LightBackpacking.com

For those of us who eat hot food during our backpacks, some pot and utensil clean up is required.

The ultralight backpacker uses a finger and sand, gravel or a piece of crumpled aluminum foil for scrubbing. Works okay but can be messy, requiring a lot of water to clean the mud and silt out of the pot.

Scotch-Brite & Campsuds

A re-usable and lightweight alternative is a two-inch sponge with scratch pad on backside. That and a tiny bottle with Campsuds in a plastic snack bag make a nice kitchen clean-up set. The total weight is barely one-half ounce.

Scotch-Brite soap pads are available at most supermarkets and big drugstores. They come in a package of three pads, which are 1.8 x 3 x 0.3 inches. I recommend you use a pair of scissors to cut a piece two-fingers wide (so you can hold onto it with your thumb and two forefingers). Or simply cut one pad in half. The pads have soap in them, but quickly get washed out, so I always carry some Campsuds. Campsuds aren’t necessary. However, it is difficult to clean out olive oil and such without soap.

Campsuds are available online, at REI and most local outdoor stores with backpacking / camping supplies. The refillable plastic bottles also are widely available, but most drugstores (try cosmetics counters) carry a variety. Re-sealable snack-size bags are widely available, too.

Leave No Trace
Clean your pots away from the lake, river or pond. Campsuds may be safe for the environment, but why add one more chemical to the wilderness?