Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Filter or Chemical

I usually hike in the desert so I am always carrying my water. Last time I hiked Whitney I brought a filter but since I have tried to lighten my load . What is everyone using, filter or chemical? Is the water clear enough to capture in a Nalgene then treat and drink or do I need to pre-filter with a coffee filter or bandanna? From previous experience I know this topic is usually split 50 - 50.

I love my Steripen. It was my group's favorite accessory on our Whitney climb last year.

I too am a big fan of the Steripen!!

I always have my PUR Hiker filter with me even on day hikes. I don't use chemicals because I can't stand the taste of the chlorine. (I use a Brita for drinking water at home) My hiking buddy has a steripen but likes me having my filter along.

I also like Steripen. I used it last year near Trail Camp. I filtered ice cold water that came from a mini waterfall.

I have had two Steripen's fail on me so far. To be fair most people I talk to that have them love them. Mine were older models so maybe there has been some improvement. So it sounds like the water is still pretty clear at Trail Camp?

I responded on the other board. I've talked to a lot of folks that do the sierra cup/unfiltered water thing. The one place that pretty much everyone agrees requires filtering/treating is Trail Camp.* But there are locations nearby (e.g., Consultation Lake, the switchbacks) where some folks don't bother.

*Correction: apparently some folks'll dip the sierra cup in the inlet to the pond at Trail Camp, just not in the pond itself. Me, I'm cautious so I Steripen everywhere.

Thanks, I have been posting to both boards lately. Do you think it is necessary, it looks like everyone is checking out both boards anyway?

It is amazing how this comes up every spring. I respect those who filter and those who don't. I don't usually treat my water in the sierra high country. However, anywhere east of trail camp on the Whitney trail I treat my water. When I do treat I use the Klearwater drops. They seem to be the least harsh of the chemicals, don't weigh much, and supposedly are very effective. Just my 2ç let the great debate begin!!

Steripen is light and effective, but take good old tablets for back-up. The very small additonal weight of a few tablets "outweighs" the possible problems (Giardia).
Happy Hiking!

On the MWT, you can dip and sip. Just "filter through your teeth."

No filters or chemicals required.

When i first started backpacking I never carried a filter because I was frankly naive to all the possible pathogens out there. I never once got sick. Then a close engineer friend of mine admonished me for doing that, informing me of all the horrible things Giadia can do and how prevelent it is, so I got a filter and that's how I did it. That is until I started reading all the back and forth debate on this forum about the water quality in the Sierras (Whitney area in particular) and why a filter/treatment is not needed. Much thought and consideration later, I am back to my old ways of not filtering and I feel very confident in not doing so on the Whitney trail and most other High Sierra trails. I've never once gotten sick.

I got a lot of crap last year for this comment but I will say it again. If you're worried about giardia, the only thing that will truly kill it is iodine. You can get the microscopic cysts through a filter and even a steripen won't kill them.

Myself, I don't bother with either, but I'm fairly careful about what water I'm drinking.

How many people here never used to filter, got sick, and are now filtering?

How many people here have EVER gotten sick? Did you filter before?, Do you filter now?

I always filter, but I can understand the perspective of not filtering at least in some areas. Many areas of the Whitney Trail I think you'd be crazy not to filter. Just too many people doing too many things!

In the early 1960's we would never filter---didn't need to no matter where you were in the higher elevations. Chemicals v. filters?---I filter. I don't like the thought of making my kidneys work any harder than they already have to work. As for not filtering, my rule of thumb is standing water in a lake or pool means use a filter. Running water? If it is in the late fall, winter or early spring and the water is comming out of the granite on the side of the mountain then I have assumed that water has been filtered through the earth, and I have filled water bottles with that source without a problem----but.

Steripen contends that it is effective with giardia. http://www.steripen.com/support-faq They provide a list of studies on effectiveness of steripen and/or UV at neutralizing bacteria, cysts, viruses. http://www.steripen.com/micro-biological-testing. To be fair, looks like much of the testing was done on MS2 coliphage (which is propagated in E. Coli), and the papers listed explain the basis for this experiment design and extrapolation of results to other microbes. There also is listed an article on the effectivenes of UV to neutralize giardia.

Plus the giardia cyst is huge, almost big enough to see with the necked eye.

I know this gets brought up yearly but opinion do seem to change also on a yearly basis. I am glad to see all the success with the Steripen so I may have to re-visit it this year.

I have been hiking since 71 and have always started to filter my water
since '95. We have never been sick from our filtered water. I would
rather be safe than sorry. We carried a filter on our JMT trip with
no problems. I would hate to get sick on a long trip and have to
exit early. Happy Hiking!

I'll chime in to say I have drunk many gallons of Mt. Whitney water over the past 39 years--unfiltered--and never have gotten sick. But as BobR has stated many times, you must "drink smart." I've also crossed the Sierras two times without filtering, but I drank smart (with my Sierra cup!) and never got sick.

All this being said, I have gotten violently ill in other parts of California when I drank stupidly. One time was on Mt. Tamalpais, north of San Francisco, and another time was below Strawberry Peak in the San Gabriel mountains above Los Angeles. I was extremely dehydrated on both occasions and was careless in drinking the water I did. Very bad on my part, especially after you've drunk what looks like clear water and see bugs swimming around in the very spot you drank from. Not good.

Many of us on Whitney do not filter, but it is important that you drink safe--at your own comfort level. Enjoy Whitney to your max.