Aquatabs Water Purification Tablets
Chlorine-based, 30 minutes contact time
Handles the viruses a filter misses and weighs nothing, which is why we recommend carrying both — it does not touch cryptosporidium, and it makes the water taste of a swimming pool.
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Do not buy this if: Use as your only method. Filter first, then treat — that combination covers everything.
Everything else we recommend in filters & purifiers, including the ones we think suit a different trekker.
Best overallSawyer Squeeze Water Filter
Effectively unlimited water for the cost of a couple of bottled waters, and it threads straight onto a standard bottle — it does NOT remove viruses, so pair it with chemical drops on trails below villages.
Fastest flowKatadyn BeFree 1L
The fastest flow of any soft-bottle filter and it collapses to nothing when empty — the flask is the weak point, and a pinhole in it ends the system rather than the filter.
Simplest complete answerGRAYL GeoPress Purifier
The only single item here that removes viruses as well as everything else — you pay for it in weight, in cost, and in a cartridge that needs replacing every 250 litres.
