Touring - Keeping Clean on the Tour

I was showering tonight and I thought that one of those shower loofas might be useful for spreading out the soap and getting off the gunk.
Any input on using one of these light weight spongey things? Anyone use them on tours? Or something similar?

What are typical "bathing" techniques used by you all while on tour? And how frequent?

I'm interested in knowing some tricks of the trade. What kind of Soap do you use? Liquid? Bar? Biodegradable Camp Soap?

Also, I'm all ears on clothes cleaning practices.


Thanks,

Dave

I normally B&B tour, but for everyday grime while travelling use baby wipes. They leave my skin so soft and fragrant :)

for cleaning the bike parts,chain cogs etc. i carry an old tooth brush i brake the handle off short and use it as a scrub brush.

soap? I normally camp and cook the evening meal and carry a container of camp suds , does a good job of cleaning and easy to rinse off the suds. you can find this stuff at any outdoor store along the way as you get low to refill I use it also to wash out the shorts and jersey at night hang to dry and ready to go in the am if not dry yet i carry one extra set of bike cloths to use .

some people have caried those protable sun showers to use when no shower is available , the baby wipes work well enough when no other means of washig up is available.

during your time riding through the bush country of alaska
you might have to resort to getting water from a streem and washing up or the sun shower trick. once you hit the us west coast there is ample shower facilities available if you camp in the hike and bike sites there are mostly showers to use some cost a quarter so allways have a few quarters ready available. another option i used a lot is the city parks in the small towns. most times they have a swimmming pool you can get a shower there. I would make it a point to shower or at least clean up real good every day you dont need to develope a saddle sore on a long tour.

washing cloths i mentioned i used the camp suds every night to wash out the shorts and jersey and socks. part of the routieen find a camp,set up the tent, wash cloths start dinner shower ........... once a week or when ever the mood struck i might stop in a washateria and do laundry in a machine but i dont have that many cloths along to warrent this that often.

i also carried a small bag with personel hygine stuff like tooth brush paste a those small trial size sample shampoo and soap as i run out i replace them from local grocery stores. a few disposable razors unless you plan to grow a beard.

I use the bar soap that I normally use at home it lasts quite well with only one person using it. Hygine is a must. There may be times that a shower just isn't available and this is where some of today's modern wipes come in handy. Go to the diaper section of the supermarket and look at what is on the shelf . You will find a variety of hand held wipes that are very functional, (if you get my drift) and not space or weight challanged. Hope this helps. Gotta keep those important places free from problems.

Mur

I agree with everyone....

Hygiene is the most important. It pained me to no end to walk into a restaurant or some other public establishment stinky after a long day of riding. I did whatever I could to keep myself clean. As a matter of fact, one of my touring bags was all tolietries.... I had baby wipes and moist wipes, shampoo, conditioner, loofahs (which I highly recommend to scrub your body down every night after a hard day's ride), toothpaste and toothbrush, plus I had Fabreeze to spray on my clothes. I also had those laundry pellets to wash my clothes with, and I used the bungee cords to spread between trees or other objects to act as a clothesline. I also got this bath and body wash set that I used every day- I got the Calgon bath and body kit- a full bottle of body shampoo, a full bottle of lotion, and a full bottle of the body spray. I used the hawaiian ginger scents. I also had a back up bar of soap, and I also carried disposable washcloths and I had some cotton re-useable washcloths that I could roll up and put in my side pockets when I finished. I also had a big container of the deodorant too, which I kept in my handlebar bag for whenever I got the chance to use. Whenever I finished riding, I would always immediately strip out of my clothes as soon as possible and air them out, then jump in the shower, and after the shower, I'd wash the clothes and hang them dry. I only had 3 sports bras and 2 pair of pants, but they had to do. I am a clean freak... I can't stand it when I smell, and if I am smelling so bad I am offending myself, I can just imagine how others must feel. I know there were times when even the most dilligent cleaning ritual was no match for my natural stank ;), but I can say overall that I did my best. Just do the best you can do, even if you have to wash in cold streams or some other not-so-fun place.


Koffee

Christ, you probably smelt better than the people in the restauraunt after riding 75 miles, with your 20 lbs. of toiletries.

All along the Rocky Mountains there are traditional Native American hot baths. You need a guide book to find them, many are hidden from the road or trail.
Some are commercial, but most are just there to be used, if you can find them
I used one in Idaho in which the small hot spring was mixed with a small cold stream in a rock-lined hollow. It smells a bit sulphurous but was quite an experience.

For cleaning the clothes you're wearing, you can just jump in the shower with them on if you have to use an outdoor shower, such as at a swimming pool, soap up and clean them at the same time as yourself. You need to change to dry them though.:D

Washing on tour? Hmm...... probably not very often.

I'm sorry but a state of absolute cleanliness is not something I really equate with touring. If you're doing it properly and camping you're probably going to smell a bit - more so if it rains a lot - but so what? Being almost entirely self - sufficient and it not mattering where you stop for the night is great fun for a couple of weeks a year. I thinl people can get overly hung up on washing etc.

On a similar note do you guys get "The Frontier House" on TV in America? If so have you noticed how ridiculous the Californian women come across crying about not being able to take any make-up?

Niall: I can't believe you made that last statement. Most likely you never got a little sore on your rear and then didn't keep it clean. When that happens and you don't gret it clean and free from bacteia, ouch, the tour is over. Who cares about how sweet you smell or how much your pits have dripped. What really matters is that you can continue the trip and keeping the south side clean and free from bacteria will help that.

Mur

yes a saddle sore will stop you or at least make you ride standing up for a few days as it heals.

I don't like standing going up hills but I really dislike that standing on the flat land it's just a pain in the rear. (bad pun intended)

Mur

I agree with what Mur said a few posts back...I dont think being stank-free on a tour is neccessary, but making sure to clean so you wont get infected or covered in bacteria makes all the sense in the world. Rashes and other sores come from not treating the area after it becomes worn, or dirty. For instance, going on a tour and not worrying about washing under your arms, would probably lead to a rash. Not washing your feet -- Athletes foot. Crotch area--jock itch, and so on. Removing all those nasty skin cells lingering on ya, is our body's way of preventing infection.

showers arent only meant to make you smell good ...