Tried the PCT water cache method on the AT and got giardia anyway

Followed every guide about filling up at shelters and filtering from streams, but still spent 3 days puking near Harper's Ferry. Filter clogged on day 2 and I got lazy - learned you can't skip boiling even with a good filter.

2 comments

2 Comments

jake_chen4d ago

Happened to me three years ago on the JMT, so I feel your pain. Did you actually run your filter through a full bleach soak after that first clog, or just rinse it out? Because I made the same mistake and it turned out that little clog was full of bacteria that set up camp in my filter. Curious if you treated the water bottle or just the filter too, because that giardia can hang out on the threads and mouthpiece.

kelly_roberts4d ago

Bleach soak is the way to go. I hit both the filter and the bottle threads with a diluted bleach solution after every trip now. Learned that lesson the hard way after a nasty bout of stomach cramps on a weekend trip. Giardia is no joke, it will absolutely hide in those little crevices if you don't treat everything.