View Full Version : logistical question regarding hygiene
karoberts
04-11-2008, 21:21
I am trying to pack light for my 500 mile section hike this summer. I am only planning to bring 1 oz of camp suds and no other toiletries (other than toothbrush/paste).
When I get into town and want to shower, what will I use to clean myself? I won’t really have enough camp suds soap for a proper shower. Will I have to buy shampoo in every town I enter? I have quite long tangled hair and need conditioner when I shower. Will I have to buy a bottle in each town and then dump the leftover? How does this work?
I am trying to pack light for my 500 mile section hike this summer. I am only planning to bring 1 oz of camp suds and no other toiletries (other than toothbrush/paste).
When I get into town and want to shower, what will I use to clean myself? I won’t really have enough camp suds soap for a proper shower. Will I have to buy shampoo in every town I enter? I have quite long tangled hair and need conditioner when I shower. Will I have to buy a bottle in each town and then dump the leftover? How does this work?
It depends where you stay. Most hiker hostels provide shampoo and soap. Many motels do, too. Almost all hikers are dealing with the same problem, so businesses that cater to hikers provide what you need.
Frolicking Dinosaurs
04-11-2008, 21:26
Motels have soap and so do many hostels.
Bite the bullet and pack soap with you.
You can use a bar of soap to wash with (including your hair) I have done this before when backpacking. A bar of soap is not very heavy and it gives you a lot of soap for the small area it takes up in your pack. And it’s hard to spill and make a mess.
Just use what's available in most hotels/motels/hostels. It's provided in many of those places. If it isn't, just run to the Dollar Store and get a travel size of the toiletries you need while you're in town. Good luck and enjoy your hike. :D
Motels and hotels carry those wonderful little bottles. I carry one of those with me just in case I come to a place that doesn't supply soap. I've rarely had to use it in the 700 miles I've done.
Another idea is to use a bounce box and keep some travel size stuff in it to have when you get to town.
And even if there is soap at the hostels/hotels, you'll still probably smell some when you step out of the shower. The best thing you can do is not worry too much about it--you're going to be hiker trash. Relish it.
fiddlehead
04-11-2008, 23:00
I often go in the public showers (like Fontana dam) looking for the small, half-used bar that someone left there.
If in town and there is none, go buy a bar of soap and leave it. I'd rather waste a half bar of soap than carry something i don't need. and what's wrong with shampooing your hair with soap instead of shampoo. AFter all, people do think we rough it out there.
take-a-knee
04-11-2008, 23:19
I often go in the public showers (like Fontana dam) looking for the small, half-used bar that someone left there.
If in town and there is none, go buy a bar of soap and leave it. I'd rather waste a half bar of soap than carry something i don't need. and what's wrong with shampooing your hair with soap instead of shampoo. AFter all, people do think we rough it out there.
Dude! That is about the same as using some hobo''s (hiker?) toothbrush! Google MRSA and VRE and do a little perusing.
fiddlehead
04-11-2008, 23:27
Dude! That is about the same as using some hobo''s (hiker?) toothbrush! Google MRSA and VRE and do a little perusing.
Dude, i've been living in Asia for the past 5 years. You think i worry about used soap?
We even drink the water here. Imagine that!
Yeah, you're going to be filthy anyway. Nix the soap and toothpaste. I kept the brush part to get the plaque.
Any kind of liquid is HEAVY. You're boiling your food, so no need to clean the pot, and unless you're an extremely careless wiper, washing hands can be done with just water.
I started with campsuds and toothpaste, too. No need for either.
take-a-knee
04-12-2008, 00:06
Y'all are some gnarly muldoons. Ol' Ben said cleanliness was next to godliness.
I think I’ll pack some soap, washing your hands after a bowel movement is just common sense and will prevent you from getting sick. Call me weird, but it’s nice to know my hands are clean when handling my food.
I think I’ll pack some soap, washing your hands after a bowel movement is just common sense and will prevent you from getting sick. Call me weird, but it’s nice to know my hands are clean when handling my food.
I keep a little travel bottle of hand sanitizer in the ziplock with my TP for this.
I also carry a toothbrush and a itsy-bitsy tube of toothpaste and a hotel sized soap bar.
[QUOTE=karoberts;592771]I am trying to pack light for my 500 mile section hike this summer. I am only planning to bring 1 oz of camp suds and no other toiletries (other than toothbrush/paste). ETCETCETC............... (QUOTE]
Yo KAROBERTS,
buy you some WET WIPES (or that type product)...stay out of the streams when bathing....grab some water...take it AWAY from water source when using soap or cleaning products, etc...then "wash up".
My suggestion for a 500 mile (or so) hike would be Start "at the beginning" Springer Mtn & head up & past Damascus...you hit the 500 mile mark somewhere around Daleville or Troutville,VA:D
see u out there in April-May!
My suggestion for a 500 mile (or so) hike would be Start "at the beginning" Springer Mtn & head up & past Damascus...you hit the 500 mile mark somewhere around Daleville or Troutville,VA:D
Daleville/Troutville is around mile 700. You're thinking of Troutdale!
kayak karl
04-12-2008, 07:20
i only take baking soda and hand sanitizer on trail. has many uses http://www.thefarm.org/charities/i4at/lib2/60soda.htm
here are a few:
5. Clean vegetables and fruit with baking soda. Sprinkle in water, soak and rise the produce
12. Always add 1/2 cup soda to your washing machine load.
13. Clean combs and brushes in a soda solution.
14. Wash food and drink containers with soda and water.
To remove strong odors from your hands, wet your hands and rub them hard with soda, then rinse.
38. Sprinkle baking soda on your wet toothbrush and brush your teeth and dentures with it.
39. Sprinkle soda in tennis shoes, socks, boots and slippers to eliminate odor.
40. Add 1/2 cups or more of baking soda to your bath water to soften your skin.
41. Putting 2 tbsp. of baking soda in your baby's bath water will help relieve diaper rash irritations. :rolleyes:
42. Apply soda directly to insect bites, rashes and poison ivy to relieve discomfort. Make a paste with water
44. Take 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water to relieve acid indigestion or heartburn.
45. Gargle with 1/2 tsp. baking soda in 1/2 glass of water. Freshens and cleans your mouth.
46. Used as a mouthwash, baking soda will also relieve canker sore pain.
47. To relieve sunburn: use a paste of baking soda and water.
48. Bug bites: use a poultice of baking soda and vinegar.
49. Bee sting: use a poultice of baking soda and water.
50. Windburns: moisten some baking soda and apply directly.
52. Use soda as an underarm deodorant.
56. Add to water to soak dried beans to make them more digestible.
and it has cooking uses:confused:
Any kind of liquid is HEAVY. You're boiling your food, so no need to clean the pot, and unless you're an extremely careless wiper, washing hands can be done with just water.
No offense, but remember this name. This is someone you DON"T want to offer a handful of your gorp to!:(
fiddlehead
04-12-2008, 08:20
i only take baking soda and hand sanitizer on trail. has many uses http://www.thefarm.org/charities/i4at/lib2/60soda.htm
here are a few:
5. Clean vegetables and fruit with baking soda. Sprinkle in water, soak and rise the produce
12. Always add 1/2 cup soda to your washing machine load.
13. Clean combs and brushes in a soda solution.
14. Wash food and drink containers with soda and water.
To remove strong odors from your hands, wet your hands and rub them hard with soda, then rinse.
38. Sprinkle baking soda on your wet toothbrush and brush your teeth and dentures with it.
39. Sprinkle soda in tennis shoes, socks, boots and slippers to eliminate odor.
40. Add 1/2 cups or more of baking soda to your bath water to soften your skin.
41. Putting 2 tbsp. of baking soda in your baby's bath water will help relieve diaper rash irritations. :rolleyes:
42. Apply soda directly to insect bites, rashes and poison ivy to relieve discomfort. Make a paste with water
44. Take 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water to relieve acid indigestion or heartburn.
45. Gargle with 1/2 tsp. baking soda in 1/2 glass of water. Freshens and cleans your mouth.
46. Used as a mouthwash, baking soda will also relieve canker sore pain.
47. To relieve sunburn: use a paste of baking soda and water.
48. Bug bites: use a poultice of baking soda and vinegar.
49. Bee sting: use a poultice of baking soda and water.
50. Windburns: moisten some baking soda and apply directly.
52. Use soda as an underarm deodorant.
56. Add to water to soak dried beans to make them more digestible.
and it has cooking uses:confused:
Makes you wonder why they call it "baking soda"
Thanks for all of that info. it's amazing sometimes how something is not marketed and thrown all over tv and billboards yet has that many day to day uses.
I hope they sell it here in Thailand, i'll be looking for it.
Lone Wolf
04-12-2008, 08:26
No offense, but remember this name. This is someone you DON"T want to offer a handful of your gorp to!:(
i never ever share food
Frolicking Dinosaurs
04-12-2008, 09:14
On long hikes I carry the following:
Tiny bottle of alcohol gel with my TP for hands afterwards
Baking soda for all the things Karl listed
A small amount of powdered laundry soap (add a few large pinches to baking soda for greasy messes and Dino bathing in the wild - both well away from any water source)
No tooth paste and I use a fingertip toothbrush (you can get these in the infant care section of a store, vet supply places or from a prison guard)
Feral Bill
04-12-2008, 12:33
Y'all are some gnarly muldoons. Ol' Ben said cleanliness was next to godliness.
Cleanliness is next to impossible
River Runner
04-13-2008, 02:18
Will I have to buy shampoo in every town I enter? I have quite long tangled hair and need conditioner when I shower. Will I have to buy a bottle in each town and then dump the leftover? How does this work?
In addition to using the little bottles provided by hotels and some hostels, as others have posted, you can check the hiker boxes (located in about every hostel I've ever seen & many hiker friendly motels) for shampoo, conditioner, and other toiletries. If you don't find any, buy a bottle of each yourself & leave them in the hiker box for others hiking behind you. Also, often hikers end up hiking with the same people for several days - if this happens to you, you could approach some of them about each of you buying one toiletry item and sharing them while you are in town. This would probably be the least expensive option in the long run - those little travel size toiletries get expensive!
River Runner
04-13-2008, 02:25
On long hikes I carry the following:
Tiny bottle of alcohol gel with my TP for hands afterwards
I like to buy the alcohol gel holders that can be attached to the outside of my pack to keep it readily accessible anytime. They are usually available in two packs at discount stores such as Wal-Mart and Target. I usually just refill the bottles, but new bottles can be placed in the holders for those that prefer not to try to refill the tiny opening of the bottles.
It makes it really easy to get to the alcohol gel not only after going to the bathroom, but also before eating snacks or cooking.
Yeah, you're going to be filthy anyway. Nix the soap and toothpaste. I kept the brush part to get the plaque.
Any kind of liquid is HEAVY. You're boiling your food, so no need to clean the pot, and unless you're an extremely careless wiper, washing hands can be done with just water.
I started with campsuds and toothpaste, too. No need for either.
This is exactly the reason you should NEVER allow anyone to stick their hand into your gorp bag. If you want to share, pour it into their hands. Yes, you will be filthy on the trail. All the more reason to practice good hygiene. I second the wet wipes. I never leave for the trail without them. They aren't that heavy, and makes for great clean up at the end of the day. When they dry out, you can reuse the ones that are still fairly clean as tp. Hand sanitizer is a must for me. I use it constantly during the day. I rarely use camp soap, but i keep a small container with me.
X-LinkedHiker
04-13-2008, 12:52
I would say, only you and yourself can know what type of immune system you have. Don't listen to people that live in other places and have completely different diseases. If you are somebody that requires a certain level of hygiene to maintain your own health and not get sick out on the trail, then bring what you can. If you are somebody that can pretty much eat food off the ground and drink water without boiling or treating it first, than bring a lot less. Some people are way more susceptible to illness, disease, and rank smell than others.
As with everything in hiking, climbing, cycling; know your body, and go with the flow. I don't think you'll be too concerned with conditioned hair when you are at mile 100 or 500. But if you are, then buy a travel size bottle. They only weigh 4.6 ounces usually.
Sleepy the Arab
04-13-2008, 12:54
i never ever share food
When you're sharing food with someone, you are sharing food with everyone they have ever shared food with.
theinfamousj
04-13-2008, 13:32
My initial reply is to pack a bottle of shampoo and a bottle of conditioner in your bounce box. Then you won't have to haul it on the trail and can still enjoy the luxury of good smelling hair products.
However, there are solid shampoo and solid conditioner bars that look like soap bars and are used in a similar manner. If you wanted to carry these in your pack, you could cut them into small bits and have a chunk in each restock box.
I, too, have incredibly long and easily tangled/funkified hair. My trick is to brush and then braid (in a single straight braid) my hair. Rebraid it every morning if necessary. Keeps my hair much neater and cleaner than letting it go natural.
Also, I don't carry camp suds. I carry a mesh baggie with a bar of ivory soap inside. Ivory is biodegradeable (unless I missed some memo in the past two years about a manufacturing change). The mesh baggie helps make luxurious lather which I use to clean lots of things. It also hangs the soap easily from my pack. And it makes the soap last longer. I've used ivory to clean my hair and while I noticed the lack of conditioner because my hair was thicker feeling and less cooperative, when combined with the braiding it really wasn't that bad.
Mesh bag >> http://www.atrsupplies.com/soapsackprebuy.htm
When you're sharing food with someone, you are sharing food with everyone they have ever shared food with.
I think that applies to sex, not food sharing, considering resupply is every few days with new, unadulterated food........:-?
X-LinkedHiker
04-13-2008, 15:12
What arab said might be true if people were sharing already chewed food. Most people wouldn't share the same jolly rancher but a steak and potato can be cut in half.
I, too, have incredibly long and easily tangled/funkified hair. My trick is to brush and then braid (in a single straight braid) my hair. Rebraid it every morning if necessary. Keeps my hair much neater and cleaner than letting it go natural.
Girls in the woods with braids. I vote for this.
River Runner
04-13-2008, 17:15
What arab said might be true if people were sharing already chewed food. Most people wouldn't share the same jolly rancher but a steak and potato can be cut in half.
And at some point food is usually in contact with their hands and whatever germs they have on them, which could have come from whoever they shared food with previously, is the point I think he was trying to make.
Just cut the food in half with the knife that has never been washed.
Most people use their knife to clean their finger nails toe nails and to pop blisters.....ummmmm!
Blissful
04-13-2008, 19:51
That was a good thing - soap and shampoo was readily available at hostels and motels. Or in hiker boxes. I only remember having to wash my hair with a bar of soap twice in a hostel (and it is NOT the same thing, let me tell you. left my hiar greasy,ugh). I used cmap suds maybe twice for showers that were in shelters (Partnership and 501).
I carried on my hike a film canister of castle soap for me and Paul Bunyan, a small 2 oz bottle of hand snitizer, about eight baby wipes, plus the usual toothbrush and toothpaste (and dental floss).
We rarely had enough food to share, honestly! It was slim pickings for us on the trail. In town, everyone pigs out.
karoberts
04-13-2008, 20:43
One of my concerns if that I have this long hair that goes all the way down my back and starts to turn into a rat's nest after a couple days when it is not heavily conditioned. I used like, 1/4 cup of conditioner every shower 'cause it is so tangled. Maybe I should just cut it short? Or would that be a travesty? Ladies, what do you think?
Philippe
04-13-2008, 21:15
Hey, hair is heavy. If you really want to go light, leave it at home. I'll grow back - probably. Actually mine didn't, but I'm a lot older than you.
Stupid question perhaps, but when you guys say you can shower at a hotel/motel and they have soap and shampoo and stuff, that implies that you are paying 20/30/$40+ to stay the night as well right? Or do they offer showers for a small price? It would get quite expensive if you are staying at hotels every so often (on a thru hike) in order to shower. (obviously you have the comfort of a nice night of sleep in a room, but im saying as far as only wanting to take a shower in town.)
Appalachian Tater
04-14-2008, 18:49
The back of the ALDHA companion has a section with a table of inexpensive places to shower and wash clothes, without staying, free or for a small fee: campgrounds, shelters, truck stops, etc.
Blissful
04-14-2008, 19:10
One of my concerns if that I have this long hair that goes all the way down my back and starts to turn into a rat's nest after a couple days when it is not heavily conditioned. I used like, 1/4 cup of conditioner every shower 'cause it is so tangled. Maybe I should just cut it short? Or would that be a travesty? Ladies, what do you think?
I cut mine to above shoulder length. Worked out fine. Now it is all grown out.