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Date/Time: 03/28/2024 06:12AM
TP Burning

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Previous Messages:
Author Message Text
Jaywalker 04/25/2019 07:36AM
If this is another one of those "don't bother going to Quetico because all the lakes are fished out!" type of threads, I have to say it's working on me. Yuck.
4keys 04/22/2019 10:04PM
Many years ago, we took a trip to Yellowstone and hiked into a backcountry lake. Middle of the night, a couple guys wandered through near our tent, looking for their buddies on the other side of the lake.

In the morning, we knew they did not find their buddies. They had pitched their tent on top of a hill, right next to the bear hanging pole... and in the middle of a lot of highly visible tp. Guess they didn't turn on their flashlights and check out the area.
HowardSprague 04/17/2019 11:40AM
Stumpy: "I ain't burnin Sh*t.



I also guarantee, nobody's going to find mine.
You'd have to go over & through many downed trees, and bring a dog and shovel, to do so. "



Well, I'll be a ........... Stumpy! I'm with you on something! :)


arctic 04/08/2019 09:26AM
There are more and more places that require packing out ALL human waste due to high use in very dry or alpine areas where s**t breaks down very slowly. Be grateful that that policy will likely never be needed in canoe country.


I bury poop and burn TP on site.
TrailZen 04/07/2019 04:09PM
billconner: "I did a backing trip in Utah last June - High Uintas - and they require packing out TP. Read and best course seemed to be double zip locks with a tablespoon or two of powdered bleach. It worked great. Never gross or smelly at all. I'd have no trouble if both the Q and BWCA went to pack it out. The bleach was a great tip."


In 2008 we did a family kayak trip to Lake Powell, where everything must be carried out. Everything. We used WAG Bags for waste management, and collected "used" WAG Bags in a scented trash bag inside a drybag. Slight odor after a 5-day trip, but manageable, especially considering what most campsites would look like without their use.


TZ
TDBauer 04/03/2019 03:04PM
Savage Voyageur: "I for one am never eating a meal from a fire grate again. It’s Mountain House for me. "


Yep, you just summed it up for me as well.
billconner 04/01/2019 05:01PM
I did a backing trip in Utah last June - High Uintas - and they require packing out TP. Read and best course seemed to be double zip locks with a tablespoon or two of powdered bleach. It worked great. Never gross or smelly at all. I'd have no trouble if both the Q and BWCA went to pack it out. The bleach was a great tip.
Freeleo1 04/01/2019 10:52AM
We tried to locate the site up a fairly steep climb away from the site on the theory that most people don't like to climb hills to get to the latrine. We had a brown lunch bag for each day with the top rolled down a ways. Put in tp, fold over and put in a gallon plastic bag with the tp roll. It could be put in the trash each day if you want. We put the whole bag in the fire at the end of the night when it was going really good, or if it was raining, the next night. I think you are going to have to get used to the fact that people are burning it in the fire pit as that is the safest place to have a fire and it is the recommended way to dispose of it. There's plenty of chipmunk and mouse poop in there too, I'm sure.
Wables 03/31/2019 10:50PM
Two years ago in the man chain I found the ultimate poop spots twice. Dug my trowel in and hit land mines. I usually do my business, put the tp in a pile, move the tp to my pile, squirt some sanitizer on it and light it. Save some pee for the final extinguishing and bury the evidence.
Savage Voyageur 03/31/2019 07:57PM
I for one am never eating a meal from a fire grate again. It’s Mountain House for me.
mgraber 03/31/2019 01:45PM
I hide it like it's treasure, and do it where I figure no one else would ever venture. Just don't wait till the last minute and it can be an enjoyable hike :)
PineKnot 03/30/2019 08:41PM
Captn Tony: "Not a big deal.
Just build a very hot fire, throw in the tp and burn the crap out of it."



No Sh*t.
Captn Tony 03/30/2019 06:07AM
Not a big deal.
Just build a very hot fire, throw in the tp and burn the crap out of it.
mjmkjun 03/26/2019 03:28AM
schweady: "True that, cowdoc. We have found areas of mass dumping right in camp, even in canoe-only BWCAW sites with existing - and usable - latrines. Pretty disgusting.

"

Looks just like the condition I found the island site on Long Island Lake a few years ago. Add a soiled baby diaper to make the scene complete. That disgusting mess was about 12 ft from water's edge, too. ugh!
unshavenman 03/25/2019 03:55PM
Stumpy: "I ain't burnin Sh*t.



I also guarantee, nobody's going to find mine.
You'd have to go over & through many downed trees, and bring a dog and shovel, to do so. "



+1. I'm waaaaaay back in the woods digging my hole. I don't find other people's messes and they don't find mine.
nctry 03/25/2019 03:45PM
Yeah, you’ll never find mine either... I don’t get back to camp til the next morning sometimes. Haha!
I wouldn’t profile any one group of people. All are guilty... even wcpp had places you just had to shake your head. But all in all not bad. As far as burning? Let’s just say again, you’ll never find mine. Haha.
tumblehome 03/25/2019 02:45PM
Mad_Angler: "This is one reason that I prefer the BW system. I like a fixed latrine that is a good ways from camp. At least most of the poop is way back there. It is not randomly hidden around camp like some gruesome Easter egg hunt..."


While I oppose any modern conveniences in Quetico, I would not be the loudest critic if they installed latrines at established campsites. Not for my use so much but for those that just can't find it in their heart to get rid of their TP.


I'm with Stumpy. Finding my poop would be like winning the lottery. It ain't gonna happen.


Tom
Stumpy 03/25/2019 02:36PM
I ain't burnin Sh*t.


I also guarantee, nobody's going to find mine.
You'd have to go over & through many downed trees, and bring a dog and shovel, to do so.
Mad_Angler 03/25/2019 01:22PM
And... i would much rather see TP in the woods than find it partially burned in my firepit...


When traveling with my wife and 4 daughters, we'd have a grocery bag hung near camp. The girls would deposit the paper in there. They didn't want to walk all the way to the latrine just to pee. We'd haul out the TP with the rest of the trash...
Mad_Angler 03/25/2019 01:20PM
This is one reason that I prefer the BW system. I like a fixed latrine that is a good ways from camp. At least most of the poop is way back there. It is not randomly hidden around camp like some gruesome Easter egg hunt...
scotttimm 03/25/2019 11:44AM
MidwestFirecraft: "Banksiana: "Quetico policy is that TP be burned (preferably in a fire pit) or packed out. Burning in the woods can be a wildfire risk



I am routinely disgusted and disappointed by Q campers that leave their calling cards and paper blooms ridiculously close (occasionally on lesser tent sites) to camp. For crying out loud, spend a couple of minutes to put a hundred yards or more between your camp and your toilet."




Just out of curiosity who do you think does this? Is it in spots where motors are allowed because that would fit a certain profile, but I would be surprised that a canoe camper would do that. "



My girls, who have to pee in the middle of the night when I am asleep, that's who. They don't want to walk alone in the dark back to the latrine and so they "sneak pee" next to a tree close to the tent. You better believe I make them pick up all the paper in the morning. lol. I can imagine other campers doing the same but not having the respect or thought to clean up after it...that pisses me off. pun intended.
GraniteCliffs 03/25/2019 11:15AM
Common sense tells me:
Please take your business far, far back into the woods away from camp. FAR away from any fire pit that I might be using.
Once there, dig your hole and do your business. Then burn your TP. Ensure it is completely out before covering it up.
Never, ever, burn it in a fire pit.


em8260 03/25/2019 10:09AM
Just out of curiosity who do you think does this? Is it in spots where motors are allowed because that would fit a certain profile, but I would be surprised that a canoe camper would do that.



canoe campers, thats who...I have also seen this in the bwca in non-motor areas, truly disappointing. You made the effort to come this far, at least pretend that you care and do the right thing. Ill never forget my FIRST trip, ep16. I saw this at my first camp site, probably 15 feet from the cooking area, toilet paper in the trees/branches and behind rocks, ZERO effort to even conceal it. "people" like that have ZERO business going or being allowed in these places. If your going to act like an uncivilized turd, stay home...
MagicPaddler 03/25/2019 08:58AM
People frequently complain to rangers about finding TP near their camp. The rangers found what they thought was a solution. Now the people who are doing their business near camp are not the ones who are going to do a good job of burning their TP. It is not the TP in the woods near camp that bothers me it is the squishy stuff that the TP signals is there. If you see TP in the woods just look the other way and be glad there was a white flag warning you to stay away. DON”T complain to a ranger because they may find a solution which compounds the problem.
bhouse46 03/25/2019 08:45AM
Another great thread, gets one thinking. My policy is based on early camping principles, go deep, dig shallow, deposit, burn edges off paper watching carefully, stir thoroughly and replace shallow surface cover, tamp down lightly. Later I added washing hands carefully afterwards.
Some areas I am looking into visiting already require carry out and I suspect with the heavier use of many areas this will be more and more important unless vault systems are in place. Leave no trace is based on use over time, not just the one time visit.
Probably time to look into how to carry out a little more closely.
Banksiana 03/25/2019 07:35AM
Jackfish: "Banksiana: "Quetico policy is that TP be burned (preferably in a fire pit) or packed out. "
Banks (or anyone else), do you have a reference that states this policy? I've been unable to find anything."



This is what I've been told in the presentation at the Ranger Station at Prairie Portage for the last three years. They have a binder that functions like a power point and they page through it with your party prior to entering the park. They are clear in wanting you to pack it out or burn it in the fire pit.


I still can't understand why people can't put some distance between camp and toilet. If campers head relatively deep in the woods this problem is greatly diminished.


I agree with MagicPaddler and Tumblehome that burning TP in your cooking area is problematic. If the fire is robust no problem. If you are trying to just burn TP it's an issue and is certainly a greater scourge than foil bits.

And if you know a canoeing dentist named Greg from Fayetteville Arkansas give him grief for a particularly filthy fire pit awash in unburned plastic, paper (including paper with your name address and business on it), coils of fishline, food etc at a sweet campsite on an unnamed lake next to Basswood. Greg Y.... you and your party are pigs- for shame.

tumblehome 03/25/2019 07:11AM
I assume that it is females doing this more than men. Maybe the ladies can chime in. I'm not saying they are prone to poor bathroom hygiene but they have to squat far more than a man.


I truly wish people would not burn TP. I'm ready to vomit as I write this thinking that I will be cooking a piece of chicken in a fire pit that someone recently had burned their feces in before my arrival.


It reminds me of a top ten thread someone started a few years ago asking if it was OK to burn diapers in a fire pit.


Burning TP is not the solution. Burying it is.


Tom
Jackfish 03/25/2019 06:42AM
Banksiana: "Quetico policy is that TP be burned (preferably in a fire pit) or packed out. "
Banks (or anyone else), do you have a reference that states this policy? I've been unable to find anything.
MagicPaddler 03/25/2019 04:12AM
In Quetico, they recommend burning in the cooking spot. Frequently, you find ½ burned TP in the fire pit. The part that is not burned …. Aw well you know which part does not burn. I would rather find it in the woods. I do not clean the aluminum foil out of the poop paper.
MidwestFirecraft 03/24/2019 05:54PM
Not cool. If I caught someone in my group doing that it would be the last time they tripped with me. luckily I've never encountered that in the BWCA, Timber Frear was bad though. Garbage strewn about and trees half chopped down waiting to fall on the tent pads.
schweady 03/24/2019 03:35PM
True that, cowdoc. We have found areas of mass dumping right in camp, even in canoe-only BWCAW sites with existing - and usable - latrines. Pretty disgusting.

cowdoc 03/24/2019 01:13PM
MidwestFirecraft: "Banksiana: "Quetico policy is that TP be burned (preferably in a fire pit) or packed out. Burning in the woods can be a wildfire risk



I am routinely disgusted and disappointed by Q campers that leave their calling cards and paper blooms ridiculously close (occasionally on lesser tent sites) to camp. For crying out loud, spend a couple of minutes to put a hundred yards or more between your camp and your toilet."




Just out of curiosity who do you think does this? Is it in spots where motors are allowed because that would fit a certain profile, but I would be surprised that a canoe camper would do that. "



Any and everybody it seems. Late August 2017 trip, every nice campsites we stayed at had a white mine field out back. It seems that all of their outdoor skills and ethics hit a brick wall when "the call of nature" kicks in. No holes dug, no burying, no covering with debris.....just leave a mess and run.
Not on motor lakes. The more popular the lake and nicer the site, the bigger the mess.
MidwestFirecraft 03/24/2019 12:36PM
Banksiana: "Quetico policy is that TP be burned (preferably in a fire pit) or packed out. Burning in the woods can be a wildfire risk


I am routinely disgusted and disappointed by Q campers that leave their calling cards and paper blooms ridiculously close (occasionally on lesser tent sites) to camp. For crying out loud, spend a couple of minutes to put a hundred yards or more between your camp and your toilet."



Just out of curiosity who do you think does this? Is it in spots where motors are allowed because that would fit a certain profile, but I would be surprised that a canoe camper would do that.
Banksiana 03/24/2019 07:23AM
Quetico policy is that TP be burned (preferably in a fire pit) or packed out. Burning in the woods can be a wildfire risk

I am routinely disgusted and disappointed by Q campers that leave their calling cards and paper blooms ridiculously close (occasionally on lesser tent sites) to camp. For crying out loud, spend a couple of minutes to put a hundred yards or more between your camp and your toilet.
bhouse46 03/24/2019 07:17AM
Unless there is a vault system burning on site is standard practice. I did find myself wondering one time at one of those spots marked by others visits whether at least their mines are marked...oh well.
bobbernumber3 03/24/2019 06:15AM
A few years ago, our Quetico Ranger made a comment about burning TP after use to ensure the paper was effectively gone immediately. I gave it a try. TP burns pretty slowly so the process takes some time. But I like the result.

Just wondering if anyone has picked up the TP burning habit?