Yup...one of the densest liquids in nature. You can carry water in your bottles. You can also carry small amounts of fruit, which often 'cure' your thirst as well: often your thirst is not for water, it is for the nutrients that fresh fruit will provide ya.

When I was in the Atacama desert in Chile I carried one of those big 1.5 liter plastic bottles filled with water lashed onto my front rack. It was in plain sit and when I was thirsty I would look down and see it; which would have a great psychological effect: knowing that the water was so close.

roughstuff

I got myself a couple of 1-liter Platypus "bottles" (see https://www.platypushydration.com/pro....aspx?ProdID=2 , half the price they are here in England). When water is readily available, they roll up to nothing. In use, not being a fixed shape, they'll fit virtually anywhere depending on the amount of water you fill them with. There's all sorts of extras you can get and the bottles come in various sizes. I usually picked up a Gatorade wide bottle (or two) along the way, refilling the water bottles as required. Made sure there was always something to fall back on.

So what is the best pump?

Speaking of boiling, MSR GK or whatever they are flogging these days. Mine is 20 years old or a little more, and it boils up like a nuke plant, and uses very little fuel. I have to confess I don't carry it on bike tours, but if you do carry a stove it's sure hot.

the FIRST NEED is the only EPA certified PURIFIER available. relying on physical processes alone. but that makes it prone to clogging. All the rest of the water pumps currently available are only 'filters', held to less high of a standard of clean water than a 'purifier.'

The other water pump 'purifiers' relied on chemical- i.e. iodine or proprietary chemical blends - to purify water. The PUR 'purifier' was even recalled because of this.

The MIOX pen, developed for military use, is a simple way of making the chlorine hydroxide? (someone call me on that if they can, i'm not sure thats the proper compound) that a camper brews up with the AQUA MIRA 2 bottle process. They both make the same chemical commonly used in municipal water systems to purify city water.


i'd vote for the First Need for domestic backcountry use, and a field cleanable FILTER system like the MSRs or Kathydin in conjunction with the MIOX pen (or aqua mira- even just bleach) for third world usage. Or a First Need, bringing an extra cartridge for it if the trip is over a month long, and the possibility for a resupply from your support network via post along the way on extremely long duration trips.

There are other EPA approved purifiers on the market such as the AquaStar Plus, while not mechanical it takes only 1 minute to purify water vs 4 hours for the Miox. This system use UV light and there are several other brands that use the same principle and is certified for use in third world countries. There is also a thing called the Steripen Ultraviolet Water Purifier by Pur or Katadyn that is shaped like a pen with a small UV light tube that you submerge in a glass of water and the UV kills all the bad guys, but that one takes a battery to run similar to the AquaStar.

And there are several mechanical units on the market but while they say are portable they weigh 20 pounds and over! Not exactly for backpacking or biking.

Some Katadyn systems requires that you use their Micropur Tablets or Potable Aqua tablets to actually purify the water after you filtered it, seems like a waste of time to me. HOWEVER the Katadyn Exstream is a mechanical water purifier that is very simple to operate and EPA certified: https://www.nitro-pak.com/product_inf...roducts_id=822

In summary the First Need system is a very good purifier that uses NO chemicals as does the AquaStar Plus; the Katadyn Exstream which can purify up to 26 gallons and is only about $35 vs $100 for the First Need, but the Exstream uses iodine to kill the bad guys.

UV water sterilization is best used in municipal or installed units, I sure wouldn't trust a UV sterilization unit for backcountry water.

and yes, froze, all the other readily available portable systems good enough to meet EPA 'purifier' standards rely on iodine like the Exstream you mention.

I guess you could bring along a reverse osmosis system, but that's not really practical. Or maybe a steam still, you could make booze out of corn pilfered from farmers' fields on layover days...

The First Need is the only portable, EPA certified purifier that is mechanical only and doesn't require chemicals. iodine is dangerous with repeated exposure, limiting the Exstream bottle system for long term use.

I wouldn't rely on a UV device for backpacking water in the third world. better to have a field cleanable filter like an MSR or the large metal-bodied Katydin in conjunction with a chlorine hydroxide delivery system, or use a First Need purifier with options for replacement filters en route for extended trips.