As we backpackers all know, getting sick by a waterborne microorganism can make a trip go from amazing to horrible. The upset stomach has a way of causing us to all forget about the mountainous beauty in which surrounds us and focus only on the momentary pain. I have never fell victim to waterborn illnesses but have heard horror stories. Not only can it affect one's trip but days back home also. Water treatment is crucial in the backcountry. Everyone has their only techniques and products they depend on and so do I. A pre-hiking goal on all my trips is to fully hydrate myself and give my body a kick of electrolytes starting three days before the adventure.
First off I evaluate the landscape I will be backpacking into. If the the planned base camp has a known water source then my Camelbak bladder will be more than enough. If the basecamp has no known water source then i will bring one or both of my water bottles, 24 oz plastic bottle and a .6 liter aluminum Sigg bottle. Another fact to think about is how many miles and how hard are those miles into basecamp. If water cant be found along a strenuous trail then a bottle is taken even when water can be found at basecamp. Being without water at any point on the trail should never happen as your only setting yourself up for a problem. I use the bladder alone as my destinations usually are home to a water source. I have combined my water treatment and my trailside water source into one. My Northface backpack has a pocket on the backside which perfectly stores my bladder and can be pinched down tight.
The Camelbak bladder holds 100ml of liquid. On the bladder I have my purification system, a Sawyer inline water filter. The filter is cut into the bladder tubing and secures onto the tubing with two hose clamps. It only takes minutes to install or uninstall. The filter does not remove viruses but all bacteria, protozoa, cysts and all other microorganisms are removed. Other uses can include a pump pre filter and a inline filter in your gravity bag filter. The package states that the filter handles 1 million gallons. I wont be doing that test, but have owned the sawyer filter for four years with no problems.
Once the filter is removed from the tubing line it is easily cleaned. The filter unscrews from the black casing. The package comes with a faucet adapter. This adapter is used to back wash the filter from any faucet. Once this is done cleaning the filter can be done with 10 drops of chlorine to one quart of water after reassembly is done.
The Sawyer can be bought at REI for $60$. Since i bought my last Sawyer in 2008 the filter has a new face lift and looks different but the basic system is the same.
Disadvantages for this system is that additives to your water like Gatorade powder or flavor enhancers will clog the filter. I speak from experience. At first this sucked but as i left my additive habit i realized that when your thirsty your thirsty!!! Flavor doesn't matter, pure 100% quality h2o quenches any depth of thirst. The filter is on the outside of my pack which could get damaged by weather or extreme use of the backpack. Nothing has happened yet, fingers crossed! Because the filter is in my bladder line i can't filter water through it for cooking. I don't need to as i always boil my water first before any cooking is done therefore this disadvantage just got undissed. OK, so what if the water i am going to store in my bladder has alot of precipitates. Then a simply trick will work. A cheap paper coffee filter works to remove the precipitates.
The advantages far out weight the disses. Most water treatments are larger and heavier that this filter, therefore I weight less and am carrying less. So, $60$ has turned into $15$ per year. Not bad and each year that I go closer to 1 million gallons, definitely planning on backpacking when I'm 80, the per month cost decreases!
NIGHT HIKING
Plans are mandatory for backpacking trips, as no planning can result in a crappy trip. We've all been there once. As we all know life is, well, indeed life. Plans change and move. Two months ago in September, my friend and I planned a trip to Royal lake, Olympic National Park. Plans were made weeks in advance and anticipation was growing day by day.
The night before the trip my boss asked me to work a 9 to 5 shift instead of the usual 6 to 2, so we changed our approach. Getting off at 5pm would make arriving to the trailhead at 9 pm in the dark. After talking, we decided to keep course and hike through the night!!!! Crazy!!! But sane.... right?!!Don't answer that!
We hit the trailhead at 10 pm. Pitch black! Headlamps turned on and off we went up the trail. After 4 hours of hiking, our destination appeared before us. The rest of the backpacking adventure was hiked in daylight.
Now that I look back on the trip I would have it no other way. Hiking in the dark was simply amazing. It was my first time hiking in the dark, definitely not my last. Most of the time hiking is done in daylight, of course, with night time being reserved for cooking dinner, star gazing and getting zzz's at camp.
Night hiking has many benefits. The first is that if the night's sky is clear you will gaze upon amazing views. I've seen the night's sky littered with stars before but it's even more amazing as satellites and shooting stars stream across the sky and as galaxies encompass oneself . A full moon is the best time to hike as it lights up the night. I didn't expect shooting stars but in retrospect next year I am going to plan a trip during an asteroid storm!
The first 3 miles of our hike was under old growth forest but the rest of the 4 miles, the trees disappeared and stars and mountain ridges outlined the starry sky. Any snowy mountains were bright because of the reflection of the moon and made an awesome contrast of black and white. We were able to throw off our head lamps and hike by pure moonlight. Unfortunately my camera batteries died and I was not able to catch all the great contrasts.
We hiked to Royal Lake on day one and explored Mount Deception's northern basins on day two. Day three we hiked up and over Mount Fricaba off trail and connected to Marmot Pass Trail. If we had hiked back out the same way we came in, the whole hike would still be new. The last mile out, Marmot Trail, connects to Royal Lake Trail which was on the same trail we were on day one and all I could remember was tall trees and the elevation gain. I didn't see the huge boulders and gigantic downed trees which were scattered in the dark. It's like hiking two different trails which is awesome and makes hiking more interesting on a non-loop trail.
Safety is a big concern, so mom you can now relax a little. I Never go hiking alone in the dark. The danger of predators is nerve racking as the darkness brings the unknown. Animal behavior at night can be more active for certain animals. Our headlamps were very bright, therefore any animal would see us before we see them preventing us from starling a bear. I always hang my keys or a pot from my backpack so there is always noise as we hike.
Night hiking is unconventional and will never be the norm. But as i discovered at Royal Lake night hiking will always be apart of my trip planning in future years. With special advanced organization of future full moons and meteorite showers 2012's night backpacking will be notched up one bar. So don't be surprised to hear a group of hikers straggling in around 2 or 3 in the morning setting up camp during your next outing!!!
Thanks to Cody France for the great Photos!!
