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Britanne Aquis Adventure
Towel
Medium Size
Field Report by Rick Allnutt
"You got a towel with you?" said Ford
suddenly to Arthur.
Arthur, struggling through his third pint, looked round at him.
"Why? What, no...should I have?"
He had given up being surprised, there
didn't seem to be any point any longer.
Ford clicked his tongue in irritation.
"Drink up," he urged.
The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams,
chapter 2.
PRODUCT
INFORMATION
Manufacturer: Britanne Corporation
Year Manufactured: 2003
Manufacturer's Link: Aquis Britanne
Listed Weight: under 4 oz (113 gm)
Measured Weight: 3.84 oz (109
gm)
Listed size: 15 x 29 in (38 x 74 cm)
Measured size: 15 x 29 in (38 x 74 cm)
Review Date: 26 November 2003
REVIEW
The towel is made of a brand of ultrafine microfiber named Aquitex®. The fibers
are woven into a cloth called Aquis® Lisse. The towels are available in five
colors. The color reviewed is blueberry.
The towel's thickness is approximately .04 in (1 mm). It is slightly thinner
than the cotton towel one might find hanging from a towel rack in a
bathroom. However, it absorbs water very well. With its futuristic fiber
content, it may be what Adams had in mind when Ford's towel was described as
"the most massively useful thing a [hiker] can have".
How much water will the towel hold?
Weight soaking wet: 16.8 oz (475 gm)
Dry weight as above: 3.8 oz (109 gm)
Difference (weight of water held in towel): 13 oz (366 gm)
Weight after wringing out: 9.17 oz (260 gm)
Effective weight of water removed before needing to wring it out:
i.e. difference between wrung out towel and soaking wet towel:
3.83 oz (106 gm)
How long does it take to dry? Indoors at 74 F (23.3 C) at an unmeasured but
comfortable relative humidity, it takes about 3 hours for the towel to dry. In
the sun, on a warm rock on a dry, warm day, it takes about an hour. In
cold temperatures, the towel can take a long time to dry on the outside of a
pack. Inside a large mesh compartment of my pack, the towel has remained
damp at the end of the day after eight or more hours of drying time. It
does still dry me off even when moist, but feels damp on my skin.
As previously reported, the towel works well to dry off after a shower. I said
in the initial report, "It dried me very well and was comfortably smooth to my
skin. However, it dries so thoroughly that the cloth seems a little sticky on
the skin. Weight of the towel after drying was 6.17 oz (175 g). Note that this
is less than the weight after wring out listed above. I tried to wring water out
of the towel. None came out. The towel dried in a warm room in about an hour."
After using the towel nearly every day for six weeks, nothing in the description
needs to be amended. The towel needs to be washed about twice a
week in regular use. I have washed it by hand in warm water with half a
pump of liquid hand soap. The towel continues to bleed just a bit of its
blueberry color into the water with each cleaning. The color of the towel
has not faded, and all the stitching remains in great shape.
The towel has also been used to clean my glasses. Almost nothing except cotton
and paper products will readily dry glasses after washing. Even when moist,
this towel does. The towel left my glasses completely dry and ready to use.
The towel has an attached loop with plastic snap. The tag lists the materials as
80% polyester and 20% nylon. The tab is intended to attach the towel to a pack
while drying in the field. The loop is sewn to the towel with a straight
stitch. The stitching has not given me any problem over the Field Report period.
I am slightly bothered by the tag's plastic snap when drying off. It tends
to bounce and bang especially on the hard bones of my hard head. I have
been concerned about drying my hair with my eyes open for the same reason.
I do not want to take a smack to an eye from the button or a scrape of my cornea
from the stiff fabric of the tag while drying off.
FIELD DATA
I have mainly used the towel in the wilds of Dayton Ohio, utilizing a
3 bedroom shelter.
I seriously considered using the towel on a November section hike of the AT, but
after testing with day hiking, knew the towel would not dry sufficiently on my
pack in the winter.
Multiple uses of an item are important in determining exactly what will be in
the pack. One advantage this towel has over thinner towels is its
insulation value when dry. I have used this property in several cold
weather hammock experiments. I find the towel is great in insulating my
head from the hammock shell, and works as a good pillow too. With the
super ability of the fibers to absorb water, any condensation from breathing is
easily absorbed. Having the towel under my head makes it easy to find and
use in dealing with condensation.
Results of some of the suggested uses of a towel:
Works well to prevent drafts and giraffes from coming under a cabin door.
Also works well in keeping giraffes from coming under my hammock.
Works well to wipe up fluids, like blood.
Works well as a blindfold.
Works well as hammock material for a doll's Speer Hammock. (Works best if
height is less than a handbreadth.)
Does not work as a parachute.
Does not work as a superhero cape.
Works well as a slingshot.
Did not work as a sarong. (would work if my waist circumference were less than a
handbreadth)
LONG TERM TEST PLAN
I plan to continue to use the towel for my daily shower. This will be a
good way to judge the durability of the towel. I will also use the towel on backpacking trips
once the weather warms up. There are a number of other unique
tests that can be applied to towels as specified in the Hitchhiker's Guide to
the Galaxy. I will endeavor to do many of these tests as time and opportunity
present themselves.
PERSONAL BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
Rick Allnutt
50 Year old male
6' 0'' (183 cm) in height
190 lbs (86 kg) in weight
Email address: ra1 (at) imrisk (dot) com
I live in Dayton, Ohio
BACKPACKING BACKGROUND
Over the last 18 months, I have gone from being a heavy-weight (2 Duluth Pack)
canoe camper to a three-season base pack weight of about 9 lb (4 kg) and skin
out weight of 20 lb (9 kg). I have completed five ultralite section hikes on the
AT with a total mileage of just over 200 miles (322 km). I am an ultralite
hiker, a gearhead, a hammock camper, and make much of my own equipment.
Read more reviews of Britanne gear
Read more gear reviews by Rick Allnutt
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