[pct-l] Fwd: solo hiker starting at Walker Pass (re. Joshua Tree Spring water)

[enyapjr at comcast.net]

> Joshua Spring is contaminated with Uranium. First water you can use safely is 
> the Needles Creek 1&2. 16+ miles Canebreak has next water 28 miles. Needles 
> can be dry. No one should have used Joshua for at least the last 20 years Marmot

FWIW:
The uranium level in some water sources (Chimney Creek is another) on your way up to 
Kennedy Meadows is extremely low - the only danger 'might' be if you homesteaded at 
Joshua Tree Spring drinking and cooking with that water for many years. And the real 
'danger' is from lead - the resultant main leftover 'product' of uranium breakdown.
>From the PCT Water Report: "BLM website and other reports warn of uranium in Joshua 
Tree Spring. Spoke to Mr. Larson of BLM Bakersfield. According to him most water 
sources in the Sierras contain uranium in different levels, but most springs are not 
tested. This one is tested and the uranium level is above the drinking water limit 
(designed for a lifelong intake in a typical household). Everybody has to judge for 
himself, but Mr. Larson would personally drink it if treated for the normal bugs 
while on the PCT." 
>From WP PCT Southern California guidebook: "Since the California Clean Water Act passed
in 1988, the standard for healthful drinking water has become so stringent that
agencies who test their backcountry piped water seldom find it meets the high level of
purity the California Act requires. At the spring in 1993 and at the Chimney Creek
Campground, slightly higher than acceptable levels of uranium were found. (It is
reasonable to assume that the free-flowing, untested stream water would show the
same result.) The end product of uranium is lead, and it is cumulative in the body;
you would not want to drink this chemical element every day of your life. However,
you are just passing through, and the minimal amount of impurities you would swallow
seems negligible."

I'll be drinking Joshua Tree Spring water again...

Happy trails!!!
Jim (PITA)