In this guide I list every type of water bottle you might need when you are out on the trails. From small to big, soft to hard and even some high tec ones that purify water for you. I’ve also sprinkled some tips and ‘trail hacks’ for alternate uses for bottles I’ve discovered on some of the hottest and coldest trails in the world.

On A Budget – Recycle an Existing One !

Its not often i recommend something that’s completely free but in this case we’ve all got old water bottles around the house. They do everything every other type of bottle does but they are free. Whats better than that ?!

Best Hard Bottles – Ultimate Direction Flexform

These bottles hold about 20oz and have a convenient red mouth bite that means you can drink without having to unscrew a cap. The spout doesn’t leak water and only flows when youve slightly bitten on them.

These are great for mounting on the front of a backpack like the Fastpack 25 or on a Race Vest like the Halo.

Best Soft Flasks – Hydrapak

The Hydrapak Softflasks are a strong choice of mine for lots of reasons. Firstly whether you put them in the front of you backpack or mount them on the sides or back they are comfortable when they push against your body.

The second reason I love them is because they are so versatile. When you are carrying less water they obviously take up less space, and when they are empty you can inflate them with air to turn them into a camp pillow. I also have used them to store things like batteries and tinder inside an empty one to keep things dry when caught out in heavy rain.

Flexi Bottles with Straws

Its also possible to get flexible bottle options with straws attached with the comfi bite on the end. This has a couple of advantages, the main being that if you mount your water bottles on the front of your chest with a backpack like the Fastpack 35 you can now drink without even having to take the bottle out of the pouch, let alone unscrew the cap.

Insulated Bottles

These can seem a bit big heavy and cumbersome but actually they can be well worth the effort. In the winter it means you can take a hot drink like hot chocolate or coffee with you and because of the insulation they stay warm for hours.

In the summer it means you can take ice cool drink with you on the trail and it stay cool for hours. This is also great if you can fill up occasionally at a cool stream for later too.

Katadyn BeFree – Best Bottle with In Built Filter

The Katadyn BeFree Water Filtration System bottle allows you to fill up from streams or water sources when out on the trail by filtering the water through a special small blue filter just inside the bottle lid. The filter removes Bacteria and Viruses from the water and is also able to remove sediment or particles if your water source is a bit cloudy.

Be aware that this will not filter out any chemical impurities that might be in a water source. With a likely number of 1000 fills before the filter needs changing and only weighing 2oz this is a superb addition to any hiker or trail runners gear who doesn’t want to carry loads of weight in water with them . Available in a 1L ( 33oz) or 0.6 L (22 oz) this has become a permanent ‘must have’ in my summer kit.

I do a more in depth review of this bottle here.

Best Self Cleaning – LARQ Water Bottle

I’ve reviewed the original LARQ bottle here and nearly a year later this is still my favourite water bottle. This latest version from LARQ is much lighter in weight and like the original uses a UV light that burst every 2 hours inside to sterilize any bacteria and keep the water fresh. The new ultra light stainless steel versions has 2 size options 24 oz and 32oz both of which are bigger than the original bottle.

The purifying laser is USB rechargeable and the bottle is well built and sturdy even when dropped and the new 2 tone silicone coating helps protect it too. The USB charge holds for weeks of use. It also comes in a range of colors. Its great to see that the USB charger port on the bottle is also now water proofed as well.

Bladder Hydration

So let me make something clear. I am not a fan of bladder hydration packs and have not used them in the last 5 years unless I need to carry more than 3L in one go. There are a couple of reasons for this.

• With the bladder in the back of your back its hard to tell how much water you have left
• Bladders force all the weight on your back rather than placing bottles on the front which helps even out the weight you carry in a more balanced way
• In the cold the very long drinking pipe can be prone to freezing solid easily
• The large filling screw cap has a tendency to leak

That being said plenty of people do still use them so I’ve included one below.

Cleaning Tips

Most bottles are easy enough to clean with a simple bit of hot water and mild washing up liquid. Some bottles can also be put in a dishwasher which helps with cleaning. You can also use a product like bottle bright when your bottle gets a little bit smelly and musty.

Water Purifying Options

There are usually options for filling up with water when you are out on a trail but you need to be careful about the source you choose. Unless its an emergency I strongly recommend only filling up from fast flowing clear looking streams rather than stagnant / green ponds or vernal pools. When filling up from the trail there are a few options for then purifying your water quickly and safely.

Filter

This guide has already given you the BeFree Bottle with a built in filter. As well as this you can also get a Lifestraw to drink directly from a stream.

There is also a more useful filter pump made by MSR called the Trailshot that has a longer hose that dips into the stream and then your hand pumps up to about 1L per minute into your bottle.

I compare these two filter types in this in depth review here.

MSR Thru-Link Inline Water Purifier

If you are using a water bladder system with a drinking tube then the new  MSR Thru-Link Inline Water Filter is a device that you can fit to any bladder water container on the drinking tube section to instantly purify water you’ve collected on trail.

It’ll save you time so you can ‘scoop and go’ from water sources with the water being purified as you drink though it. It’ll remove bacteria from water, has a flow rate of 1.5L per minute meaning drinking from it is effortless and the filter is good for about 1000 Liters.

How do the Grayl Bottles Work ?

This is the first time I’ve seen a ‘push system’ work to purify water and its got some very big advantages. The Grayl bottles come with an outer sleeve that you fill with water up to the maximum fill line before then inserting the ‘inner’ bottle into the same sleeve and pushing down.

The process of pushing down forces the dirty water in the outer sleeve up and through the filter at the bottom of the inner sleeve pushing clean filtered water into the inner bottle ready to drink. Its simple, and using your own body weight to push down makes it incredibly fast. I’ve seen other filters make about 1 to 2 Liters per minute but the Grayl can make up to 8L per minute which is impressive.

Boil

The Old School way to purify water is to simply boil it. Although bulky if you are out on a trail all day its likely you’ll have a mini camping stove with you.

Tablets

If you can put up with the slight ‘medicinal’ taste to the water you can use water purification tablets.

Summary

So that’s my guide to all the different types of bottles I use on various trails at various times of the year. I hope the section on how to filter water was also useful. If you liked this guide why not check out my Best Socks for Trails or Best Shoes for Trails Guides as well.