GPS Coord for water along AT ?

[gunner76]

I have looked but have not been able to find it. Is there anyplace that has the GPS Coordinates for all ( most...any ) of the water sources along the AT ?

[Old Hiker]

Not sure why it would be needed. AWOL's Guide was on target for each listed source, plus there were many others not in the Guide. Haven't seen/heard of any place to date.

[gunner76]

Was following a Google AT Map and it showed locations of water sources just off the trail that I have not seen listed in any of the guide books. Was trying to pin down the locations.

[Wise Old Owl]

they are listed in the guide as several sources are spigots deep in the woods.

[jj2044]

Was following a Google AT Map and it showed locations of water sources just off the trail that I have not seen listed in any of the guide books. Was trying to pin down the locations.

If they are not listed there is more then likely a reason, what looks near the trail on Google maps could be a long way down the side of a mountain. the guide normally is pretty good about giving you the best info.

[Wise Old Owl]

I have a different answer I load the KML of Parking, shelters, and trail for Google Earth.... load the whole thing together and just do fly by to see how much in terms of springs... keep in mind they can be dry...

[BigHodag]

I have a different answer I load the KML of Parking, shelters, and trail for Google Earth.... load the whole thing together and just do fly by to see how much in terms of springs... keep in mind they can be dry...

Starting with a file of shelters is good since many are near a spring or other water source. Then eliminate the waterless ones like Fingerboard.

I haven't found much water at parking areas.

My recent trail phone has a GPS chip, so I loaded a geo-caching app along with the shelters coords for my trip. This makes finding a shelter at night or in an emergency easier. "100 yards East..."

[gunner76]

I already have a list of the H2O sources (springs/ streams ect) at/near the shelters and have used them. The water sources I saw were not close to the shelters or road crossings but off the trail in-between shelters. I agree that they may be unreliable or further away from the trail than practical but still trying to find them out of my own curiosity.

[atraildreamer]

I have looked but have not been able to find it. Is there anyplace that has the GPS Coordinates for all ( most...any ) of the water sources along the AT ?

Here is the revised WB listing of all the shelters and water sources along the AT:

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/content.php?728

The GPS coordinates for all the shelters are listed and there is specific information on the location of water sources near the shelters. Be advised that the listings were accurate as possible when the update was posted, but conditions often change. Always check WB, and other forums, for current information on water sources. :-?

[gunner76]

thanks but I already have that data. I am looking for the water sources such as springs (not the stream/creek crossings) that are off the trail located in between the shelters along the trail, not the water sources at the shelters.

[atraildreamer]

thanks but I already have that data. I am looking for the water sources such as springs (not the stream/creek crossings) that are off the trail located in between the shelters along the trail, not the water sources at the shelters.

Be careful about using unlisted water sources, for that matter, be careful about using listed water sources. Half-life, who started his thru last week, had a bad experience. From his Trail Journal entry;

"Drank first untreated water today from a clean spring. It’s a new experience for me and makes me feel a little more official."

He did have a "New experience", as posted in the next day's entry:

"Perhaps the worst day I’ll ever have on the trail!

Woke up about 2 AM with an urge to vomit. It wasn’t long until I was doing so. Luckily, the hammock allows for easy vomiting – just roll over and let loose. I also had a bout of diarrhea, followed by more vomiting. Throughout the night I puked 5 times. I shivered as I tried to sleep, the heavy wind combining with a fever to create the most uncomfortable night imaginable.

I couldn’t hold anything down, not even water, ..."

I suspect that this may be the cause of the illness that is hitting northbounders. The symptoms seem to fit what others have been reporting. I texted him for a location of the spring. When he gets into cell range and checks his messages, maybe he can give me a specific location for the spring. If so, I'll post the location here and in other forums.

[gunner76]

I have been drinking well water for 20+ years and also drink the well water at my local hiking trail. In the 70's while hiking a section of the AT in TN north of Roan Mt, I found a spring just off the trail, water was coming out of a pile of rocks into a pool. Nice and clear and cold. Bent over and drank the water straight. When I stood up I noticed a big animal turd a couple of feet from the water that I had not seen before. Had me worried for a while but I did not get sick.

[Malto]

Be careful about using unlisted water sources, for that matter, be careful about using listed water sources. Half-life, who started his thru last week, had a bad experience. From his Trail Journal entry;

"Drank first untreated water today from a clean spring. It’s a new experience for me and makes me feel a little more official."

He did have a "New experience", as posted in the next day's entry:

"Perhaps the worst day I’ll ever have on the trail!

Woke up about 2 AM with an urge to vomit. It wasn’t long until I was doing so. Luckily, the hammock allows for easy vomiting – just roll over and let loose. I also had a bout of diarrhea, followed by more vomiting. Throughout the night I puked 5 times. I shivered as I tried to sleep, the heavy wind combining with a fever to create the most uncomfortable night imaginable.

I couldn’t hold anything down, not even water, ..."

I suspect that this may be the cause of the illness that is hitting northbounders. The symptoms seem to fit what others have been reporting. I texted him for a location of the spring. When he gets into cell range and checks his messages, maybe he can give me a specific location for the spring. If so, I'll post the location here and in other forums.

Giardia takes much longer than a few hours for symptoms to appear. Mine took about a week to hit full bore vomiting and diarrhea. He may had picked it up but it wasn't from that spring.

[atraildreamer]

Giardia takes much longer than a few hours for symptoms to appear. Mine took about a week to hit full bore vomiting and diarrhea. He may had picked it up but it wasn't from that spring.

Half-life sent me a text with the location of the spring he drank from. It appears to be the one listed in the updated shelter listing "...at mile 50.4, about 0.1 miles south of Blue Mountain Shelter, in Georgia..." I don't know if he picked up what ailed him by drinking the water from that spring, or by some other means, but it may be prudent to treat the water from that source. :-?

BTW - He's feeling fine, now.:)