Summertime. Spring skiing. Portillo lounging. Father’s day gifting. Whatever. Looking for a hat that’ll protect your ears from sun damage and subsequent amputation?
Consider the Carhartt Angler Boonie (a re-name and slight redesign of the former Mandan hat we’ve liked over the years). Wicking headband, check. Full sun block, check. Wire brim that resists flopping, check. Chin cord, check.
What’s not to love? Due to the malleable wire rim I’m afraid to wad this hat up in my pack like my previous boonies. It needs to be stowed with a modicum of care — extra effort but worth it. The MSRP is a bit stiff. A secret little velcro pocket is built into the crown, kinda trivial and adds bulk, easy to scissor out so it only forms a double layer 100% UV block instead of heat retaining triple layer.
Color is perfect. Amazon product to right shows a blue, but it’s also available in a shade of tan that I find vastly more pleasing, and practical for fitting in while traveling.
What’s strange is a small-medium size doesn’t seem to be offered. Do all Carhartt customers have jumbo skulls? Meanwhile, medium-large fits me comfortably, though I might stitch a small pleat into the band so “mon chapeau” doesn’t get tipped so easily in the alpine breeze.
Yeah, it’s just a hat. But good boonies are hard to find.
11 comments
Best feature I’ve found in a boonie hat was a black underbrim. This cuts snow/water glare to an almost unbelievable degree. Even with good sunglasses on, the difference is remarkable.
Throwback Thursday. Updated post with the new model/name hat. Still a good pick if you need a boonie. Lou
I really like the sundayafternoons adventure hat for sun protection. They also sell other verisons similar to the boonie hat. Pricier than the Carhartt but a good hat is still a cheap investment compared to most outdoor specialty gear.
Gonna throw my vote in for the Kokotat Sunwester. Built by a kayak supply company who primarily builds super technical drysuits and lifejackets.
Yes, it’s a little more money. But it crumples. It has the much desired dark underbrim. Has an elastic temple toggle to hold your hat on your head in addition to the chinstrap. I’ve owned 2 in 20 years.
I bought the second in a blind panic when I couldn’t find the first. It was in my favorite pack so I wouldn’t forget it. I forgot.
5 stars by me
Those Kokotats do look good. Thanks guys for the suggestions. Lou
OR has a number of rain hats, I got one of their sombreo type with gortex and the neck string which i bought for seakayaking. YMMV but what I found was I run too hot most of the time and I am better off with a mesh back ball cap just enough to keep rain off the glasses
XXX_er
I have a few of those “mesh back ball caps” styles made by KAVU. Made in USA.
Waterproof, stiff brim, and adjustable self locking tab at rear. Available with some mesh , or solid fabric on top. You can even throw them in the washing machine.
I can sail or kayak with mine on in a 20 mph wind. It even stays on ,if I dump my Laser !
I have similar hat with mesh side ventilation and dark under brim. Mostly use for sailing / kayaking and referred to as “crazy old man sailing hat”. My SO visibly flinches when I put it on. Makes on-water experiences much more pleasant. Except for the flinching.
When my super touristy, white cotton, $7, “Grand Canyon” hat finally wore out I replaced it with a similar one with a bunch of turtles printed around the hatband area. I got that one somewhere in Hawaii, I think it was on Maui. Those two have lasted me over 30 years now.
They seem to check most of the boxes you guys are talking about except for the dark colored under-brim area – which I can imagine is a nice feature.
In all serious though, I vastly prefer non-water proof hats of this style since I tend to wear them in the summer and the ability to soak them in a stream for instant head-cooling duty is pretty swell.
I like the OR Sun Runner hat for spring touring. Its baseball cap with ear & neck cape design gives great sun protection. But the big bonus is I can easily throw my climbing helmet on over it (BD Vapor) for climbs and descents. This is why I prefer it to the bucket hat design where the helmet over the cap becomes awkward.
In spring corn I just keep the hat & sunglasses on all day. Helmet comes out for booting tight couloirs (due to the risk of rockfall) and skiing.
I still need some sunscreen due to the reflected sun, but the cape around your neck gives better coverage from reflected light IMO compared to a bucket hat.
It can get a little warm on super hot days but the positives outweigh the negatives IMO. If you’re really hot, you can easily remove the cape and have just a baseball cap.
I have used the OR Sun Runner hat for many years.
The cape is especially useful to physically block out voracious kamikaze mosquitoes in places like the Wind Rivers when nothing else will repel them.