[pct-l] Water Caches

Wed Apr 30 10:21:10 CDT 2014

Anyone have experience with ZipFizz as an electrolyte replacement ?
Thoughts...

On Wed, Apr 30, 2014 at 8:12 AM, Luis Velasco <velascoluis at cox.net> wrote:

> RegardingŠ
>
> >> Perhaps some of these inexperienced hikers should do some more
> Planning
>
> Thanks for the feedback from you both.
>
> In addition to planning I love to experiment. So, yesterday I hiked 14
> miles and climbed 3,500 and dropped 3,000 ft in 90 degree heat with 4
> liters of water.
>
> The experiment portion was to utilize Camelbak Elixir electrolyte powdered
> Hydration tabs in 4 liters‹I usually only use these in a 1 liter container
> and keep all other water pure.
>
> Result: I was dehydrated and out of water at the end.
>
> Conclusion:
>   - The treated water tasted sweet, which caused a dry oral stickiness and
> caused a desire to (drink more water).
>   - The caffeine had a diuretic effect and I (drank more water)
>   - The heat caused an excessive salt loss (drank a cup of pickle juice
> and lots of water on returning home).
>
>
> Next time: Lighten the pack to bare essentials and added a ³Life Straw²
> water purification system.  Also, carry more water, wear hiking shorts,
> use my hiker umbrella, and pre-hydrate prior to stepping off.
>
>
> Share your wisdom with me on this issue.  Thanks in advance
>
> - Luis (San Diego, CA)
>
>
>
> On 4/28/14, 7:48 AM, "Gail Van Velzer" <vanvelzer at charter.net> wrote:
>
> >David,
> >I'm in total agreement!  Plus, as you drink your water, your pack gets
> >lighter!  I have horses and need to plan for them as well...20 gals. a
> >day!
> >Perhaps some of these inexperienced hikers should do some more
> >planning....especially in regards to water.
> >Gail
> >
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: "David Money Harris" <David_Harris at hmc.edu>
> >To: <velascoluis at cox.net>
> >Cc: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
> >Sent: Monday, April 28, 2014 3:06 AM
> >Subject: [pct-l] Water Caches
> >
> >
> >Luis,
> >
> >I¹ve hiked the CA PCT without using water caches and I drink a lot.  I
> >carried 7 quarts from Rodriguez Tank to Barrel Spring and from Subway
> >Cave
> >across Hat Creek Rim.  I caught both of these stretches on days that
> >weren¹t
> >at peak heat and might have needed more capacity if they were warmer.  I
> >also carried 5-6 quarts on the 25-mile waterless stretches and could have
> >needed more on hotter days.
> >
> >I don¹t believe that it¹s prudent to rely on a cache being available, and
> >as
> >soon as I take that to heart, it means I have to carry enough to safely
> >go
> >from reliable source to reliable source without needing a cache.
> >Planning
> >for these sections added to the challenge and appeal of the hike for me.
> >
> >I think it¹s good to have small caches for emergencies; if I¹d taken an
> >injury or had a catastrophic water system failure, I could have been in a
> >bad situation without the caches.  But I disagree with the present
> >dominant
> >trail philosophy that relies on carrying just enough water to go from
> >cache
> >to cache, and especially with the minority that use cached water for
> >discretionary purposes such as washing.  While I deeply appreciate the
> >temptation to use a cache when I see one, I think the explosion of caches
> >along the trail may actually condition us to be less self-reliant and
> >thus
> >degrade the PCT experience.
> >
> >Doing the trail without caches involves being able to walk 20-30 miles
> >per
> >day across some of these long stretches.  Folks in the 10-15 mile per day
> >pace would have to carry well over 10 quarts, which is possible but
> >unpleasant.  But those on such a pace aren¹t through-hiking, and can
> >solve
> >their water issues by preplacing personal caches somewhere out of sight.
> >
> >David
> >
> >
> >Message: 1
> >Date: Sat, 26 Apr 2014 10:54:56 -0700
> >From: Luis Velasco <velascoluis at cox.net>
> >Subject: Re: [pct-l] Water Cache at Scissors Xing
> >To: <gary_schenk at verizon.net>, <pct-l at backcountry.net>
> >Message-ID: <CF813F51.401F%velascoluis at cox.net>
> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"
> >
> >That is a Great question.
> >
> >I?ve been pondering the same issue for years; not for the fact that water
> >is scarce between long distances but how to compensate for it.  Where I
> >live (San Diego) many of the trails are without easy access water sources,
> >without encroaching on private property.
> >
> >I?m a Water Guzzler, so I simple carry at least 5 liters when I hike.
> >
> >However, I would really like to do the PCT trail without water caches and
> >want to know if any other Water Guzzler (like me) has accomplished this,
> >and more importantly, how?
> >
> >- Luis
> >
> >On 4/24/14, 8:14 AM, "gary_schenk at verizon.net" <gary_schenk at verizon.net>
> >wrote:
> >
> >> So the question might be, why are water caches so necessary? Is the
> >>trail
> >> impossible to hike without them?
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