All You Need to Know About Drinking Water

Before we get into this subject there are a few basic things that should be understood. Just because a stream looks absolutely sparkling and the water tastes better than anything you've ever experienced - beware! You never know what lies upstream - could be a dead animal! So the story here is, if other campers who know the area have been drinking the water then go for it. If not err on the cautious side and boil all drinking water. This can be a pain and being basically lazy we avoid this!

You can use any container safe for water. We use the Igloo as it makes a bag of ice last up to four days if you like cold water

Instead of boiling we tend to carry 20 litres of drinking water in a Coleman Igloo Cooler with a tap. On the road we ONLY fill this up with town water. Another trick is to just fill it up with party ice, but this is still no guarantee the water is 100% OK. As you travel round Australia you will find that quite often bore water is all you can get. Put this in the van tank and use it for general use. Getting tummy bugs can ruin a trip. At Easter 2001 we both got sick as well as fourteen other campers. We were at a park we know backwards - but the normal managers were on holidays and obviously the gadget that squirts chlorine into the creek water supply had gone on the blink. In cattle country we ALWAYS boil the water - even for cleaning teeth, cooking and washing fruit and vegetables. Anyone who has been to Bali knows how important this advice is and how true. If you get the runs and the symptoms persist you could try getting some Imodium from the chemist. If that fails - the strongest drug available without a script, get to the doctors pronto, as dehydration is a big problem. If we get diarrhoea and vomiting together we head straight to the doctors, as this can get serious very quickly, particularly in small children. Another trick is to have two tanks - see below.