Originally Posted by
john_mct
Bigger cages on the forks will carry a 1.5 liter nalgene each, get 1 liter bottles for main cages, and ride with the 100 oz camelback. That's around 8 liters of water...which would probably be the max I would carry due to weight, especially if you have good water sources around. The small Sawyer filters are great, plus a steripen if you're seriously worried about water born illness. I would carry less (maybe four liters) and filter once a day if bike-packing.
Edited to add: don't ride your bike in designated wilderness areas...
This is good advice, John. When I do my Divide tour next June, I'll be carrying three 2L Platypus bags in my frame bag as I roll along. My intent is to keep one in-use, and two empty. Before I start to ride through areas of water scarcity, I'll fill all three. I'll also have my Sawyer squeeze filter bags to fill if needed. I'll also carry my Steripen. I'm going ultralight, so water and food will be major weight not included in my basic kit weight.