[Sherpa Lirpa Sloof]

Anyone else tried H20 Evatabs? I picked up a pack of these for my last hike of the fall. The theory is that all you have to carry is the tablets, which are alot lighter than normal water. I bought a pack of 20 which weigh about 3 oz. (not including the carboard box they come in I store them in a plastic container that I would have brought anyway). Here's the scoop. I did a 5 mile hike up to Lake Dreyfuss (5k feet el. gain). In my haste, I didn't have a drop of water during the hike (not recommended), so I was definitely ready to try the tablets at the lake. I put a quarter of a tablet in the pot, not wanting to be wasteful, and then per the instructions "add 1 to 4 drops of water." This isn't rocket science folks and you don't need a Pee-Chee to figure out the measurements. In about 30 seconds I had a little over two quarts of water and then I took what was left of the tablet out and wrapped it up in my bandana to save for later. And yes, the taste was quite pure--no chemical afterschmuck, and it was crystal clear as normal tap water. Note that the tablets also act as a filter. You can see the tablets spinning around and fizzing and filtering antacid-like as they Resolve (the manufacturer uses the word Resolve as opposed to Dissolve as it is the opposite kind of effect). Unfortunately, the reason I went to the lake wasn't to try the tablets, but to photograph the waterfall going into the lake. The falls is moderate, maybe 75 feet vert drop, but somewhat unique as it cascades off a ledge with a deep undercut. My goal was to get behind the falls and photograph the lake thourgh the curtain of water. Curtain of water...if only there was one. Don't hike to this falls in late September it's drier than a 1:00PM infomercial. Anyhow here is where the tablets came in hand. I climbed above the falls and fortunately there were still a few small pools of water. I took out all of my H20 Evatabs and dropped them in--I wanted a big waterfall. In a few seconds, I had a roaring waterfall going. I scrambled down and had time to set up my camera and get a few shots as the falls went from a May gusher to a September trickle. On the way down the trail I sucked on that last quarter of a tablet. My thirst being satisfied, I took what was left of that tablet and tossed it in the brook next to the trail--it improved the flow enough enable several fish to continue on their upstream journey. There are alot of other great uses for this table I am sure. Be creative.

[A. Prilfuel]

Hey Slirpy, when you put that 1/4 tab in your mouth, what the heck happened? You didn't start drooling, did you? Could you spit several furlongs?

[Sherpa Toofyfoog]

'Pril, fur long, I was spitting several fathoms farther, figuratively. I didn't feel like the sorcerer, nor the apprentice, but rather like the bucket. But then...then I pulled out my thermarest...I stood on it...I put on my Raybans...and then, then I heard this song that went something like this: "If everybody had an ocean, Across the great Cascades Then everybody'd be surfing On Evatabs I-8 They'd all be wearing their day-glow, Smartwool Montrails too, Avoidin' bushy wackin' they do, Surfin' USA" Catch a Wave.

[A. Prilshowers]

I think we need to dive into this water issue deeper. I think this concept would have many ramifications, e.g. The wretched Hetch Hetchy valley would be drowned. John Muir would float over in his grave. Flagging and cairns would be lost for all posterior. Difficult to light fires on floating thermarests or Curtis rafts. Glaciers would melt. The Sea-doos contingent would have more money for water trails than kayakers -- even though they are outnumberd 8 to 1. Stefan would need snorkles to bag peaks with 400' P. Perhaps diving to -400P would be the new game in town. Backpacker Joe would have to sell his rigs and buy a couple 4x4 yachts. Randy and Beave would shrivel away without brush to bash. My property would be waterfront. Hey, this is a plus! Waterfront is worth more! Lake Washington would emcompass the whole state. Camp Muir would become Camp Mire. McPilchuck would become McRainier. Tom's keyboard would become saturated, short out, and nobody could fix nethikers.net. WTA would stand for Water Trails Association. Kim's logging pants would be sewn into a life raft.

[Sherpa Inor A. Ecir]

Thanks for pointing out the ramifications. It's only the tip of the waterberg though. The other I was walking out the supermarket with some grocercies and a box of tide. I toss one of those tablets in the air and a fistful of tide and all the sudden people are paying me $5 for the carwash and asking me for towels. My friend was complaining about some standing water in his basement. I showed him how much more water his basement could really hold, and that in reality his problems were quite small. He was not amused. Tomorrow I'm flying to the Sahara to--well I can't be specific, but let's just say Siam will no longer be the world's major rice exporter. But back to hiking--there are too many Twin Lakes in Washington. Let's make each a little bigger so we can merge them and then give them real names like Eggseasyover Lake or Applessaucedollops Lake. How about returning those Ancient Lakes to their ancient ocean form?

[A.]

All right, Sherpa. You didn't say how much they cost and where to get them. I hope you weren't raiding the petrified lakes in South Namibia. You can construct pills similar to H20 Evatabs by balling up the crusty former shoreline remains. By the way, the Native Am's (Anastazi) of medieval Utah used to freeze-dry water in the winter. They would package them in zyp-loque bags made from otter skins and stash them in specially marked packages of Dried Quinoa Husks. By poking around the southwest you can still find these in various museums for $1.99 (But wait, you also get with those purdy blue rocks too). So your fancy pills are really nothing new and have been used since before 1200 AD.

[Sherpa Peed Stekcop]

Hey A., I didn't mention the cost because as J Pierpawned Morgan said "If you have to ask, you probably can't ford it." Not saying you can't all pool your money though. I take umbrage at your calling our Namibia mining effort "raiding." Several Namibian miners have gotten rich from the mines, and if I find out how, believe me I will stop that nonsense. I'm quite familiar with the Anastazi. Their use of freeze dried water was indeed pioneering (or whatever their word for it was). By the way, $1.99 will hardly get you into any museum down there, let alone the parking lot, and the museum people give you the evil eye if you just go into buy blue rocks without partaking of the cultural experience. No reason to act like more of a tourist than one already is. Take the tour. I hope I'm addressing all of your concerns, but I'm short of time developing all sorts of ourdoorsy applications for these evatabs. I recognize your environmental concerns. The Evatabs supposedly have side effects that have yet to be instigated fully. Don't let that stop me from making a buck. By the way, did they ever figure out why the Anastazi dissappeared? Some say there was a drought. Anyhow, don't dWell on it. I'm more concerned about your handle, A. It seems to be evaporating more each day. Trust me, the Evatabs have no avderse sde efcts. Ther r no consequ