Backcountry Cleanliness

[Trailguru]

Wandering Daisy, I should have been a little more clear.

For me it's the combination of sweat, bug juice, and repellent that I'm pretty much against letting anyone in my party go in the water. I have everyone wear long sleeves anyway and by September when the skeeters are gone that is when I let them go in the water directly since sweat by itself is fine..

As far as shampooing and soaping is concerned only away from the water source with a bucket of water...

[Troutdog 59]

It realy depends on just what period of time one is reviewing when you consider my backcountry cleanliness habits. When I first started backpacking in the 70's I would have given myself about a 0.5 . My cleanup kit consisted of some camp suds and a washcloth. Washed my face, hands,and pits about every other day and that was it. We called bug juice "Backpackers Cologne." I do recall my cleanliness habits even getting to me on one rather long and wet trip. On about day 6 of a 9 day trip from South Lake to Sawmill, we had finished chow and were settling in for bed. I was si bad I couldnt handle it, and got up, heated some water, and did a bird bath so I could sleep with myself.

This all changed in the early 80's when I began backpacking with my wife. I would give myself about a 1.5 now as I do a quick bird bath most every day and even carry deodorant these days I simply wash up with cold water on warm days and possibly some heated water on cooler days. Not to elaborate, just wash off the crust and start over again.

I rarely swim in anything but the lower creeks in the later part of the year, but have taken a dip or two into the lakes. The one exception for me is the Blaney Meadows out of Florence. They hot spring is warm and great to soak old muscles and bones, but the true present is the nearby "warm" lake. Apparently its has a few hot springs that feed it, and it has been nicely swimable on all but one very early trip I took ut of there. A true treat.

Ive also always done the dedicated camp sleepware thing so maybe thats why I could survive those early years long trips with so many days without cleaning up.



on

[giantbrookie]

Not too get us off topic, but....

Troutdog, I never noticed your signature line. Hayden's book is a real gem and it was a great inspiration to me in my early years, given that my wife has always been my no.1 fishing buddy as was Mike Hayden's wife in all his stories. The book I never got published "Into the Land of the Giant Brookies" largely followed Hayden's (and before him McDermand's) narrative style--it was sort of the 90's version of Hayden given that my wife was also a major part of all of the fishing stories.

Anyhow, I don't recall Hayden writing too much about washing up around camp....

[TehipiteTom]

"Backcountry cleanliness" is a contradiction in terms. And that's all I'm saying on the matter.

[rlown]

hmm.. if i smell myself, and i don't like what I smell, I wash.

I used to have to do my hair everyday, or i couldn't sleep. Now with little hair, and what is there cut to 3/8" pre-trip, a quick head dunk suffices.

For me, the most important thing is the gallon of water and a towel back at the truck, with a change of clothes for the trip home. Civilization doesn't like stink, so much.

[oldranger]

Come to think of it Matt got wet, Mark got wet, I got wetbut I didn't see Tehipite Tom nor rlown near the water (except for russ to fish) the entire trip. Maybe that kept the bears away!

Mike

[rlown]

god, you're getting old. actually, i don't think you were back with your stringer yet. I went in. It was refreshing as heck.. Now, Tom..

[balzaccom]

yeah....

so washing hands every day when we wash up the dishes, once at breakfast, once after dinner.

Rinse off when I am really hot and sweaty, maybe once every two days.

Wash hair maybe once every three days...far from any stream or lake.

But I also wash my sock, undies, and even once in a while my shirt.

And yes, I bringin sleeping clothes so that my bag makes it past the current trip.

[Hetchy]

I am somewhere betwee 0 and 1. My longest stretch without a shower was from Steamboat Springs Colorado to Rawlins Wyoming on the CDT.
Since I was totally solo and saw only antelope and elk it really didn't seem to make any sense to clean up.
However i always use Purell hand sanitiser after pooping.
I will admit that after about five days I begin to offend myself a bit.
Now why don't i have a girlfriend?

[oldranger]

Oh yeah! I think last summer all of us that got together used hand sanitizer, especially before cooking for the others in the group.

Mike