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Overheard a thru-hiker in a hostel say he never carries water and I almost laughed out loud
I was staying at a hostel in Gatlinburg last month and this young guy was telling his friend he never carries more than a single 16oz bottle on the trail. He said he just filters from every stream he passes. I hiked a section of the Benton MacKaye Trail last spring where the next water source was 12 miles away over a ridge with no shade. That kind of planning works until it doesn't. Has anyone else run into people with ultra-light strategies that seem way too risky?
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mason2837d ago
Did you happen to catch what kind of filter he was using? I had a buddy back in Georgia who swore by his Sawyer Squeeze, said he'd never carry more than a liter. Then he got stuck on a dry ridge in the Cohuttas where every creek was bone dry, had to hike six extra miles downhill to find water. He still talks about that day like it was a near death experience.
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