How to clean yourself and your clothes while backpacking with 11 simple steps

If you are like me, when you travel, the only possessions you have are what you can fit on your back. While some people may bring an extra large bag or try and traverse the unknown with a roller, most backpackers like to trim the fat. In fact, most backpackers pride themselves on only carrying a small amount of “kgs,” whatever those are. With this being the nature of the game, backpackers are generally wearing the same couple of outfits continuously until they return home. Though hygiene is relative to each traveler (and some people definitely abuse this truth) the fact is, you need to clean your clothes and yourself. Why not follow these simple tips to do both at once, saving yourself some time and hassle? Enjoy an excerpt from Mulv Jones’s (patent pending) Guide to keeping yourself attractive to the opposite (or same) sex while traveling, known as the 11-step guide to clean clothes and a clean body:

1.

1. Buy yourself a pouch of powder laundry detergent
2. Find a working shower, and enter shower fully dressed in the clothes you want to wash
3. Turn on the shower
4. Was your feet (this will make sense soon)
5. Soak all areas of clothing so that they are nice and damp
6. Without getting your pouch wet (this can put a damper (get it?) on the situation), dump a healthy serving of laundry detergent into your hands
7. Lather your clothed self up like you are using soap, and get a good amount of suds all over. Focusing on stains or areas that get the stinkiest is best practice
8. Remove lathered clothing, dropping them on the floor under your nicely washed feet. Alternate between stepping, stomping, and pulling clothes while letting the suds from your regular shower seep onto the pile
9. After shower, let your clothes soak in a bucket for 30 minutes or so
10. Ring out clothes as thoroughly as possible
11. Hang clothes in a place that gets lots of sun, or is hot enough to eradicate dampness

There you have it, an easy way to wash yourself and your clothes simultaneously. Not only does it optimize your time and water usuage, it even gives you an incentive to not be a completely disgusting backpacker. Smelling good FTW!

Photo courtesy of Travelpod