Why couldn’t they have come up with the Camelbak system years ago when I first started to go hiking? I wouldn’t have had to carry around water bottle after water bottle or scrambled and searched for something to carry water in on each trip.
The CamelBak StoAway Hydration Bladder consists of three different parts. The inner plastic bladder is what holds the water. Attached to the plastic bladder is an insulated hose that ends in a covered nozzle. This is where the water travels from the bladder to you when you are out hike. Surrounding the plastic bladder is an outer covering and shell that protects the bladders and provides insulation for the water.
The CamelBak StoAway Hydration Bladder is designed to be inserted into Camelbak backpacks, your personal backpack, or strapped, with the included D-rings to just about anything you could imagine. The dry weight of the bladder is 10.5 ounces and the overall dimensions 17.5 x 7.25 x 0.5 inches, which is small enough to stash anywhere. When filled, because of it’s length, the bladder widens by no more than an inch or so – still more than small enough to pack into your backpack.
Holding 70 ounces of water, the CamelBak replaces several smaller water bottles in your backpack with a simple and easy to pack. Once in your backpack, or strapped to the outside, drinking whenever you want to is easy. Just remove the cover from the nozzle at the end of the house, bite down on it and start drinking. Water will flow from the bladder, through the house and into your mouth. It’s advisable to at least stop and catch your breath before trying to drink though – especially for those of us who have trouble chewing gum and walking at the same time. You’ll easily get the hang of when you should and shouldn’t be sucking down some water.
Filling up the CamelBak is a fairly straightforward process that is made easier because the inner, plastic bladder can be removed from its shell. It might take a few different attempts to get competent at removing and replacing the plastic bladder, but it is not difficult and once you do understand the process, it is quite quick and easy.
Once the bladder is removed, the plastic cap is removed which provides an opening about 3 inches in diameter to fill the bladder. This is more than wide enough for whatever you would like to fill the bladder with and can easily accommodate the placement of ice cubes in your beverages.
The bladder will continue to provide hydration until the bladder is empty (well isn’t that self-evident), but what I am trying to say is that 99% of the water, or whatever else you have in the bladder will be gone before you start to notice any difference when you are drinking. At that point you’ll start noticing reduced amounts of your beverage. Hopefully it’s at the end of your trip, if not, the bladder could be refilled with filtered water or you could use iodine treatment or other form of purification directly in the bladder.
At the end of your trip, the plastic bladder should be removed from it’s fabric pocket, all of the water should be emptied from it and it should be rinsed (along with the hose) by running water through the entire system. Then it should be allowed to dry thoroughly before putting it away and storing it for your next backpacking or hiking trip. If you don’t allow the bladder to dry completely, mold and bacteria can get a hold in there and start to grow. You don’t want that.
A good way to keep the bladder clean and refreshed (to get out any “old” water taste) is to use a few drops of chlorine bleach. Only use a few drops – maybe 3 at the most if it really smells or gives the water a bad taste. The bleach will not only sanitize the bladder, but will remove any lingering smells that are affecting the water. Let the bleach mixture sit in the bladder for an hour or so and then rinse the entire thing before using it. Or make sure it is completely dry and then pack it away for the next trip.
Should I get one?
CamelBak has a ton of different hydration system models out there. The StoAway Hydration Bladder is one of the most simple. It’s just the inner plastic bladder with the hydration hose and nozzle and the fabric pouch that protects the bladder. It can be placed into other CamelBak hydration packs, into most regular backpacks, or strapped to just about anything using the included D-rings that are on the fabric pouch.
Now that I have one, my CamelBak is indispensable and I can’t imagine going out for a hike without it. No longer do I have to stop, take my pack off and dig for a water bottle, I just pull the hose over to my mouth, bit down on the nozzle and I’ve got all the water I can drink. I even find myself staying better hydrated nowadays with the CamelBak. Because it is so easy, I’m constantly taking a sip of water here and there, as opposed to waiting until I couldn’t take it anymore and then digging out the water bottle.
All around, it’s one of the best hiking accessories I’ve got and definitely makes any hiking trip better. It’s well worth the $30 I paid for it and if you search around, you can find it even cheaper than that.
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