For those of us who can remember the solar dehydrating toilets at Outpost and Trail Camps, here's some info on a newer design that's quickly becoming very popular and seems to be working very well in similar challenging conditions. The key to making these remote toilets work is to do a better job separating the urine from the solids, and this design does just that. The company owner, Geoff Hill, got his PhD on the subject of backcountry waste management and this is the best solution he could come up with.
This 2018 season, Rocky Mtn National Park is upgrading their dehydrating toilets with these newer models on Long's Peak (very similar conditions as Whitney). They completed a successful prototype test last year. Mt Rainier NP upgraded their toilets with these at Camp Muir (10,000 ft) a few years ago. Performance data will be coming in over the next few years, but its very encouraging as far as I can tell. Much less maintenance, much less solid waste, and far less odor.
Please refrain from launching a debate on wag bags or trying to prove that toilets are impossible on Whitney. I'm just relaying information so people can educate themselves on this subject and see what's working at other high-use high-elevation trails. I brought this to the attention of Inyo staff last fall and provided contact info for managers at RMNP so they can keep an eye on how these work there.
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