On the Procurement of Water

Wow!  We had heard the water was a bit bitter here at Tenwek, but when Jessica and I drank our first glass (post-boiling, post-filtration) we could barely get it down.  Dehydration appeared to be preferable until the primal urge to drink became irresistible.  After about a week, I couldn't take it any longer.  


You see, the procurement of water has been of primary importance since creation. God put Adam and Eve in Eden with a fantastic water supply: "A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters...Pishon...Gihon...the Euphrates...the Tigris." Every would-be settler since has first procured a water source before settling any new civilization. Well, the McCropders weren't going to buck the system.

Let me explain how things work here.  The water coming to our indoor plumbing originates from this waterfall, which also happens to be the source of our electricity.  It works great for flushing toilets, washing dishes and even taking a bath if you don't mind some exfoliatives (river bed sand).  

The drinking water, on the other hand, comes from our roof gutters and is stored in a big plastic water tank.  Rain water is really clean.  So why the wretched taste?  

I decided it was time to inspect the water procurement system.  On first observation. the pipe connecting the roof gutters to the tank was disconnected.  That would explain observation number two:  the water level in the tank was only knee high despite it being rainy season.  Perhaps we had stagnant water of unknown duration sitting in our tank?  I climbed up and began to open the lid.  Fumes began to emanate.  I peered into a primordial cesspool.  There was vibrant life in very dark water.  This would explain the little worms swimming in our water when collecting a bucket of drinking water.  We decided to drain the tank and have it cleaned with bleach.  The quality of the water that began to collect was of significantly higher quality, with just a bit of a kick still.  

After several weeks of hard rain, our tank still only rose to knee height and the Faders and McLaughlins would soon be drawing from the tank too.  On Jason's arrival, we agreed the gutter system was in disrepair.  It was collecting little run-off from the roof and was not running downhill toward our tank.  We summated the roof.  What we found explained the remaining aftertaste in our water.

A layer of foul, black muck lined the gutters.  Some poor lizard had fallen to its miry grave in the deadly goo.  Umm, nice to think all of the water we had been drinking had been brewed in gutter stew.  The vile muck was removed with our hands and a mop that has since been retired from indoor service.  The gutters were adjusted and repaired to collect the rain and to send it downhill to our clean tank.  After only a few days with several hard rains, our tank was running over with water (see the picture at the bottom with water shooting out of the overflow hole at the top right of the tank). 

We thank God for our renewed water source and a full tank as we approach  the dry season.