Finding a Guerrilla Grow: The Ghost finds OPP (Other People’s Pot)

Finding OPP, That They Thought Was Hidden

Jerry here. In fifty years of “Ghosting” through the deep woods, I haven’t just been looking at my own plants. I’ve occasionally looked for, and found what I call OPP—Other People’s Pot—more times than I can count. From massive, 1,000-plant commercial operations run like military camps to tiny, to three-plant “hobby” patches tucked into a briar patch, I’ve seen it all.

Finding someone else’s grow isn’t a “jackpot”; it’s a warning. It means you aren’t as alone as you think you are, and it’s time to be the most invisible version of yourself. Not only so they do not find your grow, but to stay alive. There are folks out there would will kill you and grow pot on your grave…I realize that sounds dramatic…but that is reality….at least back in the day.

Over the decades, I’ve stumbled into about four major commercial sites and probably twenty smaller patches. I generally did not linger, especially the big cartel grows I have found.

What I’ve Learned from Finding OPP:

• The “Trash” Trail: many grows can be found because of garbage. I’ve found sites because I spotted a single blue Gatorade bottle or a discarded nutrient jug a quarter mile away. If you leave trash, you aren’t a Ghost; you are asking to be found.
• The “Water Pipe” Highway: I once followed a black irrigation line for a quarter-mile straight into a massive grow. If you run a pipe from a creek, you’ve just built a sidewalk for anyone to walk right to your door.
• The “Straight Line” Path: Most people walk in straight lines straight to their grow, and use the same trail. The trails they leave have taken me to most of the grows I have found. I have also found trails where the grower would cut a big tree limb and put there to disguise the trail…I mean really? A big dead limb cut off with a saw, dying leaves and all….is no disguise…
• What to Do if You Stumble Onto a Grow: If you stumble into a grow—especially a big commercial one—leave immediately. Do not touch the plants, do not take “samples,” and do not look for the grower. These sites are often guarded, and the people running them aren’t always “good people.” Back out exactly the way you came in…NOW!

Op-Sec Tip: One more tip on finding a big grow, do not use a trail if there is one. Break through the brush beside the trail when leaving. I have found booby trapped trails near big grows before (the kind they used in Vietnam)…sometimes these people mean business, and some of them simply do not care at all about you…only the $$$!

Finding OPP taught me that most growers are lazy. They think the woods are empty. But the Ghost knows better. The woods are never empty; they’re just waiting for you to make a mistake.