Backpacker Magazine – Online Exclusive - Mother's Day Gift Guide

Mother's Day Gift Guide: Outdoor Research Solar Roller

Fool-proof sun protection for her noggin

by: Joel Nyquist

Tags:
• Gear
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• Hat
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• Apparel
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Hats keep the sun off your face and neck, and not only is that good for your skin, it keeps you cool. The trick is that you’ve got to make sure it’s well-ventilated. The Solar Roller brim is wide enough to give you shade no matter which direction you’re hiking and where the sun happens to be, yet doesn’t look like a mountain sombrero.

Adjusting the fit is easy with a toggled drawstring at the back of the hat, and there is a chinstrap for when it gets really windy. If the chinstrap makes you feel just a bit silly, don’t worry, it’s easily removable. The foam-stiffened brim is easy to mash up and pop back into place, and the headband draws sweat away and dried quickly enough that when one tester took the hat off for a snack break it was dry by the time she put it back on. $32; 2.4 oz.; w’s S-XL; outdoorreasearch.com

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