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Hyperbole? Yes. Clickbait? Probably. Upon further introspection, I think it would be:
- Sleeping bag (quilt)
- Water Filter
And then…
The Sun Umbrella.
I tried to think of a clever or funny ways to discuss the down right flaccid sun umbrella; a fake dear John letter to my wife explaining I had found a new love (she fits in my pack and is made of silver, sorry dear), a proclamation from a new convert to the church of the sun umbrella (gather round and let me extol the virtues of our metallic round savior), and a very bad riff on Rihanna’s hit song Umbrella – the lyrics to which I would not even dream of putting to paper here. In the end, I went with this clickbaity title and a boring blog about it, because I think it’s truly the most under appreciated piece of gear out here.
Listen to me when I say, I know how stupid it looks. I know that it isn’t cool. I know that it looks like I have a satellite dish on my head and that I’m trying to communicate with another planet (I know because other hikers have told me). I still use it. I still love it. I still want you to use it and love it.
I am a very recent convert to spreading the joys of the sun umbrella. It was the absolute last addition to my pack. Quite literally added 3 days before I left and I had never tested it. Believe me when I say, I think it’s the best gear decision I made.
I do not know how many hikers carry the mighty sun umbrella in their kit. Unfortunately, Mac’s Halfway Anywhere Gear Survey (if you are a prospective hiker and have not found this resource, truly it is invaluable), does not cover the topic. I would estimate it is no more than 15%. I think it should be 100%.
The Virtues of My Collapsible Metallic God
The obvious – shade:
I don’t think it can be overstated how nice it is to carry your own shade. In the past week we had a heat wave on trail where temps reached the 90s in the hottest hours of the day. In the shade of my umbrella, I wasn’t cool – but I was much more comfortable than my non-umbrella wielding counter parts.
I have hiked many miles with my trusty sun hoodie and baseball hat combo. It works and it’s reliable, but it is a very hot and sweaty experience. Nothing compares to the 6 or so inches of cool air the umbrella provides. I can take my hood and hat off, and if there is a slight breeze, it can be down right comfortable in the mid day heat of the desert.
Decreased water needs/sweat:
This was the most unexpected benefit of the sun umbrella. With my portable shade, I sweat less. This results in decreased water needs through out the day. In the desert of Southern California on the PCT, water is the single largest constraint for hikers. One day this past week, I started hiking early in the day. I was using my umbrella by 9 am and I hiked 10 miles. I drank less than half a liter.
In my next article I will be further discussing water on trail, but at any given time water is far and away the heaviest single item in a hikers pack. At 2.2 pounds per liter, anything that can reduce water needs is well worth the weight
Less sunscreen:
When your whole body is in the shade, you don’t need sun screen. I still hike in pants (fairly uncommon for the PCT) and a sun hoody because my complexion is somewhere between printer paper and Casper the Ghost. I hate applying sunscreen, especially to my face that is caked with salt, dirt, and grime. The sun umbrella has largely reduced my need for sunscreen to zero. Just don’t forget to sunscreen your hands…
Rain!:
This is a painfully obvious check mark in the pro column – the sun umbrella is still an umbrella! Hikers can further offset the weight of adding an umbrella to their pack by ditching their rain jacket. I have kept my rain jacket because I use it as a wind breaker too. However, for the ultralight hiker, this may be enough of a reason to add the sun umbrella. It has been a nice added bonus to use the umbrella in town while it’s been raining.
The Shortfalls of the Sun Umbrella
Wind and bushes:
Wind is the greatest enemy of the mighty sun umbrella. A small gust of wind here and there, it can tackle no problem. Sustained winds render the umbrella useless. However, if the wind is blowing, it is likely cool enough that you don’t need a sun umbrella to cool you down.
Over grown bushes and trees are another major issue for the sun umbrella. I have not babied my sun umbrella. I push through bushes and shrubs. I’m still waiting for a branch to puncture it, but it is still holding up after 150 miles. My set up, discussed below, allows the umbrella to rotate which I think helps to reduce the risk of punctures. Despite my laissez-faire approach to pushing through shrubbery, there have been 3 times where I was required to back out of the bushes and collapse the umbrella. It’s annoying and it takes a little bit of time, I still think it’s worth it.
Weight:
In my opinion, this is probably the biggest hurdle to umbrella adoption. My umbrella weighs about 6 ounces. This does not sound like a lot of weight to most people. However, when you need to carry the weight for 2,655 miles, every ounce adds up. As discussed above, I think the decreased water needs actually result in weight savings, regardless I understand the reticence.
The View:
The decreased visibility is probably my biggest issue with the sun umbrella. The top ~15% of my peripheral vision is blocked. I have to manually adjust the umbrella to look up a slope. It can also get in the way of my photos and videos. Sometimes it takes me a while to realize there is an incredible view to my right or left because of the decreased visibility.
In the grand scheme of things, the pros of the sun umbrella greatly outweigh the cons for me.
My Hands Free Setup
On my shoulder strap I added a CTUG smart water bottle holder – I put the base of the umbrella in the bottom. I will then add a water bottle on top – this helps to weigh down the umbrella for the odd strong gust of wind. Further up on my shoulder strap, I have the Gossamer Gear umbrella holder. This second point of contact really helps to secure the umbrella, with the added benefit of allowing it to spin while I push through shrubs.
Don’t Just Take it From Me
2 of the 3 people I’m hiking with have added umbrellas to their kit. They both love their umbrellas – maybe not as much as I love mine but that’s ok.
When I got in to Mount Laguna, I sat down at the cafe and placed my umbrella on the table. At that moment a Trail Angel name Raingel (questionable spelling, but it rhymed with Trail Angel) walked by and said, “that is the only piece of gear I bring of every single hike, whether it’s a day hike or weeks long.”
The voice of reason that convinced me to give the sun umbrella a try is the proprietor of this fine object, Zach “Badger” Davis. On a recent episode of Backpacker Radio, I believe episode 295, he discussed how much the sun umbrella helped him on the PCT. As a fellow sweaty, nearly translucent hiker, I agree.
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