Originally Posted By: SierraNevada
It was optimistic to think this would work on a web forum, but it was worth a try to spur thinking "outside the bag."

That "outside the bag" metaphor "kind of stinks" wink don't you think? grin

We have seen several posts here stating that carrying a wag bag isn't so bad. I've seen reports of people carrying their feces in a bag for an entire trip--not on Whitney. I saw someone report people doing the entire JMT and packing it all out.

On the other hand, we have the public comments solicited in 2004 leading up to the halted process where the toilets were burned, where the public sentiment leaned heavily toward rebuilding the toilets that were in place.

I think there is a wide spectrum of opinions regarding wag bags, and I don't think we have a very good sampling of the hiking population here. First of all, only about 10% of Whitney hikers even visit this site. And then, only a small number of those actually sign up and post.

It would be quite helpful, I think, to put together a survey on a page that could be passed out to hikers and that they could return after a Whitney hike. It would be revealing to see what people experiencing the Whitney hike think after all is said and done. If a majority, or even a major fraction of people felt the wag bag situation was ok, then I would let this entire process rest. But a driving reason to continue supporting this topic and looking for more input is my gut feeling that a major portion of hikers would really like to see a change.