So I'm on this here bivy day ride cos I've just done the night shift (which I still await approval on ). Properly recuperated from them thwre welsh hills. I finally manage to make it to the welsh version of civilisation. On a single track road I need to make ablution as well as freshen my mouth up a bit.

Resist the urge to drop down to the stream as its a broken verge and I could knacker it. Said stream comes nicely into a neater area but not behind a gate. No markings but there's sheep behind it, just 'chilling'. I open the gate and quietly step across to access the water in the hope a farmer with a shotgun pointing downwards won't turn up.

Next thing the sheep start calling the farmer at the tops of their voices, urging their young to do the same. I try to remain inconspicuous (that there word's the right was round right!) and duck down below the footbridge. They're not bothered and I'm on their turf. Quickly finish my water usage and come back through the gate and suddenly they're back to 'chilling' again...

Didn't get gun toted by an angry farmer, phew...







Before I stepped onto their turf...



Bar stewards...

They were probably telling you they had just shat it that stream!

faustus wrote: ↑Thu Apr 22, 2021 2:14 pm They were probably telling you they had just shat it that stream!

Lol... that too. Tasted fresh. Can't gargle properly cos fasting so couldn't confirm

I would have been looking at the water a bit further upstream of that field Shaf. Sheep don't care where they go.

However, what a fantastic day for being out in the countryside - hope you enjoyed it!

Yep, never drink from a stream that runs through a fields with livestock in shaf. Some much nicer water just back up the road a bit

Thanks guys...

What is it, 2-4 days for Campylobacter to kick in?

(Or shout that be out....?)

Just out of genuine concern rather than p1ss taking, i'll just leave this here....you don't need to drink water to get something:

https://www.cleanriverstrust.co.uk/wate ... uk-rivers/

I've worked with a chalk stream environmental charity, and it opens your eyes even more to the vast array of pollutants that enter rivers, especially from livestock and agricultural run-off.

Safe drinking and ablutions

faustus wrote: ↑Fri Apr 23, 2021 9:32 am https://www.cleanriverstrust.co.uk/wate ... uk-rivers/

Oh that's a cheery post for a Friday.... thanks

Cheery indeed.
A simple filter will prevent all of the non-viral problems there. A proper filter or chemical treatment will solve them all.
I would contend that catching Hep C from river water is a theoretical risk only - you’d need to drinking water from a river directly next to a sewerage outlet that is disgorging Hep C infected effluent. A quick check of the WHO website seems to confirm that.
Still, it’s sad to see the crap (literal and metaphorical) we subject our world to.

I think we should all treat ourselves to a good compost bin

Not just a sewage issue sadly. Agriculture, livestock, surface run-off of varying kinds (i.e. from road drainage)....generally impact from lots of human activities