[pct-l] Platypus in the desert?

[Steel-Eye]

Good evening,

I've had good service from Platys that I use.  Last summer I carried at
least two of the 2.4 L sacks, and sometimes three in the desert.  I had one
develop a small seep at the neck/shoulder seam but I used it quite a while
anyway.  I emptied it first, and usually stood it upright inside the pack
with some air space above the water.  I usually carried the full sacks
laying crosswise inside the top of the pack.  Any leakage from the miscreant
sack was less than the residual dew on my sleeping bag, or the accumulation
of sweat from my back.

I use them only for bulk carriers; I don't use a hose and bite-valve
arrangement.  There's no particular reason for that -- just personal
preference.

I like the Platys because they diminish in size as the water is used, they
don't slosh and glug while I'm waking as do the more rigid containers, and
they are light.  As with most items of ultra-lite gear they are more frail
than the heavier options, so I make a point of being careful how I set them
on the ground.

I started carrying the typical Gatorade bottle but I don't like them because
they are a bit too big for my hand, they stretch the side pockets, and they
slosh and glug.  In a water cache next to the trail on the north side of
Tehachapi Pass I found a 1-liter bottle of Glaceau "SmartWater" and it
immediately became my favorite drinking container.  Being only 2.88" in
diameter and 11.62" high it fits my hand, it hugs the side of the pack
nicely, and it rarely makes a sound.

I have a smaller, rectangular Fiji Water bottle, but I use it only to carry
alcohol for a stove.  For a smaller quantity of alcohol I use a green,
Coke-bottle-shaped, fruit soda bottle with a knobby surface - maybe Sprite,
or the like.  In haste or darkness, I will never confuse the Fiji bottle or
the pop bottle with my water container.

Steel-Eye

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Eric Payne" <vaporjourney at gmail.com>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2008 7:44 PM
Subject: [pct-l] Platypus in the desert?


> So Yogi says in her book to avoid water bladders like Platypus.  A few
> other
> people in the book say the same thing, and of course there are an equal
> amount of people who say just the opposite.  Any opinions on here
> regarding
> Platys?  Is it possible to be really careful with them and not have these
> psychotic plants out there abuse them?  Are the leaks just typical Platy
> leaks near the spout and at seams?  There are obviously lots of people who
> rely solely on these bladders to hold their water (Andy Skurka comes to
> mind) and it seems to work out ok.  Just trying to find out the cause of
> the
> leaks and if its really the environment that is causing them.  When
> carrying
> 7 L of water, it would be nice to save a half lb of weight by carrying
> platys if possible.
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