Old timer told me to quit overplanning my water drops... he was right

Met this guy near the PCT junction outside of Lone Pine who saw my spreadsheet with 6 water caches mapped out. He laughed and said just carry 4 liters and filter from the creeks, most of em run year round. I ignored him at first but after day 3 I dumped half my extra bottles cuz I was hauling way too much weight. Now I only bring a squeeze filter and never carry more than I need for a day. Anyone else get burned by overprepping water on desert sections?

2 comments

2 Comments

white.seth5d ago

Yeah that spreadsheet thing hit home for me. I did the exact same thing on my first JMT section (somewhere near Muir Trail Ranch) and my pack felt like I was hauling a keg. That old timer gave you solid advice - most creeks in the Sierra are reliable until late summer, and even then you can usually find something. I switched to a filter a few years back and it saved my back, plus I don't have to plan every single camp spot around a water source. Just gotta watch out for the really dry stretches like that one between Kennedy Meadows and the Kern River. Once you trust the filter and learn to read a map for seasonal creeks, the weight savings is huge.

wesley_fox924d ago

Hold up, the Kern River is actually south of Kennedy Meadows, not between it and the trail.