Treating water on the AT

[chris]

At the risk of incuring the wrath of some of the members of this site, I would like to state my experience this summer in regards to treatment of water. Between Damascus, VA (home of everyone's favorite Larry) and Manchester Center, VT, I treated water with iodine fewer than 7 times. The rest was drunk straight from the source. The sources were only those that I believed to be relatively good, and never did I drink from a lake or pond without treating (and then only twice). I had spent two years drinking without treating and felt fairly confident in choosing a good source, and in my body's ability to fight off, or atleast counteract, whatever was bad in the water.

I do not recommend this method of obtaining water for a new hiker. However, if you have the rest of the year to experiment, you might want to give this a shot. The worst that will happen, probably, is a case of Giardia. Or, you might die from crypto. However, this is unlikely. Learn to spot a good source (meaning, read some Jardine, watch other hikers, and have an open mind), toughen your body, and then be able to drink beautiful water without the twinge of iodine or the hastle of a filter. Note that in NJ and NY there are few sources worth drinking, so you'll need some method of treating water anyways.

[Jaybird]

Chris:

this has been my experience too! although a lowly "section-hiker"...when i'm out on the trail for 1 week up to 3 weeks....i take the iodine tabs..just in case the water source looks questionable...but, most times....i drink right out of the water source...& have never had any problems.

i take 2 28oz water bottles with me. (next month on a short section hike...i'll prob. take 2 32oz bottles)

thanks for the report!

[Jaybird]

Chris:

this has been my experience too! although a lowly "section-hiker"...when i'm out on the trail for 1 week up to 3 weeks....i take the iodine tabs..just in case the water source looks questionable...but, most times....i drink right out of the water source...& have never had any problems.

i take 2 28oz water bottles with me. (next month on a short section hike...Hampton,TN to Damascus,VA,...i'll prob. take 2 32oz bottles)

thanks for the report!

[Peaks]

As in life, common sence will go a long way on the AT. That being said, people have different tolerance for untreated water. Some seem to have a very strong constitution, while others much less.

Some where I read about a degree of confidence relative to purity of water. It went something like:

Very high degree of confidence when water comes out of a faucet or hose.

High degree of confidence when water comes directly out of the ground, such as at a spring.

Marginal degree of confidence when water comes out of running water, such as a stream.

Low degree of confidence when water comes out of standing water, such as pond.

Some people don't treat anything. Some people treat everything. Myself, I considered the source, and then acted appropriately. And didn't have a problem. The obvious advise is when in doubt, treat the water. Why risk sickness ruining your adventure of a lifetime.

[tlbj6142]

On my recent Maine section hike, I came very close to not treating (Aqua Mira) water a couple of times. But in the end I chickened out.

There were a couple of ice cold, crystal clear streams in that section that I knew could not be all that bad as there wasn't much mountain above me.

Now the low level ponds and streams I'd still treat. With the large number of Moose and Beaver(?) in the area it seems like a wise thing to do.

Maybe on the next trip. Who knows....

[Jersey Bob]

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[Blue Jay]

I know a few people who only use probiotics such as garlic and yogert to strengthen the "good" bacteria to such a level that when "bad" bacteria/virus/any other small nasty gets into you it is defeated by your own immune system. I had a severe problem once and would not risk having that happen again, so I filter.

[smokymtnsteve]

I filter also...filters are cheap and not very heavy,,,why take a chance ..one good case of the "squirts" will change your mind. to not filter or treat your water is foolhardy...

Down by the spring on a holler log
shell of a crawfish bones of a frog.
Late last night by the dark o the moon.
down by the spring it was Mr. Racoon.

It starts with an S
and ends with a T!

[Jersey Bob]

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[SavageLlama]

filters are cheap and not very heavy, why take a chance ..one good case of the "squirts" will change your mind.

Agreed. No worse way to ruin a hiking trip then going home early with a massive stomach ache and a runny ass.

I also don't like "trail spices" in my water and dinner.. the extra weight of the filter is worth crystal clear water in my book.

[smokymtnsteve]

..... Scoot?

NOPE..

it starts with an S and ends with T,
it comes out of you and it comes out of me.

[Jersey Bob]

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[TDale]

no risk water is good to me. filter fanatic.

[bearbait2k4]

With experience and a little common sense comes knowledge about treating and/or filtering water.

I would say that I could go without filtering 80-90% of the time, but I usually do something to the water.

Of course, I don't have a panic attack if I don't filter or treat water, either.

High elevation sources are usually fine, especially if they are quick running currents. Any spring where you can see the source is great; just stay away from any standing water if you're not going to filter.

It's also important to know your surroundings, too. People get sick every year, without fail, in Tennessee (on the trail) because of all the agriculture, old still contaminants, etc. And you probably would want to filter water from a source with the word "Nuclear" in the name. Even so, more people will get sick from human to human contact than straight from a water source.

Education and experience will almost always guide you correctly when it comes to water sources and filtration.

[smokymtnsteve]

a couple years a ago I spent two days at cold springs shelter....I sat and watched birds come to the spring right at the source where they got in the water and bathed and took a bird ****...some hikers come along and scared that bird off on thier approach ..then they drank bird **** water...but to each thier own...

even filtering is not 100% safe but it sure decreases your chances of picking up a bug.

[flyfisher]

This is a nice thread.

Good, balanced presentations on both sides of an issue without any name calling.

I'm proud of us!

[tlbj6142]

So how do you identify a "good" source?

What do you see that would identify the source as "bad" (requiring treatment)?

[The Hog]

The year I thru hiked, I met one guy who reported "nearly dying on a mountaintop from Giardia." Giardia Don probably wished he would die during his ordeal. Sadly, I didn't learn from his misfortune. I boiled part of the time, and took my chances with sources that looked good. As a result, I got sick several times. Several years after my thru hike, I had the opportunity to work and learn about water microbiology. I spent over 16 years working in a microbiology lab and learned that so-called pristine sources (spring water coming right out of the ground) are routinely infested with a variety of organisms. I also learned that viruses cause over half of all gastrointestinal illness. Now, since I don't like the taste of iodine, and don't like to wait, I carry an Exstream bottle that handles protozoans like Giardia and Cryptosporidium, bacteria, and viruses. It's reasonably lightweight and you can drink the water immediately. There's no aftertaste that I can detect. While many report drinking untreated and unfiltered water and getting away with it, many others (including myself) have been thru the ordeal of gastrointestinal hell and would never want to repeat the experience. In the final analysis, you have to ask yourself, why would you want to put the trip of a lifetime at risk?

[Lone Wolf]

I have never treated or filtered any water on the AT. Never been sick either.

[sloetoe]

At the risk of incuring the wrath of some of the members of this site, I would like to state my experience this summer in regards to treatment of water. Between Damascus, VA (home of everyone's favorite Larry) and Manchester Center, VT, I treated water with iodine fewer than 7 times. The rest was drunk straight from the source.

Welcome to the club, Chris.
Sheesh, to hear some people go on about it, it is amazing that anyone made it from Georgia to Maine before we were graced with the heavy, expensive, or time-consuming habits of goofing with our AT water. In the miles and miles of WADING and BUSHWHACKING this summer, we were never even tempted.

My sons and I have hiked a third of the AT now (that's ~725 miles x3), and have an opportunity to reevaluate all decisions with each and every start.

Screwing with water is foolishness. But profitable for some.

sloetoe
GA->ME'79
who once drank from a 1" deep puddle, maybe 3' long, high above some NJ lake, with ciggy-butts percolating at one end, skeeter-youth floating in the middle, and fine black goo silting the bottom.
MMMmmmm. And people wonder why I prefer Guinness.