Having had Uncle Sam as my haberdasher for 23 years I have a nice collection of boonie hats in various patterns: Woodland camo, leaf-pattern camo, 6 color desert (chocolate chip) and 3 color desert (coffee stains.) For years my 3 color desert boonie hat was my favorite but I lost or misplaced it in October. No worries, as I have at least 5 others waiting, so I switched to a newer one.
Me at the Canyonlands last year:
My opinion on hats is that like sunglasses, ballpoint pens and wrist watches, they need to be "expendable." Even though I make a good living, I could not, in good conscience, lay down $80 for a hat that I'm going to take to the boondocks. If I did I'd want to "baby" that hat and it wouldn't get used the way it needs to.
Plus, let's face it, when we go off-roading and camping, we aren't exactly maintaining the highest standards of personal cleanliness, are we? So in my case, at least, the hat will get dirty, sweaty and eventually get that nasty greasy stain around the inside (when I was in the Army if someone's cap got to that point we'd say "you need an oil change."
) At that point you could try to wash it but my experience is that (a) the stain won't wash out and (b) washing the hat will destroy any rigidity that the brim has (which is what keeps the sun off your face, ears and neck.) If it's a $10 surplus store special (or, in my case, a $0 Uncle Sam issue), you just toss the hat when you get to that point and get a new one.
A hat, after all, is just a tool. When the tool wears out you throw it away and get a new one, right?
