I have solved the carrying water problem

[David]

Well, I have been working on this, searching the internet in the long dark hours of the night - for a method of carrying water without all that weight - a litre of water is a kilo in weight! -
and I think I may have the answer!!

 

[brawblether]

Ha!!! What on earth?!!

 

[Al the optimist]

LOL

 

[Daxzentzu]

My local store is selling the same product.

they have just added a new version - it is a much more portable, weight saving version of this product. It's designed to save pack weight and saves on the volume too!

It's been freeze dried and you add water to reconstitute it before consumption.

Perfect

 

[Jennifer Juniper]

Thanks for the pic-hilarious! And I needed that!

 

[obinjatoo@yahoo.com]

I love that I can now find instant water in many of the fonts and spigots and cafes along the way. A few drops of household bleach (with chlorine) will render most water fit for human consumption.
Just one of a million websites on water: http://www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/Emerg ... ation.aspx
Water=Life...
have fun
Robin

 

[vicrev]

That will go well with my dehydrated scotch !!.......................Vicr

 

[Stellere]

Couple that with a couple of helium balloons tied to your bag, and your pack will weigh less full than it does empty!

 

[Susannafromsweden]

You can also buy dehydrated beer if you like...
http://www.vilddryck.com/

 

[JennyH94]

So nice to see the Veteran Poster has not lost his humorous touch with the new format!

 

[Roger M.]

All kidding aside, I will be carrying one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006QF3TW4/?tag=casaivar02-20

 

[Kanga]

All kidding aside, I will be carrying one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006QF3TW4/?tag=casaivar02-20

Why? I'm curious as to what motivates one fear more than another. I would think the biggest danger on the Camino is crossing the road, but I've yet to see pilgrims adopting fluorescent vests.

 

[Anniesantiago]

All kidding aside, I will be carrying one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/Vestergaard-Frandsen-527950-LifeStraw-Personal-Filter/dp/B006QF3TW4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397930777&sr=8-1&keywords=life straw

Why??? There's safe water in every village. Spain is not a 3d world country like Mexico, you know. Their infrastructure is many times more modern than ours in the USA!

 

[whariwharangi]

I'm still trying to learn the rain dance. The best I've been able to do is summon a light sprinkle that requires hours to fill a glass.

Its counter intuitive. Usually the problem while walking is too much rain.

 

[pilgrim b]

Can you get tonic water in the same tins David I now have a lot of catching up to do !!!

 

[Roger M.]

Lol - I see very little cost in carrying such a light and useful tool to insure I can get a drink of clean water when I want it.

 

[Anniesantiago]

Lol - I see very little cost in carrying such a light and useful tool to insure I can get a drink of clean water when I want it.

Whatever floats yer boat!

 

[Diogo92]

Lol - I see very little cost in carrying such a light and useful tool to insure I can get a drink of clean water when I want it.

You won't need a life straw, there is safe water everywhere.

 

[hampshire!tim]

Safe water is widespread although technically not everywhere. There are some fountains and public taps labelled "non potable".

I'm not sure I'd want to drink from them even with a life straw but I guess that is what emergency kit is for.

 

[Roger M.]

Well ... you folks are the experts. This will be my first time in Spain. But since I am hiking in an area where clean water availability might be more than 5 or 6 kilometers apart, I won't mind carrying this very light safeguard.

 

[Bajaracer]

Well ... you folks are the experts. This will be my first time in Spain. But since I am hiking in an area where clean water availability might be more than 5 or 6 kilometers apart, I won't mind carrying this very light safeguard.

Bottled water in Spain is way cheaper than what we pay in the US, if you buy them from the Supermercados, they sell the 1.5L bottles for €.50-60 cents ($.70-.80 cents US), with the exception of city water (Pamplona city water is an example) the rest of the potable water fuentes are fine.
Once you get away from the bigger cities, the water tastes great, many of us have seen local townspeople filling their big water containers for home use.
I've also seen the water being tested by the local health department.
No need to bring the water filter straw.

 

[grayland]

Wine is even cheaper than water!

 

[newfydog]

Well ... you folks are the experts. This will be my first time in Spain. But since I am hiking in an area where clean water availability might be more than 5 or 6 kilometers apart, I won't mind carrying this very light safeguard.

Those same 5-6 km probably will not have any water, period. A filter will not help if there is nothing to treat. You can leave it out with confidence that we all survived very well without one.

 

[Houlet]

I have a scientific background and clearly the catch with this one is that the can and its secret ingredient weighs 10 pounds, exactly the same as a gallon of water.

 

[Diogo92]

Safe water is widespread although technically not everywhere. There are some fountains and public taps labelled "non potable".

I'm not sure I'd want to drink from them even with a life straw but I guess that is what emergency kit is for.

LifeStraw is used in most 3rd world countries, has a viable way for people to drink water, since it's filter helps to filtrate 99.9% of the bacteria’s and other things that usually can contaminate water.

Well ... you folks are the experts. This will be my first time in Spain. But since I am hiking in an area where clean water availability might be more than 5 or 6 kilometers apart, I won't mind carrying this very light safeguard.

Last year, I walked with a 2L Camelback Bladder, with the same thought: I will not have too many chances to refill. WRONG! There were plenty of places to refill, and the Camelback gave me a false sense of safe. What happened was that I ended up getting out of water in 3 days, because I was sure that I still had some. Since my backpack doesn’t have any zone were to put the bladder, I ended up putting it on the back, behind the clothes, making it difficult to refill and to check.

This year, I managed to use only a 500ml water bottle. Every cafe that I stepped in, I refilled my water bottle. Other thing is that you can get your body liquids refilled with fruits. Just have to see what fruits have the most water percentage, and buy them. It0s a 2 in 1 thing, you won't be hungry, and you won't be so thirsty

 

[xin loi]

Concentrated water--Our local camping store sells those cans of "water" --Just watched a Youtube vid on Camino where young woman said she filled her water bottle at every stream. Not many people do that anymore but 30 years ago everyone drank from streams/springs. I still do.

 

[mikevasey]

Hi I think I have found a way not only to avoid carring large amounts of water but also carrying a quite heavy metal tin. Been giving it trial runs and it seems quite promising so far,tried it on dartmoor this weekend heres an attached photo http://tallbloke.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/dowsing.jpg

 

[pbucilla]

Great idea mikevasey! Then once we find the water, we can use our sporks to dig for it. I like the way you think!

 

[Roger M.]

I dunno ... that fella is old but he looks like he might be kinda heavy!

 

[whariwharangi]

Well ... you folks are the experts. This will be my first time in Spain. But since I am hiking in an area where clean water availability might be more than 5 or 6 kilometers apart, I won't mind carrying this very light safeguard.

The LifeStraw will not desalinate salt water, remove dissolved chemicals or minerals, nor remove viruses. If drinking from water which may have viruses in it (e.g. contaminated by human sewage), pre-treat with water treatment tablets. See the included instruction manual for more information.
http://www.amazon.com/Vestergaard-Frandsen-527950-LifeStraw-Personal-Filter/dp/B006QF3TW4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397930777&sr=8-1&keywords=life straw

I suggest you read the fine print. Most of the camino Frances is in heavily cultivated farmland. Your lifestraw is designed to take with you on a hike to filter out beaver piss nasties that is contaminating an otherwise clean water source. Its not intended to filter out chemical laden crud downstream of an industrial scale farm.

Filtered cow piss is still cow piss.

 

[Roger M.]

Okay Whariwharangi, I'll take your word for it on the "cow piss" thing. Sounds like you have some experience that I don't have.

 

[econodan]

A slightly more serious reply to this thread...
When we walked across the Camino Catalan in May 2012, it was hot as blazes most days, and we consumed a lot of water to stay hydrated. But every village had a public faucet, and the water is always safe to drink (as others have pointed out, Spain is not Mexico). We generally carried 1-2 liters each, depending on the distances between towns, and never ran dry.
The bigger problem was not hydration, but maintaining electrolytes. It's not enough to just replace the water we sweat out: we also need to replace the salts and minerals. Without adequate electrolyte replacement, the muscles tend to cramp and ache. Sports drinks like Gatorade help with this, but we didn't find them widely available. Eating fruits like bananas (high in potassium) helps. We also bought some electrolyte replacement powder at a pharmacy to mix into our water on hot days. It didn't taste very good (ok, it tasted pretty awful), but it did the job.
Buen Camino.
Dan

 

[mikevasey]

I dunno ... that fella is old but he looks like he might be kinda heavy!

He's carrying me!

 

[StuartM]

All kidding aside, I will be carrying one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006QF3TW4/?tag=casaivar02-20

I took a small pump filter to Borneo, came in handy a few times but you needed to really not be thirsty when you used it. Patience is a virtue they say and I managed to keep my bowels where they should be despite a few others not being so lucky. Well until I had my first western meal in a month and my insides rebelled against anything that wasnt nasi ayam...

 

[StuartM]

On the subject of safe water everywhere... a couple of times I've been stopped in villages from drinking from the "wrong" fuente. One in particular (in Pajares on the Salvador) was pretty oily and when I looked closer was run off from the road above being channelled into the cistern.

There are lots of natural springs along the Le Puy route that I've dived the tunnels that feed them (they run for km's underground). Most divers will - ahem - answer the call of nature will inside. I've seen a lot of locals filling water jugs...

 

[Patch]

I have done a lot of walking in Spain. When I first started out an old hand said to me that have a good look up and down any water course. If you couldn't see any dead animals then it was probably safe to drink....stood me in good steaaaaaaaaaa

 

[Roger M.]

Ha Ha! Or that could mean that the Spanish are good at keeping the dead carcasses picked up!

LifeStraw!



Roger

 

[koilife]

We also bought some electrolyte replacement powder at a pharmacy to mix into our water on hot days. It didn't taste very good (ok, it tasted pretty awful), but it did the job.

Ahhh, nothing says, "Spain," like the great taste of Flec-to-min . . . NOT!

 

[koilife]

Well ... you folks are the experts. This will be my first time in Spain. But since I am hiking in an area where clean water availability might be more than 5 or 6 kilometers apart, I won't mind carrying this very light safeguard.

If it makes you feel comfortable, by all means take it. Given how light it is, there's not much to worry about, even if you never have a reason to use it (almost certainly the case). After your camino, I'm curious to know if you actually needed it.

You'll find that the Camino Frances is unlike any back country backpacking you've ever done. Most of the normal precautions you might take aren't generally needed. Things will have to go pretty bad (or careless) for you to need to use filtration or purification, assuming you have access to water at all. Generally, all you need are 1 litre per 10 km (subject to terrain and temp). On any longer legs (such as over the Route Napoleon or from Carrión de los Condes to Calzadilla de la Cueza), just be sure to hydrate before the long stage and carry two litres and you should be just fine.

 

[Al the optimist]

how many grams is the stick without the ancient hombre mike? Can you get it past security at the airport as cabin baggage?

 

[mikevasey]

A friend introduced me to the stage show of Geoff Dunham the other night, had me squirming on the sofa slightly and felt guilty about laughing but I will live, if he can get walter through airport checks then my old guys as good as through, already told him hes going on a walking pilgrimage. The diving rods magical so it just turns up when I need it(hopefully).

 

[Roger M.]

If it makes you feel comfortable, by all means take it. Given how light it is, there's not much to worry about, even if you never have a reason to use it (almost certainly the case). After your camino, I'm curious to know if you actually needed it.

You'll find that the Camino Frances is unlike any back country backpacking you've ever done. Most of the normal precautions you might take aren't generally needed. Things will have to go pretty bad (or careless) for you to need to use filtration or purification, assuming you have access to water at all. Generally, all you need are 1 litre per 10 km (subject to terrain and temp). On any longer legs (such as over the Route Napoleon or from Carrión de los Condes to Calzadilla de la Cueza), just be sure to hydrate before the long stage and carry two litres and you should be just fine.

I do not expect to use it. But given how important clean water is and how light and non-intrusive this is, I don't think I will travel anywhere without one. I keep them in my home for my wife and I. Extremely cheap and powerful tool to have in the event of the unexpected.

Buen Camino!

 

[Jeniffer]

I've just spent the day walking from Roncesvalles. Had to wade through more cow, horse and sheep manure than I ever thought possible. It has been raining for days and many creeks are quite full. Even with a life straw, I waited until I reached the next bar to refill my water bottles!

 

[Roger M.]

I've just spent the day walking from Roncesvalles. Had to wade through more cow, horse and sheep manure than I ever thought possible. It has been raining for days and many creeks are quite full. Even with a life straw, I waited until I reached the next bar to refill my water bottles!

Darn. You could have made Camino history with a detailed description of how poo-poo water tastes thru a LifeStraw. As you continue your pilgrimage and if the opportunity presents itself again, I encourage you to to put the LifeStraw to the test. Think of the possibilities - your smiling (slightly soiled ) face could be everywhere on advertisements extolling the convenience of the LifeStraw. AND think of the environmental benefits! YOU could almost single handedly eliminate the bane of a world filled with plastic water bottles!

I'm counting on you Jeniffer.

Buen Camino!

Rog

 

[Harington]

View attachment 5811 Well, I have been working on this, searching the internet in the long dark hours of the night - for a method of carrying water without all that weight - a litre of water is a kilo in weight! -
and I think I may have the answer!!

And I fell for it...

 

[pattymo97206]

That will go well with my dehydrated scotch !!.......................Vicr

You have me belly laughing over that one and would you please tell me where you find this amazing product? However, it must be Chivas Regal!!

 

[Jeniffer]

Darn. You could have made Camino history with a detailed description of how poo-poo water tastes thru a LifeStraw. As you continue your pilgrimage and if the opportunity presents itself again, I encourage you to to put the LifeStraw to the test. Think of the possibilities - your smiling (slightly soiled ) face could be everywhere on advertisements extolling the convenience of the LifeStraw. AND think of the environmental benefits! YOU could almost single handedly eliminate the bane of a world filled with plastic water bottles!

I'm counting on you Jeniffer.

Buen Camino!

Rog

Thank you! I haven't laughed so hard in ages. Lifted my spirits after a very long day to Pamplona. Sending the LifeStraw and my very heavy Gerber multi-tool ahead to Ivar. As much as I would like to help the environment by completely phasing out plastic water bottles, I just can't! There are plenty of fountains on the Camino and I will not be placing my straw into one of those streams. Yuck!
Best regards,
Jeniffer

 

[Roger M.]

Thank you! I haven't laughed so hard in ages. Lifted my spirits after a very long day to Pamplona. Sending the LifeStraw and my very heavy Gerber multi-tool ahead to Ivar. As much as I would like to help the environment by completely phasing out plastic water bottles, I just can't! There are plenty of fountains on the Camino and I will not be placing my straw into one of those streams. Yuck!
Best regards,
Jeniffer

Lol! I am so glad I was able to bring a smile to your face. My prayers are with you for an outstanding rest of the Camino! I will be following in your footsteps this September. Take care Jeniffer! --- Rog

 

[Jakke]

You won't need a life straw, there is safe water everywhere.

Hi! I see you walked the C.P. Is what you write about Spain also true for Portugal?