protection against the sun

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Mountaineering : One Thread

I have a real problem with sunburning especially at altitude.B What type of gear to you suggest for eye protection and face protection.B sun screens do not work, and sometimes the full face fleece masks are just way to warm.B Also do you have a good suggestion for goggles to wear.B the Side shields on glacier glasses I have tried leak sun through and eye get burned around the outside of my eyes.B I guess I am just really sun sensitive.B What the heck to they use on the big mountains for these kinds of problems.

-- Neil Dressler (sreniram@hotmail.com), September 12, 1999

Answers

I've used Cebe ski gogles. They are big enough to accomodate glasses. At altitude it's often cold enough that you can wear a balaclava, so almost none of your skin would be exposed.

-- Quang-Tuan Luong (luong@ai.sri.com), September 13, 1999.

Have you tried zinc oxide? Your looks may suffer but I thought it blocked 100% of the sunlight. Now available in rad colors.

-- George Bell (gibell@geocities.com), September 13, 1999.

My wife severely sunburned the skin just above and in between her eyebrows while climbing in Bolivia; after six years she still has visibly damaged area there. The UV flying around up there can be fierce.

Protection. A thin face mask/balaclava, one made of Capilene, polypropylene or silk. A hat with a full brim for the warmer days. Alternately, one of the guys on our Bolivia trip wore one of the Outdoor Research sun hats with the velcro-detachable shroud for the neck/lower face. He claimed it protected him from the sun and the ever-present wind. One of these plus either zinc oxide or the strongest sunblock you can find may do the trick for you. A silkweight Capilene crew neck can give some sun protection even when it's hot; buy white for its solar rejecting qualities. Finally, one of those duckbill nose protectors that attach to glacier glasses can protect your nose.

Goggles may work for your eyes, but you may want to just try more glacier glass frames until you find one that really seals out the light. I've had good luck with the Bolle glasses, and with a Cebe pair. A friend likes the classic Julbo round lense style.

Good luck.

-- Dennis Roscetti (roscetti@execpc.com), September 22, 1999.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ