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Carrying water in Namibia Carrying water in Namibia
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  #1  
Old 14 Jul 2008
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Carrying water in Namibia
I'm going to be riding in the Northern Cape and Namibia next January and was wondering about how much water I should be carrying (I'll be 2 up on a 1200GS) Should we buy a couple of Camelbaks or is that just P-D dreaming ?

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Old 14 Jul 2008
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water
A good point which I see as two issues - firstly, planning for the area of each country you intend to visit (on longer days in remote parts = more water) and secondly, don't get lulled into a false sense of security by the large network of petrol stations and modern comforts in both countries - if you have an accident or end up not making your destination by nightfall you will be glad that you bought sufficient water.

We didn't go anywhere particularly remote - we had at least 2x 1.5ltr bottles each with us as we toured the dirt roads on our ATs. Most of the time that was fine but sometimes it wasn't enough when we really needed it.
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Old 14 Jul 2008
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Plenty
Surveying in the Kalahari we always said you need three things - Water, Petrol and Food - definitely in that order.
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Old 14 Jul 2008
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'when in rome, do as the romans do....' and all that,
so you should balance a giant earthenware pot of water on your head like the locals

sorry. im not helping am i.


trouble with water is, its heavy. trouble with camelpaks is they are small, 2-2.5ltrs? whats the biggest you can get? can you stop and refill them regularly? you need 3ltrs a day in a temperate climate, out there you can sweat 7ltrs a day, each, easily. the dry hot air just sucks it out of you.
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Old 15 Jul 2008
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Al the eggs in one basket?
Quote:
Originally Posted by DAVSATO View Post
trouble with camelpaks is they are small, 2-2.5ltrs? whats the biggest you can get?
Trouble with carrying all the water in one container .. if it leaks you'll have NO water when you need it.

2 litre water containers are fine. I prefer hard plastic as they are more resitant to damage. Yes - if you are running low in water than they take space .. what are you going to use teh space for then anyway? You'll need the space again for water .. so don't fill it with other stuff.
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Old 15 Jul 2008
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Water
I have travelled through Namibia (and far remoter) Botswana several times. I have broken down, got stranded without petrol (my own fault) and got lost.

I have only ever travelled with a 1.5l bottle of water. The only exception was the Kaokoveld and traversing the sceleton coast when extra water is common sense - you probably won't travel these routes.

I have never gone thirsty. Even in the remotest parts, you are never further than an hour away from a village/town/settlement.

I travelled with an American bloke on one trip, who had a 1.5l hydrating pack (camelbak). This was more than enough - he never ran out.


If you're planning extreme / enduro riding, its obviously a different story.


Comfort:

I can recommend that you try and freeze a bottle of water each, overnight each time you stop. The LUXURY of icy cold water, throughout the day... makes a huge difference.

Freezing your Camelbak adds coolness - obviously careful not to overfill it.

You will find at campsites that the kiosk/hosts would gladly put water in their freezer for you. I even ask shop owners to keep it in the ice cream chest overnight and pick it up before I leave.
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