Customer Reviews

How to Shit in the Woods, Second Edition: An Environmentally Sound Approach to a Lost Art

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Few experiences do more to mar the outdoorsy afternoon or the 8 day backpack trek than stepping over a log and discovering your expensive waffle-stompers are filled with the leavings of another hiker. The problem is as old as mankind. At least, it's as old as mankind after he began noticing what was between his toes.

The Bible addressed the problem, probably in the first surviving form, by demanding that people walk away from others with a spear or spade, dig a hole, and cover it. That method works well where the traffic is light. It works less well on heavily traveled forest trails.

Meyer offers 102 pages of suggestions, anecdotes and solutions for novices who want to experience the woods, don't want to create a problem, recognize it's a necessary body function and must be addressed.

I'd recommend it for everyone who plans a trip into the outdoors and isn't already familiar with how to deal with the function in a way that's not objectionable to those who follow. I'd make it required reading for those who go to the areas I'm likely to visit.

Despite the vulgarisms in the title and splattered throughout the text, there is a load of good information contained in this book. Having been a Boy Scout, I thought I was well prepared for these weighty contingencies. But, I found that the Boy Scout Handbook was deficient when it came to defacation.

Ms. Meyer punctilios not only techniques for maintaining privacy and decorum while relieving oneself, but the environmental consequences of so doing. She vents about fecal-born bacteria and disease and how to minimize contaminating surface and ground water. The precautions that must be taken to avoid disease when drinking backcountry water are discharged here, too.

There are also heaps of anecdotes and funny stories, that will have you rolling at the foibles of the less informed "eliminators." She covers methods for many types of terrain and ecosystems and also spouts information on the delicate subject of off-road "runs."

If you are planning a backcountry trip, guided or not, I'd suggest you "dig in" to this book before departing. Through its guidance you can avoid piles of potential embarressment and, at the same time, be more friendly to the environment. Urine good hands with Kathleen Meyer's book. No ifs, ands, or butts. And, wipe that smirk off your face!!!

I love the humorous, down to earth way this subject is approached. Originally I bought this book because the title and the picture on the cover made me chuckle. I've had it in my possession for at least five years. Then a little over a week ago, I decided to read it. To my surprise, I learned that this is a serious book with important information to help a would be hiker stay healthy and leave the environment no worse for the wear. Wish I'd had this book years ago before I started trekking around in the wilds. I found this book fast paced and full of vital information. Though I'm a grandma, this book made me feel like I was receiving counsel from an older wiser grandma imparting to me the secrets of how to take care of the intimate processes of life when venturing away from the accoutrements of running water and the other trappings of civilization. I recommend this book to all who like hiking, camping and otherwise messing around in the great outdoors.

Ok, it's not a masterpiece of English literature. What is there to analyze here? This is like arguing the merits of Benny Hill. For 8 bucks, buy this book. It has a few practical tips about where and how to deficate in the woods (hence the title). Great. The introduction is a tears-in-your-eyes funny anecdote on that topic that is probably worth the price. Then, you have a conversation piece for your bookshelf that will be appreciated by almost everyone. And, the author goes to some length to argue that this title is NOT vulgar (the book includes a useful lexicon for the word that is also worth the price). And, you'll have something to think about the next time you take a hurried necessary behind a tree or abandon a diaper in the Wal-Mart parking lot! Enough analysis already.

This is one book that always manages to turn up at Scouting Events, Wood Badge Courses, etc. Once you get past the laughts & shock value of the title, the reader will find some common sense tips on being environmentally friendly in the outdoors.

At Camporees we always put this book in our latrine as many of our scouts like to read while doing their "duty." (Hey, it promotes Reading Merit Badge!).

My favorite use of this book is to recognize new District Executives and other Scouting Professionals by presenting this book to them at various Scouting events, usually right after they first land a job in our district (seems like we are getting new D.E.'s all the time) or saying thanks to Scouters in our district.

Anyone who loves this book will also like "Up Shit Creek" also produced by ICS and available from Amazon.

Ed Henderson Associate Editor - SCOUTER Magazine

Book Review: How to Shit in the Woods 1/3/00 Mozella Rainwater Sunshine If you want to enjoy the woods and leave the place so others can come behind you and enjoy the same space, then this is the book to read before you shop for supplies. And be sure to also put it in your backpack to consult in case you forget a detail or two. In reading this book, it is evident that the author backed her material with solid research and the experience of years of trekking in the wilds all over the world. Ms. Meyer tells you how to keep your entire gastrointestinal track healthy and how to be comfortable when nature has to eliminate your private bio-waste material. There's even a chapter devoted to women and our special concerns in this delicate category.

Be sure to read this book with your children before sending them off to camp so they can come back to you as healthy as they left you.

I wish this book had been available before I went on my first backpacking expedition back in the early 80's. Thanks to the Powers That Be for freedom of the press and the unhindered flow of information.

Kathleen Meyer would be the one lady I would not want to go in the woods without! Her insight to the obvious will keep you rolling until your sides ache! As for cetain kinds of devilish little buggers getting loose into the water supply, Kathleen takes a no-nonsence approach as to how to poop and not pollute! She has a chapter for women only and solutions to the "flat rock problems" most women have to deal with in the woods as well. I strongly recommend this book, especially for scouting mom's!

To the uninitiated, the art of having a dump in the woods probably seems no more complicated than "squat, squint, squeeze and squeegee"! But, alas, as the world shrinks and the use of the world's limited wilderness terrain by outdoor adventurers increases to the limit of the land's ability to withstand the stress of that use, it's just not that simple. When considerations such as ecology, weather, temperature, privacy, courtesy, hygiene, biodegradation, density of camping use in an area, terrain and so on are factored into the decision as to where and how to complete the necessary feat, all is not as simple as it would seem. The methods one should choose are as varied as the terrains one might choose to visit and the times of year in which those choices are made.

"How to Shit in the Woods" is a book that should be read by EVERY person who would choose to venture into the out of doors - whether you want to spend a weekend at the local campground or you're a hardcore toughened backwoodsman heading out into the bush for a week long solo canoe trip in Canada's northern boreal forest!

Be prepared for lots of silly toilet humour, hilarious anecdotes concerning toilet misadventures, lots of tongue-in-cheek jokes, a good number of belly laughs and a very earthy delivery to be sure - but the message ultimately is entirely serious and well worth the read! There is very little humorous when it concerns encountering the leavings of someone who trod the trail in front of you.

Highly recommended for campers of all stripes, sexes, ages and experience levels.

I bought two copies of this book in December, 1996. The first was purchased as a gift and the second one was for me. My copy has since disappeared. As an avid cross-country skier (and when necessary, outdoor pooper), I found many of the suggestions quite useful. The book also became a great conversation piece with friends on our ski weekends. I highly recommend it.

I bought this book to give as a gag gift. It turned out to actually be about sh**ting in the woods, something I do a lot as a backpacker. So, I kept it.