I love this article!

Great article. It certainly proved invaluable during my hike through Desolation Wilderness in Tahoe last week.

Wutzmyname

Then you'll know for sure....

I have been hiking in South America for about the last year and a half. I have drank all water untreated from Santiago south to Ushuaia and never had any problems on either side of the Andes.

However in Peru and Bolivia I did. I used a katadyn mini water filter and had problems for the first three treks in the following areas.
Bolivia - Cordillera Real - Choro trek and Sorata Area.
Peru - Ausungate Circuit.

I then switched to using Chlorine tablets and did not use the water filter for treating all water including cooking water and had no further problems in either country.

I believe the problems come from livestock (llamas) grazing even at high altitudes in Peru and Bolivia. Its hard to get closer to the source than the animals do.

I will use chlorine tablets in Peru and Bolivia in future.

I personally think all water should be pre-filtered at least with something similar to a coffee filter. i've hiked into the indian peaks wilderness, and while i think the water would probably safe to drink on the west side of the divide, pre-filtering it keeps bugs and other stuff out of the water.

Also, now with things like the steripen, all my water will be sterilized with UV light, and then i can still get fresh tasting water without having to take a chance of getting very sick in a remote place...

Edited by denver_whitest185 on 04/17/2010 14:02:52 MDT.

Hi Frank,

Per your post: "I notice that McNett has introduced the Aquamira Frontier Pro Filter, which appears to be exactly what I was looking for last year. Namely, something that filters worms and other large parasites but isn't so fine as to clog easily. I'll be using this on future trips."

I have had positive and negative experiences with the frontier pro; recently having it clog up from suspended solids from what could fairly be considered fairly pristine sources within 200 verticle feet of the uppermost ridge. Maybe I was getting suspended leaf mold that would be less of a problem once things greened up but the water appeared to be VERY clear and was coming out of the ground within sight. (this was late March, southern appalachians)I'd pre-fiter with a bandanna or something and be careful! If the little cotton type pre-filter disk clogs you'd better have a back-up or you to will be drinking al fresco sans filtro or whatever.

I'm in the process of making a home-made amigo pro