Water Purification on the AT

imported
#1

What is the best method to purify water on an AT thru-hike. I am considering using a Steripen type device, or aqua-mira. What are the pros and cons of each? Any info will be so helpful. Happy Trails.

chillaxin

#2

I’m going to use AquaMira on the AT this year. I used Aquamira for two other long hikes and it works well for me. The main con I’ve come up with is there’s a very slight chance that a bottle will leak, and the concentrated chemical can ruin fabric. So I keep mine in a small ziplock bag. I’ve never minded the 20 minute wait, but that’s a con for many. I’ve never tasted anything, but my wife can. I won’t use a Steripen because of the batteries, and it’s breakable. People who use it seem to really like it, though.

Garlic

#3

I, personally use bleach. Two drops per liter, wait 30 minutes, done. I strain the water through my bandanna to get out the crunchy bits first.:girl

Pansy

#4

and then there are those that use nothing to purify the water along the AT. I am one of them. I will carry iodine tabs as a backup but for the most part the water was fine enough without the chemicals. In two thru-hikes on the AT I never got sick from drinking untreated water, maybe from too much beer…

Totally Different Subject

#5

Ditto TDS,I only treated water one time and I’m convinced it was not needed. I also carry iodine as a back up. Look for spings versus sreams and fill up from the springs whenever you come across them. I’ve never been sick, not even once.

Oh, and Pansy has the right idea. Use a bandanna to filter.

I always carry different colors of bandannas, Each color has its own designated purpose and I keep the blue ones for water filtering only. That way I don’t contaminate them with sweat, or other “stuff” that I wouldn’t want to drink.

Stick Chick

#6

If you stick to protected springs that do not receive drainage from much of the surrounding areas and you avoid streams, I’d not be afraid to drink it straight. I carry bleach and use 2 drops per liter if I get a bad feeling about the water. IMO, the vast vast majority of gastroenteritis on the trail will be caused by poor hand washing and hand to mouth contamination.

aboman

#7

If you stick to protected springs that do not receive drainage from much of the surrounding areas and you avoid streams, I’d not be afraid to drink it straight. Use your head and eyes- if you see a cow pasture up the hill, disinfect. But there are few cow pastures or feed lots on many of the ridges i’ve hiked. I carry bleach and use 2 drops per liter if I get a bad feeling about the water. If I was prone to gastronomical upsets, I’d consider treatment, But before you hit the trail, try bleach or iodine or the Aquamira first to see if your delicate tummy and palate can tolerate the chemicals. Filtering is tasteless, but filters are heavy and require some maintenance. Using a bandana will remove large debris, but not the pathogens. IMO, the vast vast majority of gastroenteritis on the trail will be caused by poor hand washing and hand to mouth contamination.

aboman

#8

how’d that happen?

aboman

#9

I used to run swimming pools and it takes a lot of bleach (sodium hypochloride) to disinfect swimming pools. Crypto alone needs to sit in a unhealthy amount of bleach for 72 HOURS or more to die. I doubt any hiker will wait that long or use that much bleach. Tapeworm eggs would definately live through 2 drops of bleach and a FULL dosage of IODINE. Aquamira is much more effective and better for your body than bleach so pay the extra $$$ and be healthy enough to finish your hike. I ,personally, never treat good looking springs and I have never been sick on the trail (PCT). I agree with aboman that most hiker problems are from lack of using hand sanitizer before eating or from another hikers “poop hands” cross contaminating everything and everybody. And like Garlic said above, the aquamira bottles are fragile. The corners easily become dented after a while. These dents might become hairline fractures leaking nasty chemicals everywhere (I had this happen). I saw a hiker this summer that duct taped his two bottles together, keeping them more handy and less likely to get dents in the corners.

Spigot

#10

i duct taped my aqua mira, too. easy to keep the bottles together since you need both. that and iodine good to keep in a side pocket for no denting and easy access.

the vast majority of sources you’ll come across are right at the source, direct from the ground, so they’re good. don’t be too worried about untreated water. plus you’ll have a good sense of the time when you really should.

in georgia and NC, you may want to treat more often, not because of bad streams, but mostly from the amount of hikers that are using the sources with you, as you’re going to get a lot of idiots out there who will willfully contaminate the water, like the dudes who wash their feet right in the source.

and then at the high of summer you’ll have a lot of dried-up sources and will have to dip from more standing water, like in Pennsylvania and NY–that water, what little there was, was just nasty, but we had no choice.

for the most part, though, i probably treated my water 5% of the time.

i did every time starting in Vermont, but that was only because i was so close to finishing, i didn’t want giardia to end my hike when i was so close.

oh, and an alternative to the bandana, you can also bring along a few coffee filters and then rubber-band them to the top of your nalgene, and that will get the bugs and dirt out of the water, too.

0101

#11

i should add, and this is slightly off-topic, but it’s a good idea to have a cup along to fill your water with, especially if you use a platypus. some sources are hard to reach and there’s not room to fill a platypus fully.

plus as far as clean water goes, then you can also just dump a cup of water out if you get extra-dirty stuff in it instead of pouring out a whole platypus.

0101

#12

Great idea on taping the Aquamira bottles together. Ideas like that are why I read and participate in these posts. And thanks for the science, Spigot–makes me feel better about using the stuff once in a while.

garlic

#13

Spigot is right-on about the chlorine from bleach (sodium hypochlorite)being ineffective on crypto while the chlorine dioxide in aquamira is. I’ve never used aquamira, but I have used the micropur tablets which also disenfect with ClO2. The micropur is costly and I found the little packets to be a pain to open up. Also the solid form Cl02 does not work as quickly as the aquamire - 4hrs vs 30 minutes detention times. If I was concerned about waters with crpto, then I’d either use the aquamira, filter or boil. But since mountain ridge springs are not likely to be contaminated with fecal material, then I’ll stick with the bleach…But for the weigh, I might throw a few micropur tablets in the pack just in case. And I’ll keep my hands clean, not let people stick their hands in my bags of peanuts etc.

I tried the MSR miox unit and found it tempremental and it’s $100. Plus you have to deal with battery life (& temp) and with salt. I leave mine paced away at home.
I’m also thankful for 0101 pointing out that high-use springs are more vulnerable to contamination.

aboman

#14

I never treated my water on trail, from Georgia to Maine. As a few others stated, if you are not sure, don’t drink it. Or take iodine as a “just in case”. I never got sick…the hikers I saw getting sick were treating their water…don’t shake hands or touch the journals…that is where the bacteria lies.

Caboose