where to carry camelback

[johnnyman]

Greetings! I have an Osprey36L pack and am wondering if there is a "best" place to carry my 3-liter camelback water reservoir ...

 

[Arn]

What you chose to carry is of course a personal decision and should be season and Camino dependent.

- If you are walking in the height of the Summer and on a less traveled Camino...there may be a requirement for a 3-liter Camelback. That's a bit over a gallon, or 8 lbs in weight.

If you're going along the CF...there are plenty of public and private fountains and, of course, mercados where you can purchase water.

On the weight issue, break down your gear in two stacks...what you MUST have and what you think you MIGHT need. Weight each item in the MUST pile. Then the MIGHT pile. If the total weight is more that 20 lbs (and that's a high number) start to reduce the items in the MIGHT pile until you get below 20 lbs. This includes the weight of your pack.

Buen "lighter is better" Camino

Arn

 

[dougfitz]

Irrespective of what capacity your water bladder, it will be amongst the densest items you will carry. So it should be as close to your back as possible and along the central line of the back so that the effect on lateral balance is neutral as the bladder empties. Try as well to get it into the middle to bottom of your pack. If this pack doesn't have a specialist hydration bladder sleeve, make sure the drinking tube is not obstracted, pinched or twisted, and that the bladder will generally stay with the tube at the bottom as it empties.

Three litres seems a lot. Its 3kg of load (6.6lb) plus the weight of the bladder itself. I carried 2li, and never ran out before finding somewhere to fill up. My own view is that you might be reasonably safe with 1.5 li even in summer provided you fill up regularly, and 2li gives some measure of insurance if you are prepared to carry the extra weight.

DougF

 

[Kitsambler]

I have an Osprey36L pack

I'm not sure the 3L Camelback will even fit into that Osprey (perhaps they're trying to tell you something). Doesn't you pack have a "hydration sleeve"? It's a special pocket that lies between the back support and the main compartment, and most likely has a wee cloth marking tag with a water-drop or some similar graphic to help you find it. Using that sleeve will help keep the water's weight closest to your back, which has already been mentioned as the right place.

I second the notion that 3 L is too much; I carried a bladder that large on my Le Puy walk last year. By downsizing to a 2L bladder for this year and using the simpler connection, I saved a pound of weight! You can always carry a supplemental store-bought water bottle in a side pocket for the long dry stretches.

 

[methodist.pilgrim.98]

On the Camino Francés in May/June I too never carried more than 2L of water.

I stopped and drank water or coke at bars as often as I could to conserve the water in camelback and topped it up whenever I could.

Many of the guides will warn you when you are going to be on a long stretch with few watering holes. If it tells you there are plenty of bars you might consider just carrying 1.5L.

I have met a fellow member of the CSJ who drank water from fountains along the CF and got infested with a water borne bug. It took 6 months before his doctor was able to eliminate it. He convinced me never to drink water from a fountain even if it is marked as safe to do so.

Only once in desperation did I drink water from a fountain; I was fine but I don't like to chance it.

Many here will disagree with that comment but I have stuck by it. Tap water is almost always perfectly safe.

 

[Anniesantiago]

In my opinion, you do not need a water bladder on the Frances. There is fresh water in every village. I carried one 8 ounce bottle and refilled it along the way.

 

[+@^^]

i initially carried my 3lt camel bladder inside my bag in its designated sleeve
some of the vdlp days were long and at 35+ degrees, water consumption was high
i was pleased to have this carrying capacity
it gave me optiions
and it gave me a huge degree of confidence knowing that i would have sufficient water, no matter what
if i got to a fountain, i sometimes topped up the bladder
.
once id settled down and got used to my water needs and the heat, i started filling up with less water
the bladder inside became a bit of a bind, so i secured it outside the bag for easier refilling
i used a "livestrong" rubber band to secure the top
and the bladder rested inside an outer pouch on my pack
.
worked for me

 

[tiagorosado]

It's a personal choice of course!

i preferred to buy cool disposable water bottles and used them for 2/3 days - i found it simpler and lighter to use, and also to fill it up without taking out my backpack. At summer it's also a good ideia to drink as much water as you can when you find a fountain and specially after meals - so you wont dehydrate much and need to carry more water. Also, take in consideration that if your urine get's darker, it means that your body isn't receiving as much water as it needs. Take also in consideration that dehydration doesn't pass after 1 or 2 days - your body as a slower response in these matters, so if you don't drink enough for a couple of days, even if you do compensate on the next one's you'll still fell tired and thirsty. Best advice - drink as much as you can, pee a lot , and beware alcohol and fried food on hot days - your need much more water to compensate

cheers!

http://www.tiagorosado.com/santiago_primeiros_dias.html
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2 ... 1587301466

 

[Arn]

On drinking water...although Vinotinto would walk a mile for a fine red wine...I'm sure he'd not do the same for a camel...of water.

Now onto the topic: Beware of just drinking water when it's hot, you are sweating and depleting the electrolytes in your body.

Over the years we, especially in the military serving in some very hot climes, have found that over hydrating can do as much a disservice to your well being as going without.

Here's the recommendation: Drink water...yes, but mix it 50-50 with any sports drink. Too much water and you flush your system of needed sodium and such.

Here's part of an article in the Athleteinme:
SPORTS DRINKS vs. WATER

Amazingly, up until 1969, athletes were discouraged from consuming fluids while running. It was thought that drinking fluids would impair athletic performance. Since then, hundreds of scientific studies have examined every aspect of these beverages on athletic performance. Today we know that athletic performance falls as an athlete loses fluids (Armstrong LE, et al. 1985).

When Robert Cade, MD, invented Gatorade® at the University of Florida, the goal was to find a better way to hydrate college athletes who were perspiring heavily in the hot Florida sun. But, despite their popularity, are sports drinks like Gatorade® any better than plain water?

It turns out that water by itself is not the best rehydration beverage during strenuous activities. Drinking plain water shuts down the sensation of thirst too quickly. Many athletes stop drinking too soon. When Puerto Rican soccer players were left to drink plain water on their own, they were still significantly dehydrated (Leiper JB, et al. 2001). A thirsty person drinks more fluid when the beverage contains sodium (and flavoring) compared to plain water.

Obviously, the easiest way to correct this is to get athletes to drink more water, however this can backfire. Drinking too much plain water can lead to hyponatremia, a serious medical condition where the concentration of sodium in the blood gets too low. This has been documented in marathon runners (Almond CSD, et al. 2005) and in soldiers during training. In rare cases, hyponatremia can be fatal (Ayus JC, et al. 2000).

Buen "now where did I put that bottle of..." Camino

Arn

 

[renegadepilgrim]

You would have to drink A LOT of water to get hyponatremic. I've heard of this happening on the Camino, but I would wager a guess that most peregrinos are dehydrated and not over-hydrated. I'm going to get a camelback or platypus bladder for my pack for my next camino and I think a 2L will be sufficient. 3L seems like overkill. There are fountains all over the place.

 

[tiagorosado]

Ahah the extra mile for wine!

Didn't knew that! - the water i mean Thanks for bringing that into attention.

My experience was empyrical and as such it worked for me at the time but perhaps only because the water fountains were only sufficiently distant, so i didn't ever got a chance to blow up!!! and as i arrived to one i was really thirsty. And with the exception to the Meseta - they're kinda regular. So.. It was pleasurable water drinking, pretty much as with wine!!



Take care!

 

[marianna niebauer]

Irrespective of what capacity your water bladder, it will be amongst the densest items you will carry. So it should be as close to your back as possible and along the central line of the back so that the effect on lateral balance is neutral as the bladder empties. Try as well to get it into the middle to bottom of your pack. If this pack doesn't have a specialist hydration bladder sleeve, make sure the drinking tube is not obstracted, pinched or twisted, and that the bladder will generally stay with the tube at the bottom as it empties.

Three litres seems a lot. Its 3kg of load (6.6lb) plus the weight of the bladder itself. I carried 2li, and never ran out before finding somewhere to fill up. My own view is that you might be reasonably safe with 1.5 li even in summer provided you fill up regularly, and 2li gives some measure of insurance if you are prepared to carry the extra weight.

DougF

I agree