Camelback question

D

dalee100

Joined
Mar 15, 2008
Messages
1,539
Hi,

It's been a very dry year, and the usual water holes are bone dry. So I'm considering getting a camelback to tote water for my dogs while hunting.

But it needs to hold about a 1/2 gallon, be light weight and close fitting to allow freedom movement for wing shooting. And rugged enough to withstand being carried through cattail sloughs, willow stands, plum thickets, and other heavy cover places.

Oh, and how do they work at below freezing temps, say 10F to 15F? Any of this doable? Or am I just being silly.

Thanks!
dalee
 
I think a camelbak would work fine. A normal sized one is 70 ounces/.54 gallons so you are OK there. There are many different models but the one I have is very comfortable and fits closely to my back. There are even models designed specifically for hunting. As far as the cold I am not sure about that but mine will keep fluid ice cold for a few hours while in 100 degree heat.
 
with the weather you are talking about you would need the insulated tube and bite valve, unless you are continuously drinking, keeping the water moving through the tube, it will freeze. So get the insulated tube and you should be GTG
 
Freezing could be a problem, depending on how long you're out for and the temp. If it does become a problem you could wear it under your jacket so your body heat will keep the water warm. You could put the hose inside the pack and that would solve any problems with it freezing as well. Since it's for the dogs you're probably not going to use it anyway, I'd imagine it would be easier for them to drink out of it if you just unscrew where you fill it.
 
Ditto what's already been said. On to models: I own their Mule, Thermobak, and BFM. The BFM is certainly too big for your description of need. The mule will give you the water volume you need, and will give you a little storage too. I amaze myself (huh? :D ) with what I can stuff into the little Mule. It'll hug pretty close, especially if you don;t stuff it.
The Thermobak is simple: water only (well, and a tiny amount of space for virtually nothing else). It sounds closest to what you need - at least as far as the models I own and am familiar with. It'll hug close and not get in the way. You can cut the bottom third off of a plastic bag, or use a large ziplock, and stuff it into the zippered mini-cargo on the Thermobak for watering the dogs. That's what I do for mine no matter which pack I'm taking. I just open the bag, pour, and hold it open of them so it doesn;t collapse.

For brush and thicket: Camelbak uses Cordura skin, so the brambles and briar aren;t going to mess with it. Any of their models will take you through and back again - no worries.

For freezing: Grunt is right - you'll need to at least protect the tube. I don;t know if they have a cold weather upgrade, but if he says they do, then I'd say they probably do. My Camels already have an insulated tube cover, but I'm thinking Grunt is saying there's an upgrade for extremem conditions. Now the resevoir will have some limited protection from the pack and from your body heat. That won;t be much since you'll be wearing cold weather gear, BUT: with a Thermobak, you could conceivably wear the pack under your coat....maybe. That's just a thought, I never tried it, but the Thermobak is pretty slim so I'd guess it's doable if you absolutely had to.

Blackhilss: looks like we were typing at the same time and thinking the same thing about wearing it under the jacket! :thumbup:
 
Last edited:
A 100 oz bladder Camelbak carries just over 3 qts.

If you get a stripped down model, not a lot of pockets, etc, you can wear it under your coat, and it shouldn't freeze.

If you want to keep an uninsulated tube out where you can sip from it, blow the water back into the bladder after drinking. You'll still occasionally get some freezing of water in the tube, but it'll usually do the trick. Putting the frozen tube back under your jacket will melt it again.

Don't ask me how I know!
 
I hike and snowshoe a lot in the winter and always use a Camelback. Here are a couple tricks I've learned to keep the water from freezing. The water in the bladder won't freeze b/c of your body heat. What does freeze is the water in the tube and the bite valve, (even with the insulated tube and bite valve if it's cold enough). After you take a drink, blow the water in the tube back into the reservoir. Then tuck the bite valve into your jacket next to your chest, this will keep it from freezing any water that makes it's way back down the tube (this will also thaw the bite valve if you've already got ice in there). This has worked in temps down into the single digits.
 
Camelbak makes plenty of military rigs that are just a bladder in a tough cordura packaging. Something like the Thermobak might be what you are looking for.

Chad
 
While walking around in the cold the water in the camelback will slosh around thus making it difficult to freeze.

At night I would slide the camelback into your sleeping bag with you or you could wake up in the morning with it being frozen.
 
I bought the Blowfish. It has good storage capacity, a 3L water bladder, and it doesn't have all the potential snags like the MULE. Very streamline. I bought mine for mountain biking, but it would be good for the brush as well.
 
If it is for your dogs, and not you, why mess around with the drinking tube and all that? It will just require cleaning, your best potential for freezing (like others have mentioned) and the dogs can't drink from the tube :D

How about something like the MSR Dromedary?

msrdromedary.jpg


B
 
I wore a camelbak thermobak when hunting in africa. It survived a heck of a beating including many stalks through thick acacia bush (think 4" thorns). The trick was to route the drink tube under my arm and up the front strap. That kept the tube from snagging on thorns. Routing it like normal over my shoulder would have snagged in the thick bush.
I did wear it in a tree stand last year and the valve/tube froze when the temperature was around 10F.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top