The Perils of a covert, clandestine operation

by John White
March 21, 2026

The drive to Friendship was an adventure for sure. Through the cold—21 degrees—and snow all through Kentucky… all of it! It made me imagine I was in the Iditarod race in Alaska at times, with the blowing snow, slushy mush to walk in, and whiteouts.

My wife and I made it to Friendship in as good a time as possible, and we entered the inner sanctum of the NMLRA, known as “the office.” We bought our first load: 25 pounds of Swiss 3F powder. I fell to my knees and said a silent prayer of thanks as my wife handed me a tissue to wipe the tears from my eyes. I was weak-kneed and needed help getting up off the floor at the sight of all that black gold in red-capped and trimmed bottles.

We left with the office staff’s blessing and safe-travel wishes and headed to find a place to sleep for the night, as you can only buy 25 pounds a day, it seems—and we needed 50. It was a restless, sleepless night from the howling cold winds and eager anticipation of getting our final 25 pounds of muzzleloading propellant, so vital to our existence.

We were up at the crack of dawn, headed to the NMLRA fortress, and were warmly greeted by the staff—but we were not offered a cup of coffee. Grrrr. We got our remaining 25 pounds of powder, a combination of Swiss 3F and Schuetzen 2F/3F, completing our order in good shape.

Our return trip to Georgia with our charcoal, sulfur, and saltpeter cargo was fraught with danger and completed on tiptoes to avoid any suspicious activity. We made it home through all the “government attempts” to catch us with the stash of powder. Multiple checkpoints were bypassed, and we left ’em scratching their heads, as we are positive the agents knew we were on the road. My wife has an app on her phone to help avoid these stop-and-frisk checkpoints (also known as “speed trap ahead”), which was a blessing in helping us avoid drawing attention.

So, our muzzleloading propellant is now stashed in various safe houses to avoid confiscation—but if you hear of any potential government plans, please sound the alarm. One if by car, two if by truck, and if they come by helicopter we are screwed.

I still need to check our numbers against the actual costs we paid, including the “bribes” to get the powder delivered down south. Distribution of our supplies has begun, so stay safe and healthy until we meet up on the 28th next Saturday.