Where Do You Poop While Backcountry Camping or Backpacking (Your Outdoor Bathroom Guide)
Spending several days in the woods can be great! You get plenty of time to enjoy and explore the great outdoors, get the health benefits of being in nature, and take some time unplugging from your typical busy schedule.
However, there are some uncomfortable aspects of spending so much time in the backcountry, such as bathing (or lack thereof) and using the bathroom. Though squatting in the woods isn’t most people’s cup of tea, it becomes easier once you get over your initial fears. Below, we’ll answer your most common questions around outdoor bathroom usage, such as “where do you poop while camping or backpacking?” to help you become more comfortable with relieving yourself outside.
1. Where Do You Poop While Backcountry Camping or Backpacking?
Depending on where you are, you may have some options for where you can poop while camping and backpacking.
Some portions of popular hiking trails may have structures available for hikers to use. There may be an outhouse, latrine, or a pit toilet in the deeper forest. When you are closer to a campground, you might have access to a vault toilet. Or, if you are incredibly fortunate, you might have the absolute luxury of a bathroom facility with running water near a trailhead.
The deeper you get into the backcountry, the less likely you are to find these types of structures. Out here, you’ll need to create your own relief spot in the great outdoors.
When this is the case, you’ll need to find an area that gives you some privacy and is at least 200 feet from water sources, trails, roads, and campsites. Ideally you’d find a place with enough vegetation to provide cover and keep you out of sight of other hikers. If you can’t find such a place, you’ll want to ask a buddy to act as a lookout and give you a holler if someone is approaching.
2. Rules for Going to the Bathroom in the Woods
Sure, plenty of animals are doing their business all over the place in the forest without causing any fuss. However, different rules apply to us humans who venture out into nature. In order to maintain the natural environment and prevent the spread of disease, there are things we need to do with our waste:
- 200 Feet Rule – Relieve yourself at least 200 feet from water sources, roads, campsites, and trails. This is to help prevent contamination and minimize the impact on other hikers and wildlife.
- Pack Out – Abide by the Leave No Trace principles and pack out any toilet paper and hygiene products you use.
- Bury Waste – Bury your waste in a hole at least six inches deep. Cover the hole and disguise it when you’re finished.
- Wash Up – Wash your hands after relieving yourself with soap and water or with hand sanitizer.
- Follow Rules – Pay attention to any park rules or laws. Some places have rules specific to the area.
3. How to Poop in the Woods?
It wouldn’t be an outdoor bathroom guide without us walking you through the “nature’s call” ritual….
- Gather Your Gear – Be sure to bring along all the items you will need for this activity, such as your toilet paper, trowel, hand sanitizer, and bear spray if you are in bear country.
- Find Your Spot – Make sure you are at least 200ft from any trail, road, water sources, and campsites. Then find a place with good coverage and vegetation to give yourself some privacy.
- Dig a Cathole – Once you find your area, start digging a hole. You’ll want to dig at least 6-8 inches into the ground and wide enough to catch what you’re going to lay down.
- Drop Your Pants, Squat, and Aim – Hopefully you made your cathole big enough that your aim doesn’t have to be flawless. If your balance isn’t great or your legs are tired from hiking, use a tree or stump as support. Some people may choose to sit on a fallen tree with their rear hanging off. Just make sure that tree is stable!
- Wipe or Wash – Use whatever you have to clean yourself off with, whether it’s toilet paper, a bidet, or a handful of leaves. If it’s toilet paper or tissue, pack it out with you. Only natural and biodegradable materials can be buried in the cathole.
- Clean Your Hands – Grab that hand sanitizer or soap and water and clean your hands well.
- Cover the Cathole – You’re almost finished, all you need to do is fill the hole back up with dirt, rocks, and whatever natural items you see around you. Disguise the area after, so no one can tell a cathole was made there.
4. How to Avoid Pooping in the Woods?
A common question people ask after finding out where you poop while camping and backpacking is how to avoid pooping in the woods in the first place!
In short, you don’t.
Please, do not try to hold back on your bodily functions when you are out in nature. Holding in your bowel movements can cause issues such as constipation, damage to your rectum, and accumulation of toxins in the body. There are a lot of medical problems that may arise if you don’t answer natures call!
When you plan a backcountry adventure, instead of researching how to avoid pooping in the woods, mentally prepare yourself for it. After all, it is unavoidable if you’re out there for more than a couple days. This task is not a big deal until you make it a big deal.
5. How Much Toilet Paper to Bring Backpacking?
Predicting how much toilet paper you will need for a backpacking or camping trip can be tough. We’d love to have a more clear-cut answer for our outdoor bathroom guide, but it wouldn’t be valuable. So, our recommendation is to bring however much you need to keep yourself clean!
Toilet paper usage is really subjective. Some people use a lot and some people get by with very little. Pack what you think you will need for however many days you’ll be out there for. Just remember, toilet paper is another item taking up weight and space in your pack so you might want to limit your usage.
For some people, very little toilet paper is needed! If you bring along a backpacking bidet, you don’t have much need for toilet paper. This is a great strategy for ultralight or minimalist backpackers.
6. Can You Leave Toilet Paper in the Woods?
When it comes to relieving yourself in the woods, many people wonder whether you can leave toilet paper in the woods. We stand by the stance that you shouldn’t and ask all our readers to pack out their toilet paper whenever possible
Leaving bath tissue in the forest can have an impact on the natural environment. While it is technically biodegradable, it can take a long time to decompose and it can attract animals and insects. This can lead to the spread of disease and the disruption of the local ecosystem. Additionally, leaving toilet paper laying around the woods is gross and takes away the beauty of the landscape for other hikers.
It’s best to practice leave no trace principles and pack out your used toilet paper along with any other garbage you create on the trip.
7. What is a Wag Bag?
A “wag bag” is a “waste management bag” for wilderness adventurers. In short, it is a bag designed to carry out human waste so that none is left behind in cat holes or otherwise. This helps minimize the impact of human visitors on certain landscapes.
A wag bag is typically a heavy-duty plastic bag with a sealable top and a special powder or gel that is added to the bag to help contain and break down waste. That added gel or powder helps to neutralize odors and control bacteria.
Certain areas, such as Mt. Whitney and Guadalupe Mountains National Park, require visitors to pack out all solid human waste. Some set up this requirement because digging a cathole is not possible on the landscape. Others needed to take action to keep waste issues under control.
This Vice article does a good job describing the horrors some hikers have come across on particularly popular backpacking destinations.
If this idea grosses you out, don’t hike in these areas. Do a good job burying your business and following all forest and park rules to keep these trails enjoyable for everyone.
8. What Should Be in Your Backcountry Bathroom Kit?
- Trowel– Used to dig a cathole
- Toilet Paper – Used to clean your hiney after your business is finished
- Hand Sanitizer – Used for cleaning your hands
- Garbage Baggie – Used to store and collect used toilet paper and feminine products
- Backpacking Bidet* – Optional, used as an alternative to toilet paper
- Female Pee Funnel*– Optional, used to help women pee without squatting
- Wag Bag* – Area dependent, used to collect and pack out human waste
Cover photo by Shira Michael on Unsplash
