alternatives to the PVC tube
I camp frequently on the Maine Island Trail and there you must pack in/pack out. I find it convenient to have all I need in one zip lock -
-couple of sheets of folded newspaper
-two small plastic bags
-toilet paper
-wipes
After using the newspapers to go on, I fold carefully so all is inside the paper using a “Burrito Fold” place inside one bag, then inside the other. These will all get put into one garbage bag and packed out.
On the return home, I stop at a facility with outhouses and remove the “Burritos” from their plastic bags and place in the porta poties or outhouses where they will be handled appropriately.
This is an inexpensive light weight means of handling your own waste. I don’t like carrying a tube on my deck and find this method works well.
Suzanne
With all due respect,
your position is one of ignorance.
As mentioned, the volume of traffic has a great deal to do with the issue as does the climate. What you leave will be here for many years in the West. Arrid mummification, if you will.
The environment is a place of natural relationships between the flora and fauna. Humans have distanced themselves from this relationship with a non-natural lifestyle as compared to the wildlife.
Do a faecal analysis of human waste and compare it to wild animal waste. You’ll find much of human waste is not beneficial to the environment and certain components of our waste have a deleterious effect upon the same. Add to that the fact that many of us overeat and generate unnaturally copious amounts of solid waste. This is also clearly demonstrated when comparing domestic dogs to wolves. The 75# domestic dog fed on store-bought kibble not only produces a much larger scat containing a large quantity of indigestible components, they also defecate more frequently than does thier natural wolf relative of an equivalent body size.
Additionally, wild animals generally don’t leave toilet paper behind!
When we and our domestic companions enter the natural world we do so as visitors, not interactive and equal organisms. Our behavior is aberrant when compared to the native flora/fauna. It’s really quite simple to recognise this and address the issue through a bit of personal responsibility.
Pleasant waters.
Holmes
Depends on the animal
Well, there are two distinctions that matter:
First, dog poop is as bad as human poop, for the same reason: they eat meat. Poop containing meat breaks down much more slowly than vegetarian poop.
That’s not to say runny cowpies aren’t disgusting, but they “return to the soil” more quickly and thoroughly.
Second, in some places, such as much of the western U.S.–especially the arid and semi-arid places–poop takes even longer to break down than it does in wet, heavily vegetated environments.
ALL poop contains biohazards that I’d rather avoid. If catholes are allowed and people actually dig them, at least the crap isn’t running directly into the water when it rains, or being stepped in. But as I said before, there are a LOT of slobs who can’t be bothered with either catholes or boomboxes/poop pipes.
You’re lucky they allow plastic bags
I think the western U.S. prohibition on disposable bags vs. “permanent” poop pipes and boomboxes is similar to the trash situation on the Crystal River in FL. There, one may not take certain commonly-accepted lunch items on the water. For example, commercial disposable bottles of water are prohibited, but long-lasting bike water bottles and Nalgenes are allowed. Sandwiches must be sealed in hard boxes, not in disposable bags. The reason is simple: people are slobs and throw disposables anywhere they want to, even when there is a trash can 10 feet away!
I’ve seen more than a few plastic bags of dog poop just left on the ground. The owners did pick up the mess but couldn’t be bothered to dispose of it properly. Contractors driving nearly-empty pickup trucks throw bags full of fast-food trash on the road where I live every day they work around here. A huge percentage of humans are utter slobs.
Poop Tube
Try this excellent web address! www.seakayak.ws/ Go to #11 Equipment and under this heading you’ll find instruction on how to make a Portable Toilet.
Those are the directions
I used to make mine. Works well.
Jim
Ignorance is …
bliss? OR my middle name … but it does accurately describe my knowledge of poop regulations on certain waterways. I’ve obviously never paddled in such situations as those addressed in this thread, so I’ve learned quite a bit from this thread.
Locally, as in Missouri, this discussion reminds me again of the horse pooh problem on the lower Jacks Fork [as ‘thebob’ has so elequently described in other threads]. One human making a cathole - no big whup … but multiplied by hundreds or even thousands per year in the general area; yep, that’s a major problem. Ditto horses or factories or anything that throws Nature out of balance.
Thanks for not flaming, but rather educating, a casual rec paddler.
Beware of the sea going
Blind Mullet
Brian
SoFlo
You’re welcome and…
there was no need for a flame. Your posted thoughts are shared by many folks that are not familiar the region.
If I ever get to the Ozarks, I’ll need input from paddlers such as yourself in order to enjoy myself and minimise my impact on the environment. I have little knowledge of that most interesting region.
I am an environmentalist but I do not subscribe to the thpremise of locking out human activity in the natural world. I’m an environmentalist that advocates wise and responsible use of our natural resources.
Now, if we could only get the federal gooberment and the extremist groups to recognise a smidgeon of common sense…
Holmes
Immodium
Nothing will jam you up quite like 2-3 Immodium.
We used to joke that it was a butt cork in pill form.