Water and Hydration

One of the most frequent suggestions that you hear about dealing with altitude sickness is to keep drinking. Our guide suggested 3 liters a day, plus the liquids that we drank during meals. That much water means that much peeing - four times in one night, and ten times in one day were my personal records. I used a Camelbak combination water system and daypack, and I found it quite effective. It holds 70 oz (about 2 liters) and by sipping on the tube as I hiked, I was easily able to drink 3 liters a day. In addition to carrying the Camelbak water, I carried a 1 liter and a .5 liter bottle, with Tang or Gatorade mix in them. During our breaks I drank the flavored water for a change.

However, I did not use the Camelbak on the summit - our guide had warned me, and I had also read about the tendency of the tube to freeze up. I did not want to be carrying water that I could not access. What we ended up doing was very satisfactory. Our cook heated water and filled the five liter bottles that we had brought along. Each bottle was insulated, either with a heavy sock or a fancier insulation holder, and the guides carried them all. Dave and I each had just a half liter bottle that we carried in a pocket. We would sip as we climbed, and whenever we ran out we would call a break and get replenished from the guides' supplies. The water remained warm throughout the climb, which made it nice to have a warm bottle in your pocket!

As for the purity of the water - we were told that the cook boiled all of our water. We did not observe whether or not he faithfully did, but in any case, we remained healthy and free of any digestive upsets, so it seemed to be a system that worked. We met and talked with other climbers, and no one reported any GI problems, so I feel confident in saying that outfitters have figured out a way to keep the water clean.