I’ve been investigating what people who use the spoil islands can do when nature calls. There really isn’t any easy solution. There are products you can buy to solve the problem, and they may work for you. Main guides in their islands poop on an open newspaper, fold it up and stuff it in a six inch length of PVC pipe carried on the decks of their boats. It works, but…
I generally paddle with what I call my toileting kit. It contains biodegradable toilet paper, wet wipes, a lighter, a small garden spade, and hand sanitizer. It’s designed for places where you can bury your poop. You dig a cat hole, make a deposit, drop your TP on it and burn the TP, covering up the mess (like a cat). If you use wet wipes, pack out what you have used, as they won’t degrade. Use the hand sanitizer and you’re good to go. That’s the traditional way of leaving no trace. However, in public access areas that get a lot of traffic, you can’t (or should’t) leave anything behind.
Then it occurred to me that people with dogs already know how to deal with poop in unwanted places - the doggie poop bag. Now, I haven’t done this (yet) but it seems to me that if you can stick your hand inside a plastic shopping bag to pick your large dog’s poop off your neighbors lawn, you should be able to do the same for yourself on a spoil island that belongs to all of us. To be sure you contain your poop, a second bag to hold the first would be a good idea. Let me know if you try this. In the mean time while you’re thinking about my solution, read the article below from my local paper.
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