[pct-l] Shaving on the trail

[Bob Bankhead]

I used to carry those flimsy plastic disposable razors that you can buy in bulk packs and shave every other day. However, they are easily broken and rendered useless. I also found I could only get 2-3 shaves out of them. I finally decided to just pack my standard metal Shick razor with its replaceable blade. Weight penalty = 1.7 oz vs. 0.25 oz for the disposable.

Years of daily shaves have shown that I can get 14 shaves (2 weeks) out of a single blade before it starts to pull. Given the drying effect of all-day hiking on my skin and the use of Dr. Bonners soap in lieu of shaving cream, I plan on just 7-8 shaves per blade. That's enough to get me from one resupply box to the next. If not, I'll just carry a spare blade and/or only shave every other day. I put one replacement blade in each resupply box.

I tried carrying a small battery-powered Braun electric shaver (~ 4 oz) years ago. It worked fine, but you can't buy them anymore.

Wandering Bob