>>2794945>Norovirus and rotavirus can easily maintain infectivity for days or weeks (months if the water's cold).Where are you taking water from to think about days of viral persistence? On the average creek, the water you take will be at most an hour or two away from the spring. Even if, by some chance, a small amount of viruses ended up in there, unless the source is close by, they'll be far too diluted to pose any danger.
But regardless, the persistence you refer to is in stale water, with almost no oxygen, no other microorganisms, no light exposure and no agitation. One example here:
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.2c09637And even then, we're just talking about a few days of infectiousness.
Add any of the above factors - or just go to a few random creeks and measure cocnentrations - and you'll find that viruses in natural, flowing water are a nonissue. In stale water, it's a bit more of an issue, as hile contamination is still rare, if it occurs, there's little dilution and you might end up with relevant amounts of virus. But even a standard survival guide will tell you not to drink from puddles.
>apalachian trailThe source you linked says that the main reason for infections are people not washing their hands after shitting.
