We Need Outhouse Police

[moxieman]

Venting here, but also looking for ideas to pass back to district as we need to put a policy in place in regards to port-a-potties at district events.

 

I just returned 2 hours ago from our fall camporee. We should rename it Pig Scouts rather then Boy Scouts after this event.

 

We, district volunteers, were short staffed due to work schedule conflicts, illness, and an inability to just get leaders to step forward and help. That's a different can of worms. However, we really, really had better things to do than having to go clean-out the port-a-potties every couple of hours as we couldn't seem to catch the pigs who thought it was funny to, among other things:

 

Bowl movement (to put it politely) on the edge of seats/floor, including the handicap stall that they should have stayed out of.

Urinate all over everything BUT into the urinal.

Unroll an entire roll of TP and stuff it down into the holding tank.

Projectile Vomit all over everything--walls, floor and ceiling (more than once).

 

We couldn't exactly leave things be, as it's a safety issue. Short of having some Outhouse Police posted to guard the things all day/all night, what can we do to prevent this kind of behavior in the future?

 

The culprits are lucky I didn't catch them 'cause I'd be thrown out of scouting. By this morning and finding the outhouse trashed for the umpteenth time I was ready to take the little pigs/dogs and rub their noses in their mess before making them clean it.

[SeattlePioneer]

Don't blame you a bit.

 

 

I was on a troop camp out once at a state park. A number of people on the outing were older teenagers I'd never seen before, including girls.

 

Really more of a church outing than a Scout outing.

 

 

The next morning, the restroom sinks and toilets had been pulled out of the walls and trashed, the most serious vandalism.

 

A claim was made that a car load of teen agers had been seen entering the park late the previous night. Perhaps, but the only carloads of teenagers I know were there for sure were the ones we brought with us.

 

That was my first and last outing with that troop.

[CalicoPenn]

Create, hand out and prominently post a schedule (at the port-o-potties, at the camporee headquarters, etc) of every two hour port-o-potty cleanings with each participating unit assigned to a cleaning on a rotating basis - Every two hours, a different unit has the responsibility to clean the port-o-potties. It may be done by the lads or the adults (depending on hos the schedule works out) and depending on how many units there are, units may end up cleaning them 2 or more times per weekend. When people know they're going to end up having to clean them, they take better care of them.

 

If a unit refuses, invite them to pack up and leave the event - the port-o-potties are there for those that help maintain them.

[jrush]

Step 1: remove all porta-potties

Step 2: purchase tarps, cord, TP, ziplock bags, trowels and 1 set of post hole diggers.

Step 3: locate "latrine line" in accordance with Leave No Trace

Step 4: Each patrol instructed to dig a hole 3' deep with post hole diggeres a couple of feet from a tree.

Step 5: Each patrol then (if desired) uses 3 poles and cord to lash a privacy tarp around their hole, and poles and cord to lash a latrine seat. The lazy can simply tie a loop of cord around the tree to hold on.

Step 6: Give each patrol a trowel to stick in the excavated dirt to throw a scoop of dirt over each latrine use, roll of TP goes on handle or trowel or end of latrine seat, ziplock bag goes over TP to keep it relatively dry.

 

That will solve dirty portapotties.

[desertrat77]

All good suggestions. However, vandalism and poor sanitation are not root causes, but symptoms of a larger problem.

 

Sounds like several troops do not instill the scout oath and law.

[Troop185]

I like jrush idea!

 

Over 20 years ago, I was at a Camporee with a line up of port-a-potties. I really do not think the scouts were trying to cause problems (like in moxieman and SeattlePioneer cases), but they pee all over the seats all day long. It was below freezing that night, and I needed to sit down on one the next morning. That was the last camporee (beside visiting for a short time)that I have attended.

 

 

[moxieman]

jrush, great idea, except nearly illegal now in our state without a lot of permits first. Of course, the ground is so rocky in this part of Maine, you'd be lucky if you could dig down 6 inches before hitting ledge. Thus the port-a-potties.

 

In addition, this particular camporee was held at some fairgrounds that do not have a bathroom facility. We needed that kind of open space because the county emergency management offered to do our program for the event if we could provide that sort of space. It was a good event, even if the weather prevented LifeFlight from "surprise" landing one of their helicopters as planned.

 

The owners of the fairgrounds (a Lions Club) were very generous and allowed us to use the grounds for free. I doubt they would ever let us return if they found that each of the 25 attending units had dug latrine pits into their midway area.

 

CalicoPenn, your suggestion is one thought from a couple staff members.

[Papadaddy]

I've had the same experience. And having suffered for years from irritable bowel syndrome, I dearly appreciate a clean potty at 2 am and often don't have the luxury of time to clean it thoroughly first. When I was on the district committee, I pushed for having a portion of the potties labeled for "adults only". If they didn't do that, I didn't attend the event.

[Beavah]

Yah, I like CalicoPenn's notion. Or, when an "issue" is discovered, pick one troop at random to do the cleanin'.

 

Boys are just boys, eh? They're in a hurry, they're careless, they're not feeling well. And they're used to mom cleanin' up after vomit and diarrhea and such. Unless they work the other side of it, they don't have empathy with the folks doin' the cleanup, and that's an important thing for boys to learn.

 

Also, these days I notice that a lot of young lads are so mothered to death that they can barely managed to touch a dirty pot through their "icky-a-phobia", let alone managed da simple steps to scrub a latrine. Helpin' 'em through that is a necessary step on their road to adulthood and eventual fatherhood.

 

Beavah

 

[acco40]

The worst thing to do is to have an "adults only" facility. Why exacerbate the problem for the boys who do not cause issues?

 

When an adult, or youth leader or anyone for that matter, finds an outhouse in need of cleaning, the unit should be alerted and then the outhouse should be cleaned. Have the SPL set up a cleaning schedule - have the boys and adults keep it clean in pairs.

 

When we go to summer camp, I make sure the SPL assigns a pair of scouts for every 12 hour period we are in camp. I also, as Scoutmaster, assign two adults to the first shift and last shift of the outing - and usually include myself in the first shift.

 

Leave the "bathroom" cleaner than when we arrived is a good habit to have.

[SSScout]

Here is what we had to do for one CSDC, the day after the same symptoms appeared:

 

The PaPs were removed from the central location and each (eight of them) placed adjacent to the Cub Den areas. Then, each PaP was ASSIGNED to a Den and padlocked. Staff had our own. The keys (all different, but staff had copies for all) were given to the Den Walkers for the Den on a looooong string, and each had to sign it in and out each day with their Den bag. The Den Walkers were all dissapointed but understanding of the necessity. Only did this one year, that I know of. Not widely publicized.

Yes, we had to buy a bunch of padlocks, but each Den had responsibility for it's own. No more vandalism.

[Basementdweller]

Yes some boys don't act like boy scouts at camporee's.

 

I recently attended a big regional camporee, as mentioned the boys smeared BM on the walls, they pee'd on the tp. Some Scout smeared BM on the walls and I fell victim to it. Yep, not a happy camper.

 

I do like the pad lock idea. But is a shame it has to come to that.

[Beavah]

Yah, hmmm....

 

I confess da notion of padlocking da bathrooms I just find offensive, having "been in a hurry" myself on occasion, sometimes not close to my own particular camp. I reckon I just wouldn't ever bring boys back to an event where I as a participant or guest was treated in that way.

 

Especially for cub scouts, I think we have to allow for children being children. A lot of boys these days have only limited experience with outhouses and porta-poties, and their diet at camp compared to at home can sometimes be quite different (with da usual gastrointestinal consequences). I can't figure as da cub scouts are deliberately "vandalizing" bathrooms so much as not bein' the right size for adult-sized porta-potties or not feelin' well or just not handling "latrine smell" well. At some point, we adults have to act like adults, eh? We do that by showin' a bit of understanding and compassion for kids, and not getting upset with them if we didn't think to take each den through a session of compassionate "how to use a latrine" training, includin' what to do if we're not feeling well. Beyond that, I reckon we just earn our heavenly reward for cheerful service that is sometimes unpleasant.

 

As for teens deliberately vandalizin' a bathroom as BasementDweller describes, WTH? I think there yeh have to make a choice. Sometimes, da lesson is more important than the scout activity. It is OK to end the activity for everyone until the culprit(s) confess/are turned in or some other scouts from da same area/unit complete a cleanup and speak to the group about it. Da reality of life is that when members of a community do bad, the whole community suffers. At the Boy Scout level, especially older boy scouts, it's time to learn that lesson, and to learn that proper citizens both report wrongdoing and help clean up after it for da sake of the community. At a big regional event, though, that's hard. Usually it's just one "bad egg" troop and da social pressures aren't the same. So all you're left with is catch-and-expel, and in da meantime, clean-with-hose.

 

Of course, this is also one of those areas that would be solved overnight if we went coed . Ain't a young lady around who is goin' to think such behavior is anything other than disgusting, and the lads would get that message right quick.

 

Beavah

(This message has been edited by Beavah)

[aszalan]

sad to hear that this appears to be a widespread occurrence. Never would have imagined this as a scout 35 years ago. I have been to two district cub adventures as a den leader during the past two years and have not experienced any of this, just the occasional 'bad aim'. our next cub adventure is in two weeks, we shall see.

[Basementdweller]

They were so disgusting the boys refused to use them and one the trip home had to stop at a mickey d's for them.....that was ok, I needed some coffee.....the stop took nearly 40 minutes as they waited their turn........