Hikers can no longer safely drink directly from the clear,blue waters. !!
Another somewhat modern invention is the water filter.
Stick one tube in the water, the other in a bottle and pump. With little effort you have safe water. No boiling or chemicals. Unless you’re camping in the desert you don’t have to lug water anymore.
Hikers can no longer safely drink directly from the clear,blue waters.
The biggest hazard is giardia.A close second is cryptosporidium.
Giardia, #1 bad protozoan
Giardiasis a serious gastrointestinal disease (severe diarrhea, bloating, weakness) caused by the waterborne protozoan giardia lamblia.Any mammal can become infected and excrete live giardia in its feces. It gets into even the remotest sources of water. Giardia survives in snow and cold water as a cyst and is resistant to usual chemical treatments. Symptoms appear 6–15 days after exposure. It’s debilitating and difficult to treat.
Water must be boiled or filtered down to two microns. Iodine treatment works but only with time and
effort. Cryptosporidium, #2 bad protozoan
Another bad bug! Chemicals don’t work. Boil or filter way down to .4 microns.
Bacteria
Examples are cholera and salmonella. Boiling, iodine treatment and filtering works.
Viruses
Includes hepatitis A and B. Boil, use iodine treatment or a water purifier.
In order to avoid these awful diseases assume all open sources of water are contaminated.
Boiling
Boil drinking water for three–five minutes. (But this uses up precious fuel.And who wants to drink hot water?)
Water filters
Water filters are made that strain out giardia, cryptosporidium and bacteria.
Water filters are aces!
You can pump up a bottle of drinkable water in no time.They’re light and maintenance is a snap. For most hiking experiences, it’s the way to go. No question.
Water purifiers
Water purifiers eliminate the tiniest bad guys: viruses. Most incorporate iodine treatment.
Iodine
It does not work against cryptosporidium. It works against bacteria and viruses.
Iodine is difficult to use properly against giardia. Use it as a back-up if you’re not boiling or filtering. Bring water temperature to 70 degrees so that cysts will open and protozoans will be vulnerable to poison. (But who wants to do this?)
The problems with iodine treatment include chemical taste (unless filtered out with carbon) and prolonged treatment time if used in cold or murky water.
Consider iodine a good, inexpensive back-up system for all except the cryptosporidium protozoan.
It’s heavy!
Water weighs two pounds per quart.A very good reason to buy a water filter and plan hikes around water sources!
Water rules
General rule: Drink one to two quarts of water per day. Better rule: Drink water at regular intervals. The rule: Never get thirsty!
Small wonder
The joy of backpacking is built upon small wonders and nuggets of appreciation. For example, I get a real charge out of getting a stove to work with one match. Finding something in my pack when I need it is always a shining moment.
The first time I used a water filter ranks as high as any of these small pleasures.The Kings River is a gorgeous Sierra stream that cascades over miles of rocky canyon. It’s crystal clear but you cannot drink directly from it because of the giardia bug. However, if armed with a filter you can fill a bottle in a minute and wet your thirst without a qualm..
I remember holding the bottle up to the light to see how pure the water was. Not a spec! It was cold and delicious.Wonder gizmo meets nature on a higher plane.There is hope for a technological age.
Parting words
● Buy a name brand water filter capable of filtering bacteria (smallest of the typical bad “bugs”).
Get Your Perfect Water filter
Get All You Need Here !!
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