And yes, I practice what I preach; I dip and sip. Digestive upsets in the backcountry are virtually always a matter of poor toilet hygiene, not contaminated water. Don’t drink downhill from the cow pasture or big industrial plant and you’ll be fine anywhere in North America (except for the nose worms in some hot springs in Nevada – but you don’t drink them, they crawl up your nose).
Illinois is very different from the big western mountains where you can get lost in a flash and find yourself in a truly dangerous wilderness survival situation – this a walk in a very busy park – and no offense meant; I think it’s a great way for a city feller to get out and enjoy nature. Don’t overthink it or overdo it; take lunch and a jacket and have fun.
No, they don’t. Neither of your ‘cites’ (from general news sites, not sports physiology or exercise nutrition sources) say a damned thing about hydration during strenuous exercise or outdoor activity. And I’m not going to get in some kind of a citation jousting contest with you when every major outdoor medicine and sports physiology organization from NOLS to ASEP and ACSM promotes the value of hydration with water or dilute electrolyte sports drinks and cautions against consuming more than a small amount of diuretic compounds, a fact you can verify by performing a simple web search.
Sigh, the ignorance is showing today. Look, the reason for filtering water isn’t that every water source is contaminated; it is that some may be, and if you get guiardisis or another water-borne illness it may make you sick for weeks even with treatment, and could potentially compromise your health and safety on an extended backcountry trip. “Dip and sip” if you like, but NOLS and other backcountry organizations recommend filter use specfically because of the increased prevalence of water-borne diseases even among hikers following the traditional advice of drinking from fast moving streams away from obvious animal waste sites.
For all the recommendations around a first aid kit, I’m surprised no one has recommended taking an ACE bandage. I think they’re useful for some basic treatment of some common hiking injuries in the field, like a twisted / sprained ankle.
Then cite one of those sources. No doubt, plain water or dilute sports drinks is BETTER, but there’s no danger at all with caffeinated beverages like tea.
I agree, "Dip and sip” is possibly dangerous. However, on a day hike, the issues would likely come back and hit you the next day, and the dangers of dehydration are present and evident. So, it’s not so bad. But on a longer hike, I would only “dip and sip” if necessary.
It’s still better just to bring along extra water, and some purification tablets in your kit are cheap insurance. I would not bring along a full filter on a day hike, but I do pack a Lifestraw.
I day hike all the time and have for decades. I take a sun hat, WATER, twice as much high-nutrient food as I think I will want (cheese, protein bars, nuts, dried fruit), at least one extra layer of clothing, a multi-tool, an itty bitty first aid kit or at least moleskin and an NSAID, sunscreen, chapstick, bug dope, and a bandanna.
Make sure you have nice thick socks and trail boots or shoes. If you don’t like water, take Gatorade or the like. Of all the hiking I’ve done, I have never needed anything more than the above, but I have needed all of those things.
If you can follow a map (I cannot) take one. Otherwise look behind you a lot and memorize trail forks. The most important thing to carry with you is awareness and common sense.
By the way, if you carry toilet paper? Take a plastic bag with you and carry it back out. Otherwise you are a scumbag creep who defiles the wilderness for everyone who comes after him. Don’t be that guy.
You are correct that on a day hike, or even on a multi-night backpack, drinking contaminated water is unlikely to be life threatening. Though giardia might take a week or so to manifest, it can actually be life threatening. I’ve had friends lose nearly 1/3 of their body weight and be out of work for months. So while it’s not an immediate danger to dip and sip while hiking, you may be regretting that choice later.
HD, even though this is mild, there is no need to politicize your gun comment. A suggestion to bring a gun and a recommendation to check local laws is fine. The color commentary about those laws is not.
Ignorance??? Here are a couple more articles with a good sized list of references. I research subjects which interest me in depth, taking time to read the source material.
I vote for woolen socks. My favorites are the low ones, worn with low top athletic shoes having coarse tread. I used to wear cotton, and was always getting blisters; it’s amazing how much better wool is.
Checking out photos from the Starved Rock, it looks like a place I’d like to visit!
Looking at a park map, it looks like the place is pretty well developed and well-visited. While any outdoor journey comes with a measure of risk, wandering around in Starved Rock looks like a pretty safe place for a day hike. Just wear some shoes you’ve hiked with before, take some water, bring an extra layer, pay attention to your surroundings and have a good time.
You’re just as likely to run into some sort of emergency situation on your scooter ride. That’s what you should prepare for.
2 tourniquets
5 liters of flavoured uncarbonated unfiltered river water
three mirrors
a bear whistle
a bear
bandaids
altoids
5 layers of clothing
a compass (lol)
another compass (no map)
a stroller
your walking revolver
nuts
a headlamp
rear lamps
a bic lighter
a sleeping mat
3 liters of tea
I’d suggest wearing clothes. You don’t want to startle the wildlife.
I have a small emergency kit that I always carry on any hike. Some items are, a Multitool, parachord bracelet, pocket compass, energy bars, and a filter for water.
I recently started carrying a lifestraw filter water bottle. It replaced my old, water bottle.
Actually its not the size of the scooter that counts… The smaller the scooter the more you can hook up to it with elastic rope, because you are free to use a space large enough for a whole car.
