Am sure some of you have read this

[Mike O]

But it was new to me. Any comments?

http://www.ridgenet.net/~rockwell/Giardia.pdf

Article about your chances of catching giardiasis from drinking Sierra Water.

Mike

[JasonB]

Not scientific statement in any way, BUT, a buddy of mine had passed this info along to me a little while back. He "always drank freely from mountain streams", and was pretty confident that the miniscule chance of getting Giardia were not worthy of concern. This winter he got it, now he filters his water... I've drank some high elevation water from time to time, but for now I'm inclined to filter it just to be on the safe side. I'm sure the odds are fairly low, but a filter just doesn't take up that much space, or weight and I've never found them challenging to use at all (not sure what the author finds so awkward about them).

Of course I may be wrong, I'm willing to take that chance if all it means is dealing with a filter...
JB

[SHigSpeed]

I recently bought a Sawyer squeeze filter to replace my Katadyn Hiker pump. Three ounces or so and good for a million gallons. Cheap and light insurance.

_SHig

[Ed Wahl]

That's a very informative link Mike, thanks. It confirms my years of anecdotal evidence. I've been suckin up Sierra water for decades. One of my favorites is a spring about halfway up coming out of the North Fork American. We dubbed it the "thank you Jesus" spring because that was the point where our water bottles ran out on a 100 degree day. Another memorable seep comes to mind, this one in the South Fork canyon while quail hunting. Our water bottles were long dried out and we came across a seep in a gully. The dog, Figaro, was thirsty too but we had to take turns holding him back while we drank because he liked to lay in the water while he drank his share. Then there's the friendly rattler that took off instead of biting me in the head when I drank from a spring in the desert while Scott and I fished a tiny stream on the eastern side. You're really missing out on the Sierra experience if you're too afraid to flop down on your belly and drink the water. Ed

[DFrink]

Thanks for sharing this Mike. I've heard of this study, interesting to read.

[Ned Morris]

Good info but the same old same old. Ralph put a really good summary of Sierra Water stats in the last version of Sierra Trout Guide over 20 years ago. I use a filter when I have the time, but when in the really remote country I never bother. There are however other bugs in the water that can get you sick other than Giardia. The chances however are very very slim. I have had Giardia and it sucks but you live. Ed makes a good point, the day comes when you are too scared to drink from a High Sierra Mountain stream you should pack it in (no pun intended). Going to Bishop Pass/Dusy Basin this weekend and will let you all know what I did and where as it is a very high use area of the Sierras.

[the_gnarwhale]

Some really bad advice in this thread. Giardia and Crypto can be debilitating to a person with the right predisposed conditions. You can get a filter or steri pen for relatively cheap. Use them.

[bigfly]

Forty years ago I contracted Girardia at 12,000 ft.in the Palisades.
The memory is still strong.....I could barely get out of the back-country for treatment (And the climbing trip was a bust).
Filter, boil,or treat your water.....or not.




Jim

[Ralph]

Good paper. Desolation Wilderness is the most heavily used back country region in the state. In the 80's over several summers of continuously gathering water samples from Desolation, a team from UNR could not find a single infective dose of Giardia (I think that is 10 spores/liter??). Prior to that, several researches reported finding plenty of Giardia in the Sierra, however they failed to identify the species. Turns out there are many types of Giardia carried by many different animals but only a few strains infect humans. Beaver carry Giardia and shat in the water all the time. Despite the common term "beaver fever" used to describe Giardia, the common beaver Giardia is harmless to humans.

I've had Giardia several times and it sucks, but I never got it from Sierra waters which I've been drinking unfiltered all my life. Hikers who claim to have contracted Giardia are usually victims of E. coli, Campylobacter or Salmonella poisoning. Giardia usually takes at least two weeks after infection to create noticeable symptoms. About 20% of the folks on this board currently carry Giardia and don't know it. If you get sick after drinking Sierra water, tests will show you have Giardia, but the symptoms were highly likely to have been caused by something else.

Giardia spores sink. Get your drinking water from a quiet pool or a lake if you want to decrease the faint possibility of contracting Giardia. Be intelligent about where you source your water, but don't be afraid to get down on your belly and drink the cold clean water from a High Sierra brook. It is one of finer pleasures in life.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I got what they said was giardia in Central America once.

As Ralph mentioned, it takes two weeks till you get the 'fun' symptoms.

They gave me something for it and I think I had a fast cure.


I think that if you are hiking a high elevation trout stream you should be OK, especially drinking from a spring.


Taking a filter system sounds smart though.

.