Backpacking can be a great way to travel. Whether you’re backpacking your way across a new country or you’re choosing to backpack through the backcountry, strapping everything on your back and going on an adventure can open your eyes to parts of the world that you’ve never seen before.
But while this can make for an amazing experience for you, this type of travel can also leave you feeling sweaty, stinky, and just overall gross at the end of the day. So to help ensure that you’re able to stay as clean and sanitary as possible during this time, here are three tips for maintaining your personal hygiene when backpacking.
Don’t Wear Cotton Clothing
Although cotton is a very breathable fabric, which can be great when you’re moving around a lot like you do when backpacking, cotton can also very easily soak up your sweat and hold onto until you’re able to wash it out. And when you’re backpacking, you might not know when the next time you’ll be able to effectively wash your clothes will be.
So to combat the stink that can come by wearing cotton clothing, Jemima Forbes, a contributor to HostelWorld.com, recommends that you wear clothes that are made of light, synthetic fibers. This type of material will help to wick moisture away from your body and allow both your body and the clothing to dry quickly, which can really help with keeping you cool and smelling fresh.
Know How To Keep Your Face Clean
When you don’t have access to a bath or shower during your backpacking trip, the next best thing you can do is ensure that certain parts of your body get a good once-over every day.
While you’ll likely automatically know to keep your armpits and your undercarriage areas as clean as possible, one other area that you should focus on is your face. By keeping your face clean, you’ll feel overall more clean and ready to tackle your day of backpacking.
Some of the best ways to keep your face clean while backpacking, according to Gray Chapman, a contributor to Self.com, is to use products that are versatile, biodegradable, and lightweight. And when picking what items to bring, make sure you really think if you’ll want or need them for your face. While women might really want facial cleansing towels to use each day, men might be more inclined to take some shaving cream and a safety razor to shave their face every few days.
Change Your Socks and Underwear Everyday
When you can’t wash your body as well as you’d like to each day, the very least you can do is to change your socks and underwear before you set off each day. By doing this, Jason Stevenson, a contributor to Backpacker.com, shares that you’ll be able to keep these areas from developing bacteria and fungus that could make you very uncomfortable.
If you’re planning to go on a backpacking trip soon, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you maintain a certain level of personal hygiene along the way.
