Water Your Preferences?

The phrase "hydration system" is ample proof that camping gear lingo has gotten completely ridiculous. What does this phrase really mean? Basically - water bottle! I suppose the fancier the name the more you can charge for it, right?

My "hydration system" started out as a simple, 1 litre Nalgene bottle. There's absolutely nothing wrong with keeping it simple! In fact, I still have the same bottle. They pretty much last forever unless you run over them with your car or something. The bottle worked fine, and held water just like I wanted it to.

Then a few years ago some friends of mine gave me a 2 litre Platypus water bladder. (Cue chorus of angels...) Suddenly I could drink without breaking my stride or occupying my hands. Some may call it 'fancy-shmancy', but I call it progress.

Then again, the bladder system isn't perfect either. Both bottles and bladders have their problems. This is how I see it:

Problems with water bottles:

• You have to stop and fish it out of a pack or pocket every time you drink.


• There are lids or caps to unscrew, which always manage to leap out of my hand into the muddiest part of the track.


• The bottle continues to take up just as much space empty as it did full, which bladders don't.

Problems with bladder systems:

• The tube can be hard to clean and get grimy or even mouldy.


• The zip-loc style filling system on mine can be outrageously hard to close.


• Somehow, when you least expect it, something will lean against the mouthpiece and open the flow of water all over your pack.


• They cost a lot more than a water bottle.

For me, the convenience of hands-free water consumption is worth the negatives. I'm curious to see what others think about this - so please leave me some comments. Are you a bladder-sucker or a bottle-chugger?