Last year, I set out on a run-of-the-mill 14-mile hike with a good friend from my Marine Corps days. The plan was simple: carry everything you need for two days on your back, we’d cover seven leisurely miles on the first day, make camp somewhere with a view, and then hike back out the following morning. I packed a lightweight tent and sleeping system, some emergency gear, a few different forms of water storage and, of course, some water purification tablets just in case my storage proved insufficient.
After a pretty pleasant hike, my buddy and I set about making camp and gathering fire wood, and because of how much effort I was putting into the labor, I kept on sipping away at my water until I suddenly found myself just about empty. Not one to let dehydration set in, I filled up my CamelBak and other canteens from the nearby river, added the water purification tablets, and left my water to sit for a while. The following day, I had plenty of potable water… with just one problem. It tasted absolutely terrible.
Sure, taste isn’t a big deal in a survival situation, but when it comes to a pleasant weekend hike, I’d prefer my water tasted less like garbage water filtered through sadness and more like good old fashioned H20. That’s why I was so eager to test the new LifeSaver Liberty water purification system: it’s a water bottle and filter kit in one, and best of all, the clean water you drink from it doesn’t taste like something your dog would throw up.
My LiveSaver Liberty starter pack included the bottle itself, 4 carbon discs, scavenger hose, a protective silicone sleeve. With all the bells and whistles, this setup retails for a little shy of $120, but you can get the bottle itself (which is really all you need to hit the trails) for $100 or less from many retailers. The bottle can filter 2,000 liters of water before you need to swap out the filter, and with a flow rate of 1.2 liters per minute, this thing can keep you and your family hydrated until help arrives after a disaster, or help you survive one hiking-hangover without digging into your bad tasting purification tablets.
