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-   -   Some questions on hygiene while on tour (https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/853343-some-questions-hygiene-while-tour.html)

missjean 12-16-12 09:41 AM


Originally Posted by salek (Post 15055284)
.........I want to sleep cleanly.....

Ha, I'm the same way. I don't like getting into my sleeping bag dirty. I don't mind the rode-all-day sweat odor, but the film of dirt that accumulates bugs me, so I take baby wipe type things and wipe down my legs, arms & neck.

ak08820 12-17-12 05:26 AM


Originally Posted by salek (Post 15055284)
...
The Arkansas trip last month was 203 miles of "hotel camping". Showers were obviously available. Only rode five days so we just did laundry at the end of the ride.

What is "hotel camping"?

xyzzy834 12-17-12 05:36 PM

I don't stealth camp except in an emergency. One of the many reasons is the lack of running water and showers. The only reason I weigh in with this is because it's easy to read this forum and conclude all bike tourers stealth camp all the time. That's not true in my experience of meeting other bike tourers along the road. Some do and many don't.

I tour for my enjoyment. That means I want a shower every day. I don't care about customs ages ago or in other countries. I care about enjoying my tour. I tour in the summer time, so I get plenty sweaty and grimy on the bike, especially since I use a liberal dose of sunscreen for protection. When I reach my camping destination for the day, I set up my tent and head for the shower. I carry one set of off-bike clothes (comfortable shorts and a t-shirt) I only wear in the evenings after my shower. I carry two pair of riding shorts and shirts/jerseys, and socks, the ones I'm wearing and the ones I'll wear the next day.

Each day and the end of my ride, I shower and wash the set of riding clothes I was wearing. I carry a universal sink stopper to do laundry in a sink if available. If not, I'll do it in the shower with me. After showering, I hang my day's laundry to dry at my campsite. If it isn't dry by the next morning, I strap it on the top of my gear to finish drying during my next day's ride.

In my off-bike clothes, I cook dinner or ride/walk to a local spot for my dinner and spend the rest of the evening exploring, writing, and planning the next day. I wash up and do all the usual nighttime hygiene before retiring to my tent for the night. In the morning, I put on the clean, dry set of bike clothes, wash up in a sink, and apply sunscreen for the day.

Pack up, ride and repeat. That's what works for me.

Terry66 12-19-12 06:27 PM

As far as cycling shorts, wear them on day one, then get up the next morning and turn them inside out and you have a clean pair for day two! Ok, joking there. I usually have 2 (maybe 3) pairs of shorts with me depending on the ride. I would like to wash out a pair everyday, but I've done two days with the same pair and nothing has fallen off. Keep clean and you'll be fine. :)

I am fine getting up and taking off without a shower, but I really like getting a shower at the end of the day before crawling in the sleeping bag. Like others have suggested, sinks, spray bottles, baby wipes, etc....they all do a fine job when a shower isn't available.

staehpj1 12-20-12 05:47 AM


Originally Posted by Terry66 (Post 15068991)
As far as cycling shorts, wear them on day one, then get up the next morning and turn them inside out and you have a clean pair for day two! Ok, joking there. I usually have 2 (maybe 3) pairs of shorts with me depending on the ride. I would like to wash out a pair everyday, but I've done two days with the same pair and nothing has fallen off. Keep clean and you'll be fine. :)

I am fine getting up and taking off without a shower, but I really like getting a shower at the end of the day before crawling in the sleeping bag. Like others have suggested, sinks, spray bottles, baby wipes, etc....they all do a fine job when a shower isn't available.

I have been taking only one pair on my last couple tours and it has worked out OK. I rinse them out when it is convenient, but sometimes wind up going a few days without washing them. Getting out of them when off the bike for the day and into something well ventilated like running shorts helps a lot. Putting them on damp when they have not dried from a rinsing out has not been a problem. They wind up wet with sweat any way.

An evening shower is really nice when available, but the lack of one for a few days is not a health concern and also not a big hardship. Showering before a days ride wouldn't even occur to me.

staehpj1 12-20-12 06:47 AM


Originally Posted by xyzzy834 (Post 15060716)
I don't stealth camp except in an emergency. One of the many reasons is the lack of running water and showers.

That may be dependent on where you choose to tour. Yes you can choose a route where you can shower every night, but it might be kind of hard to do in some places. Whether stealth camping or not there are many places where running water will be very limited and showers nonexistent. Campgrounds on my last tour in Colorado tended to have outhouses and a single outside faucet for the whole campground. On that tour the difference in the experience between the places I stealth camped and where I stayed in a campground where not all that great.

On my modified ST in many places, unless you planned to stay in one of the widely spaced towns there wasn't much to choose from. On that tour I never employed stealth, but did often camp in a roadside picnic area or similar spot. I much prefer to free camp in plain sight rather than stealth camp and when a reasonably priced campsite is available I'll use it, enjoying a shower if available.

I guess my point is that in many places camping will not offer a shower as an option whether stealth camping, free camping in plain sight, or even if staying a official campsite.

mm718 12-20-12 08:02 AM


Originally Posted by staehpj1 (Post 15070068)
I rinse them out when it is convenient, but sometimes wind up going a few days without washing them. Getting out of them when off the bike for the day and into something well ventilated like running shorts helps a lot. Putting them on damp when they have not dried from a rinsing out has not been a problem. They wind up wet with sweat any way. An evening shower is really nice when available, but the lack of one for a few days is not a health concern and also not a big hardship. Showering before a days ride wouldn't even occur to me.

Last summer I bought my first pair of cycling shorts (padded liners). Because I only had one pair and didn't feel like washing them everyday I ended up wearing them consecutive days and noticed there was absolutely no smell. I did a few 3 day bike trips with long days in the saddle and also had no problems with odors. A shower a day and airing out the shorts worked really well. Wool socks work well for me too (no odor) and I've thought about getting a wool jersey or two so that I don't have to do laundry everyday. Ideally I'd like to laundry once a week in a machine rather than daily in a sink, waiting for stuff to dry, etc.

xyzzy834 12-20-12 01:28 PM


Originally Posted by staehpj1 (Post 15070160)
That may be dependent on where you choose to tour. Yes you can choose a route where you can shower every night, but it might be kind of hard to do in some places. Whether stealth camping or not there are many places where running water will be very limited and showers nonexistent.

Yes. I choose my tours and routes with camping availability as one of the important criteria. That's part of my tour/vacation. In practice, it hasn't been a problem.

Brennan 12-20-12 05:38 PM

Rocket Shower
http://www.10nine8.com/index.html

Action Wipes
http://www.actionwipes.com/

No Rinse
http://www.norinse.com/no-rinse-products/outdoor.html


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