HYDRATION
My choice of pack gave me options in regard to water carriage. I chose not to use a hydration bladder, even though there is a purpose-built storage facility in my pack. I wanted to have more direct knowledge of how much I had drunk and how much I had left, I wanted to dissolve electrolyte tablets in my drinking water and I wanted an easy-refill system. A one litre light steel water bottle in a side pocket worked best for me. Moreover my pack allows for side access to a water bottle, so it was easy to extract it, use it and replace it on the go, where top-opening side pockets might have required removing the pack, or asking a buddy for help.
Toilet issues, discussed in the Miscellaneous Matters section, are a key factor in hydration management. A hiker needs to drink water regularly, and electrolytes, for me, are important in minimising leg cramps later. So I make a point of drinking at least one litre of water before noon. Inputs lead to outputs. Some of it is perspired away. Some of it requires urination. I found myself waiting longer to take a drink than I would have liked, to reduce the need to expel it publicly.
It's not necessarily the most ecologically sound approach, but wherever possible on this hike I filled my canteen with bottled water. It was readily available in most villages and canal-side cafés I passed, so supply was rarely an issue. More importantly for me, I find that if I drink local tap water my stomach responds. I don't mean to suggest anything awful - not like drinking unpotable water, I simply mean that the combination of salts and minerals differs in every water supply, and an unusual combination is enough for my metabolism to require me to find a toilet either more frequently, or more urgently than otherwise. So I avoid that necessity by sticking to purified water.
There were three occasions on this hike where I found I needed to refill my canteen without access to bottled water. Invariable they were on hot days, long walks and in more isolated locations. Fortunately, I was prepared for that eventuality. I used my new Platypus Quickdraw filtration system for the first time on this hike and found that it worked flawlessly. This tiny, lightweight system was carried in the belt-pouch of my pack. I simply filled the 1-lite plastic bag with local tap water and gently squeezed it through the microfilter into my canteen. Each Platypus microfilter is individually tested to ensure it meets all EPA & NSF guidelines for the removal of 99.9999% of bacteria and 99.9% of protozoa - and that includes giardia, cryptosporidium, e. coli, salmonella and cholera. There is absolutely no taste, no chemical additives and no risk. It was brilliant.
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