[at-l] Filtering water (was Trip Report)

[MManzano@aol.com]

On Tue, 29 Sep 1998, hopefl@juno.com wrote:

<< I dug out a small hole that the water could flow into. It was just deep
enough
for the silt filter to be submerged. Next, I put two small flat stones
into a plastic sandwich bag that had been used for my gorp. I "lined" the
dugout with the plastic bag and within minutes all the silt had flowed
away and clear water filled the shallow hole. I pump some of the
sweetest, coolest water I've ever drunk and never had any clogging of my
filter. I have added a sandwich bag to my "filter kit" as standard gear. >>

This sounds intrigueing to me; can anyone explain the principle of it?  I'm
having trouble visualising it, but since the situation is familiar - a tiny
trickle of water that is difficult to filter - I'd like to try your solution
sometime.

It's a good time to emphasize that finding clean, safe water can be a real
problem on the AT, at all times of the year.  You can be crossing streams
constantly, and then suddenly find yourself on the dry side of the mountain
and hike for a day without running across water.  I've found sources so meager
and filled with debris that I've had to scoop it in my drinking cup and pour
it through a bandana to pre-filter out all the junk before filtering/treating
the water.  

Gypsy
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