So like most so cal guys I run a water bladder for my backcountry water. It’s kind of ingrained into me I remember back in the 90s getting the early camelback and wearing them all over the desert on my dirt bike. They have always served me well. But this year I am making a switch to nalgenes.
Bladders have always served me well and I actually have never had one fail to severely in the backcountry asides from a mouth piece falling off and draining out on me. Luckily I was packing 2 gallons of water to cache so I was able to refil and cached the other gallon.
Bladders offer easy access to water while your on the go but they do have their limitations. They are awkward in any pack, they are not the best for making mountain house, the hoses freeze which is never fun, they can be kind of a pain to refill with a filter, and it’s easy to not ration them since they are tucked away. We have all sucked a few dry 2 miles before we got backtrack o the truck.
I always carry a 3 liter bladder. The southwest is hot and I never want to run out of water.
This year for my arid hunts I am going to be carrying 2 48oz nalgenes, one on each side of my pack. This will equal roughly 3 liters. Where water is available even in D16 I will either carry 1-32 or 1-48oz nalgene and I will filter with my MSR microfilter or use potable aqua tablets. BTW lots of water in the 16 this year I do think a lot of streams will make it through the fall. But please be sure where you are going still has water just because it is there in September doesn’t mean it will be there during the General season.
Water is heavy and when water is readily available I am going to start filtering more and carrying less. I am more than likely going to spike camp on my x9b Hunt this year. Meaning my whole camp on my back for a lot of the hunt so I need to be light.
One fluid ounce of water at 62 degrees F weighs 1.04 dry ounces (133.44/128). *This means that for every 16 fluid ounces of water at 62 degrees F, it will weigh 1.04 pounds.
So a 32oz nalgene will weighs roughly 2.25lbs compared to a 3 liter bladder coming in at right about 7lbs.
Keep in mind I will also have a filter but that is always a constant in my pack weighing 14oz. So one 32oz Nalgene and a filter and you are saving 4lbs of pack weight. If you use potable aqua tabs you are saving almost 5lbs but I am not that brave with our so cal static water supplies. If you carry a filter with your full bladder you save 5lbs no matter what.
Last year in AZ we had no known water source and had to carry in 3gallons of water each. Plus full bladders. That is 32lbs of water. The last day we found a stream and a stagnet water spice in a abandoned mine. My gosh not having to carry 32lbs UP into that hell hole would have been incredible. It would still be debatable if we would make the water source our base camp but knowing that option is there is really reassuring. Even if I carried in a gallon and then refilled a few days in that would have been a huge difference.
Lastly I am tired of my bladder taking up an entire side sleeve on my pack. It’s only a matter of time before I have a catastrophic failure. I bush wack way to much and have gotten real lucky that one of the D16 manzanita haven’t punctured my bladder yet. The nalgenes just pack better in my opinion.
Below are some links to show you what I will be running. Depending on the situation. The MSR Hyperflow can filter 3 liters a minute do filtering water really isn’t that time consuming anymore.
MSR HyperFlow Microfilter Compact Backpacking Water Filter
Nalgene 48-Ounce Silo Tritan Wide Mouth Water Bottle (Blue)
Nalgene Tritan Wide Mouth BPA-Free Water Bottle, Lollipop Red, 32 oz
Potable Aqua Water Purification Tablets with PA Plus neutralizing tablets - Portable Drinking Water Treatment for Camping, Emergency Preparedness, Hurricanes, Storms, Survival, and Travel (50 Tablets)
Bladders have always served me well and I actually have never had one fail to severely in the backcountry asides from a mouth piece falling off and draining out on me. Luckily I was packing 2 gallons of water to cache so I was able to refil and cached the other gallon.
Bladders offer easy access to water while your on the go but they do have their limitations. They are awkward in any pack, they are not the best for making mountain house, the hoses freeze which is never fun, they can be kind of a pain to refill with a filter, and it’s easy to not ration them since they are tucked away. We have all sucked a few dry 2 miles before we got backtrack o the truck.
I always carry a 3 liter bladder. The southwest is hot and I never want to run out of water.
This year for my arid hunts I am going to be carrying 2 48oz nalgenes, one on each side of my pack. This will equal roughly 3 liters. Where water is available even in D16 I will either carry 1-32 or 1-48oz nalgene and I will filter with my MSR microfilter or use potable aqua tablets. BTW lots of water in the 16 this year I do think a lot of streams will make it through the fall. But please be sure where you are going still has water just because it is there in September doesn’t mean it will be there during the General season.
Water is heavy and when water is readily available I am going to start filtering more and carrying less. I am more than likely going to spike camp on my x9b Hunt this year. Meaning my whole camp on my back for a lot of the hunt so I need to be light.
One fluid ounce of water at 62 degrees F weighs 1.04 dry ounces (133.44/128). *This means that for every 16 fluid ounces of water at 62 degrees F, it will weigh 1.04 pounds.
So a 32oz nalgene will weighs roughly 2.25lbs compared to a 3 liter bladder coming in at right about 7lbs.
Keep in mind I will also have a filter but that is always a constant in my pack weighing 14oz. So one 32oz Nalgene and a filter and you are saving 4lbs of pack weight. If you use potable aqua tabs you are saving almost 5lbs but I am not that brave with our so cal static water supplies. If you carry a filter with your full bladder you save 5lbs no matter what.
Last year in AZ we had no known water source and had to carry in 3gallons of water each. Plus full bladders. That is 32lbs of water. The last day we found a stream and a stagnet water spice in a abandoned mine. My gosh not having to carry 32lbs UP into that hell hole would have been incredible. It would still be debatable if we would make the water source our base camp but knowing that option is there is really reassuring. Even if I carried in a gallon and then refilled a few days in that would have been a huge difference.
Lastly I am tired of my bladder taking up an entire side sleeve on my pack. It’s only a matter of time before I have a catastrophic failure. I bush wack way to much and have gotten real lucky that one of the D16 manzanita haven’t punctured my bladder yet. The nalgenes just pack better in my opinion.
Below are some links to show you what I will be running. Depending on the situation. The MSR Hyperflow can filter 3 liters a minute do filtering water really isn’t that time consuming anymore.
MSR HyperFlow Microfilter Compact Backpacking Water Filter
Nalgene 48-Ounce Silo Tritan Wide Mouth Water Bottle (Blue)
Nalgene Tritan Wide Mouth BPA-Free Water Bottle, Lollipop Red, 32 oz
Potable Aqua Water Purification Tablets with PA Plus neutralizing tablets - Portable Drinking Water Treatment for Camping, Emergency Preparedness, Hurricanes, Storms, Survival, and Travel (50 Tablets)
