Jöttnar Vorn

Extremely light, adjustable, vented, and sweat resistant—color is slightly muted—but it has a trick up its sleeve when it comes to getting rid of water.

I wear hats. I wear them everyday and have a go-to collection of baseball hats that number in the 20's. All have a purpose, I've discovered. Some are good for mowing; some for gardening; winter ones, spring ones, fishing ones, the list goes on.

Purchasing the Vorn was an attempt to find the right hat for my reclining hairstyle and to ward off the sun, during summer and the sweat out of my eyes to boot.

After tearing open the packaging like a hammerhead chumming the water, I extracted my new prize. The colour: Orion Blue is opaque blue. The other choices are black and what looks like OD—called Blackstone. None of them yell "LOOK AT ME!" like skiing gear can easily do; but instead are all muted and this turned up one of the only critiques I have—more on that in a few.

Jottnär Vorn

First time wearing was on a 38°C/100°F day of using the push mower. Adjusting the Vorn is industry standard, but the quick release aspect is welcome when you want to attach it to a pack or somewhere, so you don't forget it.

Putting it on, I was pleasantly surprised by the weight, 57g/2 oz but worried that the brim felt a little 'cheap'. This fear was put to rest and buried that day and others since. It's a great naturally shaped plastic sliver, covered in the polyester face panelling.

At the end of 90 minutes, I was sweating. I wouldn't know it though as nothing was cascading into my eyes or down my face. Instead the lining of the hat does two things. 1) It seemingly wicks the sweat away and to the sides, away from your face. 2) When you overload the hat and are at the point of taking it off and attaching it to your rucksack (remember that quick release at the back—this is where that comes in handy) I noticed that it looked as though it was beginning to drizzle as drips were forming at the end of the peak and then coming under the influence of gravity. It's almost as though there's guttering in the brim to channel the sweat (and I can attest rain does the same) to the sides of the brim and away from you.

Now onto in the field experience: Keeps the sun off you and out of your face. The brim stands up for abuse. I folded the hat and stuffed it into my rucksack on numerous occasions without damage. I find in early spring I can wear it for about 90 minutes until I switch it out for a buff. In summer, I'm finding I can wear it for 60 minutes. Drying time on the back of the sac is 20 minutes. Comes in useful for when camping and it's not quite beanie time. 

I've used the Vorn on day hikes as well as overnighters and multi-nighters, now. One last experiment I carried out, for the giggles, was to test the Polygiene odor resistant treatment. The results: I wore the Vorn for 8 times and soaked it in either rain or sweat and only at that point did the funk start. Rinse or wash it in water or a washing machine and BOOM! it's back to normal service.

It's a great addition and I'd highly recommend it, although at $45/35GBP or 40Euros, it might be a bit steep. However, if you wear a hat daily, you'll know that's OK because you won't be disappointed.

Background

I've invested in 8 pieces of Jöttnar equipment for the hiking, climbing that I do in all four seasons in the Catskills and Adirondacks in New York State.

I've hiked throughout Wales, Scotland, England, Norway, Brunei, Sabah, Hong Kong, and Japan.