Yes, but the pump type filtration systems take a distinct effort, so I wonder how long the water would take work its way through the filter. Anyway, if you're dealing with guardia, which is about everywhere, the water on the bottle but above the filter might carry enough cysts to do you in. Might work - I haven't tried it. I've also heard of a straw with a filter inside it. Never tried that either.
hmmm..... so, tablets or pumps for longer expeditions.
I heard some negative commentary on the tablets over the long term, but it probably doesn't apply to a hike limited by the groceries you could carry. Anyway, I don't remember what the negative was supposed to be.
When I was doing a dig in UT, "Doc" the ex-military guy who then ran the Arch department at SUSC had us rinse all water containers with bleach. So, a little water, a cap of bleach swish, dump and DON'T rinse with plain water, fill up for consumption. That was fine in the field, but I wouldn't want to live that way.
That'd work, but there are two things I won't carry in a pack - bleach and kerosine. I will carry white gas, which isn't a lot better than kerosine if it spills.
Nope, not carrying bleach either. I was thinking that the bleach thing was sort of like the tablet purifying thing. Good in temp/small quantities, not so good long-term.
I always used "Potable Agua" tablets on my backpcking trips. Almost always two per litre because the water was always very cold (Wyoming Rockies) or filled with leaf litter (Missouri Ozark Trail & national forests). The only time I came down with giardia (and boy is it nasty) was in the city of Barranquilla, Colombia.
Gus if you do go to Machu Pichu be damn carefull of the restaurants in Cuzco. There is such a high incidence of food poisioning (I had to call a doctor to our hostel for my wife) that a girl with some foundation was at the airport interviewing travelers regarding any food poisioning experiences they might have had while in Cuzco.
I read recently that many hiker's blame their tummy troubles on contaminated water when the real culprit is slip-shod basic sanitary habits of the hikers.
The author suggested packing little containers of spray disinfectant which can be used without water for handwashing after the latrine and before the cookpot.
I brought baby-wipe types of things (didn't need them) and purell hand sanitizer. I'd recommend at least the later.....
eh, i survived india drinking tap water and eating just about everything everywhere... no problems. i guess one has to be conditioned from childhood. i loved playing in dirt as a kid. never had a problem while traveling.
maybe playing in dirt for a few weeks prior to hiking would immunize oneself?
Wellll, from my recent experience with a friend's death, I'll say, bring a cell phone, assuming one gets reception in the area.
Osso, I thought of you and your friend on my hike.
Dag, I too played in dirt as a child and had super immunity. Somehow, something has changed drastically since then.
<I finally read an article by a friend about her that gave me some peace about it, just this afternoon. I'll post it on the thread on her in art forum.>
