There are a small number of things that are, well, different for women wilderness trippers when it comes to our biology. Unfortunately, these issues also make most men and even some women very, very uncomfortable, and thus we don’t talk about them openly very often – and solid information on somewhat taboo topics becomes difficult to find. For this reason, I’ve agreed to discuss the subject we tend to label “feminine hygiene”.

This isn’t a primer about how to avoid bear encounters or a comprehensive guide to backcountry etiquette. These types of books exist (for example, Herrero, 2002 provides a comprehensive overview of bears; Meyers, 1994, comprehensively covers all that is related to latrines, and the resources covering general low impact camping techniques are numerous). I’m by no means an expert on these issues, just a woman who really likes to go camping 

Menstruation: What not to worry about

There’s a frequently resurfacing rumour about bears and menstruating women. It goes something like this: Due to their keen sense of smell, bears (there are those who will claim this only applies to male bears) will be attracted to women at the beginning of their cycles, and consequently women are at a higher risk for bear attacks at this time. Commonly, women are then advised to use internal forms of feminine protection or, in more paranoid versions, to stay out of the backcountry altogether if they are menstruating. I suspect the people who spread this information are the same ones who forward SPAM emails in the hope the Bill Gates will pay them for their trouble. It is perhaps no coincidence that you can find both the email forwarding hoax and the bears and menstruation myth at www.urbanlegends.com

The myth dates back to a night in Glacier National Park in 1967. That evening, two women were killed (in separate incidents) by grizzlies. One of them was menstruating. In a triumph of anecdotal evidence, it was subsequently speculated that menstruation was connected to the attack. Although a causal link was never established, the rumour has been circulating since then, and has come to include all kinds of bear.

I’ve never believed this. For me, personally, where I’m at in my cycle has never been a consideration for several years of frequent backcountry camping in black bear habitat. However, anecdotal evidence is considered weak for a reason: I might add that I have never had a bear attempt to get at the food I’ve hung in a tree, stashed in a plastic barrel, or stored in the hatches of my kayak. Thus, the evidence of me – or any of the women I know who have done a lot of tripping – not having any negative bear encounters regardless of the stage of my cycle does not mean anything. I may simply have been lucky all along. I don’t believe this, but that is all that can be concluded from my personal story: inconclusive.

Fortunately, though, not all research is as fuzzy as anecdotal evidence. Rogers at al. (1991) empirically investigated the bear and menstruation issue. In this peer-reviewed research, the reactions of free ranging black bears to the used menstrual products (tampons) of 26 different women were recorded. In addition, bears were exposed to four menstruating women. Both the tampons and the women were ignored by the bears, regardless of the animals’ age or sex. There are further studies which look at historical statistics of bear attacks classified by gender of the victim and put into perspective relative to total number and gender breakdown of backcountry users. Presumably, if menstruation contributed to bear aggression, a greater proportion of female backcountry visitors than male visitors would be victims of bear attacks. Guenter and Hoekstra (1996) examined 24 years worth of data for Yellowstone NP, and found no relationship between menstruation and bear attacks. There is no evidence linking black or grizzly bears and human menstrual blood . Furthermore, no link has been established for grizzly bears despite years of paranoia. [It should, however, be noted that one study – Cushing, 1985 – did find polar bears to be more interested in human menstrual blood than other human blood

Obviously, you are responsible for your own decisions. You may choose, for various reasons, not to head into the backcountry during menstruation. But if the basis of this decision is an urban legend that has no basis in anecdotal or scientific evidence, you may be missing out on the fun for nothing.

Menstruation: What you do want to consider

So let’s say that you, like most of us, have enough other considerations when you are planning a trip. And, if you are a woman of reproductive age, there is a good chance that the only dates that will fit are during your period. You may not be worried about bears, but you’ve still got to deal with the first five or so days of a menstrual cycle

Do what you normally do. If you know you are prone to cramps, deal with them like you would at home. Your menstrual flow is not going to be different just because you are outside. For most women that I’ve discussed this with, this means tampons – not because they’re inherently better, but that’s because that’s what we would be using at home too. If other forms of feminine protection are more comfortable for you, there’s nothing stopping you from using them. The only thing different here is that you should not be using scented products if you are using them at home – bears may not be interested in your blood, but they may like the fragrance of cosmetics.

I know women who use the “Keeper”, a soft rubber cup that is inserted to capture menstrual flow. Its chief advantage is that it’s reusable and there is nothing to dispose of, but, as one woman once put it to me “you’ve gotta be pretty comfortable with yourself”. If you wouldn’t want to use it at home, you probably wouldn’t want to use it out there either (additional consideration – you need to make sure both your hands and the Keeper are clean, for obvious reasons, and washing it out may not be something you would be particularly comfortable with in front of your trip mates

Unless you are using the Keeper, though, you need to think of disposal. When you are traveling routes with established privies, it is acceptable practice to dispose of toilet paper in the thunderbox. It is not, however, acceptable to throw any feminine protection products down there, they do not degrade easily. This includes used products as well as both the plastic and paper applicators (yes, even the ones that say “flushable” on the package), wrapping materials and adhesive backing strips. The pack it in, pack it out rule applies in these situations. The easiest way to deal with it is to bring an opaque resealable bag (or a clear Ziploc inside a paper bag) and store it with your garbage. Paper applicators as well as used products can be burned, but – as with anything else – make sure they burn completely, and be prepared to bring it all out with you in the case of a fire ban.

The same idea applies on routes without privies. You can bury toilet paper with feces (of course, away from water and campsites) as long as you are doing so in biologically active soil, but not the slowly degrading products.

Oh and…
Yes, it’s your vacation, and you are having fun. This issue is not specific to, but there’s another urban legend about sex and bears. Again, there is no evidence, anecdotal or otherwise, that sexual activity attracts either black or grizzly bears (French, 2001)

Cleanliness for the Wild Woman

The point of a vacation is to enjoy yourself, and that includes being comfortable. If you are the sort who showers and washes her hair every day at home, going for a week without either of these comforts may make you very uncomfortable. While it’s good to push your cleanliness standards from time to time, you don’t need to suffer. If you feel the need to wash your hair partway through a trip – and it’s warm enough to do so – I’d say, by all means. Just make sure you’re using biodegradable soap (the Camp Suds stuff works just fine – though you may then want to use a conditioner. You can get good biodegradable conditioners at most health food stores. There are fancier shampoos there too – but, as with anything else, just make sure it’s unscented. As an additional precaution, treat all toiletries like food. It may be overkills to hang unscented toiletries, but it’s not a question I’ve ever investigated since it takes so little additional effort to do it

“Biodegradable soap” really means “more quickly biodegradable” – even these soaps need soil organisms to be broken down. Soil organisms don’t live in the lake. Thus, just because it says “biodegradable” doesn’t mean you can use it in the lake – any water you use to wash should be disposed away from water bodies on active soil. I like to jump in, then take my collapsible bucket and a cup back into the bush, lather up and rinse off. If you bring a friend to tip the bucket (or pot, whatever you’re using) over your head, it goes even more quickly. It’s a bit more work, and one of the reasons I like to stick to “the necessary” when it comes to washing on a daily basis. If you’re swimming a lot and out in the sun, chances are that you don’t actually need to do much beyond this.

"The necessary” can be defined however you like, but whatever parts you feel the need to clean daily can be quickly and effectively taken care of with baby wipes. They’re the alcohol-free pre-moistened towelettes you can buy in any supermarket or drugstore (there are grown-up versions available too – same thing, twice the price), and you can get them in unscented. They even work well as reusable washcloths, since they’ll keep in a Ziploc without disintegrating for the duration of a trip. Dispose of them like feminine hygiene products, they are much too sturdy to be treated like toilet paper.

The way I see it, do what you need to do to feel comfortable – just make sure you do it safely, in an environmentally responsible manner.

References Cited

French, S.P. 2001. Bear Attacks. Chapter 43 in P.S. Auerbach (ed.)

Wilderness Medicine, 4th Edition. St. Louis: Mosby.

Gunther, K. A., and H. L. Hoekstra. 1996. Bear-inflicted human injuries in Yellowstone, 1970-1994, a cautionary and instructive guide to who gets hurt and why. Yellowstone Science, 4(1): 2-9.

Herrero, S. 2002. Bear Attacks: their Causes and Avoidance (revised). Guilford: Globe Pequot Press.

Mason, J. and Black Bear Discussion Group. 2000. Utah Black Bear Management Plan. Salt Lake City: Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.

Meyer, K. 1994. How to Shit in the Woods: An Environmentally Sound Approach to a Lost Art. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press.

Rogers, L.L., G. A. Wilker, and S.S. Scott. 1991. Reaction of black bears to human menstrual odors. Journal of Wildlife Management, 55(4): 632-634.