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"number Two" On Mt Mckinley


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Gross.

 

When I go backpacking, I usually pack the crap right out back to my house. Disgusting? Yes, but also good for the environment.

 

Each to their own, would be a neat idea, though.

I try my best to limit my impact, but that's where I draw the line. I'll pack out my cans, other people's cans and any garbage I generate, but my poop stays in the woods. If its good enough for Smokey, its good enough for me.

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In Yosemite climbers on the big walls have to pack along what is called a 'Poop tube' which is typically a 4 or 6 inche PVC piece of pipe 3feet long capped on one end with screw cap on the other. They poop into a plactic baggie and then twist the top close and drop into the tube. On Denali the it is to cold for the poop to decay as there is little bacteria so it will eventually just freeze and stick around. It is an issue and one people should take seriously.

cheers

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There's a neat little book that all cachers, hikers, backpackers and deep woods campers ought to read: "How to S&*t in the Woods". :ph34r:

 

Despite the title, and a little bit of tongue in cheek writing, it's a serious book that examines the real problems with human waste in the wild and offers a few good suggestions on dealing with it.

 

The author's name escapes me right now, but you should be able to find it in the outdoors section of most large bookstores or on Amazon.

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Problem is more aesthetic than hygienic, given that the stuff is frozen and normal precautions will prevent the trots. But who wants to climb a mountain only to find himself in a septic tank? Yuck. Hope the cleanup goes well.

 

(Edited to remove a thoughtless remark.)

Edited by Mule Ears
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I can see where thousands of humans congregate over time why you would want to deal with it. It seems like if that base camp is used repeatedly you could bring in a porta john or something else that would work. It's got to be cheaper than doing the human equivlent of my kids most hated chore. "Dog Patrol".

 

To be fair IF there was a cache at that base camp. Odds are the cacher is a climber anyway and that that cache would be logged every other year.

Edited by Renegade Knight
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There's a neat little book that all cachers, hikers, backpackers and deep woods campers ought to read: "How to S&*t in the Woods". :o

Bought it, read it, loved it. It made me think about issues with this subject I'd never thought of before. It also made me look at ammo cans in a different light (there are actually toilet seats that fit on the rim...)

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...who wants to climb a mountain only to find himself in a septic tank? Yuck.

 

Hmmm...this topic seems to be right up my alley! :o

 

A couple of years ago, I spent 30 days rafting in the Franklin-Gordon world heritage area in Tasmania. Our groups carried out all waste.

 

Once you get the knack of squatting and holding the baggie open (in the right place), it really becomes second nature, no big deal. After a few days, you even start feeling pretty good about it.

 

Burying feces dramatically slows the process of biodegradation, but it certainly looks better than just leaving it where it may drop. I think the real issue is courtesy and respect of others. I become angered when I find piles of $417 in the woods.

 

In a frozen climate like Denali, it’s only right to remove human waste. Until now, I had a lot more respect for mountain climbers; I always thought they were smarter stewards of our pristine areas. :o:)

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Problem is more aesthetic than hygienic, given that the stuff is frozen and normal precautions will prevent the trots.

That's what I thought when I heard this discussed on the radio today. Apparently the problem occurs when the hikers melt snow for drinking water.

 

Seems a few well placed ammo cans might fix that problem...and cause a few new ones.

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There's a neat little book that all cachers, hikers, backpackers and deep woods campers ought to read: "How to S&*t in the Woods".  :D

Bought it, read it, loved it. It made me think about issues with this subject I'd never thought of before. It also made me look at ammo cans in a different light (there are actually toilet seats that fit on the rim...)

Doesn't it also say something about being carefull of tupperware as it may 'explode'?

 

:lol:

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Until now, I had a lot more respect for mountain climbers; I always thought they were smarter stewards of our pristine areas. :D:D

That speaks to the main reason I wanted to share this (other than the inherent fun of a poo-relataed story). I realize this behavior may not be typical of mountain climbers. Still, it burns me up to think this kind of thing goes on in other outdoor activities, yet caching is still prohibited on most NPS land for whatever minimal impact it may have on the environment.

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Here's something interesting, a climber who ascended McKinley about a week ago comments on that Reuters story and provides an account of the sanitation conditions:

 

That story is quite out of date (interview in 2002? get with the times) and is, er, Crap!

 

The NPS has really cleaned up the mountain. I just returned from a fun-filled 2.5 weeks on the West Buttress and never, ever, once saw any poop laying around. No one in our party had any GI disorders whatsoever, nor did anyone we talked to, and we chatted with a lot of folks on the route at the time.

 

Below 14K it's simple: you poop into a plastic bag (biodegradable) and pitch it into a Crevasse (always nearby). At 14K camp you simply use one of two toilets! Who wouldn't? Above 17K camp you use (as Dug points out) a mandatory-issue Clean Mountain Can, and it works quite well, and the poop in the can freezes solid (always) so it doesn't even smell next time it's used.

 

The source is a mountain-climbing oriented site. Here's the page link (scroll down for the stuff I quoted): The real poop on McKinley sanitation.

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