Coyote Gulch Pit Toilet Destroyed?

[Charles Wood]

A volunteer repair effort, particularly involving Scouts, is a great idea. I don't have any email addresses or names of the particular troop and the individual at the the Escalante Joint Agency Visitor Center who told me the details, didn't volunteer any. In fact, what was told to me was delivered in very hushed tones. Possibly they were instructed from up the Dept of Interior food chain to downplay it...who knows...but certainly the park service should not have to bear the burden of replacement costs.

Doing some additional searching I found one report that indicated members of the offending troop were trying to see how well the wood shavings used as part of the compost toilet, would burn!

I filed my letter of the BSA website: http://www.scouting.org

I clicked on Visitor, then Feedback, and left my response. Perhaps if enough of us demand answers and what the BSA intends to do, something will be forthcoming.

 

[Dave]

Hardly the first or worst fire caused by Boy Scouts in the state of Utah.

The 2002 East Fork of the Bear wildfire soured me on scouting for life... and I was very active in Scouting in my youth. The problem is endemic... complaining to the national office will get you nowhere.

The idea of donating labor for a rebuild is great, but I highly doubt the BLM/NPS would go for it. Glen Canyon NRA took deep cuts from the sequester.

 

[Ben Petersen]

I appreciated the conversation here prior to a trip to Coyote Gulch in July 2013, so I joined the forum in order to post an update on the toilet situation after returning:

When we arrived near Jacob Hamblin Arch and started poking around the area, we noticed the remains of the former toilet, as well as several newer signs in the area that pointed toward a “toilet.” Down the canyon about 15 yards from the charred remains of the old outhouse, tucked against the west canyon wall, is one of the BLM’s finest pit toilets, in perfect working condition. It’s an open-air toilet seat that sits atop a wide metal pipe. There’s a little privacy behind some scrub oak, but there isn’t enough coverage to obscure your view of the canyon. Try that thing in the early morning! It has to be one of the most majestic bathroom experiences known to mankind. The view is spectacular. As of July 2013, the toilet in Coyote Gulch was getting fairly full. I’m not sure what the exit strategy for the waste in the toilet is, but it’s on its way to brimming. It’s interesting to note that the woman at the BLM office didn’t mention the toilet to me. Perhaps she didn’t know about it, or it’s secretly heralded as the world’s greatest outdoor John and she didn’t want to give away any local secrets. Either way, it’s there for those who don’t mind a bit of exposure and a great view from the bathroom.

In addition, if you're interested in a few other things I wish I'd known prior to the trip, check out my trip report on my blog: http://benpetersen.net/2013/10/16/hiking-backpacking-in-coyote-gulch-2013/

 

[slc_dan]

Hi Ben,

If it's the pit toilet I'm thinking of, that has been there for well over 16 years. I remember using it when I was 12, and 13. I also loved shitting in the wide open outdoors.

The "new" toilet was fully enclosed, and I assume to help out with the overflowing of the old one.

 

[Nick]

I remember seeing a pic of that old toilet just sitting out in the woods. Never saw it myself though. I don't imagine they'd want to tell people much about it with it filling up though. The one that burnt down had a pretty sweet self-sustaining system that didn't require emptying. Too bad the folks responsible didn't get charged to reconstruct it. Seems only a matter of time before wag bags are a requirement in Coyote Gulch.

 

[Duke]

Hi Ben,

If it's the pit toilet I'm thinking of, that has been there for well over 16 years. I remember using it when I was 12, and 13. I also loved shitting in the wide open outdoors.

The "new" toilet was fully enclosed, and I assume to help out with the overflowing of the old one.

This is an old thread so I started reading from the bottom up and saw slc_dan's post before I read Ben's and it cracked me up a bit as I couldn't figure out why he was confessing what would appear to be an odd love.

 

[djuggler]

For those interested, we were there when the fire happened. We were terribly disappointed because it happened the night before we arrived at that spot and everyone was looking forward to its luxury.

Here's a photo of the smoke. There wasn't a cloud in the sky so all the white in the picture is smoke from what remained smoldering:

https://flic.kr/p/e6wm4v

Here's the path to the toilet. We chose not to make the climb since other hikers warned us it had burned in the night:

https://flic.kr/p/e6BYVd

And this is our entire album if someone is interest in peeking around: https://www.flickr.com/photos/mccaughan/collections/72157630253311788/

 

[regehr]

someone should start a thread about awesome backcountry toilets.

years ago there was one up on Mt Baker that had a 180 degree view of a glacier, that was pretty special, and then just this past fall on the AT I had the pleasure of using one (next to the condemned "overmountain shelter") that ranked highly in terms of views, and had even been kind of bedazzled

 

[LarryBoy]

someone should start a thread about awesome backcountry toilets.

years ago there was one up on Mt Baker that had a 180 degree view of a glacier, that was pretty special, and then just this past fall on the AT I had the pleasure of using one (next to the condemned "overmountain shelter") that ranked highly in terms of views, and had even been kind of bedazzled

Wait what happened to Overmountain Shelter?

 

[regehr]

Wait what happened to Overmountain Shelter?

it's there but it's filled with signs staying to keep out. I heard it (and the privy!!) are going to get taken out.

we slept in the grassy field nearby, which was a great place to camp. there's a picnic table too!

 

[djuggler]

someone should start a thread about awesome backcountry toilets.

years ago there was one up on Mt Baker that had a 180 degree view of a glacier, that was pretty special, and then just this past fall on the AT I had the pleasure of using one (next to the condemned "overmountain shelter") that ranked highly in terms of views, and had even been kind of bedazzled

Here's a toilet in The Boundary Waters. Imagine using this with a million mosquitos swarming you. https://photos.app.goo.gl/943LdF1MX232N6BS6
Some sort of had a view of the lake https://photos.app.goo.gl/9D6F2UBh4TTbzgzG9

 

[Rockskipper]

The Boundary Waters toilet reminded me of one July when I was car camping in the canola fields near Drumheller, Alberta. In order to even get out of my vehicle, I had to wrap myself in mosquito netting. This photo looks like rain clouds coming in, but that's actually a big cloud of mosquitoes.

I finally gave up and camped in the parking lot of the Drumheller hospital, which was appropriate, given all the blood I'd lost.

 

[ImNotDedYet]

The Boulder Field of Long's Peak has a pretty immaculate toilet. I've been too lazy to photograph them, but this story does them justice...

Longs Peak toilets win award for architectural design | OutThere Colorado

If you’ve made the trek to the summit of Longs Peak via the Keyhole Route, you probably remember passing outhouse structures along the way. If you’ve made the trek very

www.outtherecolorado.com