Favorite t shirt

In summer, especially in the desert, I have a threadbare short sleeve button up that I prefer. Its cotton but thin, so it holds my sweat to keep me cool longer than a synthetic, but not too long so it never dries. When it gets too hot, can start unbuttoning the top and bottom towards the middle. Can also turn up the collar to protect your neck from the sun. Otherwise I typically hike in a beat up t shirt.

I’ve thought of getting an actual hiking tee. Interested to see other responses.

Summer at low altitudes (hot) with low bug pressure: light synthetic T-shirt (REI brand or similar). It’s light, airy, cheap and loose fitting.

Summer at altitude or moderate bug pressure: RailRiders Ecomesh. Keeps sun off arms and good block for mosquitos.

Summer with LOTS of bug pressure: BugShirt “elite edition”. 100% mosquito proof. This shirt is a little heavy and a little warm unless there’s a breeze.

Really depends on one’s climate and the average conditions.

What works well in the desert isn’t going to work well in the the south east and vice versa.

But, perhaps the moderately well performing in all climes, are thin, more breathable nylon shirts.

OR Echo series of T’s.  Super light, even for the poly shirts, very breathable and they’re cheap.

Ryan

In the summer I like to wear my golf shirts…you can find golf shirts in all kinds of high tech fabrics and weaves, plus they’re cooler around the neck than a t-shirt when unbuttoned.  If the sun is hot on the back of your neck, pop the collar…you might get some funny looks, but it works!

While not cheap, I love my 150 weight icebreaker merino wool t-shirt.

I’ve got a “fitted” UnderArmour t-shirt that has been my go-to for several years. Not the best performer in any particular aspect, but has a good combination of attributes, as it’s proven very durable, dries quickly, breathes pretty well, and isn’t horrible stench-wise.

“What works well in the desert isn’t going to work well in the the south east and vice versa.”

I haven’t found that vice versa part to be true. What works well in the SE works even better out West. The conditions, hot or cold, are a lot less challenging at any given temp due to lack of humidity.
Aside from occasionally using *cotton* t-shirts(and shorts, this last time) for add-on dayhikes or overnighters, I haven’t changed my clothing at all for trips to the Sierras, Rockies, or high desert. Same stuff not only performs optimally, but is comfortable over a much wider temperature range.
Just one of the many reasons for my continuing love affair with SW Utah…

As Brando touched upon earlier, having some moisture retaining qualities is a good thing in the dry desert heat–at least during the day.

Last time i was out in those hot and very dry conditions (Summer in NV), i wore 55% Linen and 45% cotton shirts–they still dried very fast, but helped retain moisture long enough to have a longer cooling effect. The linen helped to keep it from clinging as much as pure cotton might.

Thin, wicking 100% or thereabouts polyester type shirts are not ideal in those conditions–they dry way too fast.  While i’m not aware of any studies in this area, i suspect that people on average lose more moisture wearing all polyester in desert heat conditions vs the absorbent, cellulose based fabrics (cotton, rayon, linen, hemp, etc).

Cellulose/synthetic blends are ok, and the good thing about polyester is that it’s better at absorbing (and thus protecting against) UV than most other materials.

Based on both experience and theory, i stick to my versa qualification.  Cotton is actually pretty good in dry desert heat, and UV treated cotton is even better.  But pure or high cotton blends suck in the average S.E. very humid type conditions. (very low cotton/high synthetic blends, like Dri-Release work well though).

On the other hand, the human body is fairly adaptable all in all, and at times quite influenced by mental or emotional based beliefs, preconceptions, desires, etc.  Take it to another level, and you get folks like Wim Hof, who uses belief, desire, will, and focused intention to allow his body to survive conditions with minimal harm that would likely kill the average person.  Borderline “woo woo” stuff, but proven time and time again to actually work, so not woo woo at all.  And then there’s placebo effect phenomena.

“Thin, wicking 100% or thereabouts polyester type shirts are not ideal in those conditions–they dry way too fast.”
*snicker*
Right. And if you were talking cool weather, you’d be blabbing about synthetics “flash cooling” and how the same shirts aren’t ideal for lower temps because their rapid dry time results in more effective evaporative cooling that makes you feel so much colder.
What was your favorite t-shirt again?

My go to shirt is a 150 weight Icebreaker t-shirt, mainly because it’s comfortable in most weather and it withstands stink well. I haven’t tried any treated poly shirts yet but my untreated ones get ripe very quickly.

In hot, dry climates (GCNP, high Sierra in Summer), I like an old men’s dress shirt.  The collar keeps sun off my neck, and if I wet it down (usually by transferring stream water to it with a bandana, it’s that much less water I have to filter/treat, sweat out and let evaporate.  I definitely find it more exhausting to sweat a liter of fluid than to apply a liter of water to my clothes.

For moderately cold weather with high exertion (Nordic skiing) I like a tight-fitting, wicking T-shirt.  It evaporates most of the sweat as I sweat, so there’s not as much after-cooling when I stop.

In Summer in Alaska, I like more thickness because of the mosquitos.  Then I have a slightly thicker wicking T-shirt and nylon LS shirt with a lot of the same features as a button-down shirt (collar for the sun/bugs, buttons to ventilate, sleeves that can be rolled up if reaching in the water or gutting an animal, baggy enough to keep the bugs from reaching my skin).  I like the nylon because it is so tough – between the forest and bare rocks above is always a band of alders that are a real thrash to get through.  I’ve never worn out one of those nylon outer shirts even with lots of use.

Icebreaker women’s tech lite 150 weight. They don’t take abuse of the pack straps very long but I like the style and weight and fabric. I mostly use them for sleeping or under another shirt for layering if I need more warmth. I’m wearing one in my avatar.

mec T1 with polygiene …

dries quick, decent price, mec warranty, and its very odor resistant

;)

Not sure why you’re making this personal Owen, but the point is i don’t have a single favorite shirt for all conditions or all the time.  Since the OP didn’t specify the regions and climates he most hikes in, i didn’t specify a particular t shirt or shirt or general type.  There is no “single best”.

That linear thinking needs to go out the window, holistic logic is where the many shades of truth can be found. Also, give a person a fish, and they eat for a day, but teach them to fish and they’ll be able to do it on their own.  You could say that i was trying to teach the OP to learn how to fish, rather than giving him a fish–trying to get him to think holistically about it rather than giving him a subjective, “yeah man, this shirt is the best, because i say so”.

“Right. And if you were talking cool weather, you’d be blabbing about synthetics “flash cooling” and how the same shirts aren’t ideal for lower temps because their rapid dry time results in more effective evaporative cooling that makes you feel so much colder.”

Some things that work at 100 or + degrees, isn’t going to work well at -5 degrees.  When i talk about retaining some moisture to prevent flash freeze effect at very, very cold temps–i’m talking about a minority percentage blend of Merino, Alpaca, or the like (and with synthetic), materials that still insulate some when it’s damp and very cold and dry.  While cotton and wool etc both retain moisture well, that is where the similarity stops–in many other ways, they are very, very different.

When it’s very cold and dry, you need to minimize your sweating in general, and the low temps make it easier to do so if you have any brains/technique and cold tolerance.

Cotton insulates very, very little when wet.  The combination of it collapsing when wet (losing stilled air and thus insulation), the material itself being more conductive, and retaining moisture is why it’s good for very hot and dry conditions.  It acts, in a sense, like a swamp cooler for one’s body.  It prolongs the evaporative effect while not insulating (which equals COLD and for longer). I certainly don’t recommend any cotton when it’s very cold even though it retains some moisture and thus slows down the evaporative effect, which in very cold and very dry weather minimizes the flash freezing effect.

A good polyester substitute for cotton, cotton blends, cellulose based materials for dry, hot desert type conditions etc is a semi new fabric tech (CoolCore, etc) that uses a combo of hollow poly fibers with micro holes, combined with some traditional wicking poly fibers. The hollow fibers with holes, pulls in and holds moisture while somewhat circulating it, prolonging the evaporative effect, while the traditional wicking fibers speed up the evaporation on the surface, keeping it nice, dry and comfortable for the skin–since the skin feels more comfortable with fabrics on it when dry as opposed to damp.

But like a lot of polyester stuff, it builds up odors, whereas cotton, cotton blends, or especially fabrics with linen or hemp help to minimize odor.  Another plus for cotton and cellulose based materials (or blends) for hot and dry, desert like conditions.

For me, go to Target, Kohls or Academy and get their cheapest wicking t-shirts…usually $15 or less on sale. When they start smelling too bad….toss them and repeat the first sentence.

RAB MECO 120 for when it is coldish.

Just that bit more quick-drying than pure merino.

Rohan ultra silver t for when it is a bit warmer. Never anywhere near desert conditions here in Norway, but this is super light, dries fast and feels good, and still haven’t stinked out. (However, I tried a slightly longer run in them – and there were nipple chafing issues. Maybe I just need to get in better shape and reduce my moobs. Never a problem when hiking though.)

Cactus Outdoor Nuyarn Merino t-shirt.

Claimed to be better than standard Merino… From the Cactus website:

“So what’s so blimin good about it? In a nutshell:

It dries 5 x faster, its 35% Warmer and 47% stronger. The Nuyarn fabrics are more durable and resistant to abrasion so this makes them ideal for performance clothing. The seam bursting strength is also improved by 120%.”

Makes for the perfect hiking shirt.

Nuf said.

Lawrie

My favorite by far is the Columbia omnifreeze T shirt.  When you sweat, it has cooling technology that noticeably reduces the shirts temperature and keep you cool. Great product.

For summer backpacking in dry climate, my favorite shirt is pretty much any old long sleeve, light colored cotton T – shirt.
You can get these at Target for 5 to 10.00 each :)
Cotton is the coolest for warm hikes… evaporative cooling.
Wash in Rit SunGuard increases the cotton from 5spf to 30spf.

Billy

Of all the “mountaineering/hiking” technical/performance oriented tee shirts I have, I’d have to say that hands down I prefer the Mammut Moench s/s tee shirt the best, over my Mountain Hardwear, Montane and Mountain Equipment. At $69.95 per tee, they are truly a luxury item, but I enjoy them so much I’ve doubled up on each of the colors, with the exception being the black.

The Polartec material is very comfortable. The fit is perfect for me and I can wear it both on its own when its warm or as a next-to-skin baselayer in the winter and then have any one of a number of light midlayers on top of it (the Mountain Equipment Eclipse for example). Don’t get me wrong, I love my Montane, MHW and ME baselayer technical/performance tees, but the Mammut is just so much more comfortable and better fitting overall. I’ll still wear them all but the Mammut is the best of them all I think.

Eric