glasses

[map man]

I just bring one pair of glasses, wear them all the time, and put them in a pocket built into my tarptent when I sleep at night. I wear a hat with a brim and have never had a problem with glasses fogging up while I hike, even in the rain -- don't know why. I've worn drill mount (frameless) glasses for over twenty years so I don't have to worry about a lens popping out. Some people shy away from this style of glasses for fear they are fragile but I've never broken anything on any of the pairs I've had in all these years -- I think I am by nature very careful with my stuff. I've spent every night on any trail in a tent and not a shelter so don't have any experience with what to do with my glasses in a shelter.

[moytoy]

Great thread for a new glasses wearer like me. I learned something new from each poster here.

[yari]

I am so myopic I can't function without my glasses. I always carry a spare pair and a copy of my prescription.

[wythekari]

I only use mine for reading (maps/phone/etc...) so no need to wear them on trail. If I am doing alot of map reading I'll have them in a shirt pocket otherwise I have them in a hard case, usually in a pack pocket - it protects them and makes them easier to find when I need them.

[ChinMusic]

I only use mine for reading (maps/phone/etc...) so no need to wear them on trail. If I am doing alot of map reading I'll have them in a shirt pocket otherwise I have them in a hard case, usually in a pack pocket - it protects them and makes them easier to find when I need them.

I need readers too for maps/phone/splinters. I usu bring 350s for max magnification. That power is not good for much reading (175 better for that) but great for magnification. Since I can hike just fine without em, only one set. They are easy to replace at any dollar store.

[ChinMusic]

I only use mine for reading (maps/phone/etc...) so no need to wear them on trail. If I am doing alot of map reading I'll have them in a shirt pocket otherwise I have them in a hard case, usually in a pack pocket - it protects them and makes them easier to find when I need them.

I need readers too for maps/phone/splinters. I usu bring 350s for max magnification. That power is not good for much reading (175 better for that) but great for magnification. Since I can hike just fine without em, only one set. They are easy to replace at any dollar store.

[Rick500]

I wear glasses, but my vision is not too bad without them. I'm very slightly nearsighted, and just need glasses to see clearly far away. So nothing too bad is going to happen if I lose or break my glasses (other than I won't be able to see the views as well).

That said, I wear my glasses hiking, and also carry prescription sunglasses. Both with very lightweight lenses and frames. I don't carry a case; I usually wear the pair I'm not using around my neck with a neoprene strap that fits over the ends of the arms. (I learned the hard way not to stash them in my pocket...scratched them up really badly. Wasn't thinking.)

[tigerpaw]

I wear a bucket hat to keep the rain off and the sun off of my neck. I use Croakies to keep them on when I start to sweat, and also treat them with Rain-X. My contacts bug me too much, especially when I can't take an a.m. shower first.

[mark schofield]

I use/need inexpensive reading glasses. So walking durring the day is no problem unless I want to stop and take some pictures. And durring the evening for cooking, mp3, ect. So I carry a spare inside the center hole of my roll of toilet paper in a ziplock bag. Keeps them protected in a place I access once a day.

[gunner76]

On a day hike I do not carry a spare. On overnights I will. I can see distants fine, its the up close trying to read I need them for.

[Papa D]

On hikes over 100 miles i typically bounce a little box with a cell charger, spare glasses and other little junk I might want. I have repaired my glasses a couple of times on the trail - one time, I had to resort to duct tape when they were stepped on in a shelter by someone else but it is pretty rare - I wouldn't bother with a spare pair.

[johnnyjohnson2043]

I brought a pair of prescription sunglasses in a lightweight case for my ten day hike earlier this year. I eventually decided that they were more weight than they were worth since I wasn't actually using them so I threw them in my drop box the first chance I got. My drop box also included an extra pair of glasses. Luckily my sight isn't that bad so I can see okay without them. As for the hat, I fell in love with my lightweight OR Revel Cap. It kept the hair out of my eyes and the water off my glasses. One thing to note here, though, is that, since I can see well enough without my glasses I often went without them when it was raining. It was just more comfortable that way.

[vamelungeon]

I've worn glasses for 40 years and must wear them all the time. I've been very near sighted since about 11 or 12 years old, and after I passed 40 I had to get bifocals for reading. In all that time I've only had one pair of glasses that had a problem with lenses popping out. I have had screws work loose though. I've had so few problems with my glasses that I have never carried spares. It sounds to me that never taking them off except to sleep might actually be beneficial in keeping them safe. I also usually inspect them when I remove them to go to sleep. If something happened to my glasses while hiking I would be in trouble, but I've just never had any problems with my glasses.

[Librarygeek]

I am so myopic I can't function without my glasses. I always carry a spare pair and a copy of my prescription.

This is what I'll have to do. I'm not sure if I'll have had cataract surgery by the time I attempt my thru, so I'm already going to struggle with vision issues.

[mudhead]

Spare. Hard case. I have broken Flexon frames, but any other would also have broken. Losing one lens is an experience that one can only experience, not describe.

[makoboy]

I used to wear contacts, but didnt like the idea of sticking my finger in my eye at the end of the day. Just didnt feel like I ever got them clean enough.

I now wear oakley frames with transition lenses (not as expensive as you would think with a vision plan), coated with cat-crap. They wont fog, work as sunglasses, and I can run w/o them falling off. At night they go in the gear pocket of my tent. For a back-up I bring one set of contacts and a small bottle of solution.

[Gaiter]

i can't wear contacts, and i don't even try to get up with out putting my glasses on, i'm blind as a bat...
i used just be really careful about wear i set my glasses at night, often in my boots
but my new appytrails tent has given me a new habit, it has one of those velcro cable ties for holding the poles together
i found it makes a great glasses holder at night, even if i change tents in the future, i'm probably going to keep using the velcro cable tie for my glasses...
homuty-1a_01.jpg

[b.c.]

My glasses are for reading - and so I don't wear them often on the trail (and my eyesight improves while hiking like this!). I love maps and guidebooks and books in general and so I bring a back up pair because, using my glasses off and on, have lost them and have rolled them into my tent while packing up (and unwilling to unpack). Before I had a spare pair of glasses I would bring a magnifying glass as back up.

[Auntie Mame]

Just putting in a word for 24 hr contact lenses: I wear glasses for EVERYTHING, and am extremely nearsighted, need bifocals, the whole catastrophe. When I got to hike half the AT a few years back, I discovered contact lenses called "Night and Day". They are wicked thin, and very gas-permeable, so they do not add to eye dryness. I was able to wear them for days at a time, without night time removal. I could not believe how well those worked for me. I would clean them when we were in town, then go right back to using them for my trail eyes. They solved a lot of problems for me. I got a super tiny pair of dime store readers that made night time reading pleasant. I sent my glasses home after a few weeks, and just carried a spare pair of lenses. They are not terribly expensive, and come in packs of three pairs. I really know how frustrating it is to figure out the spectacle situation. Its a relief when its all set. Have a great hike!

[j_parker]

Being the 50+ type in age, I had to pick-up reading glasses a few years back. When out in the woods, I have found bi-focal safety glasses to be more durable than normal glasses so I don't carry a spare anymore. Actually, I guess I do because I have a pair of clear and a smoked pair for bright sun. The lenses certainly will not bust, and the newer safety glasses do have "some" style to them. They are not as ugly as the old high school shop glasses.

I wear these