Blissful-Originally Posted by Blissful
Color your hair, and always look your best even if you are long distance hiking
StarLyte
I love my gray. no color for me, who wants roots? Dos that mean I don't look my best? Some people may think so, but I think I'm lookin good.
This is something I've thought about a great deal. For religious reasons, we women don't cut hair (on head). My hair is past my waist. But I also wear it up most of the time, except at night, and under a veiling. That way it's out of the way and off my neck, to cut down on the bug risk. I'd probably learn to sleep with it in a braid too. I can manage up to 3 days w/o a wash, if desperately necessary, could possibly go 4. But I've camped and washed it in cold water so, it doesn't bother me. Hope that helps.
your hair looks just fine
however you wear it it will be the hair of a thru hiker so it will allways be cool like that. and if you grow old and grey and miss your young hair, you might be sorry you diddnt thro caution to the wind more often an wear it as you like. not one way all the time . change things up.i allways shave off my hair after a long hike cause i need new hair thats darker and not sun bleached.
Hi, Toasty. This is a question that all of us have to answer for ourselves. I wear my hair long all the time now because it takes so long for it to grow out, and, of course, it goes through that awful stage others have mentioned in between. The one good thing about short hair is its ease of washing and drying.
On the other hand, my hair looks pretty good all the time, and somehow it doesn't seem to get as dirty between town stops. I tie it back and then stick it through the back of my cap. This is very good when the winds become strong. I have not lost a cap yet, but I have had one hanging onto my ponytail for dear life.
The pony tail provides a natural block to the sun on the back of the neck. That is a great service. Early on it helps keep my neck and head warm, which helps me stay warm.
As for color, I've tried both coloring as I go and going gray. I'll take gray any day. PROUD GRAY. VERY PROUD GRAY.
I can always whack it off along the way if I change my mind, but the reverse isn't true.
You never know just what you can do until you realize you absolutely have to do it.
--Salaun
After all this talk, I think I may leave my hair shoulder length. Shorter than it is now, but I don't think I will cut it way back like I once thought.
But when I'm in town, I'm getting my coloring, ha ha. Esp in June and July when hubby is along and does it for me, along with $2.50 Revlon.
Ladies, chop the mop. Long hair and long distance hiking just don't jive together.
short rocks!
Hey!!! Now the short haired ladies are speaking out! I'm really confused. Ha ha
Guess I'll just wait and see when the time comes what happens to the ol' 'do.
mistaken quite a bit for a little lesbian...
I chose to do something to my hair for my thru-hike that I'd always fantasized about: bleaching it and buzzing it. My hair is normally VERY dark brown and a little above shoulder-length. Well, it was totally fun for my friends to have their way, so to speak, with my hair (mullet-to-rattail-to-mowhawk-to-buzz) before I left to hike, but I felt quite self-conscious after a few days. I'm a very heavy sweater, and all the sweat I was used to having my hair soak up ran right down my face/neck and into my eyes, ears, etc. It was rather annoying and even a problem with a bandanna. I'll post a pic if I ever get around to it, or you can check out my trailjournal on trailjournals.com. It ended up growing rather fast, and it looked like I had a bad frost experiment on it. But hey, I still got the job out here! I'll just grow it out a bit and do the whole pigtail thing for my next thru-hike.
I use my hair for temperature control. It is past my waist, thin, and curly. When I'm cold, I cover up with it, and when I'm hot, I put it up. I have a round, beaded stretchy thing with a clip (like a barrett). I put my hair up in a bun in that, and the clip holds it in place. The best way to stay warm when hiking, is to wrap it around my neck. I agree about braiding or keeping it up somehow, in order to keep it cleaner longer.
My hair is past my waist, and it will not ever get cut because of hiking. I have found that it's actually been a bug deterent , I wrapped my ponytail around my neck...cause sometimes repellant hasn't worked
It's a great fly swatter,too!
death by hair
short hair can kill you. so can long hair and even being bald . time to die now. dumb thread approval granted. you are now a dumb thread. carry on!oh and by the way, dumb thread called,.... hes comming right over.
matthewski
Dumb thread or not...I'll post my two cents about the mini-braids, anyway.
I mini-braided my hair for a month long NOLS course once....and really loved it while on the trail. I had less to deal with than the other women (long or short) BUT it didn't make it worth it to try to get them out at the end.
To braid your hair for an entire thru-hike is like committing to dreds or shaving...FYI...
Also...I vote medium length....right below the ears....with a bandanna
"Men occasionally stumble over the
truth, but most of them pick
themselves up and hurry off as if
nothing ever happened."
~ Winston Churchill
"Ladies, chop the mop. Long hair and long distance hiking just don't jive together." Ridge, you are so wrong/ long hair and long distance hiking go great together! Past my waist, heading for classic (bottom)! Short hair gives you one look, while long hair has much more variety. The only time I wear it down is in town while air drying. The rest of the time a choice of many braids, buns, ponytails, makes for a nice change. When you only wear one outfit, it's nice to have a different look now and then.
something for you ladie to consider. short is much cooler and easier to clean, style, etc. but if you have never had short hair before or have never shaved your head before be cautious of sunburn. it can be serious enough to keep you from wearing a hat which then leads to more sunburn. it would be a b***H to get knocked off the trail due to a sunburned scalp!
as far a coloring goes, Miss Janet dyed mine a great electric blue in 2002.
In 2001 I had longer hair, long enough to put into to braids, pigtails. I did this after each wash and really didn't have to take them out again until the next wash. Also when wearing a ball hat it was comfy to have a ponytail hang out the hole in the back of the cap and keep my neck open.
In 2004 I went "butch", I hated it. My hair grows fast and with in 2 weeks it was not butch just short and I found I got a greasy hat head everyday. Yes, it was easier to wash with just a cupful of water but I hated it and I like short short hair. I have had a burnt scalp with short hair.
I am currently trying to let my hair grow so I can either get it in a braid or elastic for my upcoming hike. Unfortunately I cut it last spring and now I doubt I am going to get it long enough for the start of the hike. DANG!!!
Hammock Hanger -- Life is my journey and I'm surely not rushing to the "summit"...:D
http://www.gcast.com/u/hammockhanger/main
Long or short hair
During my thru in "01" I stopped at Trail Days. They were giving free buzz cuts to hikers. While waiting in line to get mine I watched a girl hiker with long red hair get one. She just sat there and cried thru the whole experience.
Grampie-N->2001
Sue, maybe you could start out in the cooler weather with it down and it will be long enough to put up by the time it gets hot?
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