Your hiking companion won’t hike in the bitter cold, so you compromise by taking the winters off. When spring arrives, you are eager to hit the trails. You head away from home at every opportunity. Life is good.
But now summer has arrived and it’s blazing HOT!
If there is Heat, the diagnosis is Sweat
Moisture will seep out from your skin and your clothing will feel damp and clingy against your skin. You’ll wish for clouds to capture the intense radiant heat blazing down from that luminous yellow disk in the afternoon sky.
The sweat on your forehead will drip past your eyebrows and burn your eyes. Dried sweat will leave patches of salty dust on your cheeks. Bugs will buzz around your ears. You will be easily irritated and parched for thirst.
The intensity of the sun and the hot air keeps you hovering underneath the shade, and suddenly it is too HOT for hiking?! Don’t let your hiking hobby restrict you from playing outside for a meager few months out of the year.
The summer heat also brings pleasure! A breeze feels welcoming and cooling. Splashing cold creek water on your face never felt more energizing. Taking a dip or swim never felt more refreshing. What else can you do to stay cool? Follow these summer hiking tips to help you feel more comfortable in the heat.
Hot Weather Hiking Tips
- Keep your clothing and skin wet to stay cool. In cold climates, we talked about how fatal the combination of cold and wet is. When your clothes are sweaty (or wet), heat loss is increased 5 times. Use this to your benefit in the heat! When you are near water, ensure you wet (actually soak) yourself down. Staying WET is one of the best things you can do to help decrease your core body temperature and make a difference in how comfortable you feel.
- Avoid hiking between 10 AM and 4 PM. Start your hike predawn and finish late. Take a long break near shade or a body of water during the hottest part of the day. Even if you eat and drink correctly, you must avoid hiking in direct sunlight during the hottest part of the day. Sun temperatures are 15F to 20F (9C-11C) degrees hotter than shade.
- Always carry a headlamp/lightweight flashlight so you can hike out after dark in case of illness, injury, or enjoyment that keeps you out longer than you anticipate.
Hot Weather Clothing
If you know how to make yourself more comfortable with the right clothing and proper hydration, you’ll feel much better in the heat.
- Wear a Sun Hat. Hats prevent sunburn and are useful for keeping insects off your head.
- Look for a hat with a 360-degree brim to protect your face, ears, and neck. Ensure the material is flexible to fold up and fit in your pack. Mesh fabric on the top helps with ventilation.
In previous posts, we’ve mentioned our favorite hat, the Tilly LTM6 Airflo Hat, because it offers all these characteristics – mesh ventilation, a 360 brim, and a sun protection rating of UPF 50+. It also floats in the water, folds easily to stow in your backpack, and is lightweight (~ 4 oz). [If you purchase the LTM6 Tilly by clicking on the above link, it will pay us a small commission. This costs no more to you as the purchaser, but it encourages us to keep writing articles such as these]. 
- Wear clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) rating. UV clothing is a great choice if you are hiking in open, exposed areas or want to avoid using sunscreen. The UPF in the fabric will not fade or wash off over time.
- Wear a loose or semi-fitted wicking shirt with a waffle pattern. Keep your clothing loose enough to allow for adequate air circulation. A waffle pattern allows for greater breathability and is faster drying.
- Wear wicking socks. Wicking material for socks is essential for keeping feet dry and preventing blisters. Look for Merino Wool blends (best) or Coolmax Polyester blends (good). While polyester is great for wicking moisture, it is not anti-bacterial. Wool is naturally anti-bacterial, which helps control odor.
- Look for wool blends containing at least 60% Merino Wool (not from Australia), Nylon (for durability), and Spandex (for stretch).
- Make sure your socks fit snug. Loose socks will contribute to blisters.
- Carry rain gear. You never know when you will be caught in a rainstorm during a hot summer day. While a light shower may feel good, a torrential downpour often brings high winds and temperatures drop rapidly, making you feel cold fast. Always carry an ordinary emergency poncho or rain suit/jacket. Depending on where you are hiking, it might make more sense to bring an umbrella, which is useful for providing shade when hiking in sunny, open areas.
- If you purchase a poncho, make sure what you are getting is sized to cover you and your backpack. The advantage of a poncho is that it offers good rain protection in a downpour and can be used for other (non-rain) purposes such as a tarp or temporary rain shelter/groundcloth. The main disadvantage is that it is not breathable, and you will feel damp and uncomfortable after wearing it for a while.
No Excuses!
The person who claims they love the outdoors, but won’t go there because the weather is never right, doesn’t love (or like) the outdoors. Maybe that person is you or someone you know. You can’t expect to stay comfortable if you genuinely enjoy spending time outside. That doesn’t mean outdoor activity makes for a miserable hobby. In many cases, you can make yourself more comfortable by improving your gear & following these summer hiking tips.
Humans, thanks to our ability to sweat, have adapted exceptionally well for survival in a hot environment. Physiologically, cold adaptation is more difficult for humans. We are not subarctic animals by nature. Unlike polar bears, we do not grow dense fur coats or thick layers of fat insulation. Despite that, more humans die from heat each year. High temperatures with high humidity make it harder to stay cool since sweat can not evaporate. As a result, we do not get the cooling effect of rapid evaporation. While evaporative cooling is very effective in dry climates, there is a major drawback. That is the rapid loss of water and salts from the body through sweat. If not replaced, this can be fatal in extreme heat (less than 24 hours). Make sure you stay hydrated and replace electrolytes.
Which would you pick if you’d rather choose between hypothermia and heat exhaustion?
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