UKC

Wild pooing: is it still an issue?

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 Jake Chapman 20 Jun 2019

I'm writing an article on wild pooing in the UK, and was wondering if anyone had any "crap" stories to share? I've spoken to a couple of the members of the BMC who say that it isn't a huge issue. Dog poo is a bigger issue, they say. Is that the general consensus?

Post edited at 15:37
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Depends on the popularity of the location.
At popular camping/snow holing areas it can be a real issue.
Coire Domhain for example.

 FactorXXX 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

>  I've spoken to a couple of the members of the BMC who say that it isn't a huge issue. 

Is that the Bowel Motion Council?

 jkarran 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Not exactly a mountain environment but some dirty trucker keeps curling them out under the tree beside my work car park. He thoughtfully marks the mess so the dog can find it easier with a piss bottle, beer cans and bogroll.

jk

pasbury 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Wild pooing has to be done and I'm afraid with the best will in the world I'm not going to carry it out. However i always make certain that to the best of my ability no-one is going to tread in/see/smell any of my shit.

Post edited at 16:36
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 Rob Parsons 20 Jun 2019
In reply to pasbury:

> ... I'm afraid with the best will in the world I'm not going to carry it out ...

A rather arrogant attitude. In some places, carrying it out is precisely what you have to do, and for good reason.

9
Moley 20 Jun 2019
In reply to pasbury:

Im with you on this......today being an example. I like to think we have the intelligence not to "dump" somewhere obvious, by water course, or likely to be found, trod in etc. It can be burried (plenty of little trowels available) or well covered up.

4
 Naechi 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Moley:

If we have the intelligence we ain't using it! Most definately an issue throughout Scotland anyway...

Removed User 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Naechi:

Not that I've noticed. Can't remember the last time I came across an al fresco tollie.

In reply to Removed User:

Coming down from the Window on Creag Meagaidh in early March (a few years back), the rotting snow was festooned with large brown smears. With sun and a bit of an uphill breeze, the smell was pretty ripe.

 abr1966 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Its an issue id say.....also relates to cycling and probably other outdoor activities!

 whenry 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

It can be pretty grim in a few places on Kalymnos - Summertime, Sympleglades and Odyssey particularly spring to mind as having a one or two spots that seem to have turned into an open cesspit.

1
 aln 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Removed User:

That surprises me Eric, I see it often in Scotland. The most disgusting being a few years ago when I caught my dog eating some at the Loup of Fintry... 

 daWalt 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

it is an issue at popular locations, and is becoming more of an issue over time. I suspect simply in proportion to the number of people.

if you're ever on the tourist path on Ben Nevis you can nip round the back of the lone boulder at the path junction at your own risk: that's a health hazard in no uncertain terms.

the thing that riles me most is when people empty their campervan tank next to a layby - seen this a couple of times up north. inexcusable. and if i see anyone doing it they'll be wearing it as a hat and coat. 

1
 JohnBson 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Witnessed a massive turd and paper on the belay ledge of central rib route at wintours leap. Whoever laid it was a short easy pitch from the top and 50m abseil/lower from the bottom.

Removed User 20 Jun 2019
In reply to aln:

> That surprises me Eric, I see it often in Scotland. The most disgusting being a few years ago when I caught my dog eating some at the Loup of Fintry... 


Maybe I just go to out of the way places. I think the last time I met one it was languishing on my front door mat.

 aln 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Removed User:

> Maybe I just go to out of the way places.

Me too. I'm amazed sometimes at how they seem to be left by people who should know better. Maybe you're just lucky.

I think the last time I met one it was languishing on my front door mat.

That really is disgusting. 

 Tom Valentine 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Probably a big issue if you live in Appleby.

1
 Flinticus 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Where's wild?

The only place I've seen it as an issue is in Pollok Country Park, with my dog having rolled in human excrement a few times - that's a real walk of shame home. Its a combination, I think, of joggers and drinkers (very little cross-over on those demographics but this unites them). 

Like Ric9points I tend to avoid the honeypots - though if there was a spectrum on which honeypots was at one end, I think the other end would be a pile of excrement.

 Dave the Rave 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

My bro outlaws dog ate a huge turd on top of Bidean. Soon after they met a young lady who started to pet the dog and letting it lick her face. They hadn’t the heart to tell her.

 Naechi 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Removed User:

To name a few... the Hutchinson hut was not good over winter, every easy access to the burn had a crimped caber guarding route to water, despite there being a full size spade at the hut door. 

The larig ghru is always bad, worse the further you get from deeside. Glen etive is a national disgrace, havent been for years but from photos on various facebook groups it's not changed for the better.  Not exactly wild but not much is.

Everyone can get caught out, increase in use definately plays a part but ignorance rules supreme I think...

 JohnBson 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Robin Hood's cave at stanage is basically an open toilet and is almost a every corner  is covered paper and turds. This is a problem.

Most climbers I and vanlifers I know do wild poo, but only when there is no practical alternative. We always carry the paper out and work out whether digging or carrying is the most practical way to deal with the rest. 

pasbury 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Rob Parsons:

> A rather arrogant attitude. In some places, carrying it out is precisely what you have to do, and for good reason.

Is that really recommended practice in the U.K.? I mean i’m not advocating shitting on a bivvy ledge on El Cap, just saying that I normally bury it under a rock or in a dug hole in locations where no sensible bugger ever goes.

Removed User 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Naechi:

Yeah, around popular bothies and neds camping spots.

Makes sense.

 Mal Grey 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

It is an issue, but possibly mostly in areas where the true "outdoor lovers" tend to avoid, as they travel further from the honeypots.

However, some bothies have a problem, I remember the woodlands near A'Chuil being pretty grim one mild February.

I wild camp or bothy in Scotland regularly. Only at the above bothy have I ever actually seen somebody else's doings whilst looking for somewhere to go myself. I have though, seen them near car parks, by lowland paths, in the bushes in parks and in my old work's car park (happily it was in the parking place of somebody I did not get on with. No it wasn't me who did it!)

I was disappointed to find obvious signs on a wild island in Sweden once. Somehow, I expected better from our outdoor bred Scandinavian cousins. Paper from several visits rotting behind the obvious boulder near the obvious camp spot. Too near, like 20m. It was an extremely simple matter to walk to somewhere far more appropriate in about 1 minute.

On a different note, if wild camping somewhere for a couple of nights (the most I would do), do others also find themselves normally revisiting "their" spot each time, or do they go to different places. I think I'm a creature of habit! I like a good view.

And as a mildly more amusing anecdote; I used to mark my spot with a stick "X" so companions wouldn't dig in the same spot. This had to end when I started wild camping with families who's Pirate Kids were used to Treasure Hunts where X-marks-the-spot was not going to end well! Now a vertical stick serves the purpose...

Clauso 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

I like to combine my wild crapping with my wild swimming. 

It's great to turd in a tarn; just ensure that you're doing the backstroke at the time. 

4
Moley 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Naechi:

Not been to Scotland (in 25 years) but no issues where I walk in Wales, perhaps it depends on the area you frequent? The more popular the land, the more likely to find poo and litter, I don't go there.

 Martin W 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Rob Parsons:

> In some places, carrying it out is precisely what you have to do, and for good reason.

Exactly.  Refusal to pack it out is far from showing "the best will in the world" given that people elsewhere in the world do it.  And people in the UK too.  Is the Cairngorms Poo Project/Snow White Facility still going*?

https://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/winter_climbing/cairngorm_poo_project-270...

https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2009/10/cairngorm_news_and_the_poo_project-...

https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/news/cairngorms-poo-project-back-for-a-3rd-...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-21046404

Ah, looks like it is:

http://www.peakmountaineering.com/blog/2018/10/12/The_Cairngorm_Snow_White_...

* See what I did there?

1
 Mark Kemball 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

It's certainly an issue near some van camping spots -see https://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/crag_access/bosigran_is_crappy-692423?v=1...

1
In reply to Jake Chapman:

>Dog poo is a bigger issue, they say. Is that the general consensus?

No it isn’t!

jcm

2
 ben b 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

That stand of conifers next to the “camping field” behind the back bar of the Kingshouse... 30 years on the memory still lingers

Removed User 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

I often smile at the thought of the toff that got allocated the shooting butt on the Duke of Devonshire's estate where I'd just done a rather squishy one. I wouldn't want to have carried that one out. Do I feel ashamed - nah. 

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 Naechi 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Moley:

> The more popular the land, the more likely to find poo and litter, I don't go there.

Oh for sure, just sometimes (more often) you have to portage through the badlands (for longer) to get to that sweet solitude... 

 girlymonkey 20 Jun 2019
In reply to aln:

Dogs eating it is the worst! My dog isn't bad for eating things he shouldn't generally, but he can't resist a bit of human poo! Filthy!

 Naechi 20 Jun 2019
In reply to girlymonkey:

Mine rolls in it.  Not everytime but often enough that contingencies have been put in place. 

Clauso 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

This thread has inspired me. 

You may already be aware of the Frog Graham; a fell-running and swimming challenge, inspired by the Bob Graham?... 

I propose the Bog Graham; a fell-running, swimming, and defecating challenge... Criteria to include miles run, tarns swam, and logs laid.

 girlymonkey 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Naechi:

Yuck! Fox poo is the worst mine rolls in! (Which is pretty foul!) For all his issues, I'm glad we don't have to deal with this!

 Dave the Rave 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Removed Userjess13:

> I often smile at the thought of the toff that got allocated the shooting butt on the Duke of Devonshire's estate where I'd just done a rather squishy one. I wouldn't want to have carried that one out. Do I feel ashamed - nah. 

That takes me back. Back in the 90s I used to plan a shit for every grouse butt in the High Peak. I did a fair phew.

3
 machine 20 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

Its a shit situation. There's nothing worse then stumbling on the contents of some ones arse when on the hill or at the crag. Even worse on the belay ledge. Have a shit before you go on the hill. If you have a problem take an Imodium before you go. 

6
In reply to Jake Chapman:

I always carry a trowel in my pack in case I'm caught short.

I've become quite adept at scooping it up and flicking it against rocks, or stone walls to create a Jackson Pollock like effect.

It's all about the wrist action

1
 jkarran 21 Jun 2019
In reply to girlymonkey:

> Dogs eating it is the worst! My dog isn't bad for eating things he shouldn't generally, but he can't resist a bit of human poo! Filthy!

Mine too and there's plenty of it about, town and country. I once found him licking the back of a roadside telecoms box someone had liberally sprayed with arse gravy. Rotters, dog and the passing poo volcano.

jk

 NottsRich 21 Jun 2019
In reply to Punter S Thompson:

> I've become quite adept at scooping it up and flicking it against rocks, or stone walls to create a Jackson Pollock like effect.

You'd do well in Yellowstone, as in some places they recommend leaving it smeared on a rock so that the sun degrades it much more quickly than if it's buried in the ground.

 Rik 21 Jun 2019
In reply to machine:

I had to, literally, step over a freshly laid log, complete with copious paper, on the crest of Striding Edge earlier this week.

1
Rigid Raider 21 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

I'm a happy outdoor pooper; there's nothing nicer than hoofing a deep hole and squatting down for a few minutes of contemplation then covering up and leaving no trace. I find the body functions much better in the natural position and would have a squatter in the house if Mrs RR would allow it but she only just tolerates my home urinal with the aiming fly in the glaze. 

On a 2-week walk across Knoydart we lived on Raven freeze-dried rations, cached at loch and road heads. On the first morning members of the group disappeared with the communal trowel and came back looking puzzled. It wasn't until I took my turn that I saw the reason - half way along its length the poo turned form a normal brown colour to bright flourescent sporting green, which it remained for the duration of the trip. I never worked out whether it was the preservatives in the food or some Raven wheeze to camouflage the poos. 

In Mallorca recently the area behind a remote beach near Deia was littered with digusting little heaps and paper, really unpleasant. Why can't people nip them off in the sea?

  

2
 WaterMonkey 21 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

A mate of mine often tells the story of when he was going through a bad patch in his life and was a bit depressed. He was working on the railways and desperately needed a post-curry poo. He walked into a wooded area, pulled down his overalls and proceeded to poo against a tree. He then tried to find something to wipe his arse with and decided to use his own pants. Whilst trying to remove his pants he fell over and landed in his own curry-fied poo. He says he just sat in it for several minutes crying his eyes out!

Post edited at 11:53
 Neil Williams 21 Jun 2019
In reply to WaterMonkey:

Best to sort out something before you start

 Roland.Online 21 Jun 2019

I always have in my kit bag a roll of compostable dog poop bags and a roll of loo paper, with a couple of stronger plastic bags for carrying out.

Bag it up and carry it out, on any walking, camping or climbing trip.  Always.

Same goes for whoever I'm with, whether that be my 11 year old or my climbing mates.

Cheers

 Hooo 22 Jun 2019
In reply to Removed Userjess13:

A guy I used to know lived in a squat that backed onto a golf course. He used to go out at night and crap in the holes.

I know it's wrong, but I can't help sniggering every time I'm reminded of that story.

 KS132 22 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

It would seem it is still an issue. I took a short walk today along the wide path up above Coledale Beck, from Braithwaite in the Lake District. It was a linear walk and on my way back I saw that someone had used the grass verge (about 2 feet from the track) as a toilet (99% sure it wasn’t there on my way out, it was impossible to miss) and left a load of paper too. What a shame. Such a beautiful area. 

Post edited at 21:01
 Neil Williams 22 Jun 2019
In reply to KS132:

As a runner I occasionally do get caught short (these things happen, running has a habit of moving things along, so to speak), but it's not much effort to bury it and carry the paper out.  If anything the paper is the worst bit.

 KS132 22 Jun 2019
In reply to Neil Williams:

I agree with all of your points here. I probably wouldn’t have seen it had there not been reams of paper too. The smell might have caught my attention, though.....☹️

 Robert Durran 22 Jun 2019
In reply to Neil Williams:

>  If anything the paper is the worst bit.

I agree. Without the paper, you'd often not notice it (not that that makes it ok by any means). I never carry paper; there's almost always something that works absolutely fine - vegetation, snow or a stone.

 Robert Durran 22 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

> Any "crap" stories to share?

I have a crap story which provides perhaps the best one-liner under pressure I've ever heard.

About 25 years ago, during a day's cragging in Ravensdale, a friend of mine took (inexcusably) a dump right by the path. A great steaming pile with a big plume of bog paper poked into it. He had just finished when a dog walker came round the corner. Seeing the turd, he squared up to my friend, irate, red faced: "Did you do that?". My friend looked him straight in the eye and said,"Oh, I am sorry, did your dog stand in it?"

 J Whittaker 23 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

I had to take a dump midway up a 6 pitch ice route. That was interesting.

 Pefa 23 Jun 2019
In reply to J Whittaker:

Did you use it as a running belay and clip into it? 

 machine 23 Jun 2019
In reply to Rik:

Nice did it add to the ambiance. Lucky you didn't trip over it. Some one should take a dump on the trig point on the summit.

 Pete Pozman 24 Jun 2019
In reply to Clauso:

> This thread has inspired me. 

> You may already be aware of the Frog Graham; a fell-running and swimming challenge, inspired by the Bob Graham?... 

> I propose the Bog Graham; a fell-running, swimming, and defecating challenge... Criteria to include miles run, tarns swam, and logs laid.

Well isn't it a one day challenge? You'd only need one crap then. 

 Sputnick 24 Jun 2019
In reply to Neil Williams:

I crap in the woods most days. Moist Spagum moss ass wipe is a pure indulge 

In reply to girlymonkey:

Mine does the best of both... rolls in fox. Eats human.

Last time at climbing venue was at froggatt, fed her extra strong mints in the car as the smell from her breath was.... well you know.

 J Whittaker 24 Jun 2019
In reply to Pefa:

Well it certainly was running.

In reply to Jake Chapman:

We covered this a couple of years ago - https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/skills/does_a_climber_st_in_the_woods-8...

I think there is an older one by Jack Geldard but I can't seem to find it.

Alan

 kathrync 25 Jun 2019
In reply to Jake Chapman:

As others have said, I have seen this quite a bit in Scotland.  Most of the time it is tucked away behind a boulder or something and I have generally found it while looking for somewhere discrete to pee.

Two times it has really been inappropriate:

First was in the cave at Polney, Dunkeld, right at the start of (H)Ogg's Hindquarters.  Scuppered my plans for a fun romp up that route with my friend's daughter.

Second was on the Trotternish Ridge on Skye last year.  The weather turned unexpectedly so I was looking for a sheltered spot to put my tent up and warm up.  Found a nice big boulder that sheltered me from the prevailing wind with a flat grassy area below it - and three nice large turds all squashed under rocks.  I get that people were trying to keep out of the wind with their pants down, but really it was the only obvious camping spot in the area.  I desperately needed some shelter so I ended up putting the tent up in the next most sheltered spot I could find (not half as good) and endured a cold, wind-blown, rocky night while cursing all those who don't subscribe to "leave no trace".

Removed User 25 Jun 2019
In reply to kathrync:

Yes, I think the rule should be a) go somewhere where other people won't go and b) burn used bog roll or use moss/grass/snow instead.

In reply to kathrync:

There's a special place in hell for lazy sods that leave crap or used toilet paper on a rare perfect wild-camping spot on a long distance path.  Especially people who have just camped there themselves.


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