Water

[knifeman]

Hi all,
I'm going on a camp in a few weeks and there's no water source near by:/
I usually camp near a river so have plenty for drinking and washing up. I've done a camp in this woods before but me and my mate took one of these each

and we also took a 5 Litre bottle aswell. This was fine for 2 days but quite heavy and we had water left over. I'm thinking 2 of the British army bottles each would be alright but I'm interested to see what other people take. And what and how much food would you take for a weekend int the woods?
ATB George


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[andibs]

I got a sawyer mini filter to save lugging water about. Been great on 4 / 5 day canoe trips

Andy

 

[bikething]

Hi all,
I'm going on a camp in a few weeks and there's no water source near by:/

I got a sawyer mini filter to save lugging water about. Been great on 4 / 5 day canoe trips

 

[Erro Telcontar]

I generally ration myself to two of those bottles per day, broadly speaking. That's usually enough to keep me hydrated during moderate exercise, cooking dinner, washing up/ myself and putting the fire out in the morning.
You might consider looking into alternative water sources. Is there there damp ground you could dig a travelers well into? You can filter and sterilize this for all purposes.
Hope this Helps,
JD

 

[knifeman]

I generally ration myself to two of those bottles per day, broadly speaking. That's usually enough to keep me hydrated during moderate exercise, cooking dinner, washing up/ myself and putting the fire out in the morning.
You might consider looking into alternative water sources. Is there there damp ground you could dig a travelers well into? You can filter and sterilize this for all purposes.
Hope this Helps,
JD

Thanks, I'll look into it


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[Quixoticgeek]

"depends"

Assuming it's not too hot then I tend to budget on 2L per day. But, that increases if I am using meals that require rehydration. A Main meal and desert can easily use 500ml of water. Which is quite a hit on 2L.

Do be aware that while you can't change the weight of the contents of the bottle, you can improve on the weight of the bottle you are carrying it in. The NATO 1L bottles you have are not especially light. I use empty 1L diet coke bottles for water as well as a 1.5L evernew pouch. 2 x 1L coke bottles and a 1.5L evernew pouch weigh less than a 1L NATO bottle.

Water is a perennial pain in the bit you sit on, not having enough is a less than pleasant experience.

HtH

J

 

[mick91]

Hi all,
I'm going on a camp in a few weeks and there's no water source near by:/
I usually camp near a river so have plenty for drinking and washing up. I've done a camp in this woods before but me and my mate took one of these each

and we also took a 5 Litre bottle aswell. This was fine for 2 days but quite heavy and we had water left over. I'm thinking 2 of the British army bottles each would be alright but I'm interested to see what other people take. And what and how much food would you take for a weekend int the woods?
ATB George


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You can bank on needing 2 liters a day as a minimum. People disregard the amount of water needed in cold weather, to burn calories and stay warm you need water as well as food. Consider the 2 of those plus a hydration bladder. Or look for alternative sources of water, rain collection etc. You aren't running a huge medical risk with that amount, but you may well be quite thirsty. Food wise just whatever you like really imo. Some powdered potato and cured near can't hurt. I always forget and miss sweet stuff personally so some sugar or honey to sweeten bannock is an option

 

[knifeman]

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[bearbait]

As far as food goes I'd suggest deciding on your menus, then weigh out and bag up the ingredients for each meal. That way you're not carrying in more food than you're going to eat and can therefore carry in more water.

Remember snacks like trail mix, nuts, choccy bars too.

You could use wet wipes, or a flannel, for your pits and bits and not bother shaving (if you wet shave) to save more water.

Washing up is a pain without a reasonable amount of water. Alternative is to cook in the bag and eat out of it. Just the spoon to wash.

How civilised do you want to be?

And have you forgotten the beer?

 

[Tonyuk]

As said you will get through 2L a day as a minimum. Depending on the temp and how hard your working this would only cover basic drinking water, leaving you with nothing to cook or wash with. I'm a big fan of re-using old 2L fizzy drinks bottles to carry water, they're essentially free and quite durable. If there isn't a water source near-by i would recommend carrying food that doesn't need any extra water to cook (Canned meals, rat packs etc..) That way you will use the minimum amount. In regards to the amount there should be enough for at least 3 hot meals a day, which might seem excessive but at this time of year with the weather at the moment (cool & wet) food is as much about morale as it is about sustaining you. You could eat cold meals everyday and in theory be fine but nothing beats a hot meal and a brew when your soaked through and its lashing down. Make sure you prepare well and nothing should be an issue.

This time of year i work along the lines of;

If your cold your cold & if your wet your wet, but if your cold and wet your miserable. Makes sense. (Cant remember where that saying comes from tbh)

Tonyuk

 

[Adze]

This guy has some great advice:

https://twitter.com/OFalafel/status/696390393202659328

 

[boatman]

If you rehydrate food, in fact for almost any food, there is water in it and will be assimilated by the body. This will count towards your water intake.

 

[Totumpole]

As has already been stated, the amount of water you need will depend hugely on what activity you are doing and the local conditions. 2 litres per day as a minimum to maintain hydration and allow effective metabolism of ingested calories in a temperate climate. In 40 degree heat walking 6 or 7 miles on the flat I have gone through 10 litres (a day) without needing to pee! Luckily water was plentiful at reasonable intervals.
I tend to be able to get away with washing up after a one pot billy can meal with about 100ml of water. If you haven't burnt in food you really only need enough to remove the remaining food particles that will go rancid. When I rinse mugs after tea/coffee, I just drink that so I'm not wasting it.
Food wise, I quite like the theory put forward by Paul Kirtley in his blog article: http://paulkirtley.co.uk/2014/how-to-pack-enough-food-for-a-week-in-a-plce-side-pocket/
Minimal weight, minimal fuss, minimal additional water requirements and more than enough in terms of calories and nutrients to keep you going for a fair while.

 

[The Lord Poncho]

As some have said above, don't scrimp on the water. Dehydration = hypothermia and/or poor decision making = dangerous and not much fun. For the sake of a couple more Kilos in your pack, don't run the risk - in my mind if you return with no water left at the end of a trip, then you haven't budgeted on taking enough with you...

Thirst is a poor indicator of dehydration - the old addage 'pee white once a day' is a better guide. I'd say that when you took the 5l bottle on your previous trip you were thinking along the right lines. I'd perhaps split it into two 2.5 litre bottles so that you and your mate can better share the weight...

Also, consider what you would use to wash out a wound/eye, cool down a minor burn etc if you have rationed your water within a few ml.

Survival isn't supposed to be much fun, bushcraft is - I know I'd not want to have headaches and dizzy spells (or worse) during my 'fun' couple of days in the woods just because i wanted a slightly lighter walk in...

 

[rg598]

It depends on how much activity I plan on doing and how hot the weather is. On an average trip (up to ten miles of hiking in moderate weather) I plan on about 2.5L per day. This includes water for rehydrating food. I carry one Nalgene bottle (1L) and a 1.5L collapsible bottles. I add more collapsible bottles as needed.

 

[Shewie]

There's no shortage of water falling from the skies right now, you could rig up a water catcher fairly easily if the forecast is still wet.

(avoid a smoky tarp though as it taints the water)

 

[Tony]

Indian well? Iv'e used them few times and with the amount of water around at the moment there's a good chance of getting water if you get a good spot, if not as Rich says, capture some.

 

[boatman]

Forgive me but all this obsession with water really, genuinely, puzzles me. In my youth I would walk 20 miles plus in a day across the Wiltshire Downs and only sometimes carried a water bottle in the height of Summer. A two pint army one would still have lots left in it at the end. Yes one got thirsty but never dizzy or any other symptoms of doom. More or less to celebrate my fortieth birthday I walked from Streatley back home to Wiltshire, about forty miles over night. On this I had two mugs of coffee, one brewed in the evening and one the next day at dawn and a tin of soup and a mars bar. No adverse symptoms apart from sleepy when I got home and a bit thirsty. My mates the same, we just didn't guzzle all day long so why weren't we hospitalised etc

 

[homesicksteve]

Yep. We're designed to dehydrate, and it's not a problem as long as we replace the water later.
The clear pee, drink when you're thirsty thing is OK, but too much water dilutes electrolytes & is dangerous.

Several people have died during the London Marathon from too much water.
As far as I know, no one has died from dehydration....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/lifestyl...rinking-can-be-deadlier-than-dehydration.html

 

[rg598]

Dehydration is a serious problem if you want to continue functioning in the woods. For short periods of time the human body can endure a lot, but that's neither sustainable, nor is it a great way to go camping. At least that's not how I read the op.

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