• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

TotalHiker

Your Hiking Guide

  • Apparel
  • Gear
  • Hikes
  • Info
Total Hiker > Hiking Info > Food & Water > Essential Hydration Safety Tips For Hiking

Essential Hydration Safety Tips For Hiking

Maintaining body fluids and abiding by basic hiking hydration safety tips should ensure a safe time is experienced on the trails.

Getting the proper intake of fluid should take place before, during, and after completing the trek.

Whether a hike takes place in a cold or hot climate, at altitude, or at sea level, proper hydration is an essential part of staying safe and healthy.

Hydration Safety Tips

Here are 10 tips to help avoid issues with dehydration while out on the hiking trails:

Caffeine

Cut the intake of fluids that contain caffeine as these can lead to dehydration. These include colas, coffee, and alcoholic beverages.

Check for signs

There are a variety of signs that can be checked to help determine issues with dehydration, including:

  • Low volume of urine, which is dark in color, or painful to pass urine
  • Fast heart rate
  • Feeling weak
  • Constant fatigue
  • Dizziness

Hiking while in a state of dehydration can lead to more serious issues, such as kidney failure, muscle breakdown, and heat stroke.

Continue drinking

Even after a hike is complete and you are resting, continue to drink fluids to replace what has already been lost. It usually means drinking more than you believe is needed.

Early hydration

Before starting out on a hike make sure to consume 1-2 cups of a sports drink, juice, or water, which gets you properly prepared for the exercise to come.

Eat healthy

The process of dehydration is much more efficient when fluids are rich in potassium and sodium. Alternatively, eat foods rich in these healthy compounds in addition to the liquid refreshment.

  What Should a Hiking First Aid Kit Include?

Foods high in electrolytes can benefit the all-round health and well-being, and include:

  • Orange juice
  • Citrus fruit
  • Bananas
  • Tomato juice
  • Lemonade

Electrolyte

In addition to drinking plain water on the hiking trails it can benefit to include an electrolyte/carbohydrate sport beverage.

This is more efficient at retaining fluids in the system and improves the energy level. But, avoid relying solely on sports drinks; they should only form a portion of the fluid intake.

Fluid per hour

While on a hike – no matter the difficulty – it is essential to get the right fluid intake which is at least 1-quart per hour. Also, this should increase as required to compensate for the climate with hot environments needing more fluid intake.

Research

Use local knowledge, guide books, or internet-based information to help determine the difficulty of the intended hike, time frame to complete, and available water sources.

This should make it easier to put in place a proper hydration strategy. It is best to be cautious and pack too much rather than too little.

Techniques

Drink fluids at regular intervals throughout the hike and don’t wait until you start to feel thirsty – this is likely to mean you have left it too late.

Water sources

Refilled water bottles or hydration packs lake, river, pond or stream are each of the available water sources passed on the hiking trail. This is especially important if trekking on paths that have limited refill points. Just make sure that you have a good water filtering system.

Plus, by carrying enough water to reach the next water source, it is possible to cut down on the weight carried in the pack.

Matt

Matt Green, is an avid hiker and lover of the great outdoors. He is always planning his next big trip or hitting the trails for a solo hike.

  10 Lightweight and Nutritious Hiking Foods for the Trail

He’s traveled extensively to many remote regions and has plenty of experience exploring various terrains, and stories to tell.

Contents

  • 1 Hydration Safety Tips
    • 1.1 Caffeine
    • 1.2 Check for signs
    • 1.3 Continue drinking
    • 1.4 Early hydration
    • 1.5 Eat healthy
    • 1.6 Electrolyte
    • 1.7 Fluid per hour
    • 1.8 Research
    • 1.9 Techniques
    • 1.10 Water sources

May 22, 2021

Primary Sidebar

What to do if you encounter a bear

What Should You Do If You See a Bear While Hiking or Camping ?

How to Hang a Bear Bag

How to Hang a Bear Bag

How to Store Food in Bear Country

How to Store Food When Camping in Bear Country

High Altitude Hiking Hydration

Our Guide to High Altitude Hiking Hydration

How to Stay Hydrated

How to Stay Hydrated

Why Do My Hands Swell During Long Hikes

Swollen Hands Hiking: Why Do My Hands Swell During Long Hikes?

More on Hiking Safety Tips >>

Footer

  • Affiliate Disclosure
  • About Total Hiker
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy & Cookie Policy
  • Sitemap

Copyright © 2023 Total Hiker

Affiliate Disclosure

We believe in being as transparent as possible when it comes to this site. With this in mind, please be aware that we may receive remuneration for some of the products we review on this site.

Total Hiker is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com (and other Amazon programs).

We will also list ads from time to time. You should be able to see these as text links or blocks of ads which have a small notation indicating “Ads by Google” or “AdChoices”.

Our mission is to help our visitors, but this is also very clearly a for-profit site and you should realize as much. We include only those products that we believe could benefit you, some of which we may get a commission if you purchase them. However, we also provide links on the site to information resources for which we receive no compensation.

If you have any questions whatsoever, please contact us using the "contact" option on the site menu and we will be happy to answer any questions.

Being Social

FaceBook

Twitter

Trademark Dislosure

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates.

In addition, any other trademarks and logos we mention on this site are also the property of their respective owners.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
SAVE & ACCEPT