in the local park, or your back yard, or the jackrabbits in the back forty, extinct. Just saying, not advocating. And remember: you nab the neighbors' poodle or Fluffy the Cat, and nobody's going to thank you for it.)

Rat traps, or actual game traps.

Fishing tackle, like trot lines and automatic reels, along with the obligatory weights, floats, hooks, etc.

Fishing net(s).

Spear points.

One gentleman I read of had made provision for ever getting separated from his shooting irons in Canuckistan while out hunting by stashing snare wire and rat traps, along with little tubes or retort pouches of peanut butter all over his hunting AO and back towards his regular home, planning to trap tree rats (squirrels) and rabbits indefinitely and simply walk home, for as long as it took.

Add a cargo pocket fishing kit to than plan, and it'd likely suffice to get anyone from the Yukon to Yucatan, and put on weight all the way.

Some people plan to, or have already, packed away a small arsenal of boomsticks and ammo. NTTAWWT.

But circumstances might dictate that quiet is better than loud, and healthier in the long run.

So when you're thinking about what to sock away, consider that you too might want to pass through an area well-fed, yet without disturbing anyone, or giving them reason to come find you and see what's going on. Or take away your shiny toys - from your cold, dead hands.

Gear Without Training Or Experience is just "stuff".

If you're likely to do any or all of the things I mentioned, or need to, it would be a good idea to try out your plan now, while you can, in the exact places you may someday pass through, to see what works, and learn how to do it, which can only be done by actually getting out and doing it.

If you've never trapped, skinned, cooked, and eaten something, you aren't going to get the ability to do any of that by osmosis, or magic beans, on the day.

Obey all applicable fish and game regs, but get out there and learn this while your pantry and freezer is full, and you haven't notched your belt any tighter. Don't wait until it's a success-or-death game of You Bet Your Life.