[Real Old Man]

When contemplating a bug out, it would be best to consider a bug out vehicle first and load it as you should. Within that BUG out vehicle would be grab bags should one be forced to abandon the vehicle and seek other transportation or begin hoofing it. A vehicle allows one to pack a greater amount of survival gear such as food, and it's a ready made shelter that carries itself. I don't plan on bugging out, but I do have a plan for a get home bag as my bug out location is where we currently reside.

 

[NMPRN]

-walkie talkies

Just to flesh out the radio requirement a little...
IMHO
They should be able to be unlocked to operate outside the ham bands so one radio can cover the ham bands and the alphabet soup of non-ham radio services.
They should have replaceable antennas so the antenna world is your oyster and your not crippled by the crappy little antennas they come with.
Programmed with all frequencies you might need (too many to list here)
Paper list of those freqs, repeater coverage maps etc.
A copy of your radio programming file on a laptop, or at least on a thumbdrive
A paper copy of the radio manual (a good one, not the chinglish one that comes with the radio)
A couple of extra batteries and several ways to charge them. (for several reasons I respectfully disagree with the AA idea)
They should be cheap enough so you everyone in your group has one and you can keep a spare or two.
A cable to plug the radio into your cellphone so you use APRS ...and all the other digital modes.
...and a lot of other things that aren't coming to mind

Love um or hate um, there are good reasons Baofengs are damn good prepper radios

 

[Kauboy]

A cable to plug the radio into your cellphone so you use APRS ...and all the other digital modes.
...and a lot of other things that aren't coming to mind

Love um or hate um, there are good reasons Baofengs are damn good prepper radios

I wish I understood more about this to know what significance this has, as it sounds quite impressive to my layman brain.
Can Baofengs do this?

 

[NMPRN]

Can Baofengs do this?

The short answer is yes. Plug an audio interface cable like the BaoFeng BTECH APRS-K1 into your phone and Baofeng and set the Boafeng to use VOX (menu #4) run an app like APRSdroid or any other digital mode that has an app.

You can also add a USB soundcard adapter and plug your Baofeng into any computer with a USB port and open up a whole lot more digital mode options.

If you're real serious you can use a DigiRig with a Boafeng DigiRig cable and use PTT instead of VOX.
...(VOX starts the transmitter with audio, PTT starts it electronically, PTT is better)

Just about any radio will work with digital modes but the Baofeng will do it outside the ham bands and they cost about $20.

***Note to self appointed radio cops: I know programming a Baofeng going outside the ham bands and using digital modes like APRS on FRS frequencies is against the rules, this is only for emergency use.

 

[WineGuy]

It says it works for desktop computers and will be soon for Apple mobile devices

I would consider getting paper maps or printing out maps. If the Chinese or N. Koreans ever put a nuke in one of those weather ballons, we could be looking at an EMP event that would devastate the western US.

 

[Back Pack Hack]

I would consider getting paper maps or printing out maps. If the Chinese or N. Koreans ever put a nuke in one of those weather ballons, we could be looking at an EMP event that would devastate the western US.

An EMP doesn't always mean all electronics will be fried. Some of us keep sensitive electronics in faraday cages.

 

[justinsane]

The short answer is yes. Plug an audio interface cable like the BaoFeng BTECH APRS-K1 into your phone and Baofeng and set the Boafeng to use VOX (menu #4) run an app like APRSdroid or any other digital mode that has an app.

You can also add a USB soundcard adapter and plug your Baofeng into any computer with a USB port and open up a whole lot more digital mode options.

If you're real serious you can use a DigiRig with a Boafeng DigiRig cable and use PTT instead of VOX.
...(VOX starts the transmitter with audio, PTT starts it electronically, PTT is better)

Just about any radio will work with digital modes but the Baofeng will do it outside the ham bands and they cost about $20.

***Note to self appointed radio cops: I know programming a Baofeng going outside the ham bands and using digital modes like APRS on FRS frequencies is against the rules, this is only for emergency use.

In an actual SHTF emergency there are no rules for Ham radio. Even if there were the only scenario I see any enforcement possibility is if our government has become our enemy, even then likely not enforcing the existing rules but rather some newly contrived ban on coms.

 

[NMPRN]

...but rather some newly contrived ban on coms.

We'll still have the Black Echo Project.