The Trek: Stoves, Diet and Water Filtration on the Appalachian Trail: 2021 Thru-Hiker Survey
The Trek: Stoves, Diet and Water Filtration on the Appalachian Trail: 2021 Thru-Hiker Survey
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A 2021 thru-hiker survey about stoves, diet and water filtration on the Appalachian trail
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Stoves, Diet and Water Filtration on the Appalachian Trail: 2021 Thru-Hiker Survey
Each year here at The Trek, we ask long-distance hikers on the Appalachian Trail (AT) about the stoves and water filters they used on their 2021 Thru hike. This post will cover the cooking systems, resupply strategies and water filters used by this year’s survey respondents.
Written by Joal and Jenny
The Hiker Sample
Three hundred and ten hikers participated in the survey, all of whom section or thru-hiked the AT in 2021. Almost three-quarters were thru-hikers, and the rest were section hikers. For more details on the hiker demographics, check out our post with general information from the survey.
Water Treatment
We asked hikers how often they filtered water they took from natural sources.
The overwhelming majority (83%) of hikers always filtered their water. This is the highest number recorded through our AT survey, up from 78% in 2019. A further 13% did so for all sources except for springs, or most of the time. Only four hikers never filtered, while eight did so on occasion.
Water Treatment Type
Water treatment is commonly done via five methods:
- A filter that water is pushed through manually, making it ready to drink instantly (e.g. the Sawyer Squeeze). This is usually attached to a dirty water bottle or pouch.
- A pump that filters the water (e.g. the MSR MiniWorks). This requires no wait time.
- Liquid chemical treatments that take a few minutes to react before the water is safe to drink (e.g. Aquamira).
- Tablets that operate the same way (e.g. Aquatabs). Tablet treatments have been around longer than liquid treatments and, while small, are bulkier than liquid options.
- Devices inserted into the water bottle or bag that use UV rays to treat the water (e.g. the Steripen).
Sixty-six percent of hikers used a mid-size filter, down from 77% in 2019. Mid-size pumps made up the second most popular option at 22% of the responses, which is over-represented versus previous years. This could have been due to the way the questions in the survey were asked, so for future iterations of the survey, we will make sure this is clarified along with capturing the models of water treatment used.
READ NEXT – Katadyn BeFree vs. Platypus Quickdraw vs. Sawyer Squeeze
Tablets, liquid or UV filtration were used by a small minority of less than 6% of hikers which is about the same as 2019.
Stoves, Diet and Water Filtration on the Appalachian Trail: 2021 Thru-Hiker Survey
Each year here at The Trek, we ask long-distance hikers on the Appalachian Trail (AT) about the stoves and water filters they used on their 2021 Thru hike. This post will cover the cooking systems, resupply strategies and water filters used by this year’s survey respondents.
Written by Joal and Jenny
The Hiker Sample
Three hundred and ten hikers participated in the survey, all of whom section or thru-hiked the AT in 2021. Almost three-quarters were thru-hikers, and the rest were section hikers. For more details on the hiker demographics, check out our post with general information from the survey.
Water Treatment
We asked hikers how often they filtered water they took from natural sources.
The overwhelming majority (83%) of hikers always filtered their water. This is the highest number recorded through our AT survey, up from 78% in 2019. A further 13% did so for all sources except for springs, or most of the time. Only four hikers never filtered, while eight did so on occasion.
Water Treatment Type
Water treatment is commonly done via five methods:
- A filter that water is pushed through manually, making it ready to drink instantly (e.g. the Sawyer Squeeze). This is usually attached to a dirty water bottle or pouch.
- A pump that filters the water (e.g. the MSR MiniWorks). This requires no wait time.
- Liquid chemical treatments that take a few minutes to react before the water is safe to drink (e.g. Aquamira).
- Tablets that operate the same way (e.g. Aquatabs). Tablet treatments have been around longer than liquid treatments and, while small, are bulkier than liquid options.
- Devices inserted into the water bottle or bag that use UV rays to treat the water (e.g. the Steripen).
Sixty-six percent of hikers used a mid-size filter, down from 77% in 2019. Mid-size pumps made up the second most popular option at 22% of the responses, which is over-represented versus previous years. This could have been due to the way the questions in the survey were asked, so for future iterations of the survey, we will make sure this is clarified along with capturing the models of water treatment used.
READ NEXT – Katadyn BeFree vs. Platypus Quickdraw vs. Sawyer Squeeze
Tablets, liquid or UV filtration were used by a small minority of less than 6% of hikers which is about the same as 2019.
Stoves, Diet and Water Filtration on the Appalachian Trail: 2021 Thru-Hiker Survey
Each year here at The Trek, we ask long-distance hikers on the Appalachian Trail (AT) about the stoves and water filters they used on their 2021 Thru hike. This post will cover the cooking systems, resupply strategies and water filters used by this year’s survey respondents.
Written by Joal and Jenny
The Hiker Sample
Three hundred and ten hikers participated in the survey, all of whom section or thru-hiked the AT in 2021. Almost three-quarters were thru-hikers, and the rest were section hikers. For more details on the hiker demographics, check out our post with general information from the survey.
Water Treatment
We asked hikers how often they filtered water they took from natural sources.
The overwhelming majority (83%) of hikers always filtered their water. This is the highest number recorded through our AT survey, up from 78% in 2019. A further 13% did so for all sources except for springs, or most of the time. Only four hikers never filtered, while eight did so on occasion.
Water Treatment Type
Water treatment is commonly done via five methods:
- A filter that water is pushed through manually, making it ready to drink instantly (e.g. the Sawyer Squeeze). This is usually attached to a dirty water bottle or pouch.
- A pump that filters the water (e.g. the MSR MiniWorks). This requires no wait time.
- Liquid chemical treatments that take a few minutes to react before the water is safe to drink (e.g. Aquamira).
- Tablets that operate the same way (e.g. Aquatabs). Tablet treatments have been around longer than liquid treatments and, while small, are bulkier than liquid options.
- Devices inserted into the water bottle or bag that use UV rays to treat the water (e.g. the Steripen).
Sixty-six percent of hikers used a mid-size filter, down from 77% in 2019. Mid-size pumps made up the second most popular option at 22% of the responses, which is over-represented versus previous years. This could have been due to the way the questions in the survey were asked, so for future iterations of the survey, we will make sure this is clarified along with capturing the models of water treatment used.
READ NEXT – Katadyn BeFree vs. Platypus Quickdraw vs. Sawyer Squeeze
Tablets, liquid or UV filtration were used by a small minority of less than 6% of hikers which is about the same as 2019.
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Media Mentions
https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/top-stoves-filters-rain-gear-and-more-on-the-appalachian-trail-2023-thru-hiker-survey/
Media Mentions
Weighing just 3oz the Sawyer Squeeze is the perfect water filter and trusted by countless thru-hikers year after year. With the ability to be screwed on a bottle, run as an inline filter on a hydration pack, or rigged up as a gravity filter (my prefernce), this simple filter will be a hit this holiday.
Media Mentions
Sawyer Permethrin is the most effective method we’ve found for dealing with ticks and mosquitos on trail. It’s a natural product derived from chrysanthemum flowers that kills ticks after they come in contact with it, so you’re protected from terrible issues like Lyme disease.
