Clean Him With the Soap Dry With the Sock

January 07, 2022 Post a Comment

@sadaigh I have a scrubba and have taken it on trips, but never backpacking due to the weight. You can accomplish the same with a sylnylon dry bag for a fraction of the weight. Load the bag with water, soap, and dirty wash. Agitate (shake vigorously), soak, agitate, soak. Then repeat with clean water for a rinse. It works pretty well. You may still want to get a deep clean in a machine when the opportunity presents itself. To dry, I wring, then wring in my pack towel, and hang. IMHO I do not think the built in washboard makes that much of a difference.

Sparrow in Texas

Sadaigh, If you are thinking of the Dr. Bronners for soap and shampoo, definitely try it out first. I did not care for it on my hair. In fact, test everything you take. Think about how you will access your water bottles or your guidebook or your raingear. And, be sure to have rubber tips for your trekking poles!

I like to travel light - the friend I walked with in 2013 must have had a kilo of cosmetics and stuff. I have my hair cut especially short and take half a bar of handmade (artisan) soap - 55g - I use this for showering, washing my hair and washing my clothes - though if I have a hotel stop it's a luxury to use the free lotions and potions

I just kept the soap in a ziplock bag for the duration.

Ditto on the soap, the short haircut, and multi-use for the soap I carried. I used a ziploc and a mesh bag. I never had a problem. I also brought a very small bottle (travel size) with hair conditioner in it, as mine can get flyaway. I just used a dab as a leave-in conditioner.

I really don't think you will need a Scrubba. They are heavy, and I found that handwashing was fine, I never had to wait for a sink to wash in, and I traveled at one of the crowded times. On occasion I went in with one or two others to share a washer and dryer.

SYates

Camino Fossil AD 1999, now living in Santiago de C

I just use shampoo for everything and, yes, leave the Scrubba at home ;-) Buen Camino, SY

I have curly hair. Very. You can imagine that it needs conditioning. What it doesn't need is shampoo. What ever you bring, try it at home first. I just bring conditioner (which contains the same cleaning agents as shampoo btw!) and a laundry soap bar. Sunlight is the one I took last time. I have also brought Tide's tiny pouches of liquid Tide, but they are a whole lot of plastic for little product, and expensive.

I bought my Sunlight bar a few months before walking, unwrapped it and let it dry out to decrease ots weight. En route leave it out on a piece of plastic until dry and pack it up in a ziplock in the morning.

Once upon a time, when I forst wLked, you had to bring your washing machine soap, but it is now part of the machine or at least the coast of the wash. Leave the pods at home.

Do NOT buy the $$$$ Lush products and their tin can. To much money, and a mess in the can in the end.

SYates

Camino Fossil AD 1999, now living in Santiago de C

What shampoo did you bring?

Just the same one I use at home also. Buen Camino, SY

Like @SYates I use the shampoo I normally use at home. I know it works for my hair and it doubles as shower gel. I put it in 2 100ml bottles. This would pass airport security, but for me is about balancing weight and a precaution against maybe forgetting it in the shower. I keep mine in the mesh side pockets of my pack, one each side like my water bottles. I carry a piece of good soap that is not 'new'. Old soap has hardened so lasts longer.
Handwashing clothes with either some of the shampoo or the soap keeps better control of the amount used. Also I put it on the clothes not in the basin as too often it runs away :-(
My hair is short so I have a 'Camino cut' which has grown back to my preferred length by the time I reach Santiago/home. No conditioner, no cosmetics - but that is my choice. Small comb, not a brush. This last all depends on your hair length etc.

You can tell from my gravatar that I do not have complications with shampoo. I prefer liquid soap over bar soap because the bar soap is a hassle to keep dry and pack. The liquid is easily packed and accessible for washing hands etc. I have used Sea to Summit Citronella Wilderness Wash for years with good success. I am not sure if the citronella really works to deter bugs as stated, but smells good. The bottle that the soap comes in is a sturdy Naglene like bottle. It has a solid screw top to prevent spills. It has a small flat squirt insert in the top of the bottle that helps meter usage of the soap and is easily removed for refilling. This is all personal preference, but you may consider repacking your liquid soap or shampoo in a similar bottle (hotel shampoo bottle with a screw top not a flip top).

SYates

Camino Fossil AD 1999, now living in Santiago de C

Ooh I like the look of that, you may have just converted me!

Might even help to keep those pesky Scottish miiidgesss a bay ;-) SY

After I have used my soap I leave it outside the small plastic bag until it dries out hard. I have sometimes put it outside on the windowsill in the sun to increase hardness, but this means there is a danger of forgetting it. so normally it is on the floor under the bunk.

Another thumbs down for the Lush bars. Super curly hair. And it is soooooo expensive. Especially when you buy the matching tin. After taxes I paid close to C$20!

To mis-quote Stalin - no hair, no problem (see avatar).

Can I just say you can't really wash clothes on the Camino properly merely refresh them. Don't bring anything too light coloured - I once (foolishly) took a white techno teeshirt that had grey gussets and shoulders. By the time we reached SdC it was uniform grey and those olive oil stains were never, ever going to come out.

All in one shower wash for body and laundry and a grade 1 buzzcut works for me.

all thought of facial scrubs, anti-wrinkle eye creams, hair products etc all went out the window, i did take them and lots more things which were dumped with excess clothing ( about 6 kilo in total )in roncesvalles. This time i'm better prepared with the very basics in a 28ltr pack.

Welcome Barrilad,

You made me smile this morning with you mea culpa about the scrubs, facials and hair products you sent out of the window on day 1. It takes a brave woman to admit such things .

Honestly, I think we should have a thread about all the useless items we brought and dumped along the way; I'm sure everyone would recognise at least one item on those lists, if not many, many, more, and we'd all have a good laugh reading through.

+1 with @Kanga the leaves seem like a cool idea but wet hands quickly made a mess of the leaves.

I took a small bottle of leave in conditioner.... Mine was L'Oreal but there are a few different ones... just 50cl in size so very light.

I tried it before I left for a few months and now I use it every day. I have shoulder length fine fly-away hair that turned to straw on my first camino. I learned that half a bottle would last me for the whole journey... I only used a tiny amount each day... it's so small and light and perfect for my hair... I loved this solution!

If you have time, try out a few different options at home before you go... Lush shampoo bar (in it's own tin) and this little bottle of conditioner was a great solution for me

I"m taking notes...a leave in plus a bar, and only half the bottle full...that might work for me. Thanks!

I used dry shampoo made by LUSH and loved it. It comes in a small round cake which comes in a small tin container about 2 inches in diameter. The shampoo is made with fresh natural ingredients. I used it for shampoo and also soap and laundry hand washing. It was perfect.When I wasn't walking I simply stood it up in the tin container to dry. While walking just closed the tin and didn't worry about it. I would definitely use it again. There are tons of places in Europe that sell Lush products. Fewer in this country. Check on-line to see where you can get it. Also, there are many different dry shampoos for different hair types.

You used dry shampoo the whole time? I have a Lush store at my mall within driving distance and I've got a bit of time to test things out....How much did the container with the dry shampoo weigh?

@Eve Alexandra - another vote for Lush shampoo bars... the biggest problem is deciding which scent I liked the most... they are great. I used mine as soap and for clothes washing too. https://uk.lush.com/products/shampoo-bars

happy planning!

I'm testing the avocado co wash today. And I was on etsy looking at homemade soaps as well. I'm feeling hopeful!

J Willhaus

Hi all,
A reminder that there are stores in Spain you can buy more supplies. For hubby and I we started with a bar of hotel sized soap in a zip lock bag and a hotel sized shampoo bottle. No specific brand. We washed selves and clothes with these. When they ran out we went to the store and bought soap and shampoo. I refilled the little bottle and left the big bottle at the albergue for others. We found the cheapest soap on the CF comes only in a 3 pack. We always left two for others in the donation bin.

My biggest toiletry issue was deodorant. Could usually only find the roll on kind on the CF. Some things just have to be tolerated but I still have a half bottle of roll on stuff now 9 months later in my cupboard.

Malachiuri

I used Dove for sensitive skin the whole way, because it is readily available in France/Spain and I enjoy silky soft skin. I'm worth it, darnit.

As for hair care, never underestimate the ease that shaving your head brings to life. I did it years ago and never looked back. Of course, that was after God took 50% of my hair away for unknown reasons...

Anniesantiago

I used Dove for sensitive skin the whole way, because it is readily available in France/Spain and I enjoy silky soft skin. I'm worth it, darnit.

As for hair care, never underestimate the ease that shaving your head brings to life. I did it years ago and never looked back. Of course, that was after God took 50% of my hair away for unknown reasons...

My hairdresser told me using Dove on my hair would help it grow back again in the post=menopausal fall out stages! So I'm using it.

Regarding tangles, "in the old days" we put a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in a cup of water and worked it through our hair. Quickly rinse. Took out the last bit of soap and long hair was tangle free and soft and shiny. The vinegar smell dissipates within a few minutes.

JillGat

Dove is saponified with lye, like all soap is, and so is damaging to hair. The cider vinegar helps a bit to balance that, but won't remedy it. And do you want to carry vinegar with you on the Camino? No hair product "helps hair grow back again in the post-menopausal fall out stages." That's a hormone issue, not a scalp issue.

I have no problem with soap for the body. When making soap (which, by definition is made with lye) you can change the kinds of oils you use and decide how much of the oil should be left over after the lye/saponification process to make a bar of soap that is more cleansing or more moisturizing, more sudsy or long-lasting or works best with your skin. What you can't do is lower the pH enough to be used on hair. If you have very short hair or don't worry about frying your hair or dealing with tangles, then maybe it works for you. It doesn't for most people.

The only solution I have found is solid shampoo and solid conditioner bars. They are made specifically for hair and are not made using the same process as soap. Bars about the size of a golf ball will last you more than a month. I started making my own and, not only are they convenient for travel, they seem to be far superior to any liquid shampoo and conditioner I have ever used. (Some people get shampoo and conditioner bars at Lush, but the Lush version has sodium laurel sulfate in it, which I don't like and their bars get soft and disintegrate too fast, in my experience.)

At this point, I only make shampoo and conditioner bars for myself. I am happy to share links to others who make and sell good shampoo and conditioner bars.

Anna Cameron

I've read a few threads about this topic, but I'm still not sure what I should bring.

I'm a female with hair that tangles easily, and I guess I'm curious as to others experiences with soap. I'm leaning towards Dr. Bronners, but I'm not sure about how that would work on my hair....

Also, how does one keep their soap dry? or at least from getting on everything? A tin? A bag? Mesh bag?

I also have a Scrubba for washing (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BUI7HFC/?tag=casaivar02-20), and was curious to see if anyone else has used it on the Camino? What soap did you use? How did it work?

Any and all replies help! 146 days left until I head out!

About the Scrubba: Earlier this year on the CF, I met 3 different people who had bought one, 1 of them returned it before leaving Canada, other 2 discarded them along the Camino, mainly due to weight but also because it's unnecessary- you always have a laundry or trough/sink somewhere to do your washing. The Scubba was designed more for campers or caravanners, not for folks who carry everything on their backs. Personally, I enjoyed the communal gathering around the laundry trough in the afternoon after a hard day's walk.

I've read a few threads about this topic, but I'm still not sure what I should bring.

I'm a female with hair that tangles easily, and I guess I'm curious as to others experiences with soap. I'm leaning towards Dr. Bronners, but I'm not sure about how that would work on my hair....

Also, how does one keep their soap dry? or at least from getting on everything? A tin? A bag? Mesh bag?

I also have a Scrubba for washing (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BUI7HFC/?tag=casaivar02-20), and was curious to see if anyone else has used it on the Camino? What soap did you use? How did it work?

Any and all replies help! 146 days left until I head out!

I used a scrubba! IT was great until my sister tossed it out when she's chucked out both of our packs in Ponferrada after we found they were bed bug infested.

AS for shampoo - I used a Lush shampoo bar (also chucked by my sister) so went to buying minis. I struggled to find conditioner though but I had a mini of that and made it last Until I was able to stock up.

I also had a refillable tube which I would fill with liquid soap anytime the opportunity presented itself - I would've use that for washing.

Buen camino - I'm so envious!
Tara

I used a lush shampoo bar this last hike and it worked out great. When I got out of the shower, I used some toilet paper to dry the shampoo bar, then I put it in a square tin with 2 hair bungees to dry. It dried reasonably quickly and did not disintegrate. Lush Shampoo Bar.JPG