Hat Options

[Bob Gross]

Jeffrey, Jeffrey, what are we going to do with you?

If you had bothered to read my post, I mentioned the use of a bandana tucked under my ball cap so that it hangs down. If you have a large enough bandana, it will cover front to back and side to side. The only place that I get sunburned is on the backs of my hands. I do have some lightweight cotton gloves that weigh 0.36 ounce per pair.

I'm also sorry that you use inferior bandanas. Very little light gets through a good one.

–B.G.–

[jscott]

Hey you know what Bob, I re-read your post and you're right. "90% of my face is covered". So good on you. True, it takes TWO bandanas under your little ballcap stuffed under the brim and then clipped together awkwardly, but I suppose that might work.

Gee, maybe just get a real hat?

[Dale Wambaugh]

Interesting specs on cotton bandanas and SPF. I've never had a problem and I'll have to take a look at some of my sun hats for comparison.

I wonder how SPF is determined for fabrics? My guess is that the angle and movement of the subject has some influential factors vs a square of cloth spread out in some sort of test frame.

My little makeshift sun cape provides some shade and evaporative cooling. Works for me in my shady PNW weather and forest cover.

[Bob Gross]

"True, it takes TWO bandanas under your little ballcap stuffed under the brim and then clipped together awkwardly, but I suppose that might work."

Jeffrey, Jeffrey, you keep trying to spin my words for a different meaning. Why do that?

As I stated previously, I use two bandanas only for cold and sunny weather. That means spring skiing, and that is mostly because of the light reflected off the snow surface back up toward me.

For summer, it is one bandana and the hat.

I also try to plan my routes so that I am facing away from the sun more than I am facing into the sun.

–B.G.–

[Nick Gatel]

I only use a hat to:

– keep cool in deserts (Tilley)

– keep head dry in rain (REI eVent baseball cap)

– keep warm (beanie)

Most of the time head wear is in or attached to pack, so I can work on my suntan.

Above: working on suntan. Hat not needed until temp goes above 90F.

[Max Dilthey]

Dale,

Do you have the OR Windstopper Peruvian?

Beautiful choice. I hope I see you while we're both wearing it someday.

[Jerry Adams]

you're both wrong : )

sunscreen is not effective

http://www.ewg.org/2012sunscreen/sunscreens-exposed/health-agencies-question-sunscreen-efficacy/

sunscreens block the UV that causes sunburn but aren't proven effective against UVA and UVB that cause skin cancer and skin ageing

zinc and titanium are better, but they stay on surface and smear off easily

there are some other ones that might work a little

there's an unintended consequence – if the sunscreen prevents sunburn, you'll stay out longer so you'll actually get more UVA and UVB

the best thing is to cover – hat with brim all the way around, yes, turn up collar even if it's reminescent of disco, long sleeve shirt and pants, put your hands in your pockets?

or stay in the shade during the 6 worst hours

[jscott]

Bob: whatever, we're talking about hats and bandanas here. Anyway, in my initial post, when I mentioned your name, I suppose it reads like I was calling you out when that wasn't my intention. Again, the internet and its lack of inflection.

Dale pictured a cotton bandana. I stand by my remarks about cotton bandanas not working well for sun protection. But again, so what? Anyway, I projected that cotton bandana onto your set-up. Obviously, you're working with a superior bandana. So good.

As for my using an inferior bandana, well, I don't use a bandana at all.

Anyway, I'm going to work this up and send it off to Raffi. The bandana song.

Jerry, just read your post. Agreed, zinc/titanium and cover up. when I write about sunscreen I mean zinc/titanium.

[Dale Wambaugh]

"Do you have the OR Windstopper Peruvian?"

I did have one of the OR Peruvian hats and they are great. BUT, they don't make it XL and the large is a little tight on me. The North Face makes a similar hat (High Point) and their large is larger than the OR large (I love that phrase) so I sold the OR and kept the TNF model. Capisce? :)

It must be a centuries old Inca design and it works for me.

[Joel Benford]

Whatever you end up with for summer, make sure anything that traps air has more ventilation than a couple of little holes in the side. That just doesn't work, you need something measured in square inches.

I have a Tilley T5MO with the mesh insert, which I find tolerable (I'm a sweaty fat guy who has spent more on hats than his most expensive jacket). I've also seen hats from Outdoor Research and Columbia Sports that look like they ought to work well, but they don't make them big enough for me.

[Pete Staehling]

I have to say that I am amazed by suggestions of a buff in warm weather. Not knocking it if it works for you, but I can't stand even a light beanie over just the tops of my ears much above 50 F. I'll stick with my Outdoor Research Papyrus Brim Hat or something similar.

[Adam Rothermich]

Ian, I've also got a fishing shirt that works great for hot weather. Mine is from Cabelas and the collar is designed taller in the back so it can protect your neck from the sun but also rolls down and looks like a normal collar. The back and side venting is very nice and the fabric is also very light and is UPF 40. Its my favorite summer shirt even if my wife thinks I look dorky. I haven't gone fishing since I was a kid but I don't run much either and that doesn't stop be from wearing running shorts!

Adam

[Ian]

Our poor wives! I love living on the west coast because dressing up usually means wearing my best Carharts. I'm still looking at some other sun hat options so I'm not going to win any fashion contests in the near future.

My EB shirt is basically the same thing with vents, copious pockets including a napoleon zippered pocket, sleeves that button up for short sleeve weather (counterproductive for this thread), etc. I can't remember the blend but it's fine for the outdoors and the weave appears to be tight enough to be insect proof.

Looks like EB has been redoubling their efforts to stay relevant in the outdoors. I picked up these shirts on clearance for <$20 each and a down sweater on clearance for $22ish.

My wife bought me a Columbia fishing shirt for Christmas which sounds like your Cabella’s shirt.

[K P]

I found this gem online, combines the a hat with a bandana (need to weigh it, haven't done so yet):

http://www.billibandana.com

I specifically ordered: http://www.billibandana.com/desert-blackmauve.html to show some flair and color on my outings :)

edited for typo.

4/20: Had opportunity to weigh it, 3.2oz (lighter than my Tilly and lots of options for use). Used it on a 4 1/2 mile hike this am.

[Everett Vinzant]

I went with one to replace a cotton bandana. The Buff does everything a bandana will do and more. My writeup is available here:

http://wn7ant.com/2013/04/20/uv-buff/

[Dustin Short]

KP, you must not hike much in the desert or at altitude. While I agree the hat looks good for sun protection, it also looks like that color would be an inferno in direct sun. Here in the desert black becomes a taboo color by around late march to mid-novemember. But I also live right in the peak state for solar radiation in the US so YMMV. Suffice it I can tell who's from AZ and NM just by how they walk on the sidewalk (we walk hopping from one shady region to the next…often times speeding up in the sun and slowing down in the shade ;).

For those interested in seeing how "sunny" your region is, here's a very simplified map:

http://www.gogreenenergyusa.net/images/insolation-map.png

[K P]

In SE, may get another (lighter) color for NM trek next year depending on how I like it after multiple uses. I also have a natural solar panel on the top of my head so figure that will reflect what the black/red bandana draws in ;)

K

Great link btw!

[Justin Baker]

I use a mesh trucker hat with a bandana to protect my neck. I tie two corners together and put it over my forehead, then the hat goes on top. I like the mesh trucker hats much better than a regular baseball cap for use with a bandana. With the mesh in the back, I only have one layer (the bandana) shielding me from the sun instead of two. It's less warm that way.

For whatever reason, snap-back hats are the only hats that fit my head.

I don't care about the SPF of my clothing because I can hike with bare skin and not get sunburned easily. I tan very easily. High SPF clothing sounds like it would be very hot. The only reason I wear clothing in hot weather is to shade my skin from the sun and keep me cooler. If I am hiking in a forest or canyon and I won't be getting that much, I wear very little clothing because it's cooler that way.
For those of you who burn easily, is it really possible to get sunburned through clothing?

[Justin Baker]

Here is a picture of what I wear. Bandana under snap-back mesh trucker hat,

[Richard Fischel]

aka boonie hat.

[Dustin Short]

Justin, I know of egyptians who turn lobster pink the first summer they spend here in AZ. The solar radiation is intense for about 6 months and this is the time of year that people go into the mountains to cool down (frequently above 7k feet which further increases solar radiation). So it's not just a matter of how well you "tan" unfortunately in my region.

That said I do burn easily but I've never gotten a burn through clothing of any time. And when I say burn easily I mean it only takes 15 minutes for my highly reflective skin to feel like it's sunburnt in the middle of summer here. I lost out in the skin tone lottery between my Irish and Mexican parent ;) Not that that would help much because all the construction and garden workers, regardless of skin tone, wear white long sleeves shirts, pants, wide brimmed hats with bandanas, and often cotton gloves as soon as summer comes around. The sun out here is just brutal. On par with the Sahara (and all the nomads there wear full coverage clothing year round, despite often having much more melanin in their skin than most europeans or americans).

I've spent many summers in the forests of Southern Illinois and I never would get burnt unless I spent a day at the lake. Northern Cal has roughly the same type of solar radiation as Southern Illinois. While the numbers seem small, there's a huge difference in the sun's intensity by each region. By the simplified map I linked above AZ gets roughly 60% more sun/day than NorCal or most of the Midwest. And we don't have dense tree cover to provide much respite. I'm still convinced that burning is first determined by location and exposure level and then only mitigated by tanning ability/skin tone.

To answer your question though, no I've never been burned through clothing. I have had burns under clothing because they provided a false sense of protection. Namely when tubing down a river I missed putting sunscreen on my thighs because I thought my trunks would protect, but sitting in a tube allowed a lot of sun direct access. I had thick peeling twice it was so bad of a burn. Hence I long sleeve and pants it when hiking just so I don't have to worry about missing a spot with sunscreen.

[Dustin Short]

I should probably add that people shouldn't discount reflections. Snow in alpine and light rock or sand reflects a lot solar radiation up and under your hat brim. That's why bandanas or buffs are useful. I usually wear a buff over my neck and lower face when hiking in the summer. It protects against reflected sun, keeps dust and sound out my lungs, and even creates a humid microclimate that cools and moisturizes the air I inhale. I haven't run any scientific studies but this seems to help me mitigate dehydration a little better.

[Richard Fischel]

yep – reflections are an issue. first time on a glacier is was prompted to put sun screen on the underside of my nose and didn't listen. that first time was the last time i made that mistake.

[Sean Passanisi]

Thanks, Everett.

I'm also in the market for a new hat solution. Does anyone else have experience using the Buff UV with a hat?

[Patrick O’Neil]

I don't understand why people are knocking a buff, it can easily cover your nose, ears, face and head under a ball cap. When it's real sunny I wear it almost like a ninja mask, put a hat over it and sunglasses. It's more effective than a wide brimmed hat. Even if I had a wide brimmed hat I'd still use this buff method. I did this in Ecuador for day hikes. Got weird looks but I felt pretty good at the end of the day.

I don't understand why some people still seem to think tanning "easily" is a good thing. A tan does nothing to protect you from harmful UV that's simply a myth, if anything a tan is a symptom of skin damage.

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