Please poop responsibly

I was disgusted and disappointed to find human waste in the snow while digging out a tent platform at Artist Point.

Obviously that’s gross on it’s own — but it also left me thinking about the snow I’d be melting for drinking water.

Pooping properly in the alpine is part of considerate recreation. These are delicate ecosystems that are high up in the watershed.

To that end, I want to put together some tips for responsible pooping. I’m sure this list will grow over time.

As you’ll see, most of this post is focused on bagging your waste, since I think that’s the most responsible way to handle it.

Burying vs Bagging

Scientists are finding a lot of foreign pathogens in recreation areas. It turns out that buried poop doesn’t decompose quickly enough for it to be the default option.

In light of this, experts are calling for updated guidelines on outdoor pooping.

In short: I feel that bagging should be our go-to.

I try to always be prepared to bag.

That said, there is one scenario in which I’ll bury poop.

It’s when all of the following are true:

• I’m in a forest
• the soil is rich — it looks like chocolate cake
• this is not a high-traffic area
• I get the sense that things would decompose quickly in this environment

I don’t find myself in that kind of environment that frequently, so bagging has become my default.

To pack it out, I use a wag bag:

Below is some of my unsolicited advice on bagging your waste.

Open a bag at home

Look, you don’t want to be taking stock of what you’re working with when it’s about to be real inconvenient for you.

If this is your first time using a particular system, consider opening a bag at home and take stock of what comes with it.

Direct deposit, baby!

Sometimes people choose to poop onto a hard surface and then doggy-bag it.

Personally, I have a strong preference for the “direct deposit” method — going straight into the bag.

Doggy-bagging it feels messy to me: I end up picking up random stuff from the ground. You don’t want to pick up small twigs and then worry that they’ll poke through your bags.

Pooping onto snow

If you’re on snow, doggy-bagging can get particularly messy. You'll probably have to scoop up a significant amount of snow in order to properly leave no trace. That’s additional weight that you now have to carry.

That said, some folks prefer this method.

If you chose to poop onto snow, stamp it down first so that your turds don't tunnel into it.

Snow Latrines

When group snow-camping, it's common for groups (especially larger ones) to dig out a latrine in the snow.

In this particular case, pooping directly onto the ground can become extremely messy. If others have peed into the snow and then you poop there, your waste could fall into the holes left behind by their pee, making cleanup a difficult ordeal.

Bigger bag, bigger target

The Ranger Station at the Seattle REI gives out small blue-bags, and I know folks who direct-deposit into these.

However, I don’t want to bet on my aim like that. I prefer a bigger target.

Personally I buy this product.

Full diaper

So what’s the technique?

With my pants around my ankles, I put one edge of the inner bag behind my knees and the other behind my back.

This means that I'm essentially squatting my butt into the bag. That has some built-in privacy benefits.

Keeping in mind that I'll eventually tie a knot in this bag, I do everything in my power to keep the inner walls of the bag clean. The ideal is to poop cleanly into the bottom of it.

Toilet paper & hand sanitizer

Some bags come with toilet paper (and even wet wipes), but it’s worth bringing your own — since they don’t tend to be generous.

As a friend says: don’t have an ultralight mindset about toilet paper — it’s not that heavy.

Put that shit in a Lays tube

So... what do you do with your bag once you're done?

Although you can store bags directly in your pack, putting them in a plastic Lays tube is preferred by many. (Yes, like the potato chips)

The benefit of a Lays tube over a Pringles tube is that it’s made of plastic, so you can bury it in the snow next to your tent without it getting soaked. The cold helps minimize odors.

Birds will peck at your shit

Unfortunately, birds take a keen interest in your wag bags and are liable to peck them apart if you leave them lying around.

It’s common for climbers to bury their bags in the snow, leave for summit day, and come back to a blood-bath (shit-bath?) at camp.

Throughout the day, the sun melts the snow a surprising amount, potentially exposing your bags to birds. Bury them deep in the snow — but don’t forget to dig them out before you leave!

Trash bag

A trash bag is one of my favorite things to have in my pack because it’s so damn multipurpose.

In a pinch, you can use it as a makeshift wag bag.

Is that gross? Sure is!

...but it’s better than dropping a deuce into a delicate ecosystem — and the water supply for both animals and humans.

Safety in numbers

To avoid shitting into a trash bag, bring one more wag bag than you think you’ll need.

If everyone in your group does this, you’re unlikely to collectively run out of bags.

Communicate! If you’re out of bags, ask someone for their extra. Ethical recreation is a team sport.

Reusing bags

Can you reuse a wag bag? (i.e. poop in it more than once during a trip?)

Yea, you totally can. In fact, they’re explicitly designed for multiple uses.

Of course, it’s not my first choice to reuse a bag (I’ve personally never had to do this), but I would do it if needed.

Someone I know took all their poops into a single regular trashbag while doing a multi-day traverse in the North Cascades. That’s obviously very shitty. But if they could do that, you can reuse a wag bag in a pinch.

Location, location, location

Poop in a safe location. Don’t do it on the side of a steep snow-slope where you’ll have to hold onto your ice axe with one hand.

Also, find some privacy if you’re able to. Scurry behind a rock, etc. But stay safe!

The event horizon

The key to backcountry pooping is not wasting opportunities to poop.

There’s an important distinction between “could poop” and “must poop”.

When your body hands you a “could poop” opportunity, don’t waste it. Otherwise your stool will become dehydrated, making it more difficult (and potentially painful) to poop later.

Being constipated in the outdoors is really not fun. Spare yourself.

Plus, that shit will eventually leave your system.

Your bowel movements have a point of no return — an event horizon — after which you must poop.

My advice to you: do not reach the event horizon.

That’s how you end up pooping in an unsafe or unflattering place.

Peeing

It’s common to pee when you poop, since the muscles involved are closely related.

To avoid having a lot of urine in your wag bag, consider peeing before you poop.

You’ll probably still end up with some urine in the bag, but not as much.

This is one more reason to hone your timing. Once you’ve reached the event horizon, this is likely no longer an option.

Conclusion

Please be respectful to the environment and other people by pooping responsibly.

Also: it’s not so bad! People tend to overestimate how big of a deal it is to poop in a bag. I definitely did.

But once I did it for the first time, I realized it actually was no big deal — and I’ve watched a bunch of people go through that same emotional arc.

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