Love and kindness are the very basis of society. If we lose these feelings, society will face tremendous difficulties; the survival of humanity will be endangered. - Dalai Lama
I get a kick out of being an outsider constantly. It allows me to be creative. - Bill Hicks
The status quo sucks. - George Carlin
“If the fool would persist in his folly, he would become wise.” – William Blake
Bug Out Bag and Bicycle – Winter Camping Gear Setup
Dear Survival Journal,
I got a way late start. Was also considering busing to the warming center in Astoria, OR. That’s smart.
Hiking 7 miles ain’t. But I was determined to bog through the uphill swamp: half in the dark. I got turned around at one point where trees fell over the path. I also slipped once, but rehearsed in my head what to do. I threw my 1 gallon water jug, and braced myself. Yup, I carried a heavy water container from Ave. U to The Hiker Cabins on Tillamook Head. My shoulders and arms are torn up. My 110 liter Kelty backpack had to be 70 pounds.
Plus, I was running on a bum sprained ankle…wore a too tight brace…My left shoulder hurt the most. It was so tight. But I had an indica BHO cartridge in my vape pen to finish off. It was charging in my bag on the hike with a portable power bank charger. I brought too much stuff. Like 6 pairs of socks, an umbrella, a dud smoke grenade, and a giant tarp. It’s 11am – dark at 4:25pm. So cold. My hands are numb.
Email Cam The Cuddler and Survival Bros Founder: thesurvivalbros@gmail.com
Cameron McKirdy drives his vehicle, a 1986 Volkswagen Vangon in gross, extremely dangerous Winter weather conditions near the beach in Seaside, Oregon.
Survival Bros Tips for driving in rain:
Turn your lights on
Obey traffic laws
Allow extra time and distance between yourself and other cars
Have good windshield wiper blades and/or Rain-X the front
Take your time (go slower), plus let people in (merge), and people to cross the road
Avoid distractions like filming, texting while driving, and singing to music in your car
Please try NOT to soaking pedestrians with enormous puddles near sidewalks!
Survival Bros drives in dangerous road conditions through Champaign, Illinois. It was 29 degrees. First came an inch of snow, then freezing rain, followed by a hail storm. The worthless rental car, a Kia Soul, was covered in an inch of ice, and struggled to stay on the slippery road! There were accidents all over the place, but it looks like the worst winter weather is behind us now. Stay tuned for additional HD videos. Please enter your email on the top left side of the blog to follow all of our posts. More intense stuff soon. Thanks for visiting! Get prepared.
Would you use an icicle in a survival situation to protect yourself from an attacker? Survival Bros considers packing ice as an EDC item while outside just in case of an emergency. More silly videos shortly. Please like, comment, and subscribe to us on YouTube. Best wishes.
John McClane’s quick thinking saves his life yet again in the movie Die Hard 2
The first nasty storm of the season is underway on the Oregon Coast. The wind is bending trees, and flooding is a possibility. I’m surprised the power is still on. Seaside, OR is expected to have gusts up to 80 miles per hour! Have a survival kit together, and an emergency plan for your family. Here’s a checklist of supplies to gather just in case of a disaster.
– Water (A gallon per person per day for a minimum of 3 days.)
– Fuel AKA gas for cooking, and dry wood for fire
– Food (Stores could close for days without electricity. Don’t buy perishable goods that need to be refrigerated. Think fruit.)
– Candles
– Flashlights and headlamps with fresh batteries
– Blankets
– Shelter (It’s probably a good idea to stay inside, so you don’t get wet and sick.)
– Emergency Weather Radio
– Toys for kids, and treats for pets, because they will be scared in a super storm
– First Aid
– Gas (Fill up your vehicle in case there’s a rush for fuel, and you can’t get some later.)
– Books (Maybe ones on emergency planning. We don’t want you to lose your mind without TV.)
– Whistle to signal for help
– Multi-tool and Wrench to turn off water, etc.
– Moist wipes, and garbage bags for sanitation and personal hygiene
– Local maps
– Manual Can Opener
– Generator and/or solar charger for electrical devices
– Cash/Silver/Barter Items
– Rain Gear/Warm clothes
– Prescription Medications
– Lighter and waterproof matches
– Paper and Pen for notes, and more checklists
– Communications: Cell Phones with chargers, and two-way radios
With all or most of these things you should be good to go, and ready for a super storm bringing flooding. If you can think of any other handy items, please leave your suggestions in the comment section. Thanks, and wish us Oregonians good luck this weekend. It’s going to be a wild one. Peace and love from Survival Bros.
Here’s a link to the live webcam in Seaside, OR on The Lanai at The Cove so you can checkout the current conditions.
There’s no flooding on Highway 101 right now, but high tide isn’t until this evening.
It looks like Highway 101 is starting to flood! Be careful out there.
This weekend my buddy Mac and I biked from Astoria to Fort Stevens State Park located along the Oregon Coast. It was dumping rain. Nearly two hours later, we checked into hiker biker camp, and begun another wild Survival Bros adventure.
Luckily, Mac’s wife Shauna was kind enough to drop our gear off at camp. Riding in with a 50 pound backpacking bag would have been brutal, and unsafe since we had to negotiate the narrow shoulder of the Astoria bridge. Semis were seeing how close they could get to clipping us. Setting up the massive 8 person tent was easy. The only break we got in the weather occurred when we made camp. After our gear was setup, lantern hanged, and sleeping bag unrolled, we tightened up our boots and peddled deeper into the state park.
Along the path we stopped to identify many mushrooms. The park was exploding with life. Fungi hunting season is far from over. There were huge patches of fresh Amanitas everywhere. One had a bite taken out of it, as we could see teeth marks. Must have been a deer, or a crazy person.
Over the last few weeks, my pals and I have scoured a good chunk of Fort Stevens. It’s incredible how many types of terrain there are. From Coffenbury Lake, to the dunes near the Pacific Ocean. I finally found King Boletes just south of the jetty, west of the road. I hunted down the biggest King growing under a tree branch, in pine needles. I got video of me cutting it, but the power is out in Astoria now, so I can’t edit the HD footage. Here’s a photo of the big boletes we found. The choice mushroom nuggets are going in an omelette immediately, and spaghetti tonight for dinner.
Due to my phone about to die, and the power being out, I’m uploading this blog now. I will complete the story, and add more pictures and video very soon. Stay safe out there. We are getting blasted with 98 MPH winds right now. Peace.
– Cameron McKirdy
This is a picture of Seaside, OR taken today!
Update: Back to the story. Mac and I spent one night in hiker biker camp. It’s $6 per evening. Fort Stevens actually moved the spot, because where they usually stash the gypsies floods this time of year. When we got into our tent we were soaked. I quickly changed my clothes, then we started making dinner. I busted out a Mountain House lasagna, and boiled the water for it in my Jetboil Zip. After sitting for a good ten minutes in the bag, it was ready to dish out. Mac prepared 8 beef hotdogs on his Coleman stove. The warm grub was much needed. We biked around 15 miles that day.
After mushroom hunting on day one, it poured back at the tent. Luckily the spot we pitched our tent didn’t flood. We didn’t realize how bad of a storm it was until we were in it. Thank God we had shelter. The stoves kept the tent warm for awhile, until we passed out. I was also glad I brought my small windup lantern. It was bright for maybe 25 minutes in between cranks. After that, it cast just enough light to not stumble over our gear and dirty dishes.
On day two in Fort Stevens we ate another Mountain House freeze dried meal for breakfast. I love their blueberry granola with milk. I added freeze dried apples too. We had two more hotdogs each, then set out on our bikes again. This time we went out toward the South Jetty. That’s where we found the King Boletes. I was so amped to find those monster mushrooms. We saw other mushroom pickers out there, and duck hunters too.
We smashed through the brush for a few hours, but the storm kept getting crazier. Mac and I were totally drenched. But the trip was well worth the suffering. We put food on the table, and learned a lot along the way. Foraging is so fun! Supermarkets are for suckers. Our ride swooped us, and we made a clean getaway, and broke camp. You know Survival Bros will be out there again soon. Cheers.
Cameron McKirdy Mushroom Hunting at Fort Stevens State Park
Video of our mushroom foray on the North Oregon Coast
Survival Bros by Cameron McKirdy 