| 800 | Camelbak Antidote Reservoir |
2013-04-24 |
I hate to stop while I am walking. Instead of stopping I adjust my gait so that I can walk long distances without growing tired. However, one of the problems with a never stopping approach to hiking is learning to drink and eat while you are moving. It is definitely inconvenient to stop every time you just need a sip of water.
Working on solutions, I used a water bottle holder on a shoulder strap for years (though a little heavy), but once I started using poles regularly I found that I had to at least slow down to retrieve the bottle for a drink. Then, I tried to use a side pocket on my pack to store the bottle - this method was lighter, but the bottle was more difficult to retrieve. Finally, I adapted Amy's (my wife) method of drinking by using a long straw from a bladder. She rode bicycles and used a hydration bladder system, in particular a Camelbak.
Last summer Camelbak updated their Reservoirs. I bought one of the new 50 ounce reservoirs.
Here are a few notes ...
The bladder seems a bit lighter than the older version. My reservoir weighs 7 ounces, with all the adapters. The advertised weight is 6 ounces. A standard, one quart, wide mouth bottle (empty) weighs about the same.
One great feature of the Camelbak Reservoirs is the wide mouth making it is easy to fill and to clean and dry. This feature is really important for folks who add mixtures to their water (Gatorade, etc). I use only water but I still need to clean and air the bladder.
The wide mouth (Air-light fillport) part of the bladder reduced weight in the newest model and improved it's closing. A simple quarter turn secures the lid.
Camelbak has continued the great, low profile design.
A quick release was added to the hose portal. A great advantage of the quick release would be to allow the user to quickly clean the hose or even change hoses - to a different length hose, for example.
The reason I was buying a new Camelbak was my hanging clip broke. Camelbak has a great Customer Service Dept, but we were not in a position to send the bladder off to get it repaired.
The Camelbak site is interesting. One important link is to the Ditch the Disposable campaign. It would benefit the company, Camelbak for buyers to buy bottles instead of using disposable ones, but it is still a very worthy campaign.
I modified my reservoir with a cutoff valve and disconnect. At the link, my mouthpiece section of the hose is detachable and the water filter hose can be attached at that point. The bladder can then be filled from the water filter without removing the bladder from the backpack. Note: When I changed over to the new bladder I was also changing to a new Hiker Pro water filter (Katadyn). Using the Katadyn adapter's male coupler link with the Camelbak female link, the hose leaked. I just needed to use the same brand male and female couplers to make a good waterproof link.
My friend, Jon, likes the Platypus Hoser. We use the soft sided Platypus bottles all the time and are also fond of them. The Hoser is lighter weight than the Camelbak, but it does not have the wide mouth nor the low profile. The Hoser is still a good alternative.
Last summer, we had a few pieces of gear fail. A Camelbak Reservoir (hanger), Katadyn Hiker Pro (handle), and a Garmin 62s (just stopped working) all complained. We still like all three companies and replaced each item.
Happy Camelbak trails