solotripper wrote on Aug 2^nd, 2011 at 4:48pm:

I find the same thing, but get my potassium a little bit different than you do. Normally at home, I try to avoid extra salt, because so much of it is hidden in food, that getting to much is more of an issue than to little.

I'm with you on salt in-take.  I NEVER eat shoestring potatoes other than on trips ... WAY too much salt.  And, at home, my preference is for unsalted nuts ... yet, I take salted almonds on trips.

I just have to be careful when I'm working hard (either at home or in the field) because I produce an enormous amount of sweat ... after a normal walk in the summer, I can literally wring moisture out of my t-shirt.  It will also be loaded with salt stains.  I've been known to go for an hour and a half walk and return 5 pounds lighter ... clearly that's almost all water (and salt).

After a trip, I also have to wash down my packs, especially the parts which come in contact with my body.  They will also have salt stains, which would likely attract critters for the salt if I didn't take care of it.

The part that got me on my last trip is the unexpected suddenness of dehydration/heat exhaustion.  I'd run my canoe and light pack 3/4th the way across a 165 rod portage, returned for my second (double-pack) load and carried that completely across the portage.  It wasn't until I started back down the trail that I found I was out of gas.  I'd not dropped my first load part way due to fatigue.  I had to return to that approximate location to retrieve a food cache stashed on our way in.  I marked its location with my GPS, which was inside my canoe.  After I retrieved the cache, I was all-in and just had to sit beside the trail until I had a little rebound.

This was portage #7 for the day and I had no issues on any previous portage (although they were mostly short). After a lunch break (I didn't eat) and rest, #8 was reasonably easy, but #9 was beyond my physical ability once I'd carried my first load across.  Its just that I went from slightly tired to done in just a few minutes.  I've not been that deep into heat exhaustion before, primarily because I can feel the early effects and take remedial action.  It was just bizarre.  I guess the mid-80's temp combined with about 70% humidity didn't help much.  I did that last portage in a deluge, sans rain gear, and the rain was warm.

dd