What watch for wilderness ?and what are you wearing?

Omega for 30 years. Suunto X-Lander since '99. Do not use a watch if you so wish, but I find one, Analog or Digital, offers any number of features that can help you survive. The ability to tell time, determine direction, predict future weather trends, temp, wind speed, altitude, etc are all helpful. An amazing amount of information can be had for that little thing hanging off your whrist. Why not take advantage of it. Newer ones have full GPS. I still rely on a compass as my primary nav tool, but modern watches simply offer too many positive attributes that to dismiss them is doing yourself a disservice.
 
bushcraft said:
Hi Everybody.

What things do you look for in a wilderness survival, outdoors-man type of watch?

It must tell time right? :)
What else?
I have no use for some of the functions like barometer and altimeter.

A compass is nice.
What other feature, build quality, material, reflectivity, weight,size, do you look for?
Click to expand...

I try not to wear a watch. The only use I can see for one in the wilderness is to know when the sun is going down. Having one with a compass would be ok, and a barometer to give me a clue about bad weather. I'm not a mountain climber so i don't have a use for an altimeter either
 
I got a $10 digital watch at WalMart last June, just the smallest most basic model I could find, and I've been wearing it since. I got it to replace an old cheap analog watch I lost, so that I could time my runs more accurately. A few months later someone gave me a watchband compass that fits perfectly, and looks like it belongs. I've found that shockingly handy a few times (such as navigating a city with a map, or simply deciding which way to orient my tarp).

About two weeks ago I got a Garmin 205, which has a GPS reciever in it. I tells me things like time, distance, pace, and altitude. I got it for running, but I'd like to take it on a hike sometime. It only has a 10 hour battery life, but I'm planning on rigging up a charger based on a AA battery for taking it on longer trips. It also has a handy feature that allows it to work like the Bushnell BackTrack device. You can have it redirect you to wherever you started the timer, using a rough map on the small display. I believe it also has a compass, but I haven't explored that yet. It's been very accurate, to within about 10-20 meters during a race this morning. Haven't had the chance to see how the reception is in tree cover yet, but based on reviews I'm cautiously optimistic.
 
im not a fan of watches....havent had one since 6th grade. i always show up to appointments early and if i really need to know the time i ask someone. if im out in the woods the sky is my watch never breaks down and doesnt weigh a thing.

i wouldnt mind carrying a decent watch for emergency compass purpose.....not a need though.
 
G- Shock- use it for my workouts too ( HIIT) The thing has taken a beating and just does it's job- can't beat it IMO
 
Well my daily wear is an old Omega seamaster, however that stopped ticking a while ago and has been in the shop ever since, not sure when its coming back...
I have had a few Suunto's over the years, got one after being up a mountain in a white out and my climbing partner sat on our compass, however I have broken them all, got wet and died,. been tempted to get a Suunto core but again its a lot of money if it breaks again...

So at the moment I am sans watch, use phone and computer and wife for time, however I am considering buying either a casio g-shock (tough and cheap) or a Seiko Orange Monster - diver so should be tough too.
 
I don't care to wear a watch when I am hiking, too restrictive, and because I wear it right on my wrist, if I fall, painful.

I prefer to use the clock in my GPS, or carry a little Digital Alarm.

Marion
 
I'm another that doesn't wear a watch (and am never late). Near 25 years ago Micky's battery ran down and I decided to toss the watch in a drawer.
It was one of the best things I ever did (much like giving up golf)...
On the rare occasions that I feel that I may need a watch I wind up a 17 jewel La Marque (about the diameter of a quarter and 4 times as thick).
For cooking in the field there is a cheap wind up pocket watch in the cook kit.

Enjoy!
 
I like the Casio Pathfinder hunting Timer for wearing on hikes. I've tried the G-shocks and just can't get used to the bulkiness, especially under shirt sleeves. The Pathfinder offers some similar features in a slimmed down package. Currently wearing an Omega DeVille.
 
When I retired, I threw my watch in a drawer where it still remains. I only carry my cell phone now. When I did wear one, it was a Casio.
 
I'm a watch nut and I don't have a dedicated "wilderness watch". I like a simple analog dial w/o the bells and whistles and I wear whichever suits my fancy. It may be an expensive one or it may be a cheap one. I've never understood people who buy an expensive watch and then are afraid to use it....it's like having 'safe queen' knives IMO. Use it and abuse it, you can always get it fixed if it does break.

But if you want a recommendation, my opinion is that the Seiko diver series is the best buy in the watch world period. They're tough, reliable and inexpensive for what you get.
 
Wearing Suunto Core watch.
Not a bad choice I think but I cannot recommend it for serious outdoor activities
due to it's reliability issue.
The battery life ends suddenly, at least once a year, without any notifications.

The features of this watch is quite useful in my kind of field though.
 
Suunto Metron, still going strong for well over 5years now. Old, but still the prettiest Suunto in town IMO. It's my for everything watch, from training to construction to woods to formal wear. Has all the needed bells and whistles: comp, baro, alt, heart-rate monitor, intervals and timer.
 
Suunto X10, had a X9i before.

I like the compass, the barometer and the barometer history. I also record my tracks to look at them later in Google Earth.
 
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