A Cabin in the Woods

While this cabin does have electricity
and charm, it doesn’t have running water.

As my first official
post, I am going to invite you to join me as I travel to the Sunshine Guard Station, a rustic cabin
originally built as part of the Blue Mountain Work Center in 1935. The cabin is
located approximately 43 miles from the town of John Day, Oregon, at 3,700 feet
in elevation.  A beautiful setting, but a terrible location for a person
without a preparedness kit.
As a Red Cross employee,
I’m embarrassed to admit that I am not as prepared as I should be. What’s worse
is that I have access to Red Cross information, and therefore have no
good excuse. So first thing’s first, put together a preparedness kit:

At a minimum, you should have the basic supplies listed below:


Walking into a store
and getting
very basic items took
20 minutes.
Not exactly sure why it’s
taken me
months to take this very
simple step.
  • Water—one gallon per person, per day (3-day supply for
    evacuation, 2-week supply for home)
  • Food—non-perishable,
    easy-to-prepare items (3-day supply for evacuation, 2-week supply for home)
  • Flashlight
  • Battery-powered
    or hand-crank radio
  • Extra
    batteries
  • First aid
    kit
  • Medications
    (7-day supply) and medical items
  • Multi-purpose
    tool
  • Sanitation
    and personal hygiene items
  • Copies of
    personal documents
  • Cell phone
    with chargers
  • Family and
    emergency contact information
  • Extra cash
  • Emergency
    blanket
  • Map(s) of
    the area

      According to the experts here, I still have a long way to
go. Tomorrow’s goal will be to better understand my disaster risks, and prepare
my car and dog for the long journey. Stay tuned! 

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