Recent studies, as well as plenty of anecdotal evidence, have taught us that one of the most common (and most uncomfortable) questions people have going into a trip like JIRP are about personal hygiene. This has also historically been a particularly uncomfortable topic for people who have been under-represented in the Polar sciences. Our aim at JIRP is to actively create an atmosphere where the barriers to entry are as low as possible. In that spirit, we want this particular set of questions to be as transparent and un-intimidating as possible.

Showering and Bathing

Most JIRPers shower and bath less often in the field than they do at home. If you’ve never slept outside before, or never gone on a week-long backcountry trip, this may be an adjustment for you. We find that almost everyone adapts, and it certainly helps that everyone is in the same boat.

There is one shower in every camp. It’s in its own room, so it’s totally private. We don’t have plumbing on the Icefield, so the showers are gravity-fed. Essentially, each one is a bucket, a hose, and a traditional showerhead in a stall with an on/off valve. To use the shower you heat water on a stove reserved for non-kitchen use, haul the water to the shower in buckets, and fill it up yourself. We don’t monitor shower use, so you may use it as often as you like. We do monitor meltwater for the sake of meeting critical drinking water and camp needs. When meltwater is running low the Camp Manager may limit showers and laundry for a few days.

When meltwater is low, time is short, the sun is out, or enthusiasm is high, it’s also common to take a snow bath. This generally involves stripping to down to shorts/sportbras at the edge of camp and scrubbing yourself with snowballs. There is often a fair amount of yelping involved with snow baths! It’s not to everyone’s taste, but it’s certainly worth a try if this is your first summer living on a glacier in Alaska.

JIRP students explore all sorts of new ideas during the summer. For some students this means thinking about whether they need to shower at all. For others, showering more often makes them feel comfortable. There’s no right or wrong answer and no one need earn their place on this trip. We give you as much leeway as we can to do what makes you comfortable.

Laundry

Participants do their laundry by hand on an "as needed" basis. We usually have a steady supply of clean melt water, some capacity to warm it up, and basins available. Participants should bring their own supply of biodegradable soap (Dr. Bronners and CampSuds are popular options). The Field Staff can go over laundry washing techniques with anyone who hasn't done laundry by hand before. We dry wet laundry outside on sunny days and on clotheslines over the camp generators (which put off significant heat).

Camp Toilets

Every camp has a number of pit toilets, which we call “outhouses”. JIRP Outhouses are small buildings built over a hole in the ground. There is a bench inside with a toilet seat. Everything that your body creates (urine, feces, etc.) can go down the pit. Every outhouse has a trash bag for everything your body doesn’t create (toilet paper, disposable menstrual products, the newspaper you read, etc.). This system slows down how fast our outhouses fill up and have to be moved or shoveled out. (We almost never have to do this - you won’t be surprised with outhouse shoveling duty this summer, we promise).

Every outhouse is gender-neutral. With one exception, every outhouse is single-occupancy. Choosing to use the double-occupancy outhouse with a companion is a rare thing and not an expectation.

Every camp has a designated spot for outdoor urination at the edge of, and facing away from, camp. With 60+ people in camp and only a few outhouses, this is mostly a time-saving norm. Anybody is welcome to make use of this spot, and no person is required to use it. Some people don’t mind the public aspects of this, some people are very uncomfortable with it. Again, it’s all personal preference and we make every accommodation to keep everyone as comfortable as possible.

We are actively exploring options to improve our human waste disposal with the help of some courageous alumni and the support of the Forest Service. Standby in the next few years for some progress here!

Using the toilet out of camp

The point of JIRP is to get everyone into the field - both on the glaciers and on the surrounding mountains. With an eight- to ten-hour field day being common, everyone ends up having to urinate or defecate in the field at some point. The glacier is a flat, white plain for at least hundreds of feet/meters (and potential several miles/kilometers) in every direction. It’s neither safe nor a good use of time to travel far enough away from the group to achieve privacy. Therefore, in the field, we’ve developed a series of norms around privacy and bathroom use.

At rest breaks anybody who needs to use the bathroom skis about 60 ft/20 m away from the group. Everyone faces away from them, and they either face the group (counter-intuitively provides more privacy if their squatting) or face away from the group (if they’re standing) and take care of their business. We leave human waste on the glacier, so there’s no “packing it out” procedure. It’s entirely possible to use the bathroom wearing a mountaineering harness (both squatting and standing), and the field staff will go over this procedure during orientation.

Menstruation in the field

We have put together a comprehensive page on Menstruation at the link above.