How does one shower in the backcountry? How do you administer medical help away from home? Neither of these questions will be answered here today. However, I will share with you what I carry with me to take care of the needs of each question. Because if we’re both honest with each other, they kinda go hand in hand together.
First Aid Kit
Years ago I used to carry those first aid kits that that were almost as big as my pack and weighed almost as much. There wasn’t a potential injury I wasn’t prepared for. In doing so, I was likely to take more avoidable risks because I built that false safety net into my thinking. Hell I should have just tried to pack a fully stocked and staffed ER to take with me.
Pic below is one of the large kits I used to carry with me…
I have since learned more about improvising medical solutions should they arise. By expanding my knowledge I’ve been able to shrink my first aid kit down quite significantly to the kit I am sharing with you today. While I started with a 1 person kit, I have expanded it slightly with my own personal modifications to make it closer to a 2 person kit.
My personal first aid kit contains nothing more than some bandaids, gauze, medical tape, antibacterial ointment, burn gel, and some asprin and motrin. I know, not much, however, it’s more than I expect I will need. And as of the date of this article, I have yet to need even that much, “knock on wood.” I hope to never need use it, but if I do, at least I have it.
A proper first aid kit is not a pack and forget kind of thing. Virtually everything in your kit will have a shelf life and need to be replaced periodically through the year. It is a good idea to look at the dates (if printed) and replace anything that is expired. Will it still be good after that date, maybe. But why chance your life in the woods on the gamble of something expired. If you don’t want to “waste” the money by throwing out the expired items, rotate them into your home first aid kit, chances are most of that NEEDS replaced anyway. So gamble at home where emerency services and doctors are alot closer to get to should something fail to work.
Next we will cover: my hygiene in the woods
I’m in the woods, how am I supposed to shower like I do at home?? Simply put, YOUR NOT!!! Sorry to burst your bubble, but unless you are at a mordernized campground or you choose to tote in the excess weight of an outdoor shower, you just simply won’t be able to keep the same level of hygiene in the woods as you do at home. Now that’s not to say you can’t do it at all, in fact, you can keep quite clean depending on where you go and what you bring. For myself, I like to keep it simple and light.
Most if not all of what I pack for my “Hygiene” Kit can be found and purchased at the “Dollar Tree” or any dollar store you have in your area. I like to buy the single use toothbrushes because they combine the toothbrush, toothpaste, and a dental pick in one neat, tiny unit, and you get 2 in the package. I find this to be the best way to keep my teeth brushed out in the woods.
When I am done eating and it’s time to evacuate the wasted nutriunts my body decided it didn’t require, a shovel to dig a “cat hole” and toilet paper is all that is required and should be pretty self-explanitory. However, how much toilet paper to carry depends on how often you go, how much paper you use each time, and howmuch space you have in your pack to carry it. I personally find that a full roll will get me through multiple trips. I don’t buy extra just for camping, I just grab whatever we have at home off the shelf and replenish as needed.
To cover the showering portion of my woods hygiene, I have babywipes to wipe my nether regions, hands before I eat if neccessary, etc. The washing technique I use is an old one, the “Bird Bath” in which I only wash the armpits and nether region (privates). It may be crude, but it works. And if I am out for just a single night, I usually just wait till I get home to wash up and forego any kind of washing.
If you don’t want to use baby wipes, they do make eco-friendly soaps you are more than welcome to carry with you, but word of caution, you will likely require access to more water than you can carry, and that water depending on your time of travel, may very well be shockingly cold. So if you are sensitive to cold or don’t like the cold at all, do your diligence in seeing what “showering” options will work for you. For me, baby wipes are sufficient and multi-use.
In Conclusion
What you choose to take for first aid and hygiene should be highly dependant on yourself. You know the limits of your knowledge and skills. You, hopefully, know and understand the challenges of the area your are choosing to explore. I can not stress this enough, PACK ACCORDINGLY and if you have any doubts, change your plans. It is better to not go than to risk injury or life of yourself and those that may be dispatched to rescue you.
As for myself, my first aid kit is an ever evolving project. As I gain knowlege, some things get taken out, some new things get added. I always try to have enough in my kit for 2-3 people even when traveling alone, as I never know what I may come across while I am out and about.
My hygiene kit for the most never really changes. Regardless if I plan to use it or not, it goes with me, because, well, you never know. Thank you for reading if you made it this far. Hope to maybe see you out on the trail one day.
Links
The following links may not be to the EXACT gear pictured, however, will be to what I could find comparable to what I have and use. Some are a generalized search so you can pick exactly what you want or give you an idea what might be found at that retail store if it applies.
The Wandering Leatherneck 