Backpacking Tip: Clean Water

When backpacking for multiple days (like many of our courses), you probably won´t be carrying in all the water you need. So, how do you identify a good water source and make sure you won´t get sick drinking that water?

No matter how clear the water may look, you never know what bacteria is present. The first step is to find the cleanest water you can. Here are some basic tips to judge the cleanliness of a water source:

• The closer to its source, the cleaner the water is. For example, a spring coming out of the ground is very clean.
• The higher elevation you are, the closer you will be to the source. Water is usually coldest near its source.
• Never drink downstream from an area with people or animals. This includes camping sites, villages, grazing animals, and even beaver dams.
• Avoid debris in the water by taking water from below the surface, but not on the bottom. If water is murky, filter it using a bandanna, shirt, or coffee filter (or chorreador).
• Avoid still water in ponds and lakes, moving water is filtered through rocks, moss, etc.

Now that you have (relatively) clean water, you still shouldn´t drink it unless you KNOW that it´s clean. You can boil, filter, or use chemicals to clean your water.

Boiling: Boiling water kills all organisms. Boiling times: The EPA recommends that water should be boiled for 1 minute (and 3 minutes at elevations over one mile). To improve the taste: add a pinch of salt or pour the water back and forth between two containers.

Chemicals: Iodine and chlorine are the two chemicals most commonly used to disinfect water. You can buy tablets which dissolve in the water. Follow the instructions- you need to wait for a set amount of time (from 30 minutes to 4 hours) until the water is safe to drink. Colder water requires more contact time than warm water. Chlorine kills more than iodine, but it requires much more contact time before the water is safe to drink. Chemical treatments may leave a taste in the water, and they don´t kill all kinds of microorganisms.

Water Purifiers/Filter: There are different backpacking purifiers and filters available- they remove different kinds of bacteria and viruses (see REI´s website for more information on how to choose a portable filter or purifier).

Get more information: EPA website, OA Guide to Water Purification

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