How to poop gracefully in the wild? First, remember to pack it in your bag and take it with you... | Going out in the wild

When we are in the wild, we always feel the call of instinct.

Calling us to go have fun, roll in the grass, venture up a big rock, or feel some more pressing need - to solve the problem of excretion .

As a highly qualified outdoor person, we cannot release ourselves at will, considering the impact on the environment and other people. So, how should we solve this small problem in an environmentally friendly way?

A big principle: leave nothing behind

Friends who often hike should have heard of the " Leave No Trace (LNT) " principle of outdoor activities, which means Leave No Trace, leaving no trace at all.

7 tips for leaving no trace in the mountains: 1. Consider other hikers; 2. Plan your trip in advance; 3. Take the route that is more difficult to leave traces; 4. Leave no trash; 5. Don't take a cloud with you; 6. Be careful with fire; 7. Stay away from wild animals | above14000ft.com

The rules of Leave No Trace are very detailed. In addition to the basic rule of not littering, they also specifically propose how to camp environmentally friendly and how to reduce the impact on wildlife. But today we will mainly talk about one thing, how to go to the toilet without leaving a trace .

Some friends may ask, aren't feces and urine biodegradable? Why can't we do it anywhere? In fact, things are not as simple as imagined.

Compared to feces, urine has much less impact on the environment.

The main components of human urine are water , as well as some inorganic salts, urea, and uric acid. As long as you are healthy, the amount of these components in urine is generally not too much and will be quickly decomposed by environmental microorganisms. Therefore, we don't need to be too nervous when peeing in the wild, as long as we don't pee on others.

Due to different physiological structures, girls need to consider more factors when peeing outdoors. Here are a few tips:

1) The best place to pee is on the ground rather than on stones and leaves. Smooth stones and leaves can easily splash urine onto shoes and pants.

2) Pay attention to the direction of your body and try to face downhill, otherwise the urine will flow back due to gravity.

3) After squatting down, you can use one hand to keep your balance and the other hand to hold toilet paper or drive away mosquitoes . It is very uncomfortable to be bitten by mosquitoes on your buttocks.

Fully assess the environment and wind speed, and don't pee on people, tents, or equipment｜Climbin.com

The situation with feces is a little trickier.

Feces contain food residues and intestinal flora . Depending on the environment, it takes a week to a month or even longer to decompose . In fragile ecological environments such as snow-capped mountains, Gobi Desert, and deserts, due to the harsh environment, there are few decomposers, and the temperature is not conducive to the decomposition of feces. It may take decades or even hundreds of years. If left alone, it will not only be unsightly, but may also pollute the environment and water sources.

On the other hand, wild animals are used to using feces to mark their territory, and the feces left by humans will invade the living space of wild animals and further compress their territory. Don't let the little animals frown at you!

How to Dig a Shithole Gracefully

So, how do we poop? Can we find a place where there is no one around and do it quietly?

This idea can be said to be very naive.

First of all, no one can guarantee that a place that looks secluded and hidden at the moment is not someone else's camping site or a must-go road . I remember once when I was rock climbing in the wild, I changed into rock climbing shoes and stood at the starting point of the route, but I accidentally stepped into the excrement left by ordinary tourists. My head was buzzing and it left a huge psychological shadow. Therefore, please try not to poop in a place where you think no one will pass by, because someone may be going to the market there tomorrow (not necessarily).

Relay lost a good relationship because he was found by the girl he liked while taking a shit in the wild. Please take this as a warning | "Getuoxing-If Love Continues"

It sounds nice to say, you can't poop where there are people, and you can't poop where there are no people. You can't make the feces disappear out of thin air, right?

The method that is now more popular internationally is to dig a hole and bury it - this hole is called a cat hole.

There are also some rules for how and where to dig a cat hole. For the health of yourself and others, it is best to dig a cat hole at least 60 meters (about 80 steps) away from the camp, mountain roads and water sources. The depth of the cat hole is also very important. Since you have spent so much effort to choose the location, don't be lazy and dig a hole at least 20cm deep . The shovel for digging the hole is up to you. You can use a branch to dig the hole, or you can spend two or three hundred yuan to buy an ultra-light shovel specially designed for digging shit holes.

When digging a hole, do not use brute force to dig up the soil. The correct way is to use a branch or the tip of the shovel to apply vertical force downward , rotate left and right like a drill to loosen the soil, and then dig out the soil.

A "Lanxiang Shovel" produced by a domestic manufacturer, which is similar to a cat litter shovel｜Zhaizuo Craftsmanship

Digging a cat hole can cope with most situations, but it is difficult to do in frozen soil or large rock walls where digging is impossible. It doesn't matter. According to experts, in this case, you can spread the feces evenly on the surface of the stone or ice . Even in a harsh environment, strong wind and sun will decompose the feces within four months.

Spread evenly, like frosting on a cake｜icook.com

However, for obvious reasons, this technique is difficult to practice and difficult to master. Is there any other way?

Put the shit in your backpack and take it away

As technology develops, people find that digging holes is not the perfect solution .

The first is the problem of pathogens. After the feces decompose, the pathogens they carry will remain in the soil for more than a year, and will slowly seep into the groundwater and blend into the local ecological environment.

In 2016, a survey of microorganisms in 10 national parks in the United States showed that there were multiple antibiotic resistance genes in these microorganisms, and these resistance genes, which should not exist, came from the feces of tourists . These microorganisms can cause people to suffer from gastrointestinal diseases and make popular camping sites smell very bad.

Moreover, even if it is buried, feces still stubbornly remain. In 2022, when staff at the Rocky Mountain National Park in the United States were digging temporary toilets in a high-altitude area, they discovered an old shit pit left over from decades ago , in which the feces had not yet completely decomposed.

You don’t want a nice tourist spot to become smelly, do you?｜Pixabay

The end of environmental protection is to pack up the shit and take it away .

Some more advanced friends use WAG bags in the wild. The bags themselves are made of biodegradable materials and contain disinfectants and liquid-absorbing gel, which is more convenient to carry. Compared with cat holes, WAG bags are more environmentally friendly and more suitable for use in rocky environments without soil and fragile ecosystems.

A WAG Bag｜Backcountry.com

Although it is a bit hard to accept to put the feces in the bag and take it away, it is still more attractive than playing, sleeping and eating in a place full of feces!

Now that outdoor camping activities are booming in China, more and more people are going outdoors, and the impact of wild feces will become more and more obvious. Whether it is burying it in a hole or packing it up and taking it away, it is what a responsible outdoor person should do.

If we take a little more care, we can leave this beautiful scenery to future generations.

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References

[1]How to Pee Outside: A Mostly Serious Guide for Women | Dare To Be A Wildflower

[2] Properly handle excrement and implement the Leave No Trace concept Shenzhen Himalaya https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/RutG-WW27ZHK4LP2FwY0Zw

[3]Scott, Laura C., et al. "Assessing visitor use impact on antibiotic resistant bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes in soil and water environments of Rocky Mountain National Park." Science of The Total Environment 785 (2021): 147122.

[4]https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/environment/outdoor-poop-etiquette/

Author: Li Xiaoya

Edit: Flip

Cover source: Tuchong Creative

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