Nalgene Cantene
By Rhett Olson

What is the quintessential piece of backpacking gear? I've done a lot of pondering on this and think I've found my answer. The Nalgene bottle. I have found no better way to carry water on the trail than the leak-proof, virtually indestructible, comes-in-all-sizes, Nalgene bottle. Not bad for product accidentally discovered when a boy scout took his dad's lab bottle to camp. Now, from the same family of products comes something new to add to your hydration system, the Nalgene Canteen.

The Nalgene Canteen is a super-flexible container that gives all of the benefits of a hydration bladder. It collapses as water is used, freeing up valuable space, and is very light. Unlike other bladders, the canteen uses Nalgene's traditional wide mouth opening, making the container easy to clean and also easy to use when filtering water. Many water filters make attachments that fit the opening. The use of a gusseted bottom makes standing the canteen upright a breeze. The bottle comes in two sizes, 48 and 96 ounces.

Traditional Nalgene bottle are known for their strength and durability. In fact, the only time I have damaged a bottle was when I left it on the bumper of the Suburban. It didn't fair well after it was run over.

Given that Nalgene makes tough bottles, how did they do with the canteen? One might get a hint by reading the disclaimer found in their online catalog. It reads: "NALGENE products are long-lasting and known to be extremely durable. However, this product may not survive falls from significant heights, and in some instances may not be covered under the standard NALGENE warranty."

During normal use, our testers encountered two problems. The first occurred after seven or eight uses. The side seam of one container began to pull apart, rendering the bag useless and not repairable. We have used other Nalgene canteens several times without problems, but the first failure makes overall durability suspect.

The second happened while toting a full bag of water up a hill after watering at a spring. I was carrying it like a knapsack over my shoulder by attaching its handle to the handle of my Leki pole. It was not long before the handle ripped off. The bag still held water, it was just hard to carry. Both of these instances illustrate the Nalgene Canteen's low durability.

Despite these occurances, I still take my handleless bag on every extended backpacking trip that I take. It remains empty while hiking and I fill it with extra water at camp. I have found it very useful.

Summary
If you are looking for the indestructible water container, stick with Nalgene's original or Lexan bottles. However, the Nalgene Canteen is great for use as a secondary water container.

Rhett Olson is a Contributing Editor at GearReview.com, and admitted gearhead.

For more information, contact:
Nalgene Outdoor
75 Panorama Creek Dr.
Rochester, New York 14625