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Gordon Bennet. Access to clean drinking water was humanity’s greatest problem for tens of thousands of years and still is in large parts of the world. Sure, we survived, but we did things like have 15 kids in the hope two or three would survive. So just because homo sapiens survived doesn’t mean it was good.
I've always been under the impression these issues are largely due water sources in populated areas where sewerage tends to end up in it. The link Edukator posted above shows that there are still 5 billion people in the world without access to proper sewage systems. Maybe I'm showing my ignorance but I imagine there is a huge difference between this and the crystal clear water running through the hills that's mainly being discussed here.
In general I'm happy to drink from fast flowing upland streams- with the usual mooch upstream to check for carcasses and or other nasties first. To date I've been fine. However my wife became really ill dinking from contaminated water close to the Pierr d'Orthaz campsite near Chamonix back in the day. Anyone who ever had the misfortune to stay there will probably understand why. FWIW the campsite is shut down now, thankfully.
Swimming through the Aberglaslyn gorge once some friends and I wondered why there was rice in the water. Walking back upstream afterwards we found a maggot infested sheep dangling above the lip of the gorge. It wasn't rice we had been swimming with.
I've yet to find a bothy with a mains water supply and have not heard of any incidences of people developing any kind of infections whilst staying in one but that is possibly due to the majority of drinks in a bothy being tea, coffee or alcohol.
The only time I've drank from a river was in the cairngorms and the river was flowing pretty fast. It tasted beautiful with a slight peaty flavour. I'll be buying myself some purifying tablets for my next camp, especially after reading this thread and reading this article.
I imagine there is a huge difference between this and the crystal clear water running through the hills that’s mainly being discussed here.
There is, but most of the world isn't crystal clear mountain streams. Even in primitive times much of it is flat and stagnant and/or pretty dry.
But generally speaking 'well we managed thousands of years without.. ' is not a very good argument for anything.
When I was a child....... our bathroom tap water tasted bad when cleaning our teeth, this went on for months... eventually dad went up into the loft and looked into the water tank = dead mice. I wasn't ill but it wasn't a stream.
The only time I’ve drank from a river was in the cairngorms and the river was flowing pretty fast.
Doesn't necessarily mean much. Lots of fast flowing mountain streams in North Wales that you climb up alongside thinking 'that looks good to drink' then they terminate at a lake which you wouldn't fancy drinking from.
I'm happy to drink from streams but only on high ground on proper hills, never low down or on moorland.
If you're lucky enough to find a proper spring in the mountains you will taste the finest, sweetest water there is.
I know of a couple in the Lakes and have come across a few in the Highlands. The source of the Dee on Braeriach is a famous one. I believe there's one somewhere in the Cuillin that the local guides probably know of.
Depends where you are in the uk.
Above the height most people live at in the uk, probably fine in the less well populated areas. Mayn places in Scotland (and near me in the NE) have few people and few livestock. I'd be more cautious elsewhere.
From my knowledge of travelling. In general the virus problem is more relevant in areas of high populations. In remote areas bacterial filters are probably ok. I've never been ill when I've drunk deliberately from streams. Go high, check upstream, make sure it is fast flowing and aerated.
If I thought water would be a problem in this country I'd probably take tablets as they are small and light. I've got a water to go bottle for travelling and normally take tablets as well.
There are lots of scare stories of things you can pick up (I had 2 friends pick up unusual parasites kayaking the white Nile!) but generally the risks are low compared to other things you wouldn't think twice about.
Yeah I should have remembered people only read the title...
My son drank out of a stream last month in the lower Ochils. Says he checked upstream and stuff.
Ran a high fever for a week and had extreme squits - probably salmonella.
He's not doing that again.
Bacteria are the enemy