View Full Version : Bathroom business
SL_amani
10-26-2006, 01:32
This is an essential question: how does one go about expelling excrement while hiking the trail? Is the protocol simply to walk a certain distance from the trail? I hope that I don't have to carry a duce vessel with me; that would be terrible. BTW, do people use the term "duce" on the trail? Because on all of my wilderness experiences, the term duce is more than ubiquitous.
Thanks,
Shane
Yes , when you gotta go, you gotta go, so the protocol would be to get as far off the trail and way from streams or other water sources as possible , dig a 6 inch hole (or best you can) with whatever you can dig with (some carry little plastic spades for such but I use the heel of my boot and dont see the need for anything else) and try your best to get it in the hole and cover it up with dirt and I usually try and put something like rocks or sticks etc over it (helps to prevent some other poor hiker (or their dog) from stepping or using that same spot if ya know what I mean ?) otherwise you would have to use the few privies (or gazebo`s as Sam Waddle and I painted on the one at Jerry Cabin lol ) there are (yuck), otherwise hold it until the next town ! At least that`s better than climbers who have to do it in a ziplock baggie and pack it into a waterbottle and pack it out,, omg, not for me !
Hope this helps,
RAT
Pokey2006
10-26-2006, 01:46
Get used to the idea of doing your business in a privy (outhouse), and chances are you'll rarely have to dispose of your own excrement. In nearly six months, I think I only had to bury mine maybe three times.
If you do need to do your business away from a bathroom or shelter with a privy, it's not that bad. There is information somewhere about exactly how deep to dig your hole (six inches???) and how far from the trail you have to go. I can't remember in feet or yards...I always just went as far as I could possibly go from trails, campsites and water sources.
Protecting water sources is the most important -- make sure you are not up hill or too close to water, especially a spring which should be kept as pristine as possible. Amazing how many people ignored this rule.
Also, pack out your toilet paper. Even biodegradable toilet paper gets dug up by wild animals, and is really disgusting for any other hikers who might stumble upon it.
Hope that answers your question, or hope someone else here has the answer. Good luck!
fiddlehead
10-26-2006, 07:54
This may be the most important question i've seen on whiteblaze.
The AT is perhaps one of the better trails for people burying their waste. (by waste i mean excrement) I say this because one of the only things i didn't like about the Pyrenees high route was the fact that the Europeans do NOT seem to bury much of theirs. Also in Nepal, it is rarely buried as far as i can see.
It is not only very unhealthy to NOT bury it, but very, very unsightly. (and smelly)
It is so important to bury your waste. And not just with a bootheel deep hole. I use a sturdy stick and try to dig at least a 6-8" hole. My goal is usually to dig it deep enough that a dog is not going to dig it up. (although i realize that dogs can smell these things much better than us)
I then cover it (when i can) with a rock and then all the dirt i dug out, and then try my best to blend it in with the surrounding terrain. This is after going well off the trail.
After seeing some of these countries where people don't seem to care or bother, it makes me try harder to keep my home country as natural looking as possible.
Also, the alternative (with the huge numbers on the AT) is that the ATC or NPS or AMC will oneday make us carry it all out (like they do in the Grand Canyon for instance) and I am not a fan of that.
I believe with a little extra effort on every hikers part, we can keep the woods the way that nature builds them.
This talk about holding it until you get to town is perhaps a joke. It's not going to happen except for the most strong willed. Instead of trying to hold it, just learn how to do it best and dig a little deeper than you think is necessary and we'll keep our woods clean. (please)
chknfngrs
10-26-2006, 08:18
wag bags are becoming more popular. carry them in empty, and carry them out more fullerer. I've not used these and probably won't. I prefer the old-school poo-prop method, when a privy is not around. And as always, taking great care to get "it" in the hole I've dug. I don't know how else to say it, but you have GOT to bury your business. Enough said.
I enjoy Number 2 for the challenge it always presents me. At home is one thing, but in the wilderness you have so many things to take into consideration. Off a rock, or off a tree? In sight of a view, or out of sight from view? Is it raining? Is it sunny?
Frolicking Dinosaurs
10-26-2006, 08:56
As others have said - bury your business in a 6" hole at least 200 yards from a water source. I usually try to find a rock that is about 5 - 8" across to place on top of my deposits. As Pokey says, the moldering privies along the AT make burying one's business less likely to be necessary.
Footslogger
10-26-2006, 09:02
This is an essential question: how does one go about expelling excrement while hiking the trail? Is the protocol simply to walk a certain distance from the trail? I hope that I don't have to carry a duce vessel with me; that would be terrible. BTW, do people use the term "duce" on the trail? Because on all of my wilderness experiences, the term duce is more than ubiquitous.
Thanks,
Shane
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Well ...the worst thing you can do is "hold it". To my knowledge there is no official protocol regarding wilderness defication. Just get out of sight, drop trou and let er rip.
'Slogger
BTW, do people use the term "duce" on the trail? Because on all of my wilderness experiences, the term duce is more than ubiquitous.
Thanks,
Shane
'ubiquitous' ?????? - you must be studying for the SAT !!! :D
There's nothing worse than hiking in the winter and having a sudden, irrepressable call of nature and not being able to find an unexposed place to do the business! When there's not a leaf on a tree or bush it can be hard to find a place to squat in privacy. Now I know why dogs have that look on their face when they go in a public park...they can feel all those eyes on them...
fiddlehead
10-26-2006, 10:01
There's nothing worse than hiking in the winter and having a sudden, irrepressable call of nature and not being able to find an unexposed place to do the business! When there's not a leaf on a tree or bush it can be hard to find a place to squat in privacy. Now I know why dogs have that look on their face when they go in a public park...they can feel all those eyes on them...
There's one thing worse: stepping in someone elses problem when you are in the woods (like possibly Footsloggers above) shame on you! Bury it, deep!
Read this book (http://www.amazon.com/How-****-Woods-Environmentally-Approach/dp/0898156270/sr=1-4/qid=1161872504/ref=sr_1_4/102-4623883-6625718?ie=UTF8&s=books).
max patch
10-26-2006, 10:42
=====================================
Well ...the worst thing you can do is "hold it". To my knowledge there is no official protocol regarding wilderness defication. Just get out of sight, drop trou and let er rip.
'Slogger
That splains it...I thot the GA woods started looking a lot cleaner just about the time Slogger moved to WY.:)
Footslogger
10-26-2006, 10:50
That splains it...I thot the GA woods started looking a lot cleaner just about the time Slogger moved to WY.:)
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OUCH !!
'Slogger
Rain Man
10-26-2006, 11:21
.... To my knowledge there is no official protocol regarding wilderness defication. Just get out of sight, drop trou and let er rip.
Oh? No official protocol?
From the ATC web site--
"... Many A.T. shelters have privies, but often you will need to "go in the woods." Proper disposal of human (and pet) waste is not only a courtesy to other hikers, but is a vital Leave No Trace practice for maintaining healthy water supplies in the backcountry and an enjoyable hiking experience for others. No one should venture onto the A.T. without a trowel, used for digging a 6"-8" deep "cathole" to bury waste. Bury feces at least two hundred feet or seventy paces away from water, trails, or shelters. Use a stick to mix dirt with your waste, which hastens decomposition and discourages animals from digging it up. Used toilet paper should either be buried in your cathole or carried out in a sealed plastic bag. Hygiene products such as sanitary napkins should always be carried out."
http://www.appalachiantrail.org/site/c.jkLXJ8MQKtH/b.788921/k.6941/Food_Water_and_Sanitation.htm
And--
"Dispose of waste properly. Bury or pack out excrement. Pack out all trash and food waste, including that left behind by others. Do not bury trash or food, and do not try to burn packaging materials in campfires."
http://www.appalachiantrail.org/site/c.jkLXJ8MQKtH/b.788825/k.8CB0/Leave_No_Trace.htm
Just go to the ATC web site and do a search for "waste."
Official enough fer me! But common curtesy and decency would be enough of a guideline, even if there weren't official ones.
Rain:sunMan
.
here is Leave No Trace's link on disposing of waste http://www.lnt.org/programs/lnt7/dispose.html
Footslogger
10-26-2006, 13:44
[quote=Rain Man;261302]Oh? No official protocol?
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Well ...didn't know the original poster was asking about privies.
And yes I agree about common courtesy. I didn't mean to imply that it was a wherever/whenever situation.
I made my way from Springer to Katahdin in 2003 and observed both common sense and common courtesy with respect to nature's call.
My initial reply was in regard to the "urgency" of the situation.
'Slogger
homebrew
10-26-2006, 20:35
:eek: Wow! So much to do over pooping in the woods. Just follow the normal 200 ft. from water, go behind a tree at least 50 feet off the trail. I ditched my orange trowl in my second town stop-waste of carry weight. Use your boot heel or a stick and kick a quick hole in the dirt, Crap, paper on top, a little pee to hold it all down, kick dirt on top or just bury it with a handful of leaves and sticks. The likleyhood that someone wiil end up in the exact same spot and step in it are nil. Oh, if your near a shelter just use the privy no matter how much it smells.
Hammock Hanger
10-26-2006, 21:12
There's nothing worse than hiking in the winter and having a sudden, irrepressable call of nature and not being able to find an unexposed place to do the business! When there's not a leaf on a tree or bush it can be hard to find a place to squat in privacy. Now I know why dogs have that look on their face when they go in a public park...they can feel all those eyes on them...
There was a morning when I was hiking along minding my own business when all of a sudden I had to GO, and NOW!!! I dropped my pack and made a dash into the woods. I got as far away from the trail as nature would let me and then ,,,, Well, as I pulled up my drawers and covered my business, I turned to see a man sitting on a rock with his back turned. He was within complete eye shot of ME!!!:eek: I walked back out to the trail where I had left my pack and hiked on. The trail made a 90% turn and I was now headed towards the guy on the rock. When he heard me coming he turned around. He said, Good Morning and hiked on. I know he got a shot but was a gentleman and didn;t mention it.:o I hate when the trail turns or there are no leaves on the trees... but when nature calls it CALLS!!!
Pokey2006
10-26-2006, 21:27
Oh, a nightmare! It's bad enough when someone comes along while you're doing a tinkle, but that....that's just way too private!
there is nothing worst than knowing your close to the shelter, but your body has to GOOOO! and once your done, you walk for another minute and there is the shelter w/ a nice privy, much closer than you thought!
Footslogger
10-26-2006, 22:07
There was a morning when I was hiking along minding my own business when all of a sudden I had to GO, and NOW!!! I dropped my pack and made a dash into the woods. I got as far away from the trail as nature would let me and then ,,,, Well, as I pulled up my drawers and covered my business, I turned to see a man sitting on a rock with his back turned. He was within complete eye shot of ME!!!:eek: I walked back out to the trail where I had left my pack and hiked on. The trail made a 90% turn and I was now headed towards the guy on the rock. When he heard me coming he turned around. He said, Good Morning and hiked on. I know he got a shot but was a gentleman and didn;t mention it.:o I hate when the trail turns or there are no leaves on the trees... but when nature calls it CALLS!!!
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I've got one that might even top that Sue. I was hiking along one day and as I rounded a turn heard a commotion down in a revine along side the trail. I looked down and saw a lady hiker attempting to stand up and gain her balance. I happen to notice that her shorts were hanging a little low. I tried not to stare but asked if she was OK. At that point she started to climb up the hill. As she got to the trail she looked at me and said ..."you'll never guess what just happened to me". She explained that in the process of taking a dump on the side of the hill she had lost her handhold on a tree and had fallen backwards and rolled down into the ravine. She had leaves, sticks and dirt stuck to her from head to toe. But aside from a bit of tarnished pride she was uninjured and did not need any assistance.
I hiked on but never forgot that experience. Oh yeah ...and after seeing the outcome of that hiker's attempts I never once considered doing my business on the side of a hill.
'Slogger
SL_amani
10-29-2006, 14:37
'ubiquitous' ?????? - you must be studying for the SAT !!! :D
Ha ha. I am actually.
someone already mentioned the book "how to **** in the woods" great book for leave not trace ****ting. and yes she uses the word **** and all of its derivitives in the book.
Others have mentioned digging the hole and then tryig to hit it. The book mentions "****, then dig a hole and put it in it and mix with dirt and then cover." carry a trowel, the few ounces is worth digging a proper cat-hole for your ****e.
as for the odds of someone stepping in your ****e, I would be really pissed if I was the 1 out of the million that did step in yours! dig a proper hole and dispose.
I think you get the message even with the censorship.