I generally refrain from product endorsement. Like Ron Swanson, I only speak out for those things I truly believe in and use. Additionally, nobody has ever paid me to publicly back something, so I’ve never had much inclination to lend my name to a product, and while this hasn’t changed, I still feel compelled to let you all know about the Lifestrpaw.

The Lifestraw is a water filter/straw that hikers can use to drink directly from a water source. That is, all you have to do to use it, it stick it in non-stagnant water and suck to make it work. This provides for an ease of that is unparalleled in the world of portable water filters – unless we’re counting iodine tablets, which are awesome– given that most require a hand pump of some sort or another. That is, the Lifestraw is easy to use because you don’t have to do much to make it work. But that’s not all that makes Lifestraw unique.

My favorite feature of the Lifestraw is the feeling that using it begets to the hiker. I remember the trip out to Gravelly Ford in Yosemite, where I first used the Lifestraw. It was a clear summer day, hot and bright, and I had just pitched my tent. Waiting for the rest of my party, I decided to stroll down to a nearby riverbank. I brought along my new water filter, eager to try it out. I remember getting down on all fours and lowering the little straw to the cool surface of running water beneath me. Sipping water like that, perched on the riverbank, I felt suddenly primal.
This may seem like an odd reason to endorse something, but perhaps the feeling is something that needs to experienced. I just highly suggest it.