Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Water quality on Mt Whitney trail from the Portal

Hi all,

Just attended the REI/Whitney briefing and it was strongly urged to take both a water filter and water purifier. The ceramic filter I just purchased indicates it would filter out giardia and other bad stuff. But the presenter indicated the water filter does not filter out viruses - which are prevelant along the trail - hence the need for purifiers. We will be on the trail on Jun 11-12. What is the water quality on the trail? Are both necessary?

I hear that iodine tablets taste bad, but I've always purified water after filtering using 5 drops of 2% tincture of iodine per quart and I can't hardly taste the difference between treated and untreated.

Of course, being vaccinated against Hep A and Hep B also helps.

Here is the EPA site on water treatment, so you know that it's kosher:

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/faq/emerg.html

I realize, this doesn't exactly answer your question, but it's always better to be safe than sorry.

Who says viruses are pervelant along the trail?

Meisco,

Who made the presentation you attended? I am curious as to their source of information since a lot of discussion on this board supports an opposite point of view about the water quality.

The URL below details water sources along the main trail.

<a href=http://www.whitneyportalstore.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=002790>Water quality on Mt Whitney trail from the Portal</a>

Everyone posts about the dangers of hiking in snow without winter climbing skills, but then throws caution to the wind when it comes to water?

Personally, I don't care what the data says one way or the other. Common sense tells me that the masses on the trail aren't all using the solar latrines and most don't have the ettiquette to not crap within 100 ft. of the water source.

Human feces = Hepatitis exposure.

Why take the risk when purification is cheap and convenient?

Joshcube - Amem.

In 40+ years, I've never filtered and never had any trouble. Check out

http://www.whitneyportalstore.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=002790

and the links it refers to for more thoughts.

To each his (or her) own, but I've seen a lot of people wrestling with filters and I'm happy to forgo the time, energy, and weight...

While it can't hurt to filter, I think it is a waste of energy, time and money, in this case. The water sources on this trail are high quality and easy to find. I'd bring a piece cloth or screen to keep out the rocks, bugs, and slime. Please don’t trust me, do your own homework. I think you'd find you'd be better off filtering your homes water then the sierras.

Thanks for the replies - glad I could start a such a spirited discussion!

Memory Lapse - The talk was held at the Rancho Cucamonga REI on Weds., May 18th. I don't recall the guy's name and he didn't reference his source. I had a nagging feeling that his emphatic tone may have had something to do with selling product.

By the tone of the replies, it doesn't sound as if the contaminated water supply 'problem' is as big a problem as he made it out to be.

When I climbed Whitney 15 years ago, I just went with iodine. This time I'm climbing with my wife and friends and opted for the filtered water approach as a means to circumvent the iodine-flavored water (and floating stuff) for their sake. We'll probably use both.

I appreciate all the feedback - now I have some homework to brush up on! - Thanks. Meisco

I have herd about forest service personal drinking backcountry water sources and over time their GI tracts become immune. For the rest of us, a few days after exposure to bacteria, we will get sick if the water is bad. My personal thinking is why miss work, that will only allow less time to spend in the mountains.

Meisco,

I do not have an opinion one way or the other, I personally would not bother to carry a filter on the Whitney Main Trail but not everyone has the same degree of risk avoidance so I can understand when some of you want to filter. You are free to do so.

What I do have an opinion about is someone proclaiming a need where the facts do not support their claim. I cannot say definitively that one cannot contract a waterborne illness on the this trail but a lot of infomation posted here over an extended period does not support the notion they can.

Thanks for letting me know where the talk was, I will contact that REI to seek the information asked about.

Thanks and best of travels in the future.

I contacted the REI in Rancho Cucamonga and spoke with the person that lead last night's "Preparing for Whitney" discussion.

He stated he was using government agency literature on the subject and suggested that since Whitney is a heavily traveled area that the likelihood of finding and contracting waterborne illnesses is greater. He also said he was protecting REI interests.

Memory Lapse,

I took another seminar at REI Rancho Cucamonga and was it wasn't as advertised. I don't think these guys have their act together yet.

To any newbie around these parts...you will learn more here than any Whitney Seminar be it one given by REI or A16. That is the quality of info and experience which flows through this board.

WB,

Agree completely, I was just trying to find out what reference they were citing. I was hoping to provide more balance to the discussion that Meisco started. I think Bob Rockwell's paper acknowledges the NFS position is erring on the side of extreme caution.

Again, if anyone wants to filter, knock yourself out.

58 years old, hiking 44 years (without adult supervision). I carry iodine tablets for emergency use if I think water source is sketchy, but have hardly ever used them. One can judge where water comes from and use discretion. I have never been sickened by mountain water, nor have my companions.
When I'm at a place like Trail Camp, I'll boil water if I haven't collected some elsewhere. Bob Rockwell's article about this is pretty much the real deal. The little lake at Trail Camp is suspect, but you can go 50 feet upstream from it and you're good to go.
I think most of the issue has been stirred up by those who make and sell filters.

Adrian

Just a quick follow up question: Since these water borne pathogens, Giardia, etc, do not successfully over winter, (See Bob's paper) and with the over 150% snowfall amounts, the large anticipated runoff, as well as the late Spring thaw, will the overall Sierra water quality this year be better? Does not a large and abundant snowfall/ winter such as this last one, effectively rid the backcountry of these parasites? Responses?

I agree that the giardia risk is overblown and that it's probably not as prevalent as stated. I also generally agree that high sierra water is purer than what's coming out of the tap.

However, I don't consider the Whitney Zone (or any other heavily used trail) to be representative of high sierra water.

I think there are 100 day-hike permits and 50 overnight permits. That means 200 people a day on the trail (100 day hikers, 50 overnighters going up, and 50 coming down). Assuming 80% of these people get the normal amount of fiber to have one bowel movement per day, that means that 160 people poop in the whitney zone every day.

Let's be generous (it's probably fewer) and say that half them hold it until they get to a proper latrine. I'll also make a conservative estimate that people eliminate about 8 oz. (the weight of a moderate lunch). That calculates out to 40 lbs of poop being deposited (outside of a latrine)along the trail, everyday (during the summer). Or... 1200 lbs a month.

Just something to think about.

JoshCube,

I think you need to modify your equation a bit. One permit can be used by more than one person....

In addition to Yappy's good point re Cube's numbers, hopefully some (most?) of those folks are packing it out.

Still, I'm filtering. It ain't that heavy.

I thought that one is now required to pack out your human waste on the main trail..is this the case?

I know it is required when you hike the narrows in Zion NP & all rafting trips you have to haul it out along the Colorado river in the Grand Canyon