How Much Water to Carry when Hiking?
The most important resource to bring on a hike, drinking enough water is crucial on a hike. Bringing too much water will severly increase the weight of your backpack but not bringing enough can be very dangerous.
This article will give guidance on how much water you should bring on your hike. Remember, the amount each of us needs to drink is unique on our bodies, the hike we are doing, the temperature and more!
Using water filtration to save carrying excess water
I’ve been in the situation once in my life. On a very hot day descending down the mountain, I had drank all my water with a few kilometres of hiking left. Whilst I was fairly confident I could push through the last few kilometres, a small sense of panic kicked in. What if I start feeling naucious? What if I get lost? All these thoughts made the hike uncomfortable and really unpleasant. I would like to share what I have learnt since then.
The general rule of thumb
The general rule to be safe is 250ml every 30mins of hiking, or 1 litre every 2 hours.
Lets say you are going to hike 20kilometres, and you have identified that there will be very likely no water sources on the trail. Based on previous hiker’s experience, or your average pace, say 4km per hour, you think the hike will last 5 hours. 2.5 litres should generally be sufficient for your hike. Below are some of my tips for carrying water and hydrating yourself on a hike.
Check water sources on trail
A hike that passes villages, shops or other places offering water will greatly reduce your base weight of water as you will be able to re-fill along the way. Check the shop / cafe / hotel etc. will be on open on the day of your hike. Often across Europe, especially in Germany and Austria. Check for your specific country.
Hikes may also contain water sources and taps along the trail. These are often marked on the local Ordnance map of the country. In addition, hiking in mountainous regions with glacial streams are a great source of water on trail (after purifying the water!)
Use electrolyte tablets
Electrolyte tablets such as High5 Sports Nutrition Zero Electrolyte Tablets that I use, offer some great advantages. The tablets are really easy to use; you simply drop one tablet into your bottle / water bladder, and let it sit for a few minutes. The tablets are often flavoured, making it more pleasant to drink.
Electrolyte tablets replenish lost electrolytes lost by sweat. This helps to reduce the risk of dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, which is crucial for maintaining energy levels and muscle function. Electrolyte tablets also help your body absorb water more efficiently, keeping you hydrated for longer.
Use a purification system
Water purification systems such as the Sawyer Microsqueeze are great, small and light devices that purify water from natural sources. Sawyer claims to purify 99.99999% of bacteria (salmonella, cholera and E. coli) and 99.9999% of protozoa (cryptosporidium and giardia). If your trail passes water sources, this is a great tool to save carrying all your water from the start of the trail. Water purification can be used in rivers, lakes, streams etc.
Drinking technique
The way you comsume water on trail can reduce how much you need to carry. Often, when your mouth feels dry, you drink water to freshen your mouth. Instead of using more water that could have been for used for your hydration, when you do drink, gargle the water around your mouth before swallowing. This will both freshen your mouth and hydrate yourself all in one go.
As well as this, drink little and often. Drinking only when you feel dehydrated is not advised! You will need to drink a lot more for your body to recover.
Every hike is unique
Some factors that may increase your water consumption include:
Long distance hiking: with a heavier backpack, you will likely need to drink more water to compensate the extra energy consimption required.
High temperatures: In high temperatures, you need more water as your body cools itself by sweating and breathing faster, both of which cause fluid loss. Replenishing this water is essential to stay hydrated and support natural cooling.
Wildcamping: find a camp spot close to a running source of water. This will reduce the amount of water required to be carried should you be planning on using water to boil. Otherwise, you will need to carry extra water on top of your drinking water.
Water storage is key
Water should be stored in a way that is easy to access along the hike, unlikely to leak or burst and have enough capacity for your longest stretch between water sources.
Water bottle or bladder: I prefer to use a 500ml soft flask (HydraPak Ultra Flask 500ml), with a 1 litre bottle in my bag for extra capacity. The soft flask is easy to use, really simple to acces and allows me to stay hydrated without stopping hiking. My gripe with water bladders is that they are often very difficult to re-fill and require you to unpack your backpack partially to access them. If it’s raining heavily, the last thing you want to be doing is unpacking in the open.
Avoid metal bottles: metal bottles are heavy and do the same job as a lighter (and cheaper) plastic bottle. Make sure the plastic bottle is strong enough however to withstand being pushed and pulled around your backpack during the hike.
Conclusion
Having followed the steps above, you should be in a good position to bring the right amount of water and drink it wisely on trail. Planning ahead is a great way to reduce the amount of water you need to carry. Electrolyte tablets provide a great way to replenish electrolytes and reduce the risk of dehydration. Storing your water in a secure, easily accessible and large enough way is crucial to enjoy the hike to your most!
