The Pickled Prepper

Recommended Reading

Making bread is far cheaper than buying it.

How to Prepare for the Coming Wheat Shortage

Wheat prices are soaring, and it doesn't bode well for your grocery bill. Here are some tips for managing the rising cost of bread and related products.
A Water Treatment Plant

How and Where to Get Your Water After the SHTF

So you have stored food, great! But how are you prepped for water? And what would you do without the sewer system? Keep reading for answers and options.
A warfighter in camo

What Kind of Prepper Are You? Guns vs Food

Guns play a role in preparedness, especially in this day and age. But where do they fall in your priority list? Before or after food?
A cabin or retreat in the mountains

How to Find Your Survival Retreat

Having a retreat is one of the ultimate prepper dreams, but you don't have to buy one, you just need to identify a place that will welcome you.
SHTF Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay.

What Survivors Will Need to do After the SHTF

If you are lucky enough to survive the SHTF disaster that destroys society and our way of life, you will need these skills to stay alive.
Hurricane evacuation route signage

How to Use a Generator During a Power Outage

As Hurricane Isaias heads towards Florida and the Southeast, we figured it was a good time to talk about how to use a generator during a power outage.

Prepping Articles

Seven nuclear-ca[able B-2 stealth bombers have been positioned on an air base in Diego Garcia.

B-2 Stealth Bombers Movements Could Herald War with Iran

Is the U.S. threatening the Houthis or Iran by positioning seven B-2 stealth bombers within striking distance of the Middle East?
Canned goods from Sam's Club

Buying Things on Sale and in Bulk

Prepping is a great excuse to take advantage of sales and buy in bulk to stock up. Just do so wisely and don't get carried away.
This is what AI imagines the F-147 will look like when accompanied into battle with autonomous "collaborative combat aircraft."

Are Rare Earth Minerals the New Oil?

For a century, wars were fought over oil and access to it. It looks like the next war may be fought over rare earth minerals.
Online shopping can be useful in the early stages of an emerging SHTF event.

What’s in Your Shopping Cart?

If the you-know-what is hitting the fan, do you have time to go shopping? Will UPS and Fedex still deliver? And if so, what should you order?
The IBC Tote positioned outside the house near our solar inverter and a woodpile. When filled with water, this will give us 275 gallons of water for firefighting.

Setting up an IBC Tote as a Firefighting Tank

Preparing for the possibility of forest fires, we set up and test our first IBC tote. It holds 275 gallons of water we can use to fight brush fires.
I stacked and sorted our canned foods as part of the inventory process.

Do Prepping and Hoarding go Together like Peas and Carrots?

People talk about hoarding like its a bad thing. Maybe it is if you can't control it, but stockpiling goes hand-in-hand with prepping.
Destruction in Ukraine as a result of Russian attacks.

Europe Rededicates itself to War in the Face of Peace

While Trump brings Putin to the Peace Table, Europe seems to be embracing the war. But as the EU re-invests in its military, the danger grows.
Pete replaced the lock on his gun safe. As you can see, the old one had taken some abuse.

Channeling my Inner Locksmith to Upgrade my Security

How we renovated and updated the old gun safe that came with the house, including replacing the old mechanical combination lock with a better model.
I battle the evil that is Durin's Bane just so I can find cheap IBC totes.

Fighting Wildfires and the Balrog

As 180 wildfires pop up across the Carolinas and Eastern Tennessee, Pete steps up his preps to fight wildfires.
Right now, someone paying with a bunch of coins is looked down upon. In the future, coins known as junk silver may be your salvation.

The Latest Prepper Threat will Hit your Wallet

Pete has identified a new threat in our future and has changed his 2025 prepping plans to better prepare for it.
What goes up, must come down, especially when the bubble bursts.

Prepping for Bubbles and Irrational Exuberance

Whether its the AI bubble or the everything bubble, chances are it will eventually pop. Here's how to prep for the day the market crashes.
The capitol in Washington

FEMA, Trump, DOGE, and the Dems

Trump's election is stirring up the folks in Washington, but out here in Rural America, it's helping people affected by Helene get FEMA payments
If you have not done so, start working on your taxes,

Taxes and the Future of the IRS

Pete's busy doing his taxes and ruminating on Trump and the IRS.
The technical support specialists at Franklin WH were very helpful as we tried to figure out why the generator could not power our batteries (the two boxes see in the center and right right). Turns out we had to replace a current transformer.

Solar Power Not so Hot in the Winter

While our solar power system is now working at 100 percent, it's producing less than half the power it did in August. Some lessons here if you plan to go off grid.
Worried about money? You are not alone.

How to Prep for an Uncertain Economic Future

Are we heading into a recession or an economic boom? Does the future hold pain, or gain? Here's how to prep for an uncertain economic future.
California forest burns. Photo by Matt Howard on Unsplash

Prepping for a New Threat on the Homestead

Thanks to all the trees Hurricane Helene blew down, a large area of the Appalachian Mountains are now threatened by fire.
Gold coins and bars

Gold Breaks $2,900, Sets New Record

Spot gold touched $2,942 on Monday, before dropping to around $2920. That's a 43 percent increase in the past year.
This muddy hillside isn't pretty looking, but it is a big improvement over what was there immediately following the landslide, when the mud was four feet thick. You can see where a section of the hill just slide away, leaving a muddy scar. The row of rocks at the bottom were too big for us to remove, so we pushed them up against the hillside.

More Post-Helene Repairs get Done

A break in the winter weather led to a big thaw during which we got plenty of work done, including more Hurricane Helene clean up.
The U.S. is spending money like a giddy teenager and will soon have trouble paying all its bills.

Party Like its 1899

Back in 1899, there was no income tax, no federal reserve, and the U.S. was prosperous thanks to Tariffs. Trump wants us to repeat history.
Two winterized beehives

Beehives and Bullets

A trip to help a local beekeeper turns into an afternoon at the range as we try out his new build and have fun with suppressors.
Buckle up, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

Buckle Up, Buttercup, Disruption is Coming

Tariffs, taking over the Panama Canal, arresting illegal immigrants, threating to buy Greenland. When does this crazy ride end?
Will an all-powerful AI be a danger to society or will it aid support us?

Will AI Become a Threat to Humanity?

Should we fear AI or the autonomous robots and weapons it will make possible? Will it threaten or benefit society?
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Water Woes Continue as we are Frozen Out

Five days later, we are still living without running water. It's a learning experience and we share some lessons and tools with you as well as our next steps.
Keltec Introduced the PR57 at SHOT Show 2025. it's an unusual but strangely appealing firearm.

New Guns and Accessories – SHOT Show Report

Guns should be an important component of your preparedness plan and may aid in your survival after the SHTF. Pete takes a quick look at some new ones.
Los Angeles County is about 4,800 square miles and has approximately 10 million residents. In addition to the city of Los Angeles, it includes Beverly Hills, Burbank, Glendale, Inglewood, Long Beach, Malibu, Pasadena, Santa Monica, Torrance, and more than 60 other cities.

Weather, Fire, the Economy, War and More

2025 is off to a rough start and more trouble brewing, but many positive things are as well. Will it be a good year or a bad year?
A side-by-side or UTV might be just what we need for our steep terrain.

Evaluating Transportation Options for Post SHTF

What kind of vehicle do we need that would be useful now and after the SHTF? Pete evaluates at several popular options.
Inflation has already hit eggs and is driving up prices of beef as well.

Time to do Some Stocking Up

Inflation, tariffs and international sanctions are some good reasons to make some strategic purchases before prices rise.
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