High SPF outdoor clothing for hot, sunny, dry climates?

S

Sid Post

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Oct 14, 1998
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After finishing my two week vacation to the National Parks in Arizona and Utah (USA), one of things I want to add to my travel clothing are long sleeve shirts that will hold up to hard use without being excessively hot that will also block the sun and prevent bad sunburns.

I'm actually a fan of evaporative cooling wearing all cotton long sleeve shirts when I sweat. People in the MidEast and Africa seem to do very well in their white flowing gowns(?) so, I would be interested in learning about them and their head scarves as well.

I wear a Tilley hat, typically an all cotton model with a ~4 inch brim, and use lots of sunscreen with the normal blue jeans and polo shirts. I really need something better. I will probably get a couple of the REI SPF 50 Polo shirts to try in a week or two but, I'm open to other recommendations.

What do you use? How does it work? What do you recommend to others?

Thanks!
Sid
 
It gets quite hot here, the sun is nearly always out and combined with the high altitude it's easy to get a sunburn if you don't take precautions. The cowboys (as in real ones, yes they still exist) that spend most of their days out in the sun seem to get by fine with a simple cotton long sleeve shirt in the summertime. They favor brands like Wrangler and Cinch but any good quality shirt should work.

I've always thought the SPF clothing thing was just a big scam to sell more expensive clothing. I've never seen anyone get a tan underneath their clothing let alone a sunburn.
 
I wear black shirts, always. My upper arms are always fish-belly pale.

Honestly, if black wasn't a good color for heat and sunlight, do you think we'd have so many black Africans?
 
Black cools well at night (passive radiation?) but, during the day in strong sunshine it's way too hot for me. I don't want to absorb light energy during the day, I want to reflect it away.
 
I like the old standby Filson safari cloth shirts (preferably the US made ones). The pants of this material are okay, also, but don't expect them to be nuke proof.

The feather cloth shirts don't seem to last too many washings, but are lighter in weight.
 
orthogonal1 said:
I like the old standby Filson safari cloth shirts (preferably the US made ones). The pants of this material are okay, also, but don't expect them to be nuke proof.

The feather cloth shirts don't seem to last too many washings, but are lighter in weight.
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I'll mostly agree with ol' Orth here... I have two of the Safari cloth shirts and one Feather cloth shirt. All three are bullet proof, but as a "fat Swede"... there is NO way I could wear the Safari cloth in the hot sunshine. I would actually melt into a giant puddle. The Feather cloth is plenty durable. I've had mine for at least 10 years. It's been washed MANY times... the ONLY thing that hasn't lasted is the original color. And, only minor fading in color at that. The Safari cloth shirts are my absolute favorite shirt, my ONLY complaint is that they only offer two colors in the Tall sizes.:grumpy:
 
I'm pale and burn easily. Certainly some of my shirts keep the sun out better than others, but there isn't much in it. Hats are critical. Going back to one of the earlier posters, looking at what the locals wear is a a smart idea. I have a Djellabeh from Middle East days and when I'm up in the Pacific Islands I wear a lava-lava - much cooler and more comfortable than shorts and people seem to appreciate that I wear it. Of course, with Scots blood in me I'm comfortable in unbifurcated clothing!
 
Ex Officio, Patagonia and Royal Robbins make exactly what you're looking for. Super light travel clothing with SPF ratings that wick sweat, are tough, reliable, and will last longer than you do.
 
I work outdoors year round and in the past year and a half I have worn Under Armour for cold and hot conditions. It is by far the best and until you try it you just won't understand, its expensive but it pays off in the end. And as UA says "cotton is the enemy"
 
I also enjoy the benifits of UA and other similar products (Pearl Izumi, amoung others) as hot weather wear or a base layer when it gets cold.... But I do hesitate at time; you ever seen what happens when somebody wearing that stuff is exposed to intense heat?

I'll give you a hint, it melts before you do. Other than that, though, the athletic clothing industry is been revolutionized since I played scholastic sports.
 
Sid Post said:
A white shirt you sweat through will sunburn you. ;)
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I have never been sunburned through a single layer of ordinary cotton or cotton blend, any color, any weave, soaked or not, sea level or 14,000'. I have fair skin, burn easily, and prefer white in hot weather.
 
I have gotten very very sick from a sunburn I received wearing a white T-shirt. It was like I had no shirt on at all. You could not tell where the fabric stopped or started in the burn on my arms and around my neck. My back blistered and peeled in a very severe way.

I have had cases of the Flu that weren't as bad as that sunburn.
 
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