Do You have an Emergency Cash Stash?

I have a confession to make. When I was moving all the .22LR ammo out of my safe to take the photo for my recent post, I uncovered one of those envelopes the bank teller gives you when you withdraw cash. And it was fat.

I opened it up and counted out $1,800, half in twenties. Woah!

What’s weird is I have no memory of hiding that envelope in there. I don’t know how long it’s been tucked away, but I suspect it’s been since we moved in 2020. I must have slipped it under there and never looked under that ammo since. It was just a fluke that I did so now.

It’s enough to make me wonder if I have anything else hidden away.

Emergency Cash

I have two sealed envelopes in my safe with $400 in each that are labeled “Grab-and-Go Cash.” This is in addition to the day-to-day cash in my safe, which varies from nothing to maybe $300. I replenishing the cash in my pocket with the day-to-day cash, but the grab-and-go cash is for emergencies.

I started the emergency cash habit when we had a retreat and planned to bug out there. The $800 was intended to give us cash to buy gasoline on the way and possibly some groceries if the ATMs, credit card processing machines, or electricity were out. The two envelopes were so that my wife and I, who would be in separate cars in a two-vehicle convoy, could each have one.

I’ve tapped into it every now and again if when we needed cash, but I’ve always replenished it. I know dang well I never had $1,800 in one of those grab-and-go envelopes.

Gold or Guns?

My best guess is I set the cash aside to buy gold. On January 1, 2021, Gold was $1,798 an ounce. We had closed on our old house the month prior and I was feeling good about the profit I made selling it, so I suspect I set aside some cash to buy an ounce of gold. I don’t remember why I never did, but I can speculate it is because I discovered there are no local coin dealers out here and the pawn shops charge a very high premium.

In the confusion of moving, followed by Christmas, I apparently forgot the money was there. Too bad, because that gold would be worth an additional $650 today. Instead, I have $1,800 in Federal Reserve notes that won’t buy as many groceries or as much gas as it did four years ago. At least the cost of firewood has remained pretty stable.

Hiding Cash Under the Mattress

I’ve never hidden cash under the mattress. The concept obviously came about because if someone tried to steal it while you were asleep, it would wake you up.

I understand the pioneers would often bury their money under the campfire when they stopped overnight during their wagon ride out west. That’s not a bad plan. If you were raided or driven off, you could always find the pile of ashes and know where to dig to recover your money.

My hiding place was certainly secure. It was so secure I didn’t find it for four years.

When I took the pistol braces off my AR pistols, I hid them away so no government official could accuse me of planning to make an illegal short-barreled rifle. When the law was vacated after a curt struck it down, I could only find one brace. Apparently, I did too good a job hiding them. I had to use a cheap brace I had pulled off years ago, putting it back on instead of the preferred SB Tactical arm brace.

I am 99 percent sure the missing brace is in the house or the garage, but I don’t know exactly where. And I‘ve looked. Repeatedly.

Lesson: Be careful where you hide stuff. It might stay hidden. Even from yourself.

Building a Wall

Back when I replaced the garage door with a man door, I framed the inside, insulated the new wall with R13 fiberglass, and built a new interior wall facing the garage. At the time, I considered stashing an AR15, eight mags, and at least one.30 caliber ammo with 420 rounds of 5.56 ammo inside the wall I was building. I didn’t do it, mostly because I was afraid no one would know it was there after I died. In hindsight, I kind of wish I had.

Why board up a gun into the wall? So you will have a fallback plan if they come to confiscate your guns. I don’t think confiscation is likely to happen on a national scale, but if you are involved in a self-defense shooting and the prosecutor wants to be a dick, they could move to confiscate your guns. All your guns, not just the one you used in the shooting. Also, with red flag laws, you just never know.

If you are looking to hide away guns to avoid government confiscation, then hide those the government doesn’t know you own, such as weapons purchased in a private sale. If you purchased it from an FFL, the record might already be in government hands.

When hiding guns for prepping purposes, safety and security are the most important thing. You want to hide them in a manner in which they will stay dry and no one will stumble upon them.

Hidden Caches

A cache is off-premises hiding place, usually used by preppers to pre-position supplies on the way to their bugout location or near your intended retreat. I use caches to pre-position ammunition, medical supplies, and some basic foods on and near our property, with the furthest one being only a few miles away. My thought is we can access these caches if we are ever forced to run from our home with only the clothing on our back, the pistol in our waistband, and the rifle slung over our shoulder. Even the largest of these caches will not sustain us for more than a few days, but it should allow us to re-supply and then harass whomever it is that took over our house.

I like ammo cans for buried caches. They come in a variety of sizes and are waterproof. You can wrap or seal them further to prevent water penetration. Some people buy or build caches from PVC tubing, and I’ve seen cases where sonar buoys are used for caches. I got nothing against plastic, but I know I can open an ammo can without tools. I’m not convinced that’s true for PVC tubes. Whatever you bury, just be 100 percent certain you can find it again.

Other Caches

Most caches are buried, but if you are setting one up on the way to your retreat, you could always rent a storage unit and cache things in it. Even a 5×5 room will hold a surprising amount of of supplies if you pack it well.

I would not leave $1,800 or a couple ounces of gold in a storage unit. $500 and a role of silver dimes would be as much as I was willing to lose. My preference for stocking this kind of cache includes food, water (if it won’t freeze), some old clothes, an old firearm, and enough ammo to replenish your loadout. Nothing wrong with leaving old camping gear in there as well. If you’re stuck walking to your retreat, the ability to pick up a sleeping bag, some ammo, and a few MREs would be a tremendous benefit.

When I stored goods in a storage unit, I would put a row or two of ammunition boxes on the bottom of a storage box and then fill the rest of the box with books. Then I’d label the box “books.” If someone broke into the storage unit, the box would appear to have books in it, which would explain its weight. I also stored guns inside a cardboard U-Haul wardrobe. I put a long gun or two in the middle and surrounded it with old clothes and label it “Dad’s old clothes.” As long as the guns don’t clank or thunk, no one can tell they are in there without making a deep search.

If you use this method, get some old furniture and pile it right inside the storage unit’s door. This adds to the authenticity and makes it less likely people will think there is something desirable inside.

What About the $1,800?

So, you ask, what did I do with the $1800? Nothing. I put it back where I found it. Maybe it will go to a future gun purchase, or I can use it to buy some gold if the price drops. Worst case, it will provide a year’s worth of firewood. In the meantime, I’m going to hold on to it, happy to have some “extra” spare cash in an emergency.