... Larry is writing about stealth on a sandbar ...
... I responded with the use a raft to cover with trick's intricacies ...
Even someone without a tan would be hard to spot as long as they aren't wearing anything bright (hats, backpacks, etc) and aren't moving.
I am going to assume that anyone reading this already knows the basics about hiking. What gear to have what supplies, etc. The 10 essentials and all that can be found on any legitimate hiking website.
I was always taught that the color blue was the only color you won't find naturally in the woodsIn April, in our local woods, almost the entire woodland floor is a mass of bluebells. I can't think of anything else that's particularly blue in the woods but the bluebells are certainly an exception to that rule!
The more wilderness skills and knowledge one has, the less equipment is necessary. But I think a little knife would be the last thing I'd let go of. I like the swiss with the wood saw in it.
Then a firestarter like the metal match would be the second last thing I'd let go of. Especially in the damp conditions we so often get in the SE. A fire can be a lifesaver and it can be hard to find dry tinder. Gettin lost or hurt is the least of my concerns. Probably because I don't go out without a good map and keep track of where I am on it.
And I have a trust in divine power that's kept me safe through many an escapade for 50 years. (around home the map is programmed in the brain) I have to be amused at the idea of takin TP along. It hasn't been around very long. What-da ya think everybody did for thousands of years before? I think they just used whatever happened to be handy. My cousin (by marriage, not actually related) always takes TP with him. And incidentally he grew up in town. I think there's a connection. I grew up with an outhouse for some years and plenty of woods to roam, and for some reason I don't consider TP a necessity at all when there's an unlimited supply of natural materials out there. Dirt or sand if nothing else is around.
Going a little better prepared, I'd take a small cup/kettle for cooking and eating wild greens, and a tiny bottle of grapefruit seed extract. Only takes 4 drops per gallon to kill all bad microorganisms in water. Whole lot lighter and smaller than a filter.
Then a sleepin bag and tarp (for rain) would have me just about enough for a multi day packing trip. Maybe some grain flour to make paddies from those wild greens.
To assume makes...etc! No, Duane you can't assume that.errr . . . You are right. I have made an as...??, ummmm . . . whatever!
Isn't that what this thread should be about? Encouraging "newbies" that it's easier and less dangerous than they might think. Perhaps it needs questions from them.
Up. Toilet paper. If you have ever forgotten it at home, going without is a traumatic memory.
Jbee
why is socially acceptable for the toddlers to spend all day in their birthday suits, but ive got to wear shorts?
The need for TP is one I fail to understand. It's a very recent invention, what did everybody use for the thousands of years before? I just use whatever's at hand that's loose. Usually dead leaves from the forest here in eastern woodland.
Seems to be a difference between a peepee and a sex organ. One is harmless. Yep, seems to be kinda goofy thinking to me, too.Quote from: ricwhy is socially acceptable for the toddlers to spend all day in their birthday suits, but ive got to wear shorts?
The clue to the answer is in the word you used, "socially". Society imposes a large list of behaviors on us by the time we attain our "majority". At that point you are free to discard as many as you choose. Just make sure you are able to endure the inevitable reactions.
At the root is most likely a fear of losing control of the status quo.
Duane
I can't think of a single thing on this desert that would not be abrasive and inefficient and it is also a poor use of precious drinking water. When I was a kid, back east, nature had many answers, but I only used them in a pinch...messy for the inexperienced.Quote from: ReubenThe need for TP is one I fail to understand. It's a very recent invention, what did everybody use for the thousands of years before? I just use whatever's at hand that's loose. Usually dead leaves from the forest here in eastern woodland.
Mostly it's just easy and convenient.
When I was a kid we spent most of our summer days in the woods. Generally I took care of that issue :) before I left the house. Sometimes the call came and you just took care of business. Grab a large stick, dig a hole and make a deposit. Grab a handful of duff (that layer of dead leafy material on the forest floor) or a large leaf, being careful in the choice, and there is no need to carry anything.
Duane
The need for TP is one I fail to understand. It's a very recent invention, what did everybody use for the thousands of years before? I just use whatever's at hand that's loose. Usually dead leaves from the forest here in eastern woodland.
humans are the only animal that uses tp , were also the only one that cooks its food , is there a connection?
In the natural squat position there is almost no residue outside the anal passage, even with the "runs." It is the use of the toilet seat which causes the bottom cheeks to close in and accumulate unwanted residue.
In my opinion the WC and the seated earth closet have a lot to answer for - the squatting pole over an earth closet or the French "hole in the floor" toilet are far better both hygienically and anatomically.
humans are the only animal that uses tp , were also the only one that cooks its food , is there a connection?Okay, more leafy vegetable matter, and squatting do make an highly significant difference and these two have been lost to us. In my experience (oh perish the image of it), it has been night and day dramatically different.
what we eat does effect the the condition of the stool, maybe the crap that most people now eat makes there own crap more messy than it would be on a more natural diet.
on a similar vein do all the chemicals in processed food come out in sweat and make that smell bad as well?
It is probably best to avoid a raw food discussion, but raw works very well, with modern food processors, it passes beautifully, relaxes the digestive system to better efficiency and health. Our species has always eaten lots of uncooked food as well as cooked. Most food's enriching qualities are mostly lost (70% give or take) when cooked, sat around for days, not chewed enough, or produced with the impotent soils that need chemicals to produce produce in. Not as much food is needed, or desired because nutrients are absorbed at a higher rate. Not just reading this, my experiential use of raw has shown these to me in a slap in the face obvious way.humans are the only animal that uses tp , were also the only one that cooks its food , is there a connection?
No connection. We've been eating cooked food for about 2 million years. Our jaw and facial muscles have evolved smaller than our primate cousins who eat raw food. Our digestive tract is now about 25% smaller in proportion to our body mass.
If a person eats raw food you now only can absorb around 70% (more or less) of its food value so a lot of undigested raw food will pass through without being absorbed. As a species we no longer have the guts to make efficient use of raw food. The undigested raw material would affect your waste stream.
We have only been using TP for less than 100 years, not an evolutionary item yet. No relation to our 2 million years of evolution for cooked food.
This whole discussion has avoided the obvious point: "why organized nudists need towels". Seriously, I hate to carry a towel and it is solely to be used to keep a seat clean from our possible dirty asses. The towel is a symbol that we shouldn't be naked.
../Alf
To quote Groucho, "The contrary is also true."I carry a piece of cloth for that reason, too. I carry it under the water bottle strap or pack strap, or camera strap for extra cushioning. I also use it when I begin to realize that I have too much sun on my shoulders. It keeps the minute ants off of a butt to sit on something that sets them apart instead of thick grass. Rock do h get extremely dangerously hot and insulation is a good protection.
I get the impression that most of us don't like carrying a towel. We know the necessity of maintaining good hygiene. We don't need a towel for those reasons.
When walking in the desert, I always carry something I can sit on if need be. Between the heat and the sharp environment, I have nothing to prove to anyone. I also do not believe for a moment that everyone around me is as diligent as I, and those here, about hygiene. If I am carrying a towel and it's not the desert, it is more for me than those around me. I don't trust 'em.
Whenever I sit on the chairs or the sofa without one, I get that look from my wife. I know there is no problem, and I also know I don't want to fight that battle daily. It's the gesture. I have no interest in being the manners or etiquette monitor for everyone. I have neither the time nor the patience.
At the end of my day, it's whether I was comfortable and enjoyed the naked time I had.
Duane
So squat (squatting is best),I couldn't help but dash off some evangelical enthusiasm for squatting. Gosh I've had a great deal of benefit since I discovered squatting! Revolutionised my ano-rectal health i.e. no more piles! and changed the speed, quality, effectiveness, completeness and cleanliness of evacuation all for the better. Why hasn't the entire so called civilised world reverted to squatting - it IS the natural way.
So squat (squatting is best),
I do recommend doing so naked, or at least without pants
I take the opposeite view and rarely use a sitting cloth in a natural environment.
I ought to add that I do use a sitting cloth where appropriate.I take the opposeite view and rarely use a sitting cloth in a natural environment.
I'm with JohnGw. My naturist photos don't show me carrying a towel or cloth to sit on.
If you want to survive out here, you've got to know where your towel is. - Ford Prefect
"The problem," it says, "is that space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mindbogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist, but that's just peanuts to space . . .”, etc. etc.
Reading the linked article on uses for a towel, I didn't see anything mentioned about sitting on your towel.(from the above post) Some uses for towels are listed here (https://www.h2g2.com/entry/A667253) with a significant one being #22.
While on the subject of hitchhiking the galaxy, I learned recently that 42 is the universal answer to life, the universe and everything because 42 is the ASCI code for * and therefore is used by geek programmers to substitute for anything you want it to mean.
Quote from: BobReading the linked article on uses for a towel, I didn't see anything mentioned about sitting on your towel.(from the above post) Some uses for towels are listed here (https://www.h2g2.com/entry/A667253) with a significant one being #22.
Duane
Those adamantly apposed to something like nudity, usually have a problem with their own sexual urges. So they think that anyone nude must be sexually perverse.