When I attended my first wildland firefighter schools there a section on keeping hydrated. In those days there was always the issue orange one gallon canteen. It came with an over the shoulder strap for carrying which was not to handy when you are chopping brush, scraping a fireline, or throwing dirt with a shovel. In most cases the canteen ended up setting alongside the fireline and you hoped it was there when needed.
One day I spotted a firefighter carrying his canteen on his back. It was rather simple to pull the straps out and wear it like a pack. This will not work for the real big guys.
When I got a day off and went home I grabbed the GI pistol belt with suspenders and butt back. I added two canteens to the two that where there.
When I was in the seventh or eighth grade I started working in the hay feeds. Heat is the biggest enemy out there. In those days I would take two one gallon glass water jugs to work. Yes, I am old this was in the pre-plastic jug days. At night I would fill them half full of water and put them in the deep freeze. Before leaving for work I would fill them to the top. The haying foreman never talked about hydration. We drank a lot of water because the body demanded it.
It is interesting to hear the fat-ass complain when they hear fire fighters on a remote fireline request water mid afternoon. The fireman is not only dealing with high afternoon temperatures, low RH; he is also dealing with the heat produced by his labor and the fire. When I started we would carry an extra canteen with us, and then stack them at a location where a crewman could be sent back to pick them up as need. A good water supply on the fireline was and is a luxury
Now days helibases are setup to supply drinking water needs on the fireline. Sometimes these missions are not flown because of blow-ups on the line, or the line is smoked in. Heat exhaustion is a life threatening condition on the fireline, and it occurs on a regular bases.
When I was a doing defensive tactics de-hydration was always on display when training on mats. The surface of the mats would become soaked with sweat. I started taking a gallon jug of iced diluted Gator Aid. This combination kept my system charged up during the day.
After retirement I was working support on a large fire complex in Northern Idaho. The temperature was high, and the RH in single digits. We had experienced an afternoon dust and ash storms. I went and took a leak and the stream was brown in color. I realized I was suffering serious dehydration. There were bottles of Gator Aid available which my stomach cannot handle. I pour out a half bottle and diluted it with water. I feel that my kidneys were at risk. I keep pouring in the mixture and by the next morning I was back to normal.
When I go into the restroom of my retirement work place there is a hydration chart posted above the urinals, and toilets. Here is a link, check how you are doing.
http://www.healthline.com/blogs/outdoor_health/labels/urine.htmlA modification to my hydration plan is carrying two pint containers of apple juice in my daypack along with my canteens. The apple juice is in plastic containers with screw on lids. The apple juice has a higher percentage of Potassium then Gator Aid. I buy at least a case a year for my hunting trips. Testing of many emergency room patients who have fainted has disclosed a Potassium shortage in their blood. They are given Potassium in an I.V. and Potassium pills to resolve the problem.
I must admit that I have become a coffee hound. That dark day in Idaho I had started the morning with breakfast at 0400. I might have had three or four cups of coffee with breakfast, and additional coffee during the day. I was operating on a caffeine kick that had woke my body up, but it was dehydrating my body at the same time.
