Frogg Toggs Waterproof Breathable Boonie Hat

Frogg Toggs Boonie Hat is one of those deals that makes one ask why the big name brands charge so much for their products. This hat has kept me dry in heavy downpours and thunderstorms. The 3-inch brim is plenty wide to keep the rain and sun off my face and the back of my neck. The hat crushes down to a flat tortilla in the pack and comes right back into shape (with a few new wrinkles). It's more breathable than any other rain hat I've owned. It only weighs 2.5 ounces. And if I ruin it or lose it, I'm not going to be stressing over the $10 replacement cost.

God and I have an understanding. He sees me grab my backpack, and He sends rain. If you ever have a drought in your area, just hire me to come hike there. 

I hate the suffocating feeling of being in a hooded jacket, and a hood doesn't really protect your face in a hard rain. Plus I needed a new boonie hat to replace the nice one my no-good, rotten daughter lost at Disney World.  

Enter Frogg Toggs.

4 hours of continuous thunderstorms in Mark Twain National Forest. 

I've looked at Frogg Togg's UL Poncho a couple of times. I just can't get past the paper-y feel of the material. The hat is the exact same material. The actual product is 90 percent polyproplyene and 10 percent polyester. And while I still wonder about the longevity of this hat; it has taken a beating in the few months I've owned it. 

I've shoved it in and out of my pack. I've stuck it in my back pocket and sat on it. I've accidentally compressed it in a stuff sack. 

It comes back into shape every time. Although it looks a little off if you don't reshape it well. 

Morning downpour in Shawnee National Forest. It rained from the time I got up until the moment I got back to the car 3 hours later. Then the sun came out. 

Water Resistance: In continual downpours lasting up to 4 hours this hat never wet through. I have heard of hikers using the hat as a camp bucket. The 3-inch wide brim keeps the rain off the back of my neck just as well as a hooded jacket and off my face better than a hood. 

Breathability: I always feel like Waterproof-Breathable is a oxymoron. You can't truly have both. This hat definitely delivers on the waterproof and does better-than-most on the breathability. 

Fit & Comfort: It is a bit snug for my size L head. After a few wears, it stretched out for me a bit. For those with smaller brains, the hat comes with an elastic cinch cord to tighten it up in the back. 

And I like using the standard chin strap to draw the hat up on the sides when it's neither rainy nor sunny. 

Weight: At 2.5 ounce it adds minimal weight to the pack and serves as both a rain and sun hat (Note the pasty white skin, freckles, and red beard inherited from my Scott-Irish ancestors). 

Conclusion: Look, this thing costs $10. That's $50 cheaper than similar products with TNF logo on it. So just buy it, and then write your own review telling me how wrong I am. In the meantime, I'm thinking about trying that UL poncho after all. 

Background

Multiple rainy spring days on the trail.