My Sawyer Squeeze Is My Most Enduring Outdoor Relationship

My Dearest Sawyer Squeeze,

In case I haven’t told you lately, I appreciate you and all you do for me. We’ve been through a lot together: explored so many trails, traveled to so many countries, shared a sleeping bag on so many cold nights. You’ve been by my side for years, reliably filtering water from creeks in Belize, silty lakes in Texas and foaming waterfalls in New England. There’s no other filter I’d rather have by my side.

You know there were others before you––we’ve all done our share of experimenting over the years––and many of your predecessors were reliable enough. But I only have eyes for you now.

Sure, you may not be the flashiest filter, or get a colorful makeover every six months that turns heads and makes other hikers trip over themselves, but you don’t need all that. You’re simple and dependable, and that’s more than enough.

I’ll always love you for the way you protect me from the harsh realities of the wild. You know, cryptosporidium cysts, E.coli, and the explosive diarrhea both bring with them. I don’t always do a great job of expressing my thanks—sometimes it’s hard to remember to practice gratitude for the things you don’t have. But I know that every time I don’t come home from a multi-day trip with a parasite it’s only because of you (or maybe you and Aquatabs).

You even show up and put in the work when I become neglectful. Once, I forgot to backflush and on the next trip it was all you could manage to filter at a trickle). Even if a painfully slow drip was all you could manage, you still rolled up your sleeves and made the effort, which reminded me to be more thoughtful about your needs.

You’re selfless. Remember that time you volunteered for extended duty when my hiking buddy suffered a clogged filter? (I’m not such a jealous partner that I won’t share with a friend.) I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. After all, you come from a line that donates 90% of its profits to provide clean drinking water––and education on how to filter––to communities in need around the world. That’s an ethos I can get behind.

I love how you partner with the little guys. Remember when you first got together with CNOC to replace the squeeze bags you knew weren’t as good as they could be? Maybe you did it to boost your bottom line, but you promoted a cottage brand in the process and genuinely became a better filter for it, so I’d still call it a win-win-win (for you, me, and the little guy).

You’re tough, too. After all we’ve been through, you’re still as strong and resilient as you were almost a decade ago when I first brought you home and introduced you to my gear closet. You’re not one of those filters that needs to be replaced every 2,000 liters (who can keep track of liters filtered anyway?). On the contrary, you’re built to last for at least 10 years––provided I don’t leave you in the shed out back over the winter and let you freeze, of course. That saves me money, which I love, but also you from ending up in a landfill.

I won’t claim you’re perfect. I’m certain you wouldn’t either: You’re not the smallest or lightest filter on the market, and your flow rate may not be the fastest, but what’s a few extra seconds by a chattering creek among friends? I’ll always wait for you.

Besides, you’re so multi-functional. Not only do you excel under the pressure of a good squeeze, but you work as a reliable drip filter, too, and thanks to your thoughtful accessories, I don’t even need a special tool to backflush. Not to mention you work with practically any standard threaded water bottle and any number of ultralight bottle and water bag options out there.

Bottom line: you complete me and my ultralight backpacking kit. I hope you’ll accompany me on many backpacking trips to come for the next decade and beyond.