Santa Cruz Juliana - water bottle?

[Aggie_Ama]

I live in Texas (can't get much hotter) and I find the women's Camelbak Mule to be very comfortable. It vents shockingly well and ables me to carry 96 oz. I have worn it on the trail when it was 95-100 degrees and was pleased with the venting, you are going to be hot no matter what at that temp but the channels in the back make it tolerable.

I previously had a Camelbak from 2004 without the channels and it was pretty miserable in the summer, I think some improvements have been made that might be worth checking out. I have seen people with bottles on the underside of the downtube, looks like you would just lose the bottle.

[Pedal Wench]

I like my Wingnut. It sits much lower than a Camelbak, so the weight is over your bottom and not on your shoulders and arms. Plus, I like being able to access the side pockets without taking it off.

[rocknrollgirl]

+1 on the mule.

[derailed]

While many of the newer hydration packs are much more pleasant in miserable heat, there are also seat mount and handlebar mount waterbottle points which might be worth considering, if you happen to decide that a pack is not what you are looking for. I carry two bottles behind my seat on longer rides, they are not a bad reach.

[emily_in_nc]

I use the Camelbak Flash-flo waistpack. I never even notice it's on, and it gets plenty hot here in the summer in NC. It doesn't hold as much water as the shoulder packs, but it's fine for the shorter rides I do. I find that the bottle gets too dirty on my mtb to be of any use anyway, so I never use one. If I were taking a really long ride (> 1.5 hours of riding), I would need to use a bottle along with the Flash-flo, though.

[jesvetmed]

I also have the Juliana, and mounted my bottle holder below the bar. Bad idea -- I'm eating mud and gunk every time that I take a drink! I think I'm going to use a camelback, or someone mentioned trying the cage that mounts on the seat stem behind your rear and holds two bottles. I did look at one at REI (look here) and it was $50. That's quite a bit for a bottle cage!

[Aggie_Ama]

Jes- Watch for the Mule or other women's made to go on sale at REI (which they often do). I find my women's mule so much better made than DH's men's mule from two seasons ago. The straps are way nicer and his doesn't have the padding vents which I stand by my statement help!

DH has that Profile thing for long road rides where water is limited and we have bounced bottles out on the road, I wouldn't think it would work at all on the trail.

[Pedal Wench]

I also have the Juliana, and mounted my bottle holder below the bar. Bad idea -- I'm eating mud and gunk every time that I take a drink!!

Nalgene makes a bottle with a cover over the mouthpiece. http://www.nalgene-outdoor.com/store...?CategoryID=30

I use that for the mount under the downtube.