The Trowel - Necessary or Nonsense?

Description

** Stuff/Gear I Mention in this Video **

Rediscovering the Trowel Article - https://www.pcta.org/2017/thru-hiker-lint-ultralight-trowel-49043/

Tentlab Deuce of Spades Trowel - http://amzn.to/2zdi2Fl

Vargo Dig Dig Tool - http://amzn.to/2iHOutp

Suluk46 Tark - https://suluk46.com/product/tark-ultralight-backpacking-trowels/

Lint's Youtube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCm2A0MkU9e_0oVizHxaNZPQ

Darwin & Snuggles' Hiker Trash Holiday Gift Guide - https://darwinonthetrail.com/2017/11/21/hiker-trash-holiday-gift-guide/

AZT Section Gear List - https://darwinonthetrail.com/2017/09/22/darwins-2017-azt-section-hike/

AT Gear List - https://darwinonthetrail.com/2016/05/03/darwins-2016-at-gear-list/

*** WAYS TO SUPPORT THIS CHANNEL ***

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/darwinonthetrail

(Help Support my 2018 PCT Thru with a pledge as low as a $1/month)

Visit our Etsy Shop! - https://www.etsy.com/shop/TravelandTrail

*** Gear Used to Shoot this Video! ***

- Camera -

Canon EOS 77D - http://amzn.to/2zf5OQ9

- Lense -

Canon EF 24mm IS USM - http://amzn.to/2zeJuWU

- Sound -

TakStar Shotgun Mic - http://amzn.to/2kMsAnM

- TriPod -

Targus 360 Trigger Tripod - http://amzn.to/2kMsU5Y

------Intro & Animation By: BlackStrap Media------

https://blackstrapmedia.com

------- Music By: Mike Boren --------

DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps support the channel and allows us to continue to make videos like this. Thank you for the support!

Contact information:

Website: www.darwinonthetrail.com

Instagram: Darwin_Onthetrail

facebook: www.facebook.com/darwinonthetrail

Tags: Appalachian Trail,AT,AT Thru Hike,Thru Hike,UL Hiking,UL Backpacking Gear,UL Gear,PCT,Pacific Crest Trail,PCT Thru Hike,PCTA,Hiker Trash,Backpacking Trowel,Deuce of Spades,Vargo Dig Dig,Lint Hikes,UL Backpacking,Backpacking,Hiking,Adventure,Camping,Long Distance Hiking

Video Transcription

hey guys it's Darwin here today to talk about a super debatable piece of gear between hikers and that is the trial is it necessary or nonsense alright so in the past I have talked about the trial being a worthless piece of gear to have during a thru-hike these things are unnecessary I said they were kind of goofy they were bulky they added extra weight to your pack took up extra room and it was a piece of gear that you didn't really need because you could take care of the same job with a stick or a trekking pole a rock your shoe pretty much anything else now even though I made that statement I still am all for practicing good Leave No Trace principles by digging a proper cat hole win you got to take a crap on the trail obviously it's a good idea to dig a hole to put your crap in which means getting at least 200 feet away from the trail or a shelter or pretty much where anyone's at and digging a 6 to 8 inch hole that is between 4 and 6 inches in diameter why because no one wants to see your crap on a trail because it pollutes the trail and because it can spread diseases to other hikers now after I made that statement comments started rolling in with people that were ashamed that I didn't know how to practice good Leave No Trace principles people wanting me to prove that I could dig a 6 to 8 inch hole with a trekking pole or a stick and people just being flat-out mad that I was telling other hikers not to carry a very valuable piece of gear on the trail now the trail has always been a debatable thing on things like a thru-hike and to be honest you don't see a lot of through hikers carrying a trowel especially on the Appalachian Trail most hikers have learned to dig that hole with a stick or a trekking pole so because I had been digging a proper hole without a trial for years I shrugged those comments off and I kind of laughed at them a few months later I found myself reading an article on the PCT aise website that a famous hiker named lint had wrote about Leave No Trace principles now if you guys don't know

Lindt is he's like a triple triple crown er he's done something like 13 hikes he has a ton of miles on him and he's been hiking for years Lin stated like most other hikers that for years he hadn't carried a poop shovel he had dug his cat holes with a stick his boot a rock whatever he could find because he thought that the trowel was an unnecessary piece of gear but then he started mentioning overuse on the trail and the effect that the piece ETA had seen with human waste other hikers weren't bearing their crap there was tons of toilet paper strewed across the trail everywhere because people weren't practicing good Leave No Trace principles then that got me thinking about the Appalachian Trail when I was out there in 2015 and 2016 there were tons of times that I saw toilet paper either on the side of the trail behind a shelter near a water source because people weren't burying their crap people weren't taking the time to dig that proper cat hole now was it because hikers just didn't care or was it because they didn't know proper Leave No Trace principles because they weren't carrying a trowel and they were being lazy about it I'd probably say the trowel is the number one item that I seen in hiker boxes over anything else and then I read in lence article where he was talking to a friend and the friend suggested that because he helped influence new hikers it was up to him to carry something like a trowel to help promote good Leave No Trace principles now even being a super ultralight hiker Lindt eventually gave in and he added weight to his pack carrying a trowel now the comments never really stop for me I started getting comments from people suggesting that because I made videos on YouTube I helped influence new hikers and I gave suggestions on gear that it was up to me to help inspire a new generation of hikers to respect the trails practice good Leave No Trace and dig a proper cat hole so it got me thinking was I starting to be responsible for hikers not bearing their crap was either reason that the trails were getting trashed was I myself not practicing the good Leave No Trace principles that I felt so passionate about so I did it I picked up a trowel now to be honest I originally just picked up a trowel to put it in my pack to show other hikers that they should also be carrying a trowel to dig a proper cat hole and through having it in my pack eventually whenever I needed to do my business I started reaching for this guy versus my trekking pole or grabbing a stick and to my surprise it was a hell of a lot easier to dig a cat hole and I didn't have to wait so long to go now I still stand by the statement that I made that using something like this on a trail or carrying that big classic orange goofy plastic shovel is overkill their heavy their bulky they take up room in your pack but luckily there are a lot of companies out there that have decided to reinvent the trowel making them more compact making them much lighter and making a multi-purpose from the Vargo titanium dig dig tool which is a super cool titanium trowel it can also be used as a stake if you're in those type of environments to the silic 46 tark which is another awesome lightweight titanium trowel to the trowel that I use which is the 10th Labs deuce of spades aluminum trowel which is super compact has a really cool shape to it they're only like 20 bucks it only weighs point 6 ounces and it comes in a bunch of different colors if you're into accessorizing on the trail so like I said being this compact being this lightweight and only weighing in at point 6 ounces it's kind of silly not to bring one of these on your next backpacking trip or through hike if anything to help promote good Leave No Trace principles so if you guys want some more information on the deuce of Spades trial or any of the other ones that I mentioned I'll leave a link in the description box below plus a link to Lintz article that helped inspire me what do you guys think do you think a trowel is a necessary piece of gear to have in your pack or do you just use a trekking pole or a stick to dig your hole whenever you've got to take a crap leave me something in the comment section below and let me know your thoughts if you haven't had a chance yet gorvan check me out on Instagram I've been posting a lot of new photos lately of some of the things that snuggles and I have going on throughout the week plus some pictures from some past hikes if you found any value in this video go ahead and hit that like button subscribe to my channel if you haven't already and as always guys thanks for watching [Music]

[Applause]

[Music]