I cycle quite a bit (500-1000km / month), but my recreational routes have all been near areas where I know I’ll have access to public toilets and clean drinking water.
I’d love to venture out onto more rural roads and areas, way outside of areas that might normally have toilet access, but that’s quite literally the only thing holding me back from doing so.
What are your strategies? Piss by the side of the road and hope nobody sees you? Squat out in a heavily forested area and risk ticks?
This is not a topic that ever gets talked about with cycle tourists, endurance riders, and other long-distance cyclists, so I’d love to know how to approach this!
Not a cyclist, just here from “All” on a slow Friday afternoon. But I am a country boy.
If it’s just piss, hang brain wherever there is some seclusion. Ain’t no one gonna care, unless you’re pissing on someone’s lawn that is.
If you have to shit, well that’s a different story. Shit before you go is the best strategy. But in cases of emergency, find a bush with a tree trunk you can grab onto and let ‘er rip. Leaves or a clean stick will deal with most of the nasty, but it might be good to keep a tissue or two in the fanny pack.
Bear in mind no one wants to see you shitting in the wild. Seclusion is much more important in this case.
dont shit near watercourses.
haha. I appreciate the insight.
I don’t expect any emergency bathroom breaks, but I am curious to know how people do it.
Some heatmap areas for cyclists (which helps with route planning) are really out of the way of any civilization, so even a coffee shop would be difficult to find.
I can’t imagine any one going before they leave, cycling for 6+ hours, then going home to use the bathroom.
This… and look out for google map vehicles.
and look out for google map vehicles.
Oh god, to be immortalized squatting by the side of the road would be soul crushing.
so that you can chuck shit at their cameras . . .
IDK, I only need to poop like once/day, and I can usually go two if needed without too much discomfort. I find that if I get some fluids first thing in the morning, I have one visit to the bathroom in the morning and I’m good for the rest of the day.
In fact, I can count the number of times I’ve had to use a public restroom for #2 on one hand for the past year, and those were almost universally stomach aches.
I’m a guy, so peeing outdoors really isn’t an issue. When I did it regularly (I’d spend a lot of time in nature), I would bring hand sanitizer. These days it’s rare enough that I only sanitize when I make it back to civilization.
Where might one find these heatmaps?
For cycling, RideWithGPS, Strava, Bikemap, and Garmin Connect have public heatmaps of popular routes. You can use them to get an idea of which roads cyclists tend to use, and I’ve been able to find some really nice trails, safe roads, and scenic routes by using heatmaps.
I will caution on the reliability of those heatmaps, though, since it may give you the impression that a route is popular, but it might actually be a very busy road with cyclists using the sidewalk. That’s not the type of route I tend to take.
Good advice, thanks. And the heatmap idea in general is pretty clever
And the heatmap idea in general is pretty clever
Yes. Cities have been using that data to help with planning new infrastructure, but it helps regular folks to route plan :)
If you’re travelling with a pack, bring TP / Wet wipes / hand sanitizer and a hand spade. Pee wherever you can, if you desperately need a crap, use the hand spade to stab a 6-9" circle in the ground, pop out the dirt as a ‘plug’ do your best to drop your dookie in there, top with the TP, and put the plug back. Not optimal, but more than bare minimum. If you miss, use the plug to push the bizness into the hole.
I don’t typically ride in the middle of nowhere but if I did, I’d probably just find a secluded area and go about my business. If I was planning to go riding where there was no infrastructure at all, I’d definitely bring a trowel and some wipes + sanitizer to bury the dookie and clean up. Basically try to leave no trace like in regular camping.
For me, middle of nowhere = rural (50-75+ km away from any populations over 1000). Not totally isolated, but enough people for me to care where I do my business.
Yeah, I was hoping it would be like “regular camping”, but logistically, I can’t see how people do it.
Like, some of these areas are either pure farmland or private property for pretty long stretches, turn after turn.
For example:
There doesn’t seem to be any place to just duck into a forest and do your business. LOL
Those bushes look nice lol
Someone’s house is like 30 feet behind there! haha
So many properties are lined along these rural roads, so you’re always too close to someone’s home/land/bushes, etc.
I’d keep an eye out for abandoned houses. They seem to be everywhere around the Iowa countryside at least. Just watch out for trail cams lol you can usually spot them with your phone camera
That’s an unusual, out-of-the-box idea! Not sure if I’d ever do that, personally, but options are options!
Meh, for pee, if it’s adjacent to a path, I’d just go for it. Maybe go around the corner if there’s better privacy there.
For poop, find somewhere with dirt and try to bury it somewhat. But ideally go before you leave home and you should be good all day.
Those trees on the right looks pretty private
I exclusively ride in the middle of nowhere. If I need to take a piss I stop my bike and step off the trail for a leak and if I need to take a dump which fortunelately has only happened once I then just walk a bit further away from the trail. This would be much more of an issue in urban areas but in rural areas not the slightest. I’ve never been worried about ticks. I spend quite a bit time in the woods.
That’s reassuring! Thanks for the insight.
To add to what they said: my recommendation, from backpacking experience, is to bring a small ziploc (or waterproof) bag with a folded section of clean TP taken from a roll. For my IBS, I also bring a travel pack of baby wipes and another ziploc back to pack them out after theyre used (since they dont biodegrade).
Yeah, I’ve been needing to bring TP on my rides simply because even the state of the art, self-cleaning, fully automated washrooms are always out 😵
Pack your own water, use the restroom before you leave. Unless you suffer from some kind of bowel distress ailment, you should be good for four hours or so at a minimum, probably a lot longer.
Unless you suffer from some kind of bowel distress ailment, you should be good for four hours or so at a minimum, probably a lot longer.
I do, and my rides can be well over eight hours long. Not that I’m stopping every hour or anything, but knowing how others do it in advance can give me some ideas at least.
I’m missing 1.5 meters or so of gut, and find that being very strict on timing of food intake makes output predictable. I schedule rides around input/output. Following strict eating “windows” is a bit of an adjustment, but it makes life in general a lot easier.
I’m missing 1.5 meters or so of gut
Stoma then?
Not yet. I have a reconstructed stub going to the rectum, which acts as a holding area. Kind of like a j-pouch but using a stub instead. It has settled in well, but at the beginning I had to wear diapers for several months. I’ll move on to a stoma if the stub fails.
Stoma and stub each have their advantages and disadvantages. I learned a lot about managing my stub from a stoma support group, highly recommend reaching out to “interesting guts” groups. They have tons of good information and creative solutions!
Cool! I’ve got a stoma, which does have pros and cons, but likely a massive pro when it comes to “going #2” in strange places. LOL
I mean, I could probably rig something to hang off my bike rack so that it looks like I’m fiddling with my pannier or doing something to my rear tire, when I’m actually just emptying/swapping out a bag ;)
I probably do have it easier than squatting out in the bush, so I might have to invent some solution to make it super quick, clean, and easy.
If you figure out something, be sure to share your solution. Could be very cool, for all kinds of activities. Some kind of accessory Ortlieb roll top bag with a heavy liner and absorptive pellets… mad scientist time!
A few people online said after their stubs failed and they went to stomas, that the stomas were pretty good. It does seem like for biking or hiking managing a bag would be a bit more stealth than squatting behind the shrubbery!
If you have to poop in the wild on a regular basis, carry a plastic trowel. You can buy one designed for the purpose of digging out and filling in a cathole.
Thank you. Yes, a trowel sounds like a good idea, even if just for emergencies.
I fill up drinking water at wells, cafes or restaurants, pee just by the road, poo i also only do once a day, in the morning. This is especially true while on tour, the poo thing. Have to get out of the tent real quick when i wake up, but then i’m done for a day.
from a life of needing to go…
in the begining I am very picky about location. however, the standards drop in relation to the desperation.
the more desperate the quicker the deed.
I always have a bit of toilet paper when I’m out running. that’s the prep. also a wet wipe or two for my hands.
One option I haven’t seen suggested is a wag bag. They’re a bag you do your business into that solidifies everything and makes it safe to dispose into the nearest garbage can. You’ll see them used by no-trace backpackers, climbers, and dispersed campers. Carry one in your bike’s bag and rest assured you have a fast and traceless method.
Don’t forget to bring sanitizer or dry leaf soap for hand cleaning.
I use Cleanwaste brand, but there are plenty of choices out there. Find a local manufacturer of them.
Additionally, carry extra TP or bring a bottle-top bidet. The kits tend to not have much TP included.
Great suggestions. Thanks for sharing that.
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