We bugged out in the middle of Covid without realising it at the time. Were we alone? Or were there other middle class Aussie urbanites just like us? I’ve been down the online rabbit hole over the last two months to get the answer to this question. I wanted to find out if everyday Australians know what a bug out bag is or what ‘bugging out’ even means. Want the answers? It’s a fascinating story…
What is a bug out bag – do Australians even know?
A bug out bag, or BOB, is a backpack with everything you need to survive for 72 hours in the event of an emergency. It’s an survival kit for an immediate evacuation by car or on foot, to a safe location.
The 8 critical features that make a Bug out Bag are:
- A nondescript backpack – not ‘camo’ style but the kind of pack you might see a hiker with.
- Its contents – of lightweight, compact emergency and survival items to meet all of your basic needs for
- How long it lasts – a typical bug out bag is packed for 3 days or 72 hours worth food, water and clothing – or enough until you reach a ‘safe location’.
- Its size – a bug out bag is the ultimate emergency kit. It’s for large scale natural disasters or extreme events.
- Its weight – it must be light enough to carry on your back if you have to walk long distances.
- The way it is prepared – it’s packed in advance and kept handy in your home or car at all times.
- Its customisation – along with meeting our common human survival needs, the contents are personalised to your individual circumstances.
- Its versatility – you can pack it for one person or for several.
Why is it called a ‘bug out bag’?
The term “bug out” comes from the American military. They used it to describe times when soldiers had to leave their base or camp in a hurry, usually under threat.
These days, the term bug out has become more mainstream, especially by preppers.
A bug out bag holds everything you need to escape a dangerous situation and head to a safer place. You would grab your bug out bag and head to your ‘predetermined bug out location’, which we’ll talk about later.
Since Covid, ‘bugging out’ has become synonymous with escaping from the pandemic and mandatory lock downs. Bugging out of locked-down cities to regional and remote areas became ‘a thing’ in Australia. Some of us chose a different version of bugging out – a permanent one.
‘Bug out bag’ vs. ‘Emergency Go Bag’
A Bug out Bag is often confused with an Emergency Go Bag. But it’s not the same.
A Go Bag is for evacuation to a shelter or evacuation centre. These places already have infrastructure and many provide food, shelter and bedding. So you won’t find provision for these items in a Go Bag.
But a Bug out Bag must have food, shelter and bedding. The idea is, you’re heading away from infrastructure, to a safer place. A place where you are on your own. To take care of your own needs.
This is the main difference between them.
Everyday Australian’s think more in terms of Evacuation Kits than we do Bug out Bags. The Queensland Government calls these evacuation kits ‘Go Bags’.
Governments and Fire and Emergency Services are starting to encourage people living in natural disaster prone areas down under to pack a Go Bag.
There is a growing realisation that with the worsening scale of natural disasters here, Aussies need to be more self-reliant and resilient. That our emergency services can’t help everyone in large scale natural disasters.
What is a ‘bug out shelter’?
A ‘bug out shelter’ is a safe place you can go to in the event of an emergency or natural disaster. It could be a family home in the country, a remote cabin in the woods, or even just a tent pitched in an undisclosed location. The important thing is that it’s somewhere you can go to be safe and self-sufficient for a period of time.
When it comes to bugging out, Australians have a few options. We can bug out to a regional area, bug out to the bush, or bug out to a remote island. We could even bug out on a boat with all of the coastline here.
What is a bug out vehicle?
A bug out vehicle is a car, or motorbike that can be kitted out with everything you need to bug out in an emergency. This includes your bug out bag and any off-grid provisions you might need when you get to your destination – like extra fuel, solar panels, a generator or tools.
The benefits of a Bug out Bag
Having a bug out bag packed and ready to go is a safety net in case of emergencies or natural disasters.
Being ready to leave immediately and evacuate quickly to a safe location can be life-saving in many situations – especially in a bush fire, flash flood, or cyclone.
All of these are common in Australia. And they’re all fast moving events that can be upon you before you know it.
Bug out Bags can also prove handy to flee a snap lock down, as we witnessed during the pandemic.
Why would you need a Bug out Bag in Australia?
The reasons you would need a bug out bag in Australia are different than in the US.
In Australia, we’re more likely packing for what’s called a ‘permissible’ environment. One where you’re just looking to get to a safer location in an emergency or natural disaster.
One where you don’t have to worry so much about threats from other humans.
We have our Bug out Bag packed for flooding and bushfire emergencies. We’re not preppers planning for doomsday. But we are ready for natural disasters to become more intense in our lifetime.
When I lived in Japan, we had a Bug out Bag for earthquakes. We packed it because if an earthquake hit, we wouldn’t have power, water or shelter for some time.
In the US, people pack Bug out Bags and prepare bug out locations for a whole bunch more serious reasons. Like civil unrest, nuclear attack, economic collapse, wide spread power outages or cyber attacks.
Pretty scary stuff that we don’t tend to think about much here down under. Or maybe you do..?
Are everyday Australians bugging out?
In 2020 the Australian Bureau of Statistics recorded the largest migration of Australians moving to regional areas from capital cities since records go back.
The net number of people moving to regional Australia doubled during covid. City dwellers found compelling reasons to relocate to regional Australia.
Those reasons?
Lifestyle. Remote work. But also lockdowns, food supply disruptions, fear and uncertainty.
Without doubt, prepping forums and Youtube channels roared to life as people’s own lives spun out of control during the pandemic. You might even say prepping went mainstream.
Younger, employed Australians not only fled cities for regional areas, they fled them to live off-grid.
I guess we did our own form of bugging out in March 2021, moving from Brisbane’s northern suburbs to rural Tasmania. We did it for financial reasons. And like everyone else we knew, we were freaked out by lockdowns and food restrictions.
There’s a spectrum to off-grid living and we’re on it.
We’re not doomsday preppers We don’t think human society is headed for imminent collapse. But we did make sure we bought a house on a creek, with unlimited water and a septic system.
The only infrastructure we rely on is power. But we’re fully prepared to backup the grid from renewable sources. For the first time, we grow our own food and provide for our own water. The air is fresh and we have space to breathe.
We have a bug out bag here too ironically.
But it’s mainly for if the creek floods or a bushfire comes through. With it, we worry less about where the world is headed. We feel less vulnerable, more resilient.
Buying land for when SHTF
You’d be amazed at how many people we’ve met in rural Tasmania who bought a second home here during Covid. Most were from Melbourne.
Rural homes for sale on a couple of acres were like hens teeth. They would often go for 20% above asking price, site unseen. We bought our partially off-grid rural home at its first open home for well above the asking price. It was what we had to do.
It was not a coincidence that Melbourne was also one of the most locked down places in the world.
Undoubtedly, people wanted a Plan B. A place to escape the city if shit hit the fan again. Some wanted permanent relief, from the vortex of Covid and all the worries and stress that went with it, for a simpler life.
They’re not hardcore survivalists. They’re not stockpiling and rehearsing end-of-world scenarios. They just wanted to be able to look after themselves if systems failed. And they couldn’t do that in their urban or suburban homes.
Arguably, Australians are ‘bugging out’. Permanently it seems. But bugging out here seems to be a lifestyle choice. Not a manic paranoia that the world is about to end.
Where to bug out to in Australia?
How do you know where to bug out to?
Well if you’re escaping to a secondary, remote location, then think about infrastructure (you won’t have any) and climate. Here’s a list of what to ask yourself:
- What essential services will you need to provide for yourself?
- Is there enough rain to fill your tanks year round?
- Is there sunshine and fertile soil to grow food?
- Where will you get power?
- Will you have communications – mobile signal, wireless internet?
- How far to supplies or medical services?
Don’t forget the big one – can you afford it? Can you live there and still have an income? Or can you do without an income, if SHTF?
Domain has named popular Australian regional spots for self reliant, off-grid living:
- Tasmania – Cygnet and the North West Coast
- SA – Willungu and the Fleurieu Peninsula
- WA – Denmark, Mundaring, Margaret River, Darlington and Bridgetown
- NSW – Katoomba, Northern NSW, Bega, Lightning Ridge and parts of Wagga
- VIC – Research, Castlemaine, Dimboola, Hepburn Springs, Yackandandah, Warburton, Foster, Monbulk, Maryborough, Foster, Daylesford.
A true survivalist will never reveal their bug out location. But that’s why we will happily admit to ending up in one of thsse locations. We’re not survivalists!
What to put in a bug out bag?
Our own Bug out Bag is packed for our surroundings and climate. Just like yours should be.
But there are some essentials that should be in every Bug out Bag; the essentials for human survival in all conditions. You can read about them in this article ‘What is typically in a bug out bag’. They are:
- water
- warmth/shelter
- light
- food
- communication
- first aid.
This Bug out Bag Essentials List will step you through exactly what essentials you should pack. It’s a 2-page cheat sheet that covers all the basics. Its free and downloadable in PDF.
You can customise your bug out bag from there by thinking about the following:
- What natural disasters or emergencies might you face?
- What are the local weather conditions?
- How will you evacuate (on foot, by car, riding with others)?
- What is your skill level when it comes to self reliance?
- What special needs do you and your family have?
Alternately, this Ultimate Bug out Bag List for Australian conditions will take care of all of the thinking for you. Select from the list quickly and easily without worrying about what you’ve forgotten.
Conclusion
Australian’s have been bugging out of high density areas for the last 2 years, without knowing it. We did, and we’re not at all doomsday preppers. And while we don’t think about in terms of bugging out, since Covid we’ve sought out opportunities to be more self-reliant, if the SHTF. To take control of what we can, as the world spins around us. As for Bug out Bags, well even State governments are encouraging everyday Australians to pack evacuation kits in case of emergency. Some call it the ‘doom boom’, we call it logical, in a sometimes crazy word.
