Property Patrols are a common topic in my videos and writings. I firmly believe that patrolling ones property or area will be an absolute necessity in a societal collapse or scenario where rule of law has failed to the point of a total breakdown. Whether it be a societal collapse, grid breakdown, major natural disaster, or your favorite Red Dawn scenario, knowing what is going on around you will be vitally important.
Essentially, the majority of Property Patrols are going to be some sort of Reconnaissance Patrol to gain information as to what may be going on around you and then breaking that information down into usable intelligence to decide how it affects you and then to develop a course of action as to how you deal with it. There are 2 main types of patrols.
Combat Patrols - usually assigned missions to engage in combat. They gather information as a secondary mission.
Reconnaissance Patrols - collects information about the enemy, terrain, and resources without detection or engagement, if possible.
The three main types of Reconnaissance Patrols include:
Area Reconnaissance; a concentrated effort to obtain detailed information concerning specific terrain or activity within a specific location.
Zone Reconnaissance; a directed effort to obtain detailed information concerning all routes, obstacles, terrain, and enemy forces within a particular zone defined by certain boundaries.
Route Reconnaissance; a patrol along specific lines of communication such as a road, railway, or waterway, to provide information on route conditions and activities along the route of travel.
The vast majority of the property patrols you see me do (and what you see is a small sample size of what is actually being done) are out at my Bushcamp where I have access to approximately 100 acres of private land for practicing fieldcraft and patrolling skills. On any given outing we may cover anywhere from a half mile to upwards of 3 miles. Many times it is simply checking fence lines, trails for blow downs, signs of others coming and going, and more, but it is always with a purpose. Today I had set out to check on my camp after some recent snowfalls and to scout out a few areas for an upcoming field exercise with a couple other guys. Total distance covered was about 1 mile.
Plus these "Patrols" give me an opportunity to shake out different types of gear and to put proofs of concept into practice all the while legitimately gaining knowledge of the area and providing information as to what is happening on the property. A destroyed deer carcass is a tell tale sign of a pack of coyotes having been on the property, a broken section of field fence may have been caused by a tree blown down from a recent storm, ATV tracks where they shouldn’t be could be signs that folks are trespassing, and heaven forbid you find signs of poaching or encampments on your property. This is all valuable information that you otherwise may not know about if you weren’t getting out.
In the 3 years that I have started this deep dive into patrolling on the property I have learned an immense amount about my gear, my own abilities, and about what works and what doesn’t within the context of my use. The patrols have also provided a way to bring others along with me to learn and practice their own skills.
The reason for sharing this article is to provide a little context for those of you who are interested in learning more about property patrols, but to also bring attention to the naysayers on many of my patrol videos. I get a surprising amount of negative comments regarding the property patrol videos including such things as:
You are carrying too much stuff
Your camo is mismatched
You can’t wear blue jeans
You need to lose weight or you’re fat
Quit playing dress up
Give it up Grandpa
You don’t have enough ammo if you need to break contact
Or the latest comment…
Which is in reference to this video short…
How in the world the guy got all that from a 24 second video is beyond me. But this is the kind of stuff that pushes guys away from going out and learning patrolling skills and then going out and doing their own patrols.
You guys who follow me know that I run a positive channel and simply share what I am learning and doing. My hope is to always encourage and inspire others to get out into the field to learn and train in these skills and to take the Minuteman philosophy seriously.
Resources
And if you are looking for some solid reading material to help with your patrolling and mission planning skills, I highly recommend CM-2 Reconnaissance and CM-8 The Modern Minuteman from The Professional Citizen Project. I have been referencing CM-2 a lot lately as I try to fine tune some skills in the field.
The haters be damned!
Gotta love the Internet commandos that are quick to critique. Keep doing what you're doing, Jay.