Outdoor Showers

I want to start constructing a outdoor shower.  Obviously i want the grey water to to be re-used, so I am thinking since my lot is flat I will have to construct a raised base for the shower.  I also was thinking of using 55gal drum for a solar water heater, but i will have to have it on a tower higher than my shower head so it will gravity feed.  Does anybody have any experience with either raised outdoor showers or raised 55gal drum platforms?  All ideas are greatly appreciated. 

I bought a shower bag with a battery operated pump to shower outdoors. The solar bag doesn't heat well but the pump sure does  Kmart in the camping section!

      I found a very effective microclimate for placing my portable shower bag when I'm at sunny jobsite. Everyone knows how fast vehicles overheat in the sun. I place my bag on the dash of my minivan and point the windshield slightly to the right of where the sun is so that the sun's path will be directly over the bag within one hour and within two hours the water is usually ready to use. I then hang a reflective sheet off the mirror and voilà we have a primitive breadbox heater. Works pretty good even in cooler weather since there is no wind and the thick foam of the dashboard insulates the bottom of the bag.

not sure what you have in mind exactly so with that in mind...

how about raised beds around the shower or a slightly raised platform for the shower floor.  plant bamboo in the beds if your concerned for privacy and let it grow.  harvest shoots once your privacy screen is established.  saute and eat.

Do you want this shower in the middle of your garden?

How much pressure do you want?

If you are drawing on municipal water or your home system for pressure, then you are good. 

If you are relying on the elevated drum to create pressure, that tank will have to be pretty high up.  A drop of 10 meters creates 1 bar of pressure, about equal to municipal water pressure. 

Low pressure may be what you want to conserve water.  In my family, we like high pressure situations. 

I often think of designs for solar showers and solar hot tubs. 

Friends in rural Quebec have a rudimentary one at their cabin. The 55 gal. black poly tank sits directly atop the stall, the take-off for the shower head is just a 2" pipe punched into the bottom of the tank. Never had any problems with pressure.. plenty for rinsing off. Given it wasn't really a luxurious experience per se.. but it's an outdoor shower, ya know?

As to the OP and your design idea, I see where you are going with the riser thing.. would be easy to divert the water from the drain wherever you wanted that way, with the flexibility of being able to change your mind later and divert it elsewhere. My thought was to avoid the raised floor thing (though it wouldn't be too difficult to pull off) and just run the drain into a leach line underneath a permanent bed in close proximity to the stall (like asparagus or ornamental perennials, or bamboo someone mentioned.. whatever tickles your fancy).