Staying properly hydrated - drinking plenty of water - is a necessity out on the trail. Making sure that you bring enough water with you can often be the difference between a safe trip and a dangerous situation.
Keeping hydrated is an often-overlooked item on many checklists. However, this may put things in perspective: you can live for nearly a month without food, but only around a week without water. Therefore, it's essential to drink enough water anytime you go for a hike. Since water isn't always available from streams or brooks, you should plan to carry all the water you need. If you're going for an extended period of time or if you're planning to drink water you find along the way, bring along a filtering system or iodine water purification tablets.
There are several schools of thought on how much water you should carry, but a general rule of thumb is to pack more than you'd think you need. It's better to err on the side of bringing too much water than too little. If you're drinking enough water your urine will be clear, not dark. Plan to drink water throughout your trip, and since thirst is already a sign of dehydration, don't wait until you're thirsty to drink.
Dehydration can lead to poor decision-making, heat exhaustion, cramps and heat stroke. So remember to:
How SAFE is the water you find in the Sierra Nevada. There are several schools of thought about this. We all know that water pollution is a problem in our towns and other developed areas. Heavily used areas in the mountains can result in that clear mountain stream or lake containing a host of debilitating and hike-ending bacteria. Quite often, however, drinking from a contaminated stream doesn't result in immediate symptoms; the bacteria lie dormant in your system, then may appear sometimes weeks later.
It is generally recommended to always filter, chemically treat or boil water you've taken from an unprotected source. Water treatment gear can be found at outdoor equipment stores, as well as ordered online. Remember that filters can become contaminated so always clean them as the manufacturer's literature instructs.
The safety of water in the Sierra Nevada has been extensively studied. We recommend reading here for a full understanding ... you will be surprised at some of the facts. The author makes the point that you are probably more likely to become ill in the mountains from failure by you or your companions to wash your hands properly than from the water.
The author's personal observations are:
I started visiting the Sierra Nevada in the early 1950s and have spent much of my free time there. I have never treated the water, and I have never had symptoms of giardiasis as a consequence of my visits. My many similarly active friends and acquaintances also drink the water, in the High Sierra and elsewhere, with no ill effects. But we are always careful to drink smart:
- Drink from large streams whenever possible, preferably those entering from the side rather than those paralleling the trail.
- Water in fast-flowing streams is safer because any contaminants present at any location are swept downstream, being quickly displaced by presumably clean water from above.
- Water at higher elevations is safer, partly because of reduced human and animal presence, and partly because water flowing to lower elevations has a chance to pick up more contaminants the farther it travels.
- Taking water from a lake is best advised at the inlet, with the next best place at the outlet. Inlet water has a tendency to flow somewhat directly to the outlet, undergoing little mixing with the lake water as a whole.
- Few Giardia cysts survive harsh Sierra winters. Contamination begins essentially anew each year, so springtime water is safer than summer or fall.
- The colder the water is, the more likely it is freshly melted, meaning less opportunity for contamination.
- Because filtration of water through soil removes Giardia cysts, deep well water is considered safe.10 By implication, springs in the wilderness should be, too.
- One would think that, after a heavy snow year when streams run full and long, some kind of flushing out of lakes and streams must be occurring. Conversely, it makes sense to be more cautious in dry years.
- Avoid water that likely could have passed through an area subject to heavy human or animal use.
- If it doesnt look goodits cloudy or has surface foamtreat it or dont drink it.