From knowing how to avoid attention to how to completely navigate around unwanted situations, knowing how to keep safe and stocked with supplies in a survival situation is more difficult than you might think. Even good people, when facing death, would rather rob you and leave you in a ditch than face one more day of hunger. Learn how to survive a breakdown of society in the tips below.

#1. Improvised Shelter
Building shelter in a post-collapse world means more than just sheltering from the weather; it means sheltering from bad people that may be combing the landscape. Think like a hermit and hide yourself somewhere on a hillside or dense growth of trees, using moss, grass, twigs, and even dirt or mud to create insulation if needed. The best shelter in a post-collapse world, while traveling, is a shelter that no one knows is there. Remember that.
#2. Fire
Making fire encompasses the multitude of ways of starting it, maintaining it and then putting it out (which many people tend to overlook); after you've put out your fire, hide the fact that you ever had a fire to begin with. Leave no trace. Bury the ashes from your fire well under ground and then spread dirt and arrange brush so that no one can tell (without digging down) that you ever had a fire there. Don't leave any clues for possible trail robbers or trackers to find, if someone happens to be looking for either you or for someone to rob.
#3. Water
Though most bug outs shouldn't take more than a few days, water is one of those things you shouldn't have too much of in your bug out bag because you can find plenty of water along the way (unless you live in or near the desert, then you may need to pack a lot more water than normal). Water procurement can be done several ways; it can be filtered with a portable water filter, it can be boiled to kill parasites and bacteria that can make you sick, and it can also be collected and purified with water purification tablets; this last method is the most time efficient method but because of limited pack space in your bug out bag, but it shouldn't be the only method you use. Having a portable water filter and also a small pot for boiling water are essential.
#4. Navigation
When chaos breaks loose, a lot of things can go wrong that can deviate you from your original route. This is where your navigation skills as well as your preparedness come into play:
When it's all said and done, printed maps and a good compass are going to be your best bet. Navigating by the stars doesn't work during cloudy weather, and depending on GPS or a smartphone to store maps is a bad idea for a long term situation. At some point, the batteries in your phone are going to die or those satellites that make GPS possible may become inaccessible. Map and compass are a proven and reliable long term survival tool and can work for you in a post collapse world.

Topographic Maps: A useful and necessary skill is knowing how to read topographic maps; knowing what those contour lines represent on a topographic map, as well as the different colors, will help you understand elevation changes and the types of terrain you can encounter in a region. You'll be able to see the elevation of the terrain, the vegetation and, of course, the bodies of water, lakes, rivers, streams, coastline, etc. With a topographic map, you can determine a route that will help you avoid populated areas, reduce the chances of a robbery out on a trail (by helping you avoid trails all together), and also determine whether or not you'll encounter a ridge, canyon, valley, or mountain too steep to climb.
#5. Shooting
I recommend you practice with as many as you can since using a pistol is different that shooting a shotgun or a rifle; for those with the time and means, it is good to have experience knowing how to shoot all three.
#6. Trapping
Funny enough, trapping isn't just a skill you learn for catching rabbits and squirrels out in the wild. It can be just as useful in “bug in situations” to catch mice and other rodents that may take a shot at your food stores. Keep in mind that trapping requires a lot of patience as well as knowledge, practice, and snares for various size animals. The question is, do you really need turn to trapping? Well, if you'll be bugging in or if expect to have a short bug out, you probably won't. However, things can always go wrong. In a post collapse unfortunately, things probably will go wrong at some point for a lot of people. Trapping is an essential survival skill to learn if you want to be sure you always have a way to feed yourself and your family!
#7. Finding and Following Game Trails
Game trails are “trails” made by wildlife (deer, elk, moose, antelope, caribou, bison, etc.) as they follow commonly traveled routes for big game through the forest, often to a water source, and other times to where they know they can find food. Some game trails may even lead you to where large game beds down and sleeps.
Game trails can lead you to water — Keep in mind that where there are game trails, there may also be water close by as most animals will need it at least 2 times a day. In many wilderness areas, all you have to do is follow game trails downhill and you might be lucky enough to find food and water at the same time.
If looking for food, follow game trails facing the wind – Hunters call this being downwind. If the wind is at your back (you are “upwind”), your scent will be blown in the direction you are hunting and the wildlife you're after is likely to catch your scent; startled by your scent, that wildlife is now likely to flee.

#8. Getting Out Of Zip Ties, Duct Tape and Other Restraints
During a collapse, there's a good chance that there's a psychopath in just about every community who will now become a threat. Right now, your local psychopath works his nine to five job, and the threat of the police and a long prison sentence keeps a lot of people from going out and breaking the law.
Or maybe it's just a neighbor who knows you were prepping and decides to pay you a visit, holds you at gun point, ties you up, steals all your supplies and then leaves you to die, duct taped to a chair, as he then sets the house on fire and walks out.
You get out of zip ties by either breaking them or by picking the locking blade with something really thin, you get out of single-lock handcuffs using a paper clip and you get out of duct tape by raising both your arms up and then bringing them down in a quick motion while spreading your elbows apart. This needs, practice, of course, but it'll be fun to do with your kids.
#9. Camouflaging Yourself in the Wilderness
Wear colors that allow you to really blend in with your surroundings.
Using ash or mud to cover your face and hands
Securing vegetation such as grass and branches to your body
Covering your head and shelter with a variety of brush to avoid being detected from above.
#10. Medicinal Plants
Have a cut, fever, pains, elevated blood pressure, high blood sugar, low on vitamins and minerals? Medicinal plants can offer several ways to bring healing, fever reduction, pain relief, and even be used for a number of specific health conditions.
Realize that medicinal plants can be an essential component of survival first aid, can take the place of a doctor's care (if there are no doctors around and you know what you're doing), and can even provide daily necessary nutrients for optimal health.
#11. Self-Defense
No matter how skilled you are with a gun, a knife or a bow and arrow, there isn't much you can do if you don't have them or if you run out of ammo. In such cases, your ability to improvise a self-defense weapon might save your life.
While we hope that none of our readers is ever in a situation where life or death comes down defending yourself with a bow and arrow, machete or a pitchfork for that matter, realize that the best method of self defense in several situations may simply be to run and leave your attacker in the dust.
#12. Scouting and Recon
Reconnaissance on factions and militants – With several factions possibly fighting for territorial control in some areas, you should at least know who's claiming “influence” over your territory. That's just one example of why you need to scout the surroundings to gather valuable information about what's happening around you.
#13. Hot Wiring a Car
While we don't recommend stealing an automobile, if your life is on the line then the day may come where you should know how to hot wire one and get on the road in a hurry. It's easier than it sounds. Rather than detail the specifics, and plagiarize a good book on the subject, it is one more thing that is covered in the book “Spy Secrets that Can Save Your Life” mentioned earlier.
Older cars are the ones that work for hot wiring; newer cars have complex electronic systems that are almost impossible to start unless you really know what you're doing and have the right tools.
#14. Foraging
Unless you're bugging out to Antarctica, you'll be sure to find plenty of wild edibles you can just pick up and eat — if you know where to look and where some wild edibles are commonly found.
Clovers
Dandelions
Wild asparagus
Ground ivy
Arugula
#15. Bartering and Negotiation
Whether the dollar is going to be worth anything post-collapse is hard to say, but you should be able to barter and negotiate regardless. You can barter your food, your water, your ammo and even some of your abilities such as building at home water filtration systems (with everyday materials), woodworking, plumbing etc. Keep in mind that one thing we'll all have a lot of post-collapse is time — so it's better to barter your time and skills than your limited stockpile.
#16. Running Legs
Whether you find yourself embarking on a serious a bug out or a lengthy get home situation, you might have to run like hell at some point. Only problem is, if you're out of shape or have a bad knee or something along those lines, it may be nearly impossible to run.
You should make your BOB and get home bags lighter but, really, the most important thing is to get those knee problems handled or find a set of really good knee braces worn by runners, which can make a difference for some people, and lessen or eliminate knee pain all together.
#17. Look Like a Gray Man
When you need to make your rounds anywhere, and want to avoid being robbed, take on the appearance of a rough and tumble homeless person or (if you're an older male) 1970s era Vietnam Vet who's had a rough go in life and has spent a few years on the streets. If someone says something to you, or tries to corner you, just stumble on by with a distant look in your eyes, not even seeing them, and even swat at an invisible “voice”. It comes down to this: If you look or seem a bit off your rocker any possible bad people may just look the other way, which is what they've been doing for years beforehand to people with these kinds of disabilities. Looking and acting a bit off your rocker is an easy way to get ignored by society at large.
#18. Diplomacy
Whether you're bartering, being kidnapped or trying to diffuse a conflict, you can't do it if you let your emotions dictate what you say and how you behave. A sincere and friendly, yet no-nonsense countenance can go a long way to help make this happen. Being liked and respected, through great diplomacy, can open doors and get you places.
#19. Basic Medical Skills
Things like giving first aid, performing CPR, carrying a wounded person or splinting a broken limb can literally save your life or the life of a loved one in an emergency. If you don't know where to start, I suggest a first aid course and additional studies on survival first aid and application.
#20. Climbing a Tree or on to a Ledge or Roof
If you're being chased in the forest or even an urban environment, what's the one thing you can do to lose someone? Well, if you have enough head start, you can climb a tree and hope the guy is far enough behind that he has no idea that you went up a tree (or onto a ledge or roof top). Climbing trees, ledges, or on to roofs does take practice, especially with a backpack on.
#21. Keeping the Faith
If you throw in your lot with a gang of thieves and murderers, you're likely to meet a violent end at some point along the way. Thieves and murderers can turn on each other at anytime. A wiser move is to hold on to your faith in God, living with the knowledge that God promises to bring an end to the many dangers that have been set loose in the world. Even if it's your first time considering “God”, it's still not too late to get right with God. Jesus is knocking …

The most prudent lessons to take away from this article are the lessons on avoiding notice. If you've spent hundreds or even thousands of dollars preparing for a survival situation, the last thing you want is people knowing this; they WILL try to take it from you. Meanwhile, being able to work together with your neighbors to keep a watchful eye out on your surroundings and to prepare for encroaching threats is one of the most important things you can do to protect each other in an undesirable situation. Someone may have a skill that you don't, and you will want that person as an ally.

To learn more about long-term survival in a breakdown of society, check out Secrets of Survival.