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Thursday, April 12, 2012

How to Poop in the Woods...this time Without Toilet Paper

Why on earth would I tackle the indelicate topic of answering the call of nature while in nature not once but twice?  Well, the article I wrote on How to Poop in the Woods is far and away the most popular one on this site.  It's not surprising to me - this is something that I used to have a fair deal of anxiety about and can be a real barrier to many when they think about getting out camping.



Since it's obviously a topic of interest, I think it deserves a follow up.  I've done a lot more camping, and a therefore a lot more "business in the woods" since writing that article.  (I'm sure you really wanted that image in your head.  You're welcome.)  And so I have an update: I've quit carrying toilet paper, and I'm loving it.  (Again, don't you just want to invite me to your next sophisticated cocktail party?)

That's right, I've fully converted to using nature for my toilet paper.  I was intimidated by this at first, but once I read Mike Clelland's fantastic book, Ultralight Backpackin' Tips I was inspired to give it a go.   Mike (we're on a first name basis now, obv) describes pretty much everything you could ever use as TP in his book, lovingly detailing the benefits of different mediums.  I definitely suggest you check the books out which is packed with useful information.

If you haven't tried it you'd be surprised at what makes great trail TP.  After employing this method in a variety of climate zones, I find that it's impossible to try to give you a list of what works well since it varies so much from area to area.  For example, moss in one area may be dry and crumbly (not practical) and sparse on trees (shouldn't be picking it) versus moss in another area may be thick and damp and awesome and practically choking the life out of every surface available (a.k.a. jackpot).

When choosing natural toilet paper I'd suggest these general guidelines:

  • Texture: choose something smooth enough to not scratch your tender bits, yet textured/rough enough to get the job done.
  • Waterproof: choose something that's either water proof (such as a leaf with a soft and textury on the under side for wiping, but water proof and smooth on the other wide for finger protection) or can be stacked thick enough that leak through wont be an issue.
  • Quantity: nature as TP is rarely if ever as efficient as normal TP, so grab plenty of your material of choice and wipe away generously.
  • Environmental Impact: choose something that wont be missed from the current environment.  What is found in abundance?  What is already on the ground and not still living?  These are good places to start.
  • Dampness: Try using something a little damp - it's surprisingly luxurious.  It gives a delightful little freshening up.  
  • Variety: Don't think that each bathroom session can only have one type of TP.  By all means, grab a few different items and try them out!  
Here are a few of my favourite natural TP sources, but I'm sure you'll find your own:
  • Snowballs.  If you do a lot of winter camping this may be the only thing available to you, so it's lucky that it makes for great TP.  Form several tight snowballs and give it a go.  Not only does the delicate yet gritty snow wipe pretty well, but it also gives a bonus washing effect.  I recommend following these up with something dry if you can find it.  
  • Moss.  The right moss is a delight.  I live in British Columbia where moss can often be like a thick shag carpet over everything in the forest and can be pulled off in 2 inch thick pillowy clumps.  The right moss may actually be better than toilet paper.  Well, that's probably an exaggeration.  But it's pretty great.
  • Rocks.  I know, right?  Rocks!  Who knew!  I never would have figured that rocks would make nice toilet paper without Mike Clelland's endorsement.  Just make sure they aren't too scratchy. 
  • Leaves.  The obvious go-to.  If you can find a broad leaf with a fuzzy, soft underside it works well.  But overall I'd say leaves are a lower order choice for me.  Firstly, usually that means picking a live plant which I'd prefer to avoid.  Seconly, many leaves are a overall too slick to do a nice job.
The benefits of using nature as toilet paper are many:
  1. Light Weight.  No need to carry any toilet paper, shaving ounces from your pack.
  2. Minimize impact. I always hated the idea of leaving toilet paper behind, even if it was buried, and equally hated the idea of packing it out (or packing it until the next outhouse).  
  3. It's kind of fun.  It makes you feel like an adventurous pioneer person.  Toilet paper hasn't been around forever, after all.  Plus it makes you appreciate the convenience of TP more when you get home.
If you've been thinking about it, take the plunge!  You may find that it's not nearly as intimidating as you thought and be able to confidently leave the toilet paper behind on your next trip.

30 comments:

  1. Thanks for being so brave that you write about this highly private topic (as you also did in April 2009). Last summer I attended a survival course for women. During that course we had to stay outdoor for two nights. We had no access to a toilet, neither to toilet paper. Our instructor suggested that we should use either moss or fern. Not to go into details but both "remedies" were sufficient for the purpose. Last week I went for a canoe hike with some friends and inspired by your article I tried to act the privitive way again. Just for the fun of it I tried to manage without toilet paper. And again it was ok. But I think one point should be added to your list of advice: Wipe when still squatting to ensure that the skin around the opeing gets well cleaned.

    Then a general comment: Last week we were around 20 persons canoeing together. We were discussing equipment, food, health, weather......, but the toilet issue was never mentioned between us. It was neither discussed in the information material for the hike nor spoken of. No toilets along the route. Obviously we all had to visit the bushes lots of times. Still I guess that everyone tried to get away alone without anyone noticing, but certainly everyone knew what was the reason when somebody went alone for the woods. And occasionally, especially in the morning, when trying to find a secluded spot for own privacy, one could get a glimpse of someone else just as a confirmation of the fact that we all have the same needs. And yes, I still feel very embarrassed if anyone gets a glimpse of me squatting in the bushes. Articles like those from CB is important as reminders to all hikers. ("Hikers of all countries unite"... to make this a conversable issue.)

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    1. Thanks Anon! I know that a lot of people are nervous about these questions (as I was). Somebody's going to talk about it, it might as well be me!

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  2. You, this blog post, its predecessor, and this entire blog are so awesome. Thanks!

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    1. Ha ha, glad you enjoy it Amanda! I aim to please :D

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  3. I just wanted to comment upon this one too! I have never really managed to quit with bringing toilet paper. But I have reduced the use of it to a minimum. Partly because I try to use some kind of natural material for the first wipes and then finish with just one small piece of paper. Partly because I have experienced that when squatting really low the need for wipes are less than when just "hovering" over the ground. Often I also have to open my bowels in the early morning and then I try to get it done before I am bathing or washing myself.

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  4. I agree with the posting at the top. Brave of you to address this issue. I think many of us not only feel embarrassed about going to toilet outside, but also are in doubt how to do it and even if it is legal. My personal, short algorithm is: 1. When beginning to feel the urge, start lookig for a suitable spot. 2. A suitable spot is well away from water and out of sight for the friends. Most of us do not like to be involved in other persons needs of this kind. 3. Squat low then the process goes quickly. 4. Follow local customs (bury, packing out etc). 5. Smile, enjoy the surroundings and be happy not to be constipated, and if in doubt I say to myself that for sure my friends also do it.

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  5. using a rock can leave you with ring worm, don't try that method.

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  6. Very effectively removes poop and cleans the wiping region

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  7. I have tried, but never really managed to quit with toilet paper. For peeing I use a "pee rag", and for pooping I usually only need one tiny wipe. (Perhaps TMI but I squat as low as I can, bend well forward, and I (please do not laugh) try to widen the butt crack by stretching the buttocks with my hands... Hopefully nobody has seen me in that situation. I guess it would have been a tragic and comic sight, really too embarrassing to think of...)

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    1. I do it exactly the same way. And I think few hikers would be astonished or embarrassed of such a sight. I guess most hikers have seen others as well as being spotted in such situations. Without a door to lock that is part of outdoor life.

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    2. Eh, uhm, well; perhaps I should not write this. But I once accidentally walked in on one of the (elderly) men in my hiking group (pilgrim hike) just as he was in that particular position. Luckily (?) I came up from behind so he did not observe me before I succeeded to withdraw from the scene. Therefore none of us got embarrassed. Neither I got astonished, because I was out there for the same purpose. But, it was a comic and unforgettable sight that helped me to become somewhat more relaxed about such situations and accepting it as a natural part even of a pilgrims' hike. If anyone should wonder, I managed to get my duty done, in quite the same way. So yes, every hiker knows all about it, mature men and young women included.

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    3. Going to toilet in the outdoors is a taboo to many of us. How we technically do it is probably an even greater taboo to some of us. But I have to admit that the method described above is quite efficient in reducing the need for toilet paper. (God forbid that anyone ever observes me, a decent university teacher, in just that situation.) I have tried to manage without paper a couple of times, using mosses or bundles of grass. It works, but if I don't wash myself down there afterwards, it may lead to chaffing. When peeing I use a pee rag.

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    4. Personally, I still rely on ordinary toilet paper! Widening the butt crack for sure helps minimizing the amount to be used. As to comic situations, I agree with the statement above that most hikers would not become astonished of spotting another hiker squatting with a bare bum. But I think for example most young men like me will become somewhat embarrassed if walking straight in on the most decent mature woman in the group just as she is squatting exposing her bottom to the nature or if the mother of the best friend just turns up when you are squatting. (Yes, I have experienced both situations.)

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    5. As a child, once when I was accompanying my grandparents for a day hike in the mountains, my granddad had to go to toilet. He took the backpack and went over to some low birches while my grandmom and I continued picking berries. I was astonished to see that he lowered his pants and squatted just between the birches. I had not seen an adult man poop before and thus I was a bit curious. I must admit that I in fact tried to spy at him from behind some bushes.

      He started looking in the backpack but obviously he could not find the toilet paper. He called out for my grandma, but she had walked further on and could not hear him. He then went a few steps out of the bushes, trousers at his knees, and tore up a bunch of long blades of grass which he bundled together and used to wipe with.

      When he reached my grandma and me again, she asked how he had managed. He just answered that it went fine, without mentioning anything about wiping with grass. I don't think that he realized that I had observed it all. But it was a practical way to learn a trick that I have used myself a few times later!

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    6. At an archaeological site in Crete I once saw a male tourist wipe with paper from a notebook after pooping in the bushes.

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    7. Last summer in Scotland I saw an elderly woman squatting behind a bush with her dress pulled up well above her waist and the panties at the knees. I went by at the other side of the bush. I think she hoped that I should not spot her, but her white back, arse and thighs was very visible through the branches. It was at a side road some 300 feet from the country road. At a lay-by along the country road, there was a car parked with the driver sitting in it. Most probably her husband waiting for her. When I later walked back the same way, I saw what she had done. Five or six huge lumps of poo. She obviously was not well prepared because she had wiped with some pages from a newspaper (Dutch!) I guess she was a tourist driving in the country side with her husband and had been caught og a sudden urge out there. Some weeks later at the same spot I observed a young woman biker squatting to take a dump while her boy friend waited at the lay-by. Later I saw that she had left a long "snake" (40 cm) and wiped with grass. I think it is quite common that people caught by a sudden urge have to wipe without using ordinary toilet paper. At the same spot I have also seen professional drivers stop to take a dump, but they mostly use toilet paper. Some years back I also saw a Russian tourist bus stopping there. Several of the passengers (>20) where squatting to pee and poop behind bushes and stone fences, but I think all of them used ordinary toilet paper.

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    8. A story quite similar to another above. Yesterday I went with my grandparents for a day trip in the woods, picking berries etc. After lunch I was picking berries in the slope above the parking lot. Suddenly I spotted my granddad just as he stood up behind a stone pulling up his trousers. He had obviously been pooping. When I came over there I became very surprised when I saw what he had used instead of toilet paper! He had used the three eaten cobs of corn from our lunch which we had put in the waste bag!

      Later I understood why, because when grandma asked for toilet paper he said that obviously they had forgotten this at home. He went over to the car to find something for her and came back with a bunch of polishing yarn which she had to use instead of toilet paper. I have noticed that both of them often poop after lunch and therefore they usually have toilet paper in the car. As a girl scout I am used to practice LNT. I think my grandparents are too old to have heard about that, because I have seen that both of them just leave the turds on the ground, but usually put the used paper in the waste bag.

      When I came home and searched the Internet, I found that eaten corn cobs often were used for wiping after pooping before toilet paper became usual.

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  8. Some years back we visited some business contacts in Russia. After meetings they invited us out for an outdoor parting at a river in the country side to eat and bath. When we had eaten I felt a great urge to take a dump and I went up to the parking lot to look for a toilet. There I met one of the russians and asked him about the toilets. He just answered that there was no toilet. He was a bit drunk and did not take it any further. But the short conversation was overheard by the busdriver, a mature woman. Obviously she understood a bit English. She smiled and asked Toilet? I nodded. No toilet, but... she said and pointed to the bushes. We both smiled and then she continued... need to?... need paper? Yes, I said and smiled. OK she said and went to the bus to find a roll of toilet paper that she gave me and said... just....yes... go there, no toilet here... and pointed again to the bushes. I took the roll and both smiled. You must... she said, and illustrated with body language that I had to pull down and squat. Sorry but so..., no place, no seat... yes, in the grass, she said with a smile. No problem I said and smiled back.

    Back there I saw that I was not the first one. Several old and also one fresh poo with newly deposited toilet paper with the same pattern as I was given. Obviously our driver, I thought and pulled down and got my business done in few minutes. Then back to the driver with the roll. OK now? she asked and smiled. Yes, I said and continued, sorry to disturb, but... well, thanks. Oh no, just... better to.... well... one must then... trees when no toilet. Yes, for sure, I said and nice that you had paper, so thanks. Well... I always have paper...when driving... no toilet... and yes...must do so. Normal here. All must do so. Only way. We both laughed.

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  9. Yesterday I went for a relatively short cross country skiing trip just after breakfast. Out there I got a sudden urge to take a dump and I understood that I could not postpone it till I got back to the cabin. Luckily no people around and I went over to some low bushes where I could pull down and poop into the snow. Usually I always carry toilet paper when walking or skiing in the mountains, but as this was planned only to be a short trip, I did not this time. I had to use "snowballs". They fulfilled their task!

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  10. When planning to stay outdoor for a whole day or several days I always remember to bring toilet paper. However, occasionally I have been caught short in other situations. Last summer, when out in the woods picking berries, the urge suddenly appeared and I had no choice but squat behind some bushes. Then I used the approach described above with widening the crack with my hands to minimize the need for wiping. Then I used some mosses and finally some maple leaves. It worked well. Luckily nobody spotted me.

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  11. Once on a car trip with my father and my grandma we had to stop at a resting area because she had to go to toilet. No toilet there and she had to rush behind some bushes. We had no toilet paper in the car. I had to go back there and give her some pages from a newspaper. When I came she had tried to pull up a bit, to cover her front, but I saw the poo-snake on the ground. When she was wiping a male motorcyclist came up from behind and saw her. None of us mentioned the incident later.

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  12. Once I had to stop at a remote resting area and relieve myself in the woods. I had no toilet paper, but I had some banana and orange peel in my waste bag. They fulfilled their task! I could leave the woods with at least some feeling of decency - I did not have to spoil my undies! Luckily nobody was around.

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    1. I had a similar experience once. I was picnicking with my family at a remote location and my son needed to defecate. We had just thrown away the last of the napkins, so I ate several bananas so that he could take the peel with him on his trip into the woods. Unfortunately, as a result of all those bananas I felt a similar need myself, and my son had used all the peels...

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    2. Ugh, how did you cope with that challenge?

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    3. I gritted my teeth and clenched my "cheeks" together until I got home!

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    4. After giving birth to three children, my sphincter down there is not as stong as before. Therefore I am mostly not able to "clench my cheeks" till I get home. I always carry toilet paper in my back pack, even on shorter day trips and picnics. Before I realized my handicap I experienced quite a lot of embarrassing situations where things had to be done in the bushes without toilet paper. Car trip in Scotland. Had to stop roadside and use paper from a magazine. Biking in France using the paper from a fruit bag. The paper labels of two water bottles at a beach in Greece etc etc. Even a snow ball when skiing in the Alps.

      At least, carrying toilet paper helps me doing it in a "semi-decent" and quite rapid way. When camping in the wilderness, it is ok, because then nobody else has another option than squatting in the bushes. However, on daytrips etc I guess most adults try to put it off till reaching a toilet, and mostly also succeed with that. But not me! I am one of those, that when taking a break along the road, you can see disappearing into some nearby bushes, or walking alone away from the dunes into the backwoods at the beach.

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    5. I have the same problem! I work as a driver of a delivery van, transporting parcels to private homes and small enterprises in rural areas. Every day I drive between 200 and 400 kilometers, mostly in very remote areas. I start work at 6am and finish at 16 am. During that period I have to pee a couple of times and usually I also have to poop.

      Only occasionally there are toilets along my routes. I don't feel comfortable with asking my customers to use their toilets. During my over 10 years in this job I therefore have got very used to go to toilet in the outdoors. I always bring a roll of toilet paper in the car. As mentioned by "Anonymous" that gives me a "semi-decent" feeling when relieving myself behind a bush. I guess that is not what 50+ year women in a civilised society is expected to do.

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  13. Once on a biking trip on Crete I was caught by a sudden urge to poop and realized that I should not reach any toilet in due time. I climbed over a stone fence and squatted behind. I had no toilet paper, but I made kind of a broom with grass. It had a satisfactory effect! Luckily nobody else was around.

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    1. Haha, a broom! Did it tickle?

      Yes, it is good that no one saw you. But after all, everyone does it, and no one looks dignified in that position. Hopefully you felt relieved after your emergency stop.

      Did you bury your waste, or at least kick some dirt over it, so that no one would step in it?

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    2. Tickling wasn't a prominent feeling. I just felt embarrassed (and took a shower immediately when back at the hotel). However, the relief was perfect. Well, the load was placed just in some dense bushes, so I did not really cover it, but no chance for anyone to step in it! I did not tell anyone - too embarrassing. And for sure, being spotted in that position would have been terrible. Once at a day hike in the mountains I spotted our guide squatting behind some stones. I think I felt as embarrassed as she did. I guess nobody likes to be observed in that position, anyway.

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