GA AT in April

**coldstealie** · 02-17-2012, 12:44

Originally Posted by deerfu39

BTW.... does anyone know what the water availability is on this section?

There are going to be some great sources on the way.

**deerfu** · 02-17-2012, 19:43

What kind of provisions do yawl usually bring to collect,save and transport water? I have naglene bottles but was wondering what type of filter system might be needed for drinking water.

**SunshineHiker** · 02-17-2012, 23:34

Anything will work really. I've seen people use anything from massive hand pumps to something like the Aquamira Frontier Pro which is my personal favorite. For this trip though I will be bringing my 4L Platy Gravity filter that I always bring with me on a trip with more than 1-2 people. It's really fast and hands free.

For storage I'll have either a 1L or 2L Platypus and my .5L Platy. It depends on how much rain we get in the weeks prior to the trip. I may decide to bring all of them if I feel I might want/need to carry more in between water sources, but something like the AT carrying more than 2-3L at a time is overkill I know a ton of people who only carry 1L at a time.

**deerfu** · 02-18-2012, 08:50

Originally Posted by SunshineHiker

Anything will work really. I've seen people use anything from massive hand pumps to something like the Aquamira Frontier Pro which is my personal favorite. For this trip though I will be bringing my 4L Platy Gravity filter that I always bring with me on a trip with more than 1-2 people. It's really fast and hands free.

For storage I'll have either a 1L or 2L Platypus and my .5L Platy. It depends on how much rain we get in the weeks prior to the trip. I may decide to bring all of them if I feel I might want/need to carry more in between water sources, but something like the AT carrying more than 2-3L at a time is overkill I know a ton of people who only carry 1L at a time.

If I'm walkin' I can suck down a liter in one good drink! I think the gravity filter is gonna be the wy to go. I like the msr in the link posted in the cooking section

**SunshineHiker** · 02-18-2012, 09:34

Haha yeah my husband is the same way. That is why we got the grav filter in the first place. Our first trip we tried to do a UL method and take just chlorine tabs and he was thirsty a ton despite water being every mile or so. He carried 2L with him and it just wasn't enough. The best thing about gravity filters is that they weight equal to or less than most pump filters but are sometimes faster and next to no work! MSR makes a good one. I honestly don't know why anyone buys the pump filters at all.

One thing my husband found is that a water bladder distributes the weight of a ton of water and makes it a bit easier to carry and you have access to 3L at a time for the biggest ones without having to take off your pack. Most backpacks are set up for one and these two options are super easy to fill with something like the MSR grav filter without having to take them out of your pack. Something like this is going to be much lighter than nalgenes and my husband found that it was a ton easier for him to have access to all the water he needed.

http://www.rei.com/product/831078/ge...voir-101-fl-oz
http://www.rei.com/product/767108/pl...voir-100-fl-oz

**deerfu** · 02-18-2012, 15:51

Thanks for the info and link. Gonna have to take a trip to REI and check those out. I didn't even know that a pressurized bladder existed.

**peanuts** · 02-18-2012, 15:58

go with the platypus...extremely light weight.
now if you have not hiked that section of the at before, TAKE YOUR TIME...
that is where most of the thru hikers tend to leave the trail because they under estimate the trail..

**deerfu** · 02-18-2012, 18:43

Originally Posted by peanuts

go with the platypus...extremely light weight.
now if you have not hiked that section of the at before, TAKE YOUR TIME...
that is where most of the thru hikers tend to leave the trail because they under estimate the trail..

I haven't hike any section but I have no problem taking my time

I do 5 mile day hikes at Kennesaw Mountain and the hilly section of the Chattahoochee NRA
with no problem. This "old" guy (45) will take it easy for the first outing.

**SunshineHiker** · 02-18-2012, 21:47

Originally Posted by peanuts

go with the platypus...extremely light weight.
now if you have not hiked that section of the at before, TAKE YOUR TIME...
that is where most of the thru hikers tend to leave the trail because they under estimate the trail..

That's one of the reasons I planned on 1mi an hour days.

**KAW** · 02-18-2012, 22:08

I cant do it then my son and I will be there March 28th at springer! We are section hiking to Franklin 107 mi! Already have our shuttle to springer booked! Sounds like a good time though! Switch dates and join us!