Smart Ways to Go Plastic-Free and 'Leave No Trace' in the Great Outdoors

While researching stories for our latest Mojave Collection launch, and in talking to the good folks over at the Mojave Desert Land Trust (which, by the way is an official 1% For the Planet partner for the Mojave collection — 1% of all Mojave Collection sales will be donated to the organization!), the concept of "Leave No Trace" kept coming up over and over again. 

It's the principle of leaving the environments you visit just as good (if not better) than you found it. This can be done by picking up trash, limiting the amount of waste you're taking with you, and overall leaving a smaller footprint on the world around you. 

So when we thought about who we could talk to to get some expert tips for leaving no trace, we immediately turned to our friend Bre Mirynech, expert backpacker and global adventurer.

Seriously, just look at her living her best life on that mountaintop. #Goals. 

Find out how she keeps trash in check, and how she leaves no trace no matter where she roams. 

1. Go Plastic-Free. If I am being honest, my biggest one is using my Stasher bags! I’ve found when going on adventures I have to portion everything out, or else I will just snack on it all at once. And since I portion everything out, I found I was using a huge amount of plastic on my trips. Switching to Stasher Bags has significantly helped me cut down on my plastic use, especially for multi-day trips. 

2. Get Reusable Everything (and She Means Everything). One of the other ways I cut down on waste is using a Kula Cloth. It’s a great tool for women in the backcountry. It's an anti-microbial pee cloth. You use it like you would toilet paper, but due to its anti-microbial properties you can use it more than once. Its super easy to wash and dries quickly. This has helped me eliminate most of my toilet paper waste, not to mention it takes up no space simply hanging on the outside of my pack. 

3. Prep in Bulk. I also find a huge part of being sustainable also comes in the preparation for your trips. Purchasing all of the food and snacks you need often comes with a lot of waste and plastic packaging. When I am preparing food and meals, I try to buy my snacks in bulk. Things like trail mix, candy, and oats can all be purchased in bulk and put into your own reusable bag. As well, although it isn’t perfected yet, I have been trying to make my own dehydrated meals. Dehydrated meals are great because they are so light and easy to make, but again, all the packaging adds up. I have been putting to the test making my own dinners in my dehydrator, but it’s still something I am working on and am hoping to get better at this summer. 

These incredible images courtesy of Bre Mirynech and Pat Hoffman.