Camino Hats

recommendations & links below

Excellent Camino Hat for the Summer Heat on the Camino de Santiago!

not a good Camino hat

Forget vanity when choosing a Camino hat…

Once on the trails, practical hats will please you more.

The Best Hats for the Camino de Santiago

  • What hat will protect you from the sun—and keep your head cool?

  • What hat will keep your head warm when it’s really cold?

  • What hat will give a jacket or poncho hood “structure” under some heavy rain?
    (so the hood doesn’t obstruct your vision?)

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Hats Not Recommended for the Camino

Dead Straw Hats Seen on the Camino de Santiago

 
camino dead straw hat 1.JPG
 
 
camino dead straw hat 2.JPG
 

Hats are like sunglasses: you want to like how you look in them.
(OK, a little vanity is unavoidable)

—
So what follows is what works for me.
Hopefully that helps to launch you into a quick search
to find the perfect hat(s) for your Camino journey.

Two hat styles that have worked well for me on the Camino…

#1. A waterproof, baseball-style hat (high-visibility for safety)

On Camino routes, it’s not uncommon to walk on roads—or even highways.
For me visibility is essential.

The bright yellow-green hat below has more than earned its place
as a regular in my backpacking gear.

—
This particular waterproof hat is well-made and long lasting.
I’ve worn mine for years now, on the Camino trails—and also while out & about where I live in the rainy northwest in the USA.

 

Here’s a beanie hat with an embedded flashlight.
I regularly wear this hat while riding my bike on dark, winter mornings.
USB rechargable.

Some people like to leave before dawn to start their hiking day,
so they can arrive at their destination in the early afternoon.
This hat is a good choice for cool mornings, and in darkness or dawn,
particularly if you’re starting out on roads with traffic from cars and trucks.

Here’s a clip on light for the brim of a hat,
useful for organizing your gear while others sleep in a refuge, or for reading at night, or walking at dawn or dusk.
Or searching for a toilet in a pilgrims’ refuge at night…


#2a. a lightweight, bucket-style hat (waterproof-breathable)

Great for summer hikes when it’s warm, but you might experience an occasional rain storm.

 

#2b. This bucket hat comes in lighter colors too,
and it is NOT waterproof… an advantage on hot days.

If you bring a rain hat, like the baseball hat above,
you may want to take a non-rainproof bucket hat like this too:

The cloth absorbs water, so when it’s terribly hot,
drench this bucket hat in a village water fountain
or pour water from your lightweight water bottle onto the hat:

A wet hat on your head provides sweet, cooling-relief from the heat, even if temporary.
It’s another reason I prefer water bottles to pack hydration systems.
Click HERE to learn more about backpack hydration systems
(scroll down the page to see an image and an explanation).

#2c. Tilley Hats


Famous among outdoor folks and travelers, and loved because of their excellent quality.
They’re nice looking too!

Here’s a Tilley bucket hat, just one of many styles.
They also have a lot of color choices.

Because it can get cold in the early spring months (when I like to walk), I also take a fleece beanie hat.
Super-lightweight, and much-appreciated on cold mornings!

Balaclava

Also lightweight and much loved on cold mornings,
I’ve used something similar to this when I’ve set out in early March
when snow or below freezing temperatures are not uncommon.

The advantage of a fleece fabric is that it weighs so little but still provides a lot of warmth.

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