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Reviews > Clothing > Hats, Caps and Visors > Sunday Afternoons Charter hat > Test Report by Kurt PapkeSunday Afternoons Charter Hat
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Name: | Kurt Papke |
Age: | 60 |
Gender: | Male |
Height: | 6' 4" (193 cm) |
Weight: | 215 lbs (98 kg) |
Email address: | kwpapke at gmail dot com |
City, State, Country: | Tucson, Arizona USA |
Manufacturer |
Sunday Afternoons |
Model |
Charter Hat |
Year of manufacture |
2014 |
MSRP |
US $49 |
Manufacturer website |
http://www.sundayafternoons.com |
Color |
Cream/sand (pictured above) Also available: Tan/Chaparral |
Weights |
Listed: 3.6 oz (102 g) for unspecified
size Measured garment weight: 3.4 oz (97 g) for L/XL |
Size |
Large/X-Large Also available: Medium/Large |
Fabric |
100% nylon |
Check back in two months when I've had a chance to tromp
around a bit in the mountains wearing this garment and see
what I have to say about it in my Field Report.
Date |
Location |
Trail |
Distance |
Altitude |
Weather |
July 13, 2014 |
Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson,
Arizona |
Romero Canyon |
7 miles (11.3 km) |
2700-4000 ft (820-1220 m) |
75-90 F (24-32 C) Sunny, dry |
August 9-10, 2014 | Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, Arizona | Samaniego Ridge | 7 miles (11.3 km) |
7700-9100 ft (2350-2770 m) |
55-75 F (13-24 C) Sunny, dry |
August 16-17, 2014 |
Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, Arizona | Romero
Canyon |
10 miles (16 km) |
2600-4020 ft (790-1225 m) |
65-95 F (18-35 C) Humid, overnight rainstorms |
August 24, 2014 | Huachuca Mountains near Sierra Vista, Arizona | Ramsey Canyon |
5 miles (8 km) |
5500-6300 ft (1680-1920 m) |
72-75 F (22-24 F) |
My first hike with the hat started early in the morning
hiking up the West slope of the canyon, so I wore it in the
shade at the outset. The Charter hat has a nice light
feel to it on my head.
As the sun climbed higher I appreciated the wide brim.
It kept the brutal Arizona sun off of my face and the back of
my neck, though I had to tilt the hat back on my head on the
descent to protect my neck.
There wasn't much wind that morning, so I never used the
straps. Overall, it was a pleasant first experience with
the hat. It was comfortable for hours at a time,
including good ventilation.
This is one
of my local go-to summer trails as it starts and retains a
fair amount of altitude which keeps me cool. It also has
some great camping spots among the Ponderosa Pines.
The hike in on Saturday afternoon was fairly warm, around 72
F (22 C) at the trailhead, and I was hiking into the afternoon
sun. I appreciated the sun protection from the Charter
hat for my eyes.
After setting up camp I struggled a little bit over where to
store the hat for the night, as it is fairly light-colored and
I was concerned it would show the dirt. I ended up
stashing inside my empty pack.
On the hike out the next morning I repositioned a few things
in my pack and used more of the extension collar. As I
was hiking the back brim of the hat would bump into my
pack. My pack was also not adjusted perfectly
symmetrically, which is somewhat visible in the photo at
left. It looks like the brim was bumping the upper right
side if the extension collar. The Charter hat has a very
wide brim, which is great for sun protection, but can be an
interference problem depending on backpack geometry.
The hat also does not look quite as "dapper" in the photo at
left compared to the manufacturer's literature. I am
going to need to play with the shape a bit to improve the
esthetics.
I hike Romero Canyon
pretty frequently because the trailhead is just 10 minutes
from my house. Every hike is different, the prior outing
was just a day hike, this one was roughly twice the distance
to a campsite and an overnight stay.
The Charter Hat got a pretty good workout on this trip.
Saturday was hot and unusually humid for Tucson due to the
recent monsoon rains. The hat spent the night
unprotected in a thunderstorm. The photo at right was
taken during the descent on Sunday.
The hat was none the worse for wear when I put it on Sunday
morning. It got really drenched, but dried out quickly
and I didn't really feel any dampness while wearing it.
I continue to experience the back of the brim bumping my
backpack on occasion. Nothing serious, just a bit of a
distraction.
This was just
a day hike through a Nature Conservancy wildlife
preserve. Its at a bit of altitude above the desert
floor, so the weather was quite comfortable if a little
sticky.
The photo at left shows the Charter hat shaped to look a bit
more dapper. It also demonstrates my sunglasses properly
stowed in the provided slits along the exterior of the
sweatband. It took me a few attempts to be able to
insert my glasses into the slits without actually being able
to see what I was doing, but I think I've got the hang of it
now.
The Charter hat has proven to be a useful and comfortable
piece of gear. It keeps my head cool and protected from
the sun and holds up well in the elements. the only
gripe I have with it is the back brim bumping against the
extension collar of my pack, which any wide-brimmed hat would
do. The hat is attractive if properly shaped when
wearing - if allowed to flatten out it is not quite so
flattering.
Date |
Location |
Trail |
Distance |
Altitude |
Weather |
October 12, 2014 |
Saguaro National Park, Tucson Arizona |
Sweetwater |
7 miles (11.3 km) |
2800-3800 ft (850-1160 m) |
Sunny, 85 F (29 C) |
October 16-19, 2014 |
Gila Wilderness, near Glenwood New Mexico |
San
Francisco Hot Spring and Box Canyon |
12 miles (19 km) |
4600-7200 ft (1400-2200 m) |
Mixed rain showers and sun, 32-75 F (0-24 C) |
November 13-14, 2014 |
Coronado National Forest near Tucson
Arizona |
Romero
Canyon |
12 miles (19 km) |
2800-4500 ft (790-1370 m) |
Sunny, 40-75 F (4-24 C) |
This was a 4-day
3-night backpacking trip along the San Francisco River in
western New Mexico in the Gila Wilderness. We had a wide
range of weather conditions on this trip, from chilly mornings
to warm and sunny afternoons, with some rain showers on the
last day. It was nice to be wearing a wide-brimmed
hat that kept the rain off my face when we did get some
sprinkles.
Day 3 was an interesting scramble through a slot/box
canyon. We hiked up and over huge boulders and waded
through hip-deep water. I appreciated the ability of the
Charter hat to stay on my head throughout all this, despite
the fact that I did not use the chin strap (I'm not a real fan
of chin straps).
I did notice some sunburn on my lips after Day 2.
Apparently, even though the brim of the hat is quite wide, I
still have to use a lip balm with some SPF to avoid getting
sunburned lips.
The photo at right was taken at the trailhead as we were
getting ready to depart.
The Charter Hat is comfortable, lightweight, does a great job
of keeping the sun off of my face and neck, and stays on my
head. After four months of wearing it the only aspect
I'd like to see improved is the tendency of the brim to
flatten out. This does not impact functionality, but it
just seems to have a "back country" look to it. I intend
to continue to use the hat as my go-to headwear in the back
country for all but the hottest conditions - it is a great
hat.
Backpackers who use packs that extend up into the head area
should be aware that the back brim is wide enough to
potentially bump into the pack. This was particularly
noticeable for me when I had my pack extension collar stuffed
full, bringing it up into the head area. This is not the
fault of the hat, it is intrinsic to any wide-brimmed hat.