View Full Version : Best Water Along AT
SunnyWalker
02-12-2009, 00:31
Where did you find the best "tasting" water along the AT?:sun
Whiskyjo
02-12-2009, 00:42
It might have been just a long hot day but Ice Water Springs tasted mighty dang good that evening.
fiddlehead
02-12-2009, 01:18
The water in PA tastes best to me.
maybe the rocks have something to do with it.
YoungMoose
02-12-2009, 10:55
i think maine. near moxie bald mountian. it is right near the bald brook lean too.
I would say that any running spring tastes pretty good.
Off of the AT, Kentucky has exceptionally great tasting water, even from the streams. Best water I've ever had.
I remember Rainbow Spring, near the end of the 100 mile wilderness in Main, as having some absolutely wonderful water. Even now over a decade later, it's still the water source I fondly remember as tasting fantastic.
leeki pole
02-12-2009, 11:17
Katahdin Stream tasted awful good. Never smiled so much as when I drank it.:)
Blissful
02-12-2009, 14:45
Don't know I had Aqua Mira in it...
:eek:
A beautiful spring just after Chairback Mt in Maine. Best water I ever tasted!
Kerosene
02-12-2009, 17:01
Whiskey Springs, just south of Cumberland Gap in Pennsylvania. At least it was the best spring in the middle of a hot and humid summer's day in 1979.
Water source at Imp campsite, a few hours south of Rt 2 near Gorham, NH.
Potwadjo Stream Shelter(I think) in the 100 Mile Wilderness has a really nice water source.
CrumbSnatcher
02-12-2009, 18:47
eveytime i pass by winding stair gap theres locals from franklin tn. fillin' up containers to take home. theres tons of great water on the trail. a couple right off the top of my head is wesser bald spring,liberty springs tentsite. the worst water i ever had was from the water fountain at high point state park visitor center.
NativePennsylvanian
02-12-2009, 19:18
Clark's Ferry shelter spring in PA.
Sleepy the Arab
02-12-2009, 20:18
The water at Seeley Woodworth, and the spring on Whitetop Mt. Va.
TrippinBTM
02-12-2009, 20:43
I remember Rainbow Spring, near the end of the 100 mile wilderness in Maine, as having some absolutely wonderful water. Even now over a decade later, it's still the water source I fondly remember as tasting fantastic.
If that is the big wide (12' or so) seep spring, then yes, I agree, and that's what I was going to say. That was some of the purest water I ever tasted.
After that, Katahdin stream, and then this one day a dozen or so miles into MASS (Evertt Mt?) when it was raining and the water was sheeting down the rock I was attempting to climb, sparkling in the sun which was also out at the time... for some reason that water was delicious.
But it's hard to say. Lots of good water, though I'd say mainly in the south and the north. I don't have any major memories of great water in the middle section. But it all depends, I suppose.
(Is it weird that I still have half a nalgene of Katahdin Stream water from my (2008) thru hike? I take a sip of it now and then when I'm feeling depressed in this clusterf*** of a city, and remember that day, and it helps pick me up a bit. Still tastes good too).
The Secret Shelter in PA. Ice cold well water. Jim Murray claims it's the best on the trail.
Well, I've only covered about 160 miles so far... but the best water I ever tasted (hiking or not) came from the spring by the Ensign Cowall shelter, summer 2005 while doing the MD section with my son.
SunnyWalker
02-13-2009, 00:45
Neat, quite a list so far to put down to visit: Ice Water Spring, Bald Brook, Rainbow Spring, Katahdin Spring, chairback Mtn., Whiskey Spring, Imp Camp Site, Potwadjo Stream, Winding Stair Gap, Clark's Ferry Shelter Spring, Seeley Woodworth, Whitetop Mtn., Secret Shelter, PA; Ensign Coweall Shelter. Anything in GA, I thought we would hear about some good water in GA??
daddytwosticks
02-13-2009, 08:50
I'm just a section hiker...have done most of the AT south of the Smokies. I vote for the piped spring @ Winding Stair Gap. Cold, pure, and alway flowing, even during our recent drought. :)
walkin' wally
02-13-2009, 11:55
If that is the big wide (12' or so) seep spring, then yes, I agree, and that's what I was going to say. That was some of the purest water I ever tasted.
After that, Katahdin stream, and then this one day a dozen or so miles into MASS (Evertt Mt?) when it was raining and the water was sheeting down the rock I was attempting to climb, sparkling in the sun which was also out at the time... for some reason that water was delicious.
But it's hard to say. Lots of good water, though I'd say mainly in the south and the north. I don't have any major memories of great water in the middle section. But it all depends, I suppose.
(Is it weird that I still have half a nalgene of Katahdin Stream water from my (2008) thru hike? I take a sip of it now and then when I'm feeling depressed in this clusterf*** of a city, and remember that day, and it helps pick me up a bit. Still tastes good too).
About that spring in Maine you may be thinking of Potaywadjo Spring near Pemadumcook Lake which is a lot bigger than Rainbow Spring with a lot more outflow. It is right behind the shelter. :)
Pedaling Fool
02-13-2009, 12:10
All spring water tastes about the same to me, but some of the prettiest springs were in southern Pa. This was very surprising to me, because I previously heard nothing but bad things about water in Pa. Many had a sandy bottom that just made them look good.
Tennessee Viking
02-13-2009, 12:31
Big Bald
Strategic
02-13-2009, 12:35
Simple:
The best water on the AT is the spring you get to after hiking for a few miles without water. Anything else just doesn't have quite the same savor.
Nearly Normal
02-13-2009, 12:44
Having lived in Georgia by Lake Walter F George. I have fished it and its source, the Chattahoochee River many times.
Also known as the Muddy Chattahoochee it is impossible to think about drinking from it.
When I hiked between Woody Gap and Blood Mountain I saw a blue blaze down to a claimed source of this river. It's a laborsome hike but worth it to me to say I drank from this river.
The best water I've had was a small feeder spring less than a foot wide just before it runs into the Chattooga River in SC. It's between Ellicott's Rock (tri-corner of SC, NC, GA) and the Hatchery Trail on the Chattooga River Trail or Fork Mountain Spur of the Foothills Trail. Take your pick, they run together for a while.
If I had a spring that tasted that good on my property, I'd quit work and start farming corn. :D
I found a seasonal spring in an embankment just before Moody Gap (south of Albert Mtn) last year. It was perfect..didn't even have to purify it.
Nearly Normal
02-13-2009, 13:02
I found a seasonal spring in an embankment just before Moody Gap (south of Albert Mtn) last year. It was perfect..didn't even have to purify it.
Do you use a magnascreen to filter with?
max patch
02-13-2009, 13:16
The coke machine at Bear Mountain.
Blue Caboose
02-13-2009, 14:56
I can't remeber exactly but somewhere before or after Blue Mountain Shelter north of Neel Gap water was coming out of the rocks right beside the trail like a faucet. Just stick your bottle under the cascade and then drink. It was frosty cold. I still think about how good that water tasted on a hot summer day.
The Secret Shelter in PA. Ice cold well water. Jim Murray claims it's the best on the trail.
Isn't that in NJ? I was there but was going into Unionville so I didnt fill up with water.
Strategic
02-14-2009, 19:20
The coke machine at Bear Mountain.
Actually, the ranger on Bear Mountain is a lot better than the coke machine. When I did that section last year, he filled me up with ice cold water from the ranger's private refrigerator/stash. Really great guy and a welcome bit of water for exactly the reason I put forward earlier: I'd been hiking the last couple of miles with empty water bottles. It was August and the NY springs were mostly dry.
The water in PA tastes best to me.
My favorite is Mill Creek which can be heard beneath the rock garden above Schubert's Gap. It flows from the rock garden, winding musically amongst sandstone beneath tall eastern hemlocks and crosses the A.T. at Hertlein Campsite before entering the former Blue Mountain Electric Company's impoundment.
Not surprisingly it's cold and it never fails.
A big spring which bubbles to the Earth's surface through grains of sand in quantities great enough to satisfy all who come to quench their thirst, Potaywadjo Spring in Maine's 100 Miles ranks as one of the best, but please don't tell Nestle.
Strategic
02-14-2009, 22:21
My single favorite is Mill Creek which can be heard beneath the rock garden above Schubert's Gap. It flows from the rock garden, winding musically amongst sandstone beneath tall eastern hemlocks and crosses the A.T. at Hertlein Campsite before entering the former Blue Mountain Electric Company's impoundment.
Not surprisingly it's cold and it never fails.
That is very good water, though I had my filter fail on me there when I did that section. What's just as good is Hertlein campsite itself; it's a gorgeous site in a perfect wooded valley with two branches of Mill Creek bracketing the main campsite. A lovely place that most thru-hikers don't stay at since they're just leaving (or rushing on to) 501 shelter. I guess good water and a beautiful site just can't compete with ordering pizza from the shelter for a thru-hiker (at least, not by the time they hit PA, anyway.)
Here's a couple of pictures of Hertlein from my section:
Isn't that in NJ? I was there but was going into Unionville so I didnt fill up with water.
Yes it is, my mistake. I was trying to keep it a secret ;)
It's north of High Point S.P., NJ on the NY/NJ line near Unionville. I stopped for water and lunch and was fortunate to meet the owner.
SunnyWalker
02-24-2009, 21:44
Sounds real good, Strategic.