Yupp, you read that right. In the society we live in some of us can not possibly think about not showering for a whole week. Why would you do that? Now if you are a backpacker, or do a lot of wilderness/ off the beaten path camping you very well know the experience. This post is for the people that want to live through these blog posts. The ones that think it would be cool to live out on a whim, but don't want to think about the dirtiest that might come with such a task. That don't have the time, or want to know what it is like before they "get there hands dirty," so to speak. This blog post is for you.
Now I've had two experiences now where there was no accessible shower at the campground I was staying at for the duration of the trip. One not so great and the other bearable. Essentially by the end of this I could tell you what not to do, and what to do if you run into this situation. It's not uncommon as you think. I've stayed in plenty of campgrounds in my time that there is no shower house let alone flushable toilets. A lot of National Parks don't have that option with being remote in some locations. National Forests or National Preserves can be the same way, and that's where I will start the story of my first experience.
The time was March 2016. It was my first time going to Florida. I was in college, and my boyfriend at the time offered to take me to Florida for my 21st birthday. I know. Cool way to spend the birthday. I wanted to go experience the Everglades while down there, but didn't have anytime to research (nor did I think at the time that I needed to research) where to stay. So he booked it. A campsite in Big Cypress National Preserve. I do say if you ever find yourself in that area go and visit. It was a very pretty place, but we soon learned why a lot of RVs were staying at the campground.
No shower. He told me there would be a shower. Luckily my mom had equipped me with baby wipes. There was a flushable toilet bathroom with running water so I was lucky enough to be able to have that as a means to wash my hair. I had been using a sunscreen that was like a dual action DEET and sunscreen combo all week, and by day four I could tell it was getting to me.
Now if you've been following my posts for a while you have probably read my post called Everglade Nightmare (if not go do it, it's a doozy), and before you ask yes this story is connected to that. I want to say this is where my skin sensitivities started happening. When we were on Rabbit Island, and I sprayed that DEET/ Sunscreen on my skin I noticed a rash forming. Little did I know after day four of just baby wipes with spraying straight up DEET and Sunscreen on my skin it can form a rash. Oh yeah, I dealt with a rash too on that awful trip.
At day five we broke down and looked up if there was a campground with a shower near by. There was just two miles down the road. They charged us $6.00 each for that shower, but at the time it was the best damn shower I could take in that moment. I thought I would never have to deal with that predicament again. Boy was I wrong.
Fast forward to 2021. The Great Smoky Mountain National Park (for those of you that don't know) has no campground in the park with a shower house. None. There is, however, a little mom and pop campground that we always stay at that has a shower house on the Blue Ridge Parkway. With the craziness of 2021 (and a certain celebrity visiting the campground the previous year) we were not able to book a site there. We thought that would be the opportunity to camp a little further in the boonies at Balsam Mountain Campground. So I had to prepare for no showers.
I already only wash my hair twice a week now. I know it sounds gross, but once your hair gets used to it it's not so bad. The biggest part in this was trying to find a way to get myself clean, and not have my skin sensitivities get the best of me. We looked into outdoor showers, but the National Park doesn't allow such things because the scents from soaps can be a bear attractant. So I had to do research, pay attention to ingredients, and try them out before I went out in the field with them. These things were the best thing I could have asked for.
Bath wipes. Oh yeah that's a thing. It's thicker than a regular baby wipe, which is nice. Honestly I felt pretty clean using them the whole time we were at the campground. I used Dr. Bronners unscented all in one bar soap on my face occasionally. What did I do with my hair? Well I just... didn't wash it. The picture at the beginning of this post was me after five or six days of not washing my hair. I just got creative with how I wore it, and I had already brought a hat for the occasion. Honestly I didn't feel dirty after that week.
Now nothing doesn't compete with actually taking a shower. The top picture was actually taken the night we stayed in a hotel on the way home right before a shower. I am humbled by the experience of not having the luxury of taking a shower. If you ever find yourself in that situation though, fret not for there are options out there to help you out during your adventures.
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