Tips for Buying Hats to Go Hiking In
24. Sep, 2011 
6 Comments
Anyone who has been out on a hike will tell you that good conditions are never a guarantee. One day you may have a blazing sun beating down on you, and the next day you might have drizzling conditions. It might even be snowing one day. Since the weather can be unpredictable you need to find hiking hats that are guaranteed to do the job.
A good hiking hat is one that has a wide brim so it will be able to protect you from the sun as well as protect you from the rain in wet conditions. There are several additional features you should look for when shopping for the ideal hat for your hiking trips.
Good hiking hats are:
- Lightweight
- Durable
- Able to be folded and packed away when you are not wearing them
- Able to maintain their shape when unfolded
- Water-resistant or waterproof
- Quick drying, if not waterproof
- Made of sun protective material
- Designed to protect your face, ears, neck and top of your head from the sun
- Designed with a chin strap to hold the hat in place on windy days
- Fitted with a sweatband to wick sweat/moisture from your forehead
There are a number of brands that you can check out if you are looking for hiking hats. Here are just a few of them:
- Sunday Afternoons
- Tilley
- BC hats (BC is an initial for Bill Conner, and he invented the very first moldable brim hat)
- Dorfman Pacific
- Watership Trading
When you are searching online for hiking hats, don’t just limit your options to outdoor stores. There are many online stores that specialize in sun protective clothing that have many hats to consider as well. Now go shopping for a hiking hat that will look good while protecting you on your hike.
What hat did you decide on? Let us know which hiking hat you are wearing by leaving a comment below.
Photo credit: Rick Hawkins
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I received a Tilley Hat for Christmas ’10 and liked it so much that I gave one as a gift for Christmas ’11.
It does an awesome job of keeping the head warm and yet your head doesn’t sweat either. The ear flaps are a nice hidden extra whenever the temperature really dips down below freezing. A bit pricey, but worth the investment.
Mesin Fotocopy recently posted..Fotokopi
Great advice, I’ll make sure to bring a hat the next time I go climbing.
Rich recently posted..Paperwork and Liars: Getting My Dog out of Argentina (Part 1)
A good bandana is always in my bag when I go hiking. It can blog the sun, collect sweat, folds up small, and could be used for a thousand other uses if the need arises. Definitely a must for those into lightweight backpacking.
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