Imagine you are out in the middle of the wilderness, hiking across tundra or through fields of grass, thousands of tiny flowers surrounding you of every color and hue imaginable.
The sun is beating down raising droplets of perspiration on your brow and in the distance is a glistening, snow-capped mountain range.
Between the snow in your sights and the sweat on the skin, you are developing a raging thirst.
You come upon a creek with icy-cold water rushing across rocks and pebbles, crystal clear as the best bottled water you could find in the store.
Before dipping your water bottle in the creek and raising it to your parched lips for that needed draught of cold water, stop! That water is probably not very healthy.
Even though it may be glacial runoff from those mountains in the distance, along the line animals have walked through it, urinated it, things may even have died in it.
Yes, disgusting thought, I know.
But important to remember because all of that contributes to Giardia, cryptosporidium, E.
coli, cholera, just to name a few.
These can cause bloody diarrhea, cramps, kidney failure, dehydration, typhoid fever, etc.
If you are out in the wilderness with no possibility of emergency help, these could end in death.
Not a pleasant way to end a trip, wouldn't you agree? There are three different possibilities for ensuring you have safe, drinkable water.
The first and easiest is to just boil your water.
Bring the water to a rolling boil and then continue for three more minutes.
If your water was cloudy, filter the sediment before boiling using a coffee filter or paper towels.
I have been told that if you are over 1000 feet above sea level, you should boil the water an additional minute for each 1000 feet.
The drawback to the boiling method is that it takes both time and fuel.
The time does not bother me, but using precious fuel for drinking water does.
The second possibility is the use of iodine tablets.
There are many different brands and not all brands kill everything dangerous in the water, you may need to do some research.
They are inexpensive, easy to pack and lightweight.
Pop a pill in your water and wait approximately an hour, give or take depending on the manufacturer.
That is quite a bit of time, but can be done before you go to sleep at night and water will be ready in the morning.
Unfortunately, some of them do leave an aftertaste of chlorine.
Another thing to be aware of is that once the packet of tablets is opened, there is a limited shelf life.
Incidentally, if allergic to iodine, consider instead boiling your water or purchasing a filtration system which I will discuss next.
The third method is to carry a water filter with you.
There are many different systems ranging in size, weight, and cost.
They typically operate by use of a hand pump.
One end of the tube goes in the water, and the other side into your water bottle or cook pan.
Pump until you have the amount of water you need.
These systems work by filtering out large particles first.
As the water goes through the system, there is a second filter which screens out the bacteria.
The final result is a bottle of very safe, drinkable water.
Water filtration systems are much more expensive than iodine tablets and may take as long to pump the water as it does to boil it.
However, filtration systems don't have a shelf life and the only energy they require to work is your own.
Always remember, if you plan to be someplace where the water may not be the best, be prepared.
Humans can go without food longer than we can go without water.