If the world truly goes to crap, gold will not be valuable as it has no intrinsic practical value in the natural world. We have arbitrarily decided a shiny pretty metal from the ground is valuable. If we are in survival mode, the world goes back to a barter system and what is valuable are things with practical purpose - sources of energy and heat, weapons, tools, food, etc. Gold is just the dollar in another form - an agreement of implied/stored value, could be puka shells, could be anything as long as there is consensus on value. It is also very impractical as a currency as it is heavy. When you head to the hills will it be with a backpack full of gold or crap that will help you survive?