5th Conference Call!

Well well well. The trip is ever so close!
We had our fifth conference call, as usual, on the last Wednesday of June. This call served mainly as a preperation for the trip itself. Packing, our project, etc.

So it is here important to mention the project. This is not to be confused with the service project, which is where we will do the sound testing on the grand canyon itself. This project is educational ; The goal of it being to present some aspect of the canyon to our group.
My topic is the dams. Specifically, their advantages/disadvantages, and how they were built. I'm thinking of doing a story for this ; and this topic really ties in with the work that I do for my radio show. I probably won't bring notes with me either, since I can recite from my mind pretty well information I know.

Packing wise, perhaps the biggest problem is how much of what to bring. While 7 days of the trip takes place on the rim, the 9 others are on the river. This is why most underwear and socks/pants will be used for the rim portion, while I probably only need 2 or 3 t-shirts for the river and perhaps 3 underwear (long/warm). This is because we will be jumping in the river quite a lot, especially when taking a bath or pee (yes).

I want to mention one more thing which I left out to talk of in the retreat, and this ties more in to the trip itself: How will I live? I am sure a lot of people are thinking of this. You can't exactly shower, poop, pee, and where the heck would you even throw your junk materials?

In the canyon/rim portion, bathroom isn't that big of a problem, as long as privacy can be found. It is on the river where things become more challenging.

Each night there will be a tent set up, where the pooper will be stored. The pooper is a box with a toilet seat over it and a substance to lessen smells. Toilet paper is provided. There is also another box for liquids/urine. When someone goes to the bathroom, you first use the urine bucket and can use the pooper.
Each day, the bucket is emptied in the river. The pooper will be attached to a raft (I wonder how you'd feel being on the raft with the pooper!) and at a certain point it will be picked up by a boat which will take it away.

Ok. Whew, we got the uncomfortable things out of the way.

Showers can be done in the river of ocurse, though probably not a full full shower. Hence the biodegradable soap.

As I have said, most clothing will probably be used on the rim ; but everything will get even at that point since we will cool off with the water. On the river, during showers and such, the clothes I'm wearing will also be cleaned and this is why only a few underwear and t-shirts are needed.

Alright... I should go do my research on the dams. Please keep tuned to this blog!

-Tomi