Plastic free camping

[Jared]

We got better at making it and now it's ubiquitous, it's the ultimate material, we can even cook with it (silicon, polysiloxane) and I don't think we can really do without it.

Yeah, just got delivered a silicone bowl that also seals for just add hot water food. It'll mean never need buy meals that come in single use pot.

Also makes nice butter popcorn with no fuss. Teaspoon of butter, 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels and a few minutes in a microwave. Done.

 

[Paul_B]

You buy plastic bags in a plastic bag then put it in with the rest of your shopping in a bag for life that's plastic. Perhaps put them in a cardboard sleeve.

You buy something like a tool or something that really doesn't need protection. It comes in plastic bag, sometimes in a box after that then it's packaged for sending out say in an amazon cardboard envelope. Then driven cross country in cars with tyres releasing microparticles into the environment.

We simply can't win this plastic free battle. Just what is the solution? There isn't one other than reduce. One of the simplest wins is food and other goods packaging. I like the way cards come with either a cardboard sleeve or more likely a paper sticker that is easily removed to hold card and envelope together. Food packaging is seriously a big potential.

 

[bearbait]

I was reading recently that "The quest to declare the Anthropocene an official geological epoch has descended into an epic row...".

Perhaps we should call this era, or epoch, the Plasticine?

(It's OK, I'm getting my coat...)

 

[walker]

Transportation I think , we should try and cut down on how much transportation is needed to get some (obviously not all goods) to our doors shops etc .
For instance I can bet our bags for life even if cotton are made in China or similar.
Just watched a Australian programme about how popular temu is and what's going on behind the scenes

 

[Fadcode]

I do hope the keyboards and computers used to reply here are not made of Plastic......the only trouble with Plastic is people, they never learnt or were trained to dispose of it correctly...........plastics have been a benefit to mankind, and no matter how hard you/we tried it would be almost impossible to survive without them, and we do have to ask the question would we actually be willing to give up all things that contain or are made of plastic
The management of the waste is the problem, not the Plastic itself.

 

[slowworm]

The management of the waste is the problem, not the Plastic itself.

I would argue against that in many cases. There are endless examples of pointless plastic use such as single bananas in their skin being sold in a cellophaned plastic tray. You can also argue that if you know the plastic isn't going to be correctly disposed then should you buy avoidable plastic stuff?

Which brings us back to the original post. If someone wants to avoid plastic I can't see any harm in them trying.

To be honest, I was looking forward to seeing some more suggestions about plastic free shelters.

 

[Woody girl]

I would argue against that in many cases. There are endless examples of pointless plastic use such as single bananas in their skin being sold in a cellophaned plastic tray. You can also argue that if you know the plastic isn't going to be correctly disposed then should you buy avoidable plastic stuff?

Which brings us back to the original post. If someone wants to avoid plastic I can't see any harm in them trying.

To be honest, I was looking forward to seeing some more suggestions about plastic free shelters.

Thank you for bringing it back to the origional post.
I am interested in ideas for plastic free bushcraft shelter and sleeping, rather than people daft enough to buy plastic covered bananas, or moaning about their plastic covered temu products. The solution there is simple...don't buy it!, make your own cotton shopping bags, (very easy, and I've made many as Xmas presents from old cotton garments or a few metres of material from the charity shop)

So, we can make oilcloth shelters or buy some waxed cotton to make a tarp. Blankets, though bulky and heavy are usable for bedding, though I have discovered a wool sleeping bag by a firm called Gruezi. Trouble is the covering is still "plastic". It's 3.5 litres, compressed pack size, and 750g.
A firm called I think Ava Innes in Scotland, does a very expensive linnen cover for a wool duvet so you can turn that if you already own one, into a sleeping bag.
A futon could be used as a mattress, but many of the more affordable ones come with a foam inner. It's also very bulky and heavy.
I'm still looking for ideas related to bushcraft rather than bananas!

What about cordage?

 

[Jared]

Animal skins for shelter and bedding.
Sinnew for cordage.

 

[walker]

Shelter, branches for a frame and spruce for roofing and bed
Sleeping, woolen blanket or 2
Heating, wood fire
No blankets = bigger fire and enough wood to last the night

 

[walker]

Cordage from saplings, some roots etc

 

[walker]

Sheeps bladder or stomach for waterbottle

 

[Pattree]

…….. and a plastic free mule to carry it all.
Best of luck!

Just what proportion of the world’s plastic production do you imagine is taken up in camping and bushcraft gear?

I’ll take loose bananas and sausages when I camp in a couple of weeks and use all the plastic I’ve already got over the years. I can’t un-polymerise what I have (yet) so I use it or burn it.

We don’t have to stop using plastics. We have to use and dispose of them appropriately.

If you want to make some sort of symbolic gesture then I wish you well with your canvas and hemp rope tent and its wooden poles and pegs. I’ve paid my dues pushing those in a wooden trek cart with steel rimmed wheels.

 

[Paul_B]

If everyone started to cut branches down or stripped nettles out to make cordage, etc would there be much left and would you have time to actually do anything or experience more than making your shelter?

Seriously, plastic free camping really needs to be what you carry in with you. I know many of you could make everything you need to camp out with just a knife or axe, but I think that's impractical for future mass outdoors activities.

I think this is going to be a very difficult task to create a feasible wildcamping kit that is plastic free. I just hope it's a theoretical experiment except for kit that really needs replacing anyway, otherwise it's a bit of consumerism that also has its own harms to the planet. It is interesting anyway.

 

[Woody girl]

Actualy, back in the 60s, my first tent was a white cotton pup tent with wooden poles, I used it untill about 1988, where it disappeared in a house move
It was lighter and smaller than many modern tents and slept two comfortably. Yes, indeed, a groundsheet was needed, (which I still have, and is plastic.) Uniform cadet (or something like that was the make.)
I'm not getting much encouragement here am I?
Seems most are wedded to plastic stuff, or advocate an iron age approach.
Come on guys! There are so many knowledgeable people here, someone must have a few sensible alternatives, ? No?

 

[Pattree]

Hmmmm. My two person Relum Canadien with aluminium poles certainly wasn’t lighter than its modern equivalent. I also had to avoid touching the sides in the rain until I saved my pennies and bought the fly.

I think we jumped straight from the canvas of a post wartime era to the convenience of plastic based textiles.

Maybe hope lies in the non too distant future as we look for new materials in an era in which the next generation will keep a wider view than did their forebears.(me)

Edited to add:
I wish you well in your endeavour @Woody girl , I really do. It will be an interesting experiment but I just hope that it doesn’t take the fun out of your camping. There is nothing meritorious about hardship and discomfort.

 

[slowworm]

If everyone started to cut branches down or stripped nettles out to make cordage, etc would there be much left and would you have time to actually do anything or experience more than making your shelter?

That is not what is being said is it, WG is asking for suggestions for her to try. If they are reasonable then other could also have a go.

As it happens I have an endless supply of nettles, plenty of spare Lime bark etc and other resources such as braken, fir and pine trees etc.

When I had the time to spend down my woodland I lifted the canopy of one of the fir trees and that provided a good degree of shelter. One of the reasons why I would consider planting a few firs in a new woodland.

 

[GreyCat]

How about hairy string (jute)? Cheap, easy to obtain and very useful all around the garden. No plastic. Also, once shredded it is good tinder. It's my go-to garden string because if I forget about it or drop an end, it biodegrades in a year or so outside.

When I was a young Venture Scout I learnt all of my "pioneering" with hemp ropes. The knots worked better as most old knots and lashings were "designed" for use with hemp rope and wooden spars.

There's plenty of online sources of natural ropes, a quick search found suppliers, see here:

Traditional Natural Ropes | Made in the UK | Rope Source

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Hemp Rope UK - 100% Natural Flax Hemp Rope | Ropes Direct

CLICK for 3 strand 100% Natural Flax HEMP ropes. Cut to length in diameters from 6mm to 36mm. The soft finish of our ropes make them ideal for a range of uses.

www.ropesdirect.co.uk

Natural Rope (NEXT DAY DELIVERY) | Buy Rope

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Natural Rope Products | RopeServices UK

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You don't *need* to make your own cordage to have plastic free material- there is indeed a middle ground between using plastics and the stone age!

GC

 

[Paul_B]

That is not what is being said is it, WG is asking for suggestions for her to try. If they are reasonable then other could also have a go.

As it happens I have an endless supply of nettles, plenty of spare Lime bark etc and other resources such as braken, fir and pine trees etc.

When I had the time to spend down my woodland I lifted the canopy of one of the fir trees and that provided a good degree of shelter. One of the reasons why I would consider planting a few firs in a new woodland.

Actually that was what has been said, the post by walker said which was what I was replying to, see below.

Lots of nettles but with all the campers out there how long before popular camping spots run out? And as for lime bark, I don't recall seeing many lime trees in the lakes, snowdonia or the Highlandsn or indeed many camping places I've been to. Not exactly practical and it is practical options WG is looking for. She could easily go plastic free with available options commercially available but due to weight and bulk they're not practical. If I read WGs posts correctly she's looking at things that she could actually carry backpacking and use for wildcamping / backpacking.

Snipped quote from Walker

Shelter, branches for a frame

 

[Paul_B]

@GreyCat
You're absolutely right that's my point. You're not going to make your kit from what you find around you. You need to kit up from plastic free products available commercially but it too needs to be practical in terms of bulk and weight. I don't think WG has a mule train available or the time to make cordage and natural/ local resources.

Mostly I suspect it's wool for warmth and cotton for weather resistance such as waterproof clothing and shelter.

Although I wonder about footwear. If car tyres release microparticles what about rubber soled boots. Would you have to go for leather soled boots with hobnails? If so I reckon that cobbler in Settle could do something appropriate.

 

[Essieandy]

Woody girl - fandabi dosy on YouTube

Recently I have been attempting to get a plastic free camp kit. Not as easy as you might think !
So far, my cooking, and tools have been easy. Among my collection I have a canvas rucksack.
I use a tin for my fire kit, and a home made leather tinder pouch.
Ive been making some of my clothes from natural wool or cotton.
Carrying food wrapped in home made waxed cotton or grease proof paper and tied with cotton string. Water bottle is stainless steel, and a milbank bag for filtering water....so far so good.
But, then sleeping and shelter has been much more difficult. I have wool blankets, but they are bulky and heavy, a down bag has a synthetic cover, and unless I want to spend a fortune, with bushcraft spain for a lovely plastic free tarp,(and employ a donkey to cart it, )I'm pretty stumped.
Also I need an air bed, unless I hammock(which is not plastic free either)
So, I'm wondering, is anyone else trying to use more natural materials in their bushcraft,? what is stumping your efforts?
What are your solutions?
I'm still working on things, and am trying to go as light as possible but use as much natural material, and avoid as much plastic as I can. By no means perfect, but I'm getting there very slowly, and trying to make conscious sustainable choices .

Fandobi dosy on YouTube has today just posted a video where he's doing a winter overnighter using only traditional ~16c "highland" kit. Definitely worth a watch.