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Best Hat for the BWCA?

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Diego

06/23/2012 06:02AM

Any hat recommendations for the BW? Looking for something that works with a bug net and has plently of ventilation for the hot days. The ones Ive tried on at Bass Pro seem like they would really get your head hot a hard paddle.

Thanks

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walllee

06/23/2012 08:06AM

Outdoor research Deiblo

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Scout64

06/23/2012 08:48AM

I really like the REI Paddler's Hat. Very comfortable, blocks the sun well and stayed on well in the wind. The only problem was I kept knocking it off when I portaged the canoe. Maybe I need the REI Portaging Hat???

"Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit."

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RainGearRight

06/23/2012 09:09AM

quote Scout64: "I really like the REI Paddler's Hat. Very comfortable, blocks the sun well and stayed on well in the wind. The only problem was I kept knocking it off when I portaged the canoe. Maybe I need the REI Portaging Hat???"

Yes you do, but you will also need the REI Incamp Hat as neither the portaging hat nor the paddlers hat will cut it around an in camp.

My favorite hat is a "bucket" style cotton hat from Gander mountain. Its cheap, fairly light and dipped into the lake it stays wet and cool while I paddle. 20$

There's always money in the banana stand.

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bapabear

06/23/2012 09:19AM

Have been a baseball hat guy for 60 years but a funny thing happened this year. I've got an older booney style Columbia hat that has mesh around the top part. This year the baseball hat stayed packed and I wore the other for its coolness and ability to keep sun off the ears, eyes, and back of head. Have never tried it with a bug headnet though. When it rains I go with the stiff brimmed hat to keep the hood of the raincoat up and out of my eyes.

My superhero name is TYPOMAN. Writer of wrongs.

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bojibob

06/23/2012 09:32AM

I'm breaking out my old leather visor that I found in the garage a few months ago, it hasn't been to Canoe Country in 33 years...

"One inch on the map ~ is not one inch on the ground"

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removedmember1

Guest Paddler

06/23/2012 12:20PM

I really like this one. Great ventilation and sweatband.

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Savage Voyageur

06/23/2012 12:35PM

My vote is a Tilley hat. Lightweight hat that is cool and keeps the sun off my head.

"So many lakes, so little time." WWJD

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1stSatInMay

06/23/2012 12:47PM

quote Savage Voyageur: "My vote is a Tilley hat. Lightweight hat that is cool and keeps the sun off my head. "

+1, Great hats and lifetime warranty that they honor w/o question. I had one for 15 yrs. It made >10 BW trips and got worn all the time golfing. Started to wear after 15 yrs; I sent it in to Tilley and they returned it.... along with a brand new one.

Not cheap but when it lasts 20+ yrs it's a great deal.

The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps! Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States, 1945

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Beaverjack

06/23/2012 02:18PM

quote bojibob: "I'm breaking out my old leather visor that I found in the garage a few months ago, it hasn't been to Canoe Country in 33 years...

"

Now THAT is cool! Low tech and natural. Only thing is you gotta have a head of hair to insulate from the sun. You still have that hair, don't you bojibob?

You cannot hope too much or dare too much. - R.W. Emerson

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AndySG

06/23/2012 03:05PM

What I really like about a wide brimmed hat like a Tilley, is you can treat it with permethrin or spray it down with bug dope (make sure to spray the underside of the brim,) and it keeps the skeeters from attacking your ears, face and neck.

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bojibob

06/23/2012 03:17PM

quote Beaverjack: "
quote bojibob: "I'm breaking out my old leather visor that I found in the garage a few months ago, it hasn't been to Canoe Country in 33 years...

"

Now THAT is cool! Low tech and natural. Only thing is you gotta have a head of hair to insulate from the sun. You still have that hair, don't you bojibob?"

ummmmm.... I have some of it... :-)

"One inch on the map ~ is not one inch on the ground"

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LuvMyBell

06/23/2012 04:28PM

I'm partial to Cabelas Bug Cap with Headnet. It's a regular baseball cap with an integrated bug headnet that rolls up into a pouch on the bill.

Free people are not equal. Equal people are not free.

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whiteh20

06/23/2012 08:58PM

A tilly is part of the BWCA uniform. Just a ball cap for me.

"With an ax, you can build a life. With a stove, you can boil water. That is if nothing breaks and you don't run out of fuel." -Samuel Hearne

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schweady

06/23/2012 09:19PM

It's a toss-up:

"You can observe a lot just by watching." -- Yogi Berra

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tyh

06/23/2012 09:26PM

big and floppy and vented, camo if you can find it

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Sierra1

06/23/2012 10:29PM

Another vote for the Tilley Hat. They're very comfortable, have a nice wide brim and float when they go in the water. Trust me on this one. It's a great BWCA hat.

Watch out for that rock!!!........ Oooo.... That's going to leave a mark...

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gutmon

06/23/2012 10:44PM

May I suggest a brand new leopard skin pillbox hat

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Humdinger

06/23/2012 11:21PM

2 things for me or advise -

1. After watching my 70 year old father in law dealing with skin cancer on his ears and he always wore a baseball cap, I use a wide brimmed cap or a shore fishermans that have the "french foriegn legion" flap to cover your ears and neck.

2. If you go with a boonie style hat, get one with a stiffer brim. I had a goretex turkey hunting hat with a flexible brim and the brim would constantly flip up in a stiff lake wind.

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Frenchy19

06/24/2012 12:05AM

quote gutmon: "May I suggest a brand new leopard skin pillbox hat "

Gotta love Dylan1

"The future ain't what it used to be" Yogi Berra

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fitgers1

06/24/2012 12:58AM

I wear a plain old wide brimmed straw hat and have worn them for years while camping and fishing (not always though). The current one is about five years old and is doing fine. Paid about 5 or 10 bucks for it on clearance at target. It will take permithrin. I wear one of the colored handkerchiefs around my neck if more protection is needed from the sun. Why does the name of those hanky things escape me!?
It does take a while for it to dry though if it gets too wet.

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” Ralph Waldo Emerson...and...“Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading".

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AndySG

06/24/2012 08:15AM

quote gutmon: "May I suggest a brand new leopard skin pillbox hat "

Thanks gutmon. Cookin' stuff!

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tyh

06/24/2012 09:04AM

i wear a Dorfman Pacific Solarweave safari hat. Great Hat less than 30 bucks i think its rated at SPF50

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rmessner

06/24/2012 10:00AM

I have one of these in Mossy oak camo. Made in the USA and less than $15 at Fleet farm. Henschel Breezer

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AdamXChicago

06/24/2012 10:56AM

Outdoor Research Sombrero

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butthead

06/24/2012 10:59AM

Any hat that has a bird on it!

butthead

"never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups" George Carlin

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wetcanoedog

06/24/2012 11:08AM

i have a Turkish towel bucket hat that i can get wet and wear on hot days or when i want to cover my ears.
i'll switch off to a long brimmed Sword Fish hat with large screened vents other times.
when it's cooler in the fall i have a felt crusher that i took the inside band out of for a better fit.

it's just a level trail thru the woods.

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h20

06/24/2012 05:25PM

quote butthead: " Any hat that has a bird on it!

butthead"

HaHa..The Whiskey Jack hat!

Buy the ticket, take the ride .Dr. Hunter S. Thompson

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SourisMan

06/24/2012 06:22PM

quote RainGearRight: "
quote Scout64: "I really like the REI Paddler's Hat. Very comfortable, blocks the sun well and stayed on well in the wind. The only problem was I kept knocking it off when I portaged the canoe. Maybe I need the REI Portaging Hat???"

Yes you do, but you will also need the REI Incamp Hat as neither the portaging hat nor the paddlers hat will cut it around an in camp.

My favorite hat is a "bucket" style cotton hat from Gander mountain. Its cheap, fairly light and dipped into the lake it stays wet and cool while I paddle. 20$"

Don't forget the latrine cap!

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jcavenagh

06/24/2012 08:24PM

I'm partial to my old flats hat. It has an extra long bill and a cape for the neck.

LNT - The road to success is always under construction. http://hikingillinois.blogspot.com/

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kanoes

06/24/2012 08:44PM

on solos lately, its been this one. :)

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Merganser

06/24/2012 09:22PM

In warmer weather Tilley airflow hands down. When it's cool, and especially if it's wet the nodd goes to the Seatle sombrero.

"That sort of thing is my bag baby."

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kanoes

06/24/2012 09:41PM

i guess it was only cold on april 8, 2010...not windy. short 2 night trip, 25 and 17 for lows. that old cap is on its last leg now.

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Scout64

06/25/2012 10:09PM

quote SourisMan: "
quote RainGearRight: "
quote Scout64: "I really like the REI Paddler's Hat. Very comfortable, blocks the sun well and stayed on well in the wind. The only problem was I kept knocking it off when I portaged the canoe. Maybe I need the REI Portaging Hat???"

Yes you do, but you will also need the REI Incamp Hat as neither the portaging hat nor the paddlers hat will cut it around an in camp.

My favorite hat is a "bucket" style cotton hat from Gander mountain. Its cheap, fairly light and dipped into the lake it stays wet and cool while I paddle. 20$"

Don't forget the latrine cap!"

Now wouldn't that be a social faux pas. Could you imagine sitting there in the embarrassment of wearing the wrong hat.

"Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit."

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TomT

06/25/2012 10:36PM

If I'm out fishing on a sunny day I'll break out this one. I think it's a Columbia.

This is probably my favorite. It's oiled canvas and I don't know the maker. It's not for hot days and I take it on late September trips now.

I wear this on travelin' days and around camp. It has an oversize bill and semi water proof. Mountain hardware makes it. Very comfortable.

"Life is not about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself." --- George Bernard Shaw

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Beemer01

Moderator

Moderator

06/26/2012 07:20AM

Another vote for the Tilley hats.

"You're not serious about wearing sandals on this portage.... are you?"

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TheBrownLeader

06/26/2012 08:24AM

I like the Filson Tin Cloth low profile cap. It is tough as nails, sheds rain nicely, and keeps me warmer than an ordinary cloth cap. If it's hot out, I just put the cap in the water and let the evaporation keep my head cool. I've considered a booney, but this hat is just too good to part with.

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TheBrownLeader

06/26/2012 08:24AM

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Rapid Runner

06/26/2012 08:51AM

I just pick one and go with it!

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ducks

06/26/2012 09:30AM

It has to have a Flying Moose on it!

Ride EZ

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IBFLY

06/26/2012 09:36AM

quote gutmon: "May I suggest a brand new leopard skin pillbox hat "

I've always liked that hat.

You say that like it's a bad thing.

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Goby

06/26/2012 10:14AM

I use an oiled canvas ballcap from Cabelas. It sheds rain nicely, is fairly light weight and has been my tripping hat for a while. It doesn;t cover my ears, but sunscreen does, and I'm ususally pretty tan by the time I enter the Q (late august).

Tight Lines

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AndySG