Gear Advice - Hydration Bladders

[Art Lambart II]

My wife gave me a new day pack for Christmas and it's hydration bladder compatible but I don't have any experience with them. When I was young and in the service, camels carried loads on their backs and soldiers carried canteens, I still have two of those green plastic canteens and a new modern stainless steel wide-mouth version as well. What brand of hydration bladder should I look into or should I forget about drinking water thru a straw and stick with the canteen?

 

[Brent in Az]

New bladders need to be seasoned, or they can taste like rubber. The one I tried did.
Here in Arizona the earlier hunts can be on the warm side, and the water in bladders can get tepid. I tried one once, and didn't like it, but thats just me.
I prefer to carry cold bottled water from the cooler in my day pack

 

[Red Leg]

I hate them. But then I am also of the canteen era. Tried them in the Middle East. Between body heat and ambient conditions you are guaranteed something with the characteristics of warm pee.

 

[375er]

I have had great luck with the Osprey brand and love them. Much easier to carry decent amounts of water close to your spine instead of bottles in your pack pockets. The opening is large enough to add ice and keep it cool and fresh.

 

[SaintPanzer]

Bladders are helpful, but not the "final answer". Yes, they get warm, but I've been drinking warm water out of plastic canteens since boot camp. Now that I think on it, that was almost hot water. Doesn't bother me much anymore. Heck, cold water bothers me...

But the real "issue" with bladders is if a seam goes, you lose everything. My plastic canteens don't run that risk, and a SIG bottles certainly don't have that risk, but bladders are easy to cut, and then there are those seams. Even when I carried one in 'Stan, I carried my old plastic canteens as well...

 

[baxterb]

For a short walk or bird hunting I carry two .5L platypus bladders in a fanny pack. When I have a backpack, I will often put a single 1L platypus in the lid with a tube. I’ve done it this way for maybe 20 years now. I do not like the slosh of a hard canteen or Nalgene bottle.

 

[BeeMaa]

I hate them. But then I am also of the canteen era. Tried them in the Middle East. Between body heat and ambient conditions you are guaranteed something with the characteristics of warm pee.

I have at least 3 CamelBak bladders and various packs to put them in. To combat the "warm pee" condition, I fill mine to the tippy top with ice, then fill with water. The best use I've found for them is when I'm solo motorcycle riding...I strap it to the passenger seat and use an extra long tube I have clipped to my jacket. This allows me to not be burdened with the extra weight on my shoulders. Also after taking a drink, I blow back into the tube so the water inside the tube doesn't get hot. Works great for long rides. Service stations will usually let me top it up from the ice machine for no charge.

I've yet to use them with any real success while hunting. I usually end up taking one of my Yeti 750 ml bottles and filling it mostly with ice and throwing in a hydration tablet like ones from NUUN. Makes it taste just a little better than water, so I better hydrated.

 

[Red Leg]

I have at least 3 CamelBak bladders and various packs to put them in. To combat the "warm pee" condition, I fill mine to the tippy top with ice, then fill with water. The best use I've found for them is when I'm solo motorcycle riding...I strap it to the passenger seat and use an extra long tube I have clipped to my jacket. This allows me to not be burdened with the extra weight on my shoulders. Also after taking a drink, I blow back into the tube so the water inside the tube doesn't get hot. Works great for long rides. Service stations will usually let me top it up from the ice machine for no charge.

I've yet to use them with any real success while hunting. I usually end up taking one of my Yeti 750 ml bottles and filling it mostly with ice and throwing in a hydration tablet like ones from NUUN. Makes it taste just a little better than water, so I better hydrated.

The places I have hunted in Africa where a bladder water carrier might have theoretical utility have tended not to have a crushed ice option nearby.

 

[BeeMaa]

The places I have hunted in Africa where a bladder water carrier might have theoretical utility have tended not to have a crushed ice option nearby.

Right...which is why I stick to the canteen/water bottle/thermos for hunting situations.

 

[BourbonTrail]

I used them quite regularly when I lived in Arizona for hunting/hiking. However, those were solo hunts miles from civilization…no water cooler. I used Camelback brand almost exclusively. The water bladder saved me having to drop and rummage through a pack for water bottles making extra noise.

It definitely needs seasoned like Brent mentioned so as to not taste like warm plastic water.

…However, a truck with a cooler (and someone else to fetch it) does change things.

 

[Woodcarver]

My wife gave me a new day pack for Christmas and it's hydration bladder compatible but I don't have any experience with them. When I was young and in the service, camels carried loads on their backs and soldiers carried canteens, I still have two of those green plastic canteens and a new modern stainless steel wide-mouth version as well. What brand of hydration bladder should I look into or should I forget about drinking water thru a straw and stick with the canteen?

I like'em. Can't stand canteens and noisy, sloshing water bottles. In hot weather, like BeeMaa, I try to fill with ice, then water. In winter, care must be taken to clear the tube so it doesn't freeze.
Canteens and water bottles will get just as hot, maybe hotter, than a bladder in a pack, in my experience. Both can freeze solid if carried exposed where you can actually get at them easily. I've never had a bladder freeze, just the mouthpiece. The convenience of taking a sip without having to dig out a container is invaluable for me. Helps make sure I actually drink enough in a days hike. Don't leave camp without it.
I have several, Camelback, and Cabelas, and some others. The two things I have learned to look for is a large fill opening and a mouthpiece that has an off valve. The QD feature of the Camelback is really handy.

 

[Doug3006]

I’ve used canteens and bladders when hunting in NA. I prefer canteens. In Africa, one of the trackers has always grabbed a pack filled with water bottles when we dismount from the Land Cruiser. I’ve never carried water myself. Self sufficiency sounds good and all, but practically speaking, I don’t think it’s necessary to carry your own water.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

Here in Africa, away from home, you don't drink water from a tap. It comes in 340mm plastic bottles, sealed, fresh as a daisy. What on earth would you want to decant it for? Just carry one in the side pouch of your cargo shorts, or the tracker carries them in his back pack. I have never drunk water from a bladder, never will, not an appealing thought.

 

[WAB]

I used a bladder for the first time on an AZ hunt this year. I liked being able to take a drink without fiddling with anything. I can’t see any reason to use one in Africa.

 

[Philip Glass]

My wife gave me a new day pack for Christmas and it's hydration bladder compatible but I don't have any experience with them. When I was young and in the service, camels carried loads on their backs and soldiers carried canteens, I still have two of those green plastic canteens and a new modern stainless steel wide-mouth version as well. What brand of hydration bladder should I look into or should I forget about drinking water thru a straw and stick with the canteen?

I’ve used them quite a bit and they work well once you get used to them. As far as brand I am not sure but there are many good ones on the market. I do recommend getting some electrolyte packs (like Gatorade) to use with the bladder.
PG

 

[Hunting Hitman]

I have used bladders quite a bit when completing both slams and various other mountain hunts where the convenience clearly outweighs other methods of carrying water.
In Africa the staff usually Carrie’s the water and I have never seen the need to do it.
Make sure you “season” the bag which consists of running water through it a few times before first use.

 

[Hunter4752001]

Personal choice as to whether you prefer canteens or bladders. However the most important thing is to sterilize the bladder, tube and mouthpiece before each use (ie before each hunting trip). Nothing ruins a hunt more than a dose of the runs cause by left over water having gone bad.

 

[RobBrown505]

They do make great pillows in the field.

 

[Nhoro]

When I was a young apprentice hunter, I used a canteen - water was always warm to boiled and ready for tea ! I also was young and stupid and would do a hard hot day +40 deg C and 30 km walking on a litre of water or so. I was probably always dehydrated but too stupid to realize. Nowadays I have a 3 l bladder that fits in my pack. I load it up with the right amount of water for the day that I expect ie 1.5 litres if I have to walk a couple of hours and more if walking for longer. The bladder is better insulated inside my pack and stays cooler than any canteen but lukewarm water is still the order of the day.

The only cold water option is if the tracker carries a vacuum flask or vacuum bottle and you should take 2- 3 litres if you are walking any distance. That is 3 clanking, clanging stainless steel heavy weights. Personally I carry my own water because invariably the guy with the water will be sent off somewhere and you will be thirsty. I still have a plastic bottle which I often use if a I know the walks will be short because it is easier to fill and also handy around camp/in my room at night.

If you decide on a bladder, simply wash it with a little dishwashing soap and stick the mouthpiece in the filling hole and hang it up somewhere. The hose into the bladder keeps the bladder from folding flat and it dries out inside. Then you will never have funky water.

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

A good portion of our first time hunters come with the bladders. Then they find out one of the trackers leave the cruiser with a back pack of ice cold bottled water. The second day of the hunt the bladder is no longer used. Belt canteens are a bit bulky and cumbersome for me, not to mention the "slosh".