BI - Bugging In - To remain at your primary location in the event of a SHTF event.
BO - Bugging Out - TO leave your primary location in the event of a SHTF event.
BOL - Bug out Location (or land) - Location to which you will BO to in the event of SHTF.

"To BI or not to BI, that is the question"
Bugging In:
Pros:
1. You know the area.
2. Its easy to prepare since that is where you are located.
3. Its easy to protect supplies since you are there.
4. Its easy to get there, since you are there already.
Cons:
1. It may be a little populated. (City or urban area)
2. Its hard to live around supplies everyday.
3. Your wife and kids may eat the supplies as snacks.
4. Its hard to install wells and windmills and solar panels without notice.
5. Neighbors may come knocking WSHTF.

Bugging Out:
Pros:
1. Your BOL can be as isolated as you want
2. You can prepare without onlookers
3. You do not have to tell anyone where you are.
4. You can have open spaces and plenty of food and water sources.
5. Its easy to overstock and leave it alone (out of site/out of mine).
6. Its easy to add outside items if its isolated.
7. You can make it a family camp/vacation site to use it other than WSHTF.
Cons:
1. It may cost additional money to have a second BOL.
2. You may not be able to get to it if its far away.
3. If you do not have a BOL, then you are homeless.
4. There may be roadblocks or traffic concerns
5. Your supplies may get stolen in your absence.
6. Vandalism.
7. Most people are most comfortable at home and its easier with small children.

BOL requirements:
1. Shelter - Durable and permanent. (Tents are not a good long term choice for a family.)
2. Food - Ready to eat and easy to fix. Plus sustainable long term sources. (Gardens, animals, fishing)
3. Water - Bottled and easy to use. Plus long term source. (Well, river, water purifier)
4. Tools - Hand tools for building and repairs. Sewing and domestic items)
5. Personal items - Hygene, cleaners, detergents.
6. Entertainment - Cards, board games, etc.
7. Comfort Items - Generators with fuel, Stoves with fuel, heaters with fuel.

If you plan to BI, always have a plan 'B' for if you must BO.

If you plan to BO, do so early, do not wait until the crowds BO and get caught in the mess.

To BI or not to BI, that is the question"
Bugging In:
Pros:
1. You know the area.
2. Its easy to prepare since that is where you are located.
3. Its easy to protect supplies since you are there.
4. Its easy to get there, since you are there already.
Cons:
1. It may be a little populated. (City or urban area)
2. Its hard to live around supplies everyday.
3. Your wife and kids may eat the supplies as snacks.
4. Its hard to install wells and windmills and solar panels without notice.
5. Neighbors may come knocking WSHTF.

I would chose to bug in, at my age 68 and over 40 yrs here, I'm not about to leave, althou my age wouldn't be a factor, i can still snake logs with a team, carry 80 pound sacks of concrete,cut and split wood, service all the vechiles and do the brake jobs.about the only crises that could stir things up here would be a full blown depression with no oil,gas..
We don't have to worry about earthquakes, tornadoes ,hurricanes,typhoons, poison snakes,alligators,scorpions,
or anything else that other parts of the country do, it does get cold here and snows but we just put another log on the fire, eventually it'll warm up and the snow will melt(we hope). any of the above could happen, but not likely, there are rattlers and copperheads in all dirrections from us, but at least 8 miles away.

one thing that i've never seen mentioned is in a bug in situation, a person should have an outside toilet inside because water could be a real problem for flushing toilets after a week. there is a creek across the rd from my house and a spring that runs out of the hill 50 ft in back of my house, but we may not be able to get to the water. my wife thinks i'm nuts but i've talked about putting one in a corner of the basement, like the porta-potties you rent only homemade out of wood so it could be broke down and the waist took out when the coast is clear, have the waist drop into a wood box on skids so it could be slid to the door and outside, dumped in a hole, covered and the box brought back in. even a dozen USG buckets with tight lids would be ok. keep a few hundred pounds of lime by the potty so when it is used, a cup full of lime can be tossed on the waist, helps keep the stink down, plus an 1-1/2 pvc leading to the outside from the potty.
i think a person should be prepared to stay inside at least 21 days.

i think you've got some excellent points there stainless.

my plan is bug in for most situations. i'd only bug out for something like a localized threat. say flooding, well then it makes no sense to bug in if bugging out is an option.

on your list stainless, one of the cons is "neighbors come knocking". this is a pretty big concern as no matter how fortified you are, if its a mob rule situation, especially a hungry mob rule situation, i dont think theres many of us that could put out our roofs after a few molatov cocktails. you'd get flushed out and whatever is left of your supplies are open game. therefore if you're going to bug in, i'd say you need to subscribe at least somewhat to the whole grey man philosophy. i know its been hotly debated on this site but if you're bugging in and you're not out in the middle of nowhere, its imperative you keep a low profile. and a loaded rifle pointed out the window.

Good post stainless.
On the issue of tents. One of those cement fabric tents that you just add water to and inflate would be ideal for a expedited shelter. Be a handy item to keep around. With one of those you could cache a lot of material at your BOL site and whne you do bug out to it just take that tent with you to set up on site.

I am setup to bug in although I have hedged my bet and found a place where I can BO to in a cvouple of different areas. Have been cacheing pretty heavy in those areas for a couple of years now. No building on the sites though. It was my intention to just build a soddy on site when I needed to, now I am thinking pretty hard on one of those tents and just keeping it available to load in my BOV.

LOL Buffalo, I am also 68 and going nowhere....... I already live 6 miles from a one mule town and as long as they come by car I can heard them from three miles away.

With my six years of supply I'll do ok as long as they leave me alone, which of course they wont........and that's why of the guns

We have some dear friends , shes 65 and he's 80 and we keep telling them they need to put some stuff back for a "rainy day ".
She has told us if something happens , she hopes their at ground zero.
( Anybody heard that befor ?) Slight chance in this little town. Then they say we'll just come to your house.
I showed them the guest cabin, 12'X16' with a wood stove, double bed and a 2 burner cook top.
His idea of a full day is watching the food channel on cable and sending his wife to the store for things for the new receipes he got off TV.
Not exactly my idea of SHTF, workers or folks to keep in the fold....
Anyone else in this situation.............Dennis.........

I hear you.

In most cases I am going to bug in but in case of a total collapse, I am heading to our long term bug out location a small family farm, that I am trying to prep. The wife refers to it as my compound, but she goes along with it so ok.

In that case I know my sister-in -law and her husband and their kid will show up. He will be as usful as tits on a boar and my sister in law not much better. They will have 0 supplies and while still young enough to work both in their 40's they both work office jobs and have NO concept of how to do anything else. But they are the wifes family and my fatherin law, mother in law and brother in law will also be ther adn they are useful so I amafraid they will be allowed in and just become a drain. Oh well family is family

Our only other spot to bug out to is 220 miles away and would have to drive through Anchorage, the largest population in the state.
If we did bug out we would have to take everything with us, If we were there 6 months I sure there would be nothing left here.
Plus driving 2 trucks through road blocks and a hungry hoards of people,
doesn't sound like something I want to do.
So bugging in is still the plan...........Alaskan.......Dennis

Around 1980 I started to believe and realized; where I was at the time; would not be an area I could not survive. I wondered where to go in my state. I took a map of my state
And did the following .Take a compass set the points to draw a circle "Threat area" and shade it out.

75 miles large city
50 miles for every medium city
25 miles small city
5 miles small town
10 miles from any interstate hwy
5 miles major hwy
This how I located a retreat area.

I have been here since 1985

Good advise, Blackhorse:
Guess I fell into your outline without planning it out
125 miles from Anchorage by road, 86 air miles
110 miles to small town of Soldotna/ Kenai
4 1/2 miles from Seward, pop. 2,000
No interstates here.
2 miles to the 2 lane state hiwy. The only road into the area.
Feel secure here and know most folks in the area and are like minded.
.............................Dennis..........