Drinking Water on Safari

[NewForester]

Why does no one seem to carry any water in the photos of safaris?

I would have thought that there would have been a water-bottle or two on people's belts or a camelbak.

 

[Red Leg]

Where most people hunt in Africa, stalks are short and plenty of water is on the vehicle. Wilderness areas are a different story, but on a long pursuit most of us put a water bottle in a pocket, and one of the PH’s team will have a back pack with quite a few.

 

[Ridgewalker]

Once I start a stalk or head to a blind, I grab a bottle and put it in a pocket of my vest or jacket just as Red Leg mentioned. I hate being thirsty! I’ve done that for as much as 2 days in the Guadalupe Mountains of Texas. Never want to do it again!

 

[meigsbucks]

I’ve made it clear with my PH’s that water goes on every stalk. During my first safari, in addition to one of the staff carrying water, I wore a daypack with a hydration bladder and sucked down bottles of water constantly while on the truck.

 

[JimP]

There is always water available, even if you don't see a bottle sitting there in the trophy shots.

I know that when I take pictures of animals that I have shot I try and clean things up that might be in the picture. Trash, and other things like water bottles won't be seen even if they are just 10' away.

 

[wipartimer]

I do it a little different, I guess. I usually try to drink water and pre hydrate in the truck. I will sometimes carry a new -unopened bottle on a stalk. But once opened I want it drank all the way. Maybe its all in my head, but to me a partial bottle of water sloshing around is too much noise risk.

 

[Newboomer]

Prehydrate before leaving the truck, take a bottle with, and if there is any left after the kill, use it to clean blood off what areas might be in photos.

 

[WAB]

I carry a bottle on my belt. The tracker always has bottles in his pack. I like to sip water as I go as opposed to slugging it at stops.

 

[IvW]

I never leave the truck without water neither does my tracker without the back pack with spare water and some goodies...then again I mostly hunt large areas many un fenced....depending what you are tracking you may be away from the truck for a long time......

Hydrate the night before and also early morning before leaving camp. I also prefer to drink water as I go as opposed to drinking large quantities when we stop.

 

[Bearbait1]

to prevent a partially full water bottle from sloshing I squeeze the bottle until the air is expelled and then screw the top back on.

 

[fourfive8]

It'd be a pretty boring video showing close up shots of water bottles or hunters drinking water as part of the contrived drama of most huntin' videos

No worries- there is always water... or should be! Don't pay too much attention to what you see in typical hunting videos. They are what they are. As others have posted, there is always water both in the vehicle and taken along if you are out hunting on foot. Usually you, the PH, a tracker or two, a skinner and maybe a game scout. One or more in the group will be hauling quite a bit of water.

 

[bruce moulds]

the first part of the body to dehydrate is the eyes.
target shooters try to hydrate to urinate every 3/4 of an hour to assure best vision.
maybe correct hydration would reduce the need for super optics in scopes.
bruce.

 

[Newboomer]

Yep. Pee to see.

 

[JimP]

Yep. Pee to see.

Wow, I must have the best vision in my life with as much as I have to pee

 

[PeteG]

I tend to consume quite a lot of water and try to do so throughout the day.
once we start tracking, I tend to take small sips of water every 10mins or so.
A 1.5 or 2lt camelback works well for this.
the tracker will also have (depending on the number of us) 6-8 x 500ml bottles in a backpack.
Drink lots of water in the evening and night helps keep you set for the next day.

we have also usually taken off camelbak packs and others for pictures. It’s seldom seen and I would probably encourage someone to remove a camelbak or water bottles dangling from a belt for a posed picture.

 

[BeeMaa]

Limiting alcohol intake the night before a hunt.

Heavy drinkers the night before a hunt don't do well the following day.
I'm not saying don't have a drink.
What I am saying is to be reasonable and only have a couple.
Especially if it is going to be hot and humid.
You should give yourself every advantage possible.
Staying in good health (and hydrated) is part of it.

I (like others have mentioned) prefer the small sips method.
We leave the truck and I have a bottle in my pocket.
If we think it will be a long stalk, the camelbak comes along.

 

[Philip Glass]

Why does no one seem to carry any water in the photos of safaris?

I would have thought that there would have been a water-bottle or two on people's belts or a camelbak.

I assure you I have water handy although it won’t be in the pictures for the most part. You must remember the difference between a game farm PG hunt where you are usually close to the vehicle and not on a stalk for more that a couple hours versus a true wilderness DG hunt where you may spend all day walking. When I was in Cameroon in January (see my hunt report) I used a Kuiu Stalker 500 (just like a Camelback) and it was perfect to carry enough water plus just a few necessities.
It is a good question that you ask. We should always stay hydrated on our hunts. I suffered very dangerous dehydration while pursuing Mid Asian Ibex in Kyrgyzstan a few years ago.
Philip

 

[Jon Glajchen]

I always make it a habit of taking water whenever I get off the vehicle or hunt on foot. Often a short walk to check for spoor or to walk towards a water hole can turn into long foot slog that can take a good few hours in the heat of the day.

I have an old army web belt with a water bottle and pouches that are filled with survival and medical goodies. This is given to the tracker who carries it for me. More than once it has proven a godsend for both the tracker and I. Needless to say it won’t appear on most of the photos I take!

 

[Newboomer]

Oh, yes. Those canteens and ammo pouches. Good for many things.

 

[curtism1234]

For me, water is critical since I have bad disks in my neck and muscle disfunction in my shoulders. Have to stay well hydrated or else I get a terrible migraine that night. You don't want to scream yourself back to sleep when you are on vacation.