View Full Version : Dr. Bronner's - Why Peppermint and Not....
Hi all! I know many hikers - and more here, too - that use Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap.
Why not the Lavender, or Tea Tree Oil, or Almond, or other versions? And,, what seems to be the best way to re-supply - a large bottle in a bounce box, or small bottles in mail drops?
Please help! :confused: Sue
JimSproul
01-08-2006, 22:04
I like the hemp eucalyptus. Nothing removes "foot smell" better as far as I am concerned. Great for washing clothes or your body. Nalgene makes polycarb bottle in the 1 or 2 oz size. I usually just take a partial bottle. Backed-up by a zip lock.
smokymtnsteve
01-08-2006, 22:22
Peppermint taste best when U use doc bronners to brush ur teeth :D
I love Dr Bronners Pepperment soap!!! I have tried them all and they seem to work good for body or clothes, not too bad on hair. The Pepperment seems to keep bugs away for a couple of days, it also 'feels' cleaner to me. I buy the soap in BARS, not in liquid (Campmor). On the AT I used 1 and 1/2 bars. I cut the bars in half and carried 1/2 at a time, using a bounce box.
Wow, have never brushed my teeth with this, what's it like?
Lone Wolf
01-08-2006, 22:55
"Dr." Bronners is BS. You don't need any kind of soap on the AT or any trail for that matter.
MoBeach42
01-08-2006, 23:00
"Dr." Bronners is BS. You don't need any kind of soap on the AT or any trail for that matter.
AMEN! :clap
That said, I started off with some and I think I ditched it in Hot Springs... or Damascus, I can't remember which. You don't need it.
Lone Wolf
01-08-2006, 23:05
It's like those hippy wannabes wearing that patchouli s**t to mask thier funk. Smells worse than BO.
mweinstone
01-08-2006, 23:07
if your that mad over his soap choice ...how mad do you get over starving children? killing mad? of course soap isnt nessesary but free will is.
MoBeach42
01-08-2006, 23:08
It's like those hippy wannabes wearing that patchouli s**t to mask thier funk. Smells worse than BO.
Hah!
LOVE THE B.O.! As Grey Fox once said hiking behind me... "that smell, it's like crack to me!"
Lone Wolf
01-08-2006, 23:14
Starving kids don't care about scent and aesthetics, weinstone.
It's like those hippy wannabes wearing that patchouli s**t to mask thier funk. Smells worse than BO.
Damn! I guess I'm a hippie wannabe - I still love the scent of patchouli! Or maybe I'm just -- a hippie that hid it for all these years under a corporate and now small biz veneer? :rolleyes:
Sue
Lone Wolf
01-08-2006, 23:26
Shower or bathe daily. You won't need that oil. C'mon girl your way past the hippy age.:cool:
Hmmm, just was wondering what it tasted like ;-)
I have never carried it, have only seen it in hiker boxes ( like five different bottles of it alone at the office in Harper's last year - and used some on my dog once, he was not impressed.
Shower or bathe daily. You won't need that oil. C'mon girl your way past the hippy age.:cool:
It's not the need, darlin' -- I just love that scent! But I concur - if someone is using to mask BO, then - yuck. Not a good combo. Like onions with syrup or something :p Sue
D'Artagnan
01-09-2006, 10:36
I don't carry Bronner's when hiking, but I do shave with it in the shower every morning at home.
Nightwalker
01-09-2006, 19:17
I carry about an ounce with me. Could care less whether someone else thinks I need it or not!
:D
smokymtnsteve
01-09-2006, 20:24
I carry about an ounce with me. Could care less whether someone else thinks I need it or not!
:D
yes..I always try to carry at least an OZ with me too...;)
less than an OZ is a misdemeanor.
We carried the smallest bottle they sell in a ziplock bag. Used it to wash ourselves when we could, and washed our cooking pots when neccessary. Hippy or not, at least we didn't smell like onions. And that my friend, was worth it to me...
I carry it with me when I hike. Sorry but there is nothing like heating up some water at the end of a dirty sweaty day and washing your face with the peppermint, the smell is wonderful and it makes me feel fine.
Guess I'm not a "real" man since I like to be clean. I did wash on my thru hike, a lot more than others. A couple of times I was accused of not being a thru hiker because I was "too clean". And my clothes were "too nice". But then I only had one set of clothes so I wanted them to be nice enough to eat at a nice resturant. This, for most of us, is a once in a lifetime trip. I still remember walking up to a resturant where my hiking buddy's were turned away from, yet they excepted me! I prefer not to present myself as trash. I like dr bonnors in bars, no spillage and makes the pack smell nice.
It's like those hippy wannabes wearing that patchouli s**t to mask thier funk. Smells worse than BO.
I like patchouli. It works, and it smells ok to me. I don't wannabe a hippy, either. I simply am what I am.
less than an OZ is a misdemeanor.
Yes, and we thought we'd miss your demeanor too, but with the miracle of the internet, here you are, direct from an Alaskan dog pound.
I have brushed my teeth with Dr. Bronners. It's not as bad as when my Mom washed my mouth out with soap (you'd think I would have learned). I still prefer tooth paste.
And yes, another vote for leaving the soap home. IMO, it doesn't belong in the woods.
icemanat95
01-11-2006, 09:59
Most of the patchouli wearers I have experienced were using it to hide a smell, but the smell wasn't body odor. Marijuana has a pretty distinctive odor and it is hard to cover...patchouli manages it better than a lot of other smells. Of course that has become common enough knowledge with police that the combination of patchouli scent and the wrong clothing choices or attitude will spike a cops suspicion index pretty quick. I've come to hate the smell.
As far as soap is concerned, I've mostly been satisfied with a bit of Ivory soap, a suggestion Weary made some 9 or so years ago on Trailplace (before it turned into a petty dictatorship). Dr. Bronners bar soap would probably work just as well and be more aromatic. Peppermint is also naturally astringent...it breaks up skin oil fairly well.
Tea Tree Oil and Peppermint are both somewhat repellant of insects and such. We keep tea tree oil shampoo handy in case of headlice outbreaks at our kids schools. It won't cure an infestation, but it can prevent one should only mild contact occur. The lice evidently don't like the scent or whatever and are reluctant to make their home in it.
As a hiker I met in the woods said to me one time "it's like a tic-tac for your nut-sack..."
Lanthar Mandragoran
01-12-2006, 05:19
As a hiker I met in the woods said to me one time "it's like a tic-tac for your nut-sack..."
disturbing image, but very true when it comes to the peppermint...
I've found I really like the tea-tree oil bars for home use
NICKTHEGREEK
01-12-2006, 07:27
Hi all! I know many hikers - and more here, too - that use Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap.
Why not the Lavender, or Tea Tree Oil, or Almond, or other versions? And,, what seems to be the best way to re-supply - a large bottle in a bounce box, or small bottles in mail drops?
Please help! :confused: Sue
9 out of 10 bears prefer the taste of hikers who wash with peppermint.
As a hiker I met in the woods said to me one time "it's like a tic-tac for your nut-sack..."
Yes, a disturbing image GUYS -- but -- then why not use the ALMOND OIL version of Br. Bronner's? :D Sue
Skidsteer
01-12-2006, 21:13
Yes, a disturbing image GUYS -- but -- then why not use the ALMOND OIL version of Br. Bronner's? :D Sue
HeHe. Good one.
Hi all! I know many hikers - and more here, too - that use Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap.
Why not the Lavender, or Tea Tree Oil, or Almond, or other versions? And,, what seems to be the best way to re-supply - a large bottle in a bounce box, or small bottles in mail drops?
I use Bonner's Tea Tree (bar and bottle) at home because I like it. It's easier on the skin than regular soaps because it's PH balanced, contains glycerin, and contains Hemp & Jojoba oils. You can use it on your hair and not need a conditioner. I agree with the previous comment about the bar version being easier for travel--just cut em into sections for the bounce box. (I've always used small Nalgene bottles with the liquid.) The scent-free hemp version might be preferred by the bear-scared. :)
Doug Frost
Frolicking Dinosaurs
01-16-2006, 07:20
LMAO @ Sue's suggestion. As Wolf observes, any soap will work, but I do find that a quality soap such as Dr. Bonners works better for the reasons Doug F. sites above. I use peppermint bar pieces for backpacking and liquid in various scents everywhere else.
kittyrock13
03-05-2006, 17:41
what is a bounce box?
a package you repeatedly mail to yourself while on the trail, 'bouncing' it up the trail ahead of you... maybe a few miles to the next post office, or maybe a few weeks and many miles ahead, with hard to find resupply items, rarely used items, etc... if you get there and don't need it, simply forward it to yourself (for free) care of the next post office...
a package you repeatedly mail to yourself while on the trail, 'bouncing' it up the trail ahead of you... maybe a few miles to the next post office, or maybe a few weeks and many miles ahead, with hard to find resupply items, rarely used items, etc... if you get there and don't need it, simply forward it to yourself (for free) care of the next post office...
Bouce boxes can be forwarded to another Post Office with out charge provided they are unopened, and shipped priority mail. Just allow adequate time so you don't arrive at the next town before your box does.
alanthealan
03-14-2006, 13:56
Peppermint tingles ....mmmmmm
Amigi'sLastStand
05-27-2006, 07:41
Peppermint is used in as an animal repellent in many parts of the world. There is also a theory that since many animals are familiar with the odors of the mint family, they are not attracted as easily to it. Then again if Smokey is hungry enough...
I was hiking with a friend of mine, when over the ridge lumbered a HUGE grizzly bear. I turned to run, but caught a glimpse of my friend dropping to his rear end and taking off his hiking boots. I stopped and said 'What the heck are you doing?' He said, 'I'm putting on my tennis shoes.' I said, 'Putting on your tennis shoes?!?! You're wasting your time. If we don't hurry, we'll never outrun that bear!' He said, 'I don't have to outrun that bear, only you.'
grrickar
05-27-2006, 10:37
I love the stuff. I use it each and every campout, not just while hiking. Nothing cuts the dirt and leaves me feeling and smelling better like the stuff. I have never tried the other, but peppermint is da bomb.
I carry a gallon ziploc with a washcloth for bathing. I fill up the bag with water at a stream, walk about 200 yards from where anyone can see me , and away from the water source, and drop the soap in and bathe. I use the liquid in a tiny squeeze bottle.
I was my clothes in a gallon ziploc with water and doc bronners. It makes them smell much better.
It works well for dishes too.
I read somewhere that since peppermint grows naturally in the forest, bears and other critters "know" the smell, so it doesn't peak their interest like other perfumey soaps can. They know following their nose to a peppermint smell leads them to a little plant on the ground. I cannot scientifically confirm or deny this, but it does make sense.
Bigben
Nightwalker
05-27-2006, 19:12
if your that mad over his soap choice ...how mad do you get over starving children? killing mad? of course soap isnt nessesary but free will is.
He ain't mad, just opinionated. LW is one of the nicest folks that I've ever met out there.
We all seem to have different online personnas than how we are in real life. I can be quite an idiot online. Out there, I'm merely stupid. :)