After you’ve been beat down by the sun and have had more nights lying awake because of a scorching sunburn, you start forgetting about how cool you look on the water and start thinking about protection. Sun protection is getting easier and easier to find, but there’s nothing like a big hat to keep your mug protected.
Madrone Headwear has a whole line of hats designed to protect you from the sun’s harmful rays, but the hats I tested, the Wahoo Cap ($36, above) and the Summit hat ($26.13, below) are super lightweight and designed for ultimate protection.
The Wahoo cap features a full neck cape, removeable chin strap and large vents at the top to keep you cool and protected at the same time. The super lightweight hat can fold down to almost nothing, making it ideal for packing away on trip or storing inside your kayak, or even PFD. The microfiber construction made this hat dry as fast, or maybe even faster than my Buff or sun shirts.
A big, full brim on Summit hat, paired with the full neck cape and ventilated top makes this hat the ultimate tool in sun protection. Channel your inner Jim Sammons with this hat and keep your face, neck, ears and even shoulders fully protected at the same time. Since the Summit hat only weighs a mere three ounces, I was able to pack this hat anywhere in my truck or on my kayak and have it handy once the sun broke the horizon.
For more information about Madrone Headwear, or their UV Protection hats, check out their website, madronegear.com.
