Glasses

[sleeman13]

I know there are prob. a lot of threads already addressing this question, but I'll ask anyways. For those hikers that wear glasses, what have your experiences been? I have glasses and was wondering how much of a pain they are, especially when it's raining or when your sweating a lot. Have those who wear glasses had lots of problems with them fogging up. I've also seen 30-day contacts. Has anyone tried those out. What is your opinion of them?
Thanks

[Tennessee Viking]

I use a alcohol based cleaner and it helps keep the fogging down. Winter weather is the only time I really have any problems but thats usually because I have my head and mouth covered over and my breath hits my glasses.

[Erin]

I wear glasses. I don't have contacts and can't wear them. I do take a brim hat for rain and it does help alot. If it is a long hike, check your screws if you are only taking one pair of glasses. As in, go in with new ones. After my hike, the day I got back, my screws basically popped out and broke on both sides (sweat and dirt) and I would have been "screwed" since I really don't see well without my glasses.

[Marta]

I was involved in a glasses "rescue." I was out for a section a few springs ago and a NOBO's screw popped out of one side of his glasses. He couldn't even see his feet without them. We ended up using dental floss to sew the frame together to get him to Damascus.

I wear glasses for close-up only. I lost a pair somewhere near Bemis Mountain Lean-To in Maine. Hunted for them for at least an hour. Never did find them.

Carry a spare pair.

Even Ray Jardine, lightweight lama of lamas, carries spare glasses with him.

[mudhead]

Carry a spare pair.

Even Ray Jardine, lightweight lama of lamas, carries spare glasses with him.

Good advice. If you have a screw loose,

visit an optician.

Clear nail polish on a loose screw will buy you some time. Very small safety pin will work if you lose a screw on the temple.

[Lone Wolf]

Good advice. If you have a screw loose...


...seek a qualified psychologist

[BumpJumper]

Marta I bet that fella learned to take something on the next trip!

[Montana Mac]

Good advice. If you have a screw loose,



...seek a qualified psychologist

Hell LW that means the AT should lead to their office door - we all must have a screw loose to put a pack on our back, hike thru the mud and rain so we can setup a tent and sleep on the ground:D

[Lone Wolf]

Hell LW that means the AT should lead to their office door - we all must have a screw loose to put a pack on our back, hike thru the mud and rain so we can setup a tent and sleep on the ground:D

i don't hike thru mud and rain

[mudhead]

Must be a bolt.

[buff_jeff]

I wear prescription sunglasses most of the time. They're a lot more sturdy than regular specs. I also carry a normal pair for cloudy days. Whichever pair I'm not wearing I keep in a case in my pack.

I never really had a problem with them fogging up on the trail. I wear a hat and the brim keeps them relatively dry.

I hiked with a few people this summer who used contacts, something I'd never recommend. The propensity for an eye infection is huge on the trail with lack of hygiene and long hours with contacts in.

[TwistedToad]

while at home you can take the screws out put a lil fingernail polish on the screw and then screw them back in. They will stay tight for a long time.

[OldStormcrow]

My glasses are a real pain when hiking in cold weather....they keep fogging up whenever I slow down for a moment and sit there panting and wheezing. I've heard that the product call "Cat Crap" works when applied to the inside of the lenses, but I keep forgetting to use some before wandering out into the waether....

[Blissful]

I had some problems with glasses fogging up on rainy days while hiking, but not that bad. Never really had a problem in cold weather, unless I went into a warm place. I carried a bandana in a little pouch to wipe them off. I also used a Marmot precip baseball cap in the rain, though I would like to get a bigger rain hat to use while hiking.

[Slo-go'en]

I carry one of those little eye glass repair kits and has saved me a couple of times. I also carried one of those microfiber lens cleaning cloths on my last trip and was a big hit will all the eyeglass wearers around me. Everytime I pulled it out, everyone else wanted to use it too!

A hat with a brim is a must when it rains, but sometimes the best thing to do it take the glasses off and stumble along best you can. This is usually in exposed areas when the wind is blowing the rain in your face. Can't see much of anything anyway. But I do like the smell of the forest when its raining.

[berninbush]

I used to wear glasses (before Lasik) and I used to ride my bike to work every day. Most of the time it was fine but I remember one uber-foggy day when I could actually see better without my glasses than with them. And that's quite a statement because I was seriously disabled without them... with my right eye I could just make out the top E on the eye chart, and the left wasn't much better. I rode slow so I wouldn't hit anything, and I was glad to get to the end of the trail that day, lemme tell you.

Now I don't wear glasses and have no worries. :D

How much precaution you take with your glasses depends in part on how dependent you are on them. If you can't safely navigate out of the woods without them, I would think a backup pair would be a must.

[Jack Tarlin]

All my miles have been with glasses, so yeah, it's possible to hike with them.

A few tips for the bespectacled:

*Carrying an extra pair is not a bad idea. Or at very least, make sure you
have your prescription with you in case you need a quick replacement.
*Carry a repair kit, you'll need it sooner or later.
*Bring a HARD glasses case, as sooner or later, you or someone else will step
or sit on your glasses in camp, at a shelter, wherever.
*Put your contact info in or on the case.
*When you're not wearing or needing them, put them in the case, and put the
case away. Glasses, including sunglasses, are among the most frequently
lost items on a hike.
*A visored hat will help in bad weather, but having a dry bandana within easy
reach doesn't hurt either.
*Be careful in shelters, as this is where a lot of glasses get messed up. I put
mine in my ballcap at night, and they stay next to my head, along with my
headlamp and a few other things. Another way to avoid problems here is
to avoid staying in shelters!
*Same thing in tents......watch where you put them. Glasses usually get
damaged or broken when they're NOT actually being used.
*Oh, and watch it when you're swimming. Sounds crazy, but I've seen
people jump in lakes while wearing their glasses. Bad idea.

[jersey joe]

I thru hiked with contacts. I brought glasses with me as a backup, but can't stand wearing them while hiking for many of the reasons listed above. I took my contacts out every night and it is very difficult to get your hands clean enough, but I did my best.

[ChinMusic]

Before I had Lasik I dropped my glasses off a bridge into a shallow stream. There was NO WAY I would have been able to find them without the help of others. After that I never backpacked without a spare. That scared me. Had I been in some remote area I would have been toast.

[Marta]

One reason I carry a spare pair instead of a repair kit is that what I don't have is close-up vision. I have to wear the spare pair in order to fix the other pair.

[buff_jeff]

I put
mine in my ballcap at night, and they stay next to my head, along with my
headlamp and a few other things.


Good advice. I do the same thing with my glasses at night, and have never had a problem.

[Kerosene]

I too always hike with glasses. I wear a nylon ballcap with a hard plastic brim (covered in the nylon) so that it doesn't deform in the rain. The only time I've ever had a problem was in blowing rain and fog atop Moosilaukee. Fortunately, I can get by without wearing glasses, so I just put them in my pocket until I got back below treeline.

[buff_jeff]

This thread reminded me of a guy, Boston, that I hiked with for a little this summer. Apparently, his glasses got all fogged up coming up the Cow Camp Gap shelter trail and he went the wrong way on the AT, all the way back up that mountain. I think he went 3 or 4 miles in the wrong direction. :D

I never did see him again, but heard that second-hand.

[pure_mahem]

For Fog try the RainX fog treatment in the Auto section but do a test spot first to make sure it doesn't affect any coatings or Polycarbonate lenses. Other tip is put clear nail polish or super glue over the top of your screws after you tighten them. Carry a small repair kit including spair screws that will actually fit your glasses you may have to visit your optician to get these in some cases. Carry a spare pair and carry your prescription just in case. Like mentioned attach your name and phone number to them. You may be able to have it engraved on the inside of the frame check with your local jeweler.

[mudhead]

Like mentioned attach your name and phone number to them. You may be able to have it engraved on the inside of the frame check with your local jeweler.

Good idea, but I wear glasses, and would never have thought to check for engraved info.

It would have to be really obvious, for me.

[Johnny Thunder]

I took my baseball cap for granted and used it for target practice with a friend's AK outside of Hanover (the second time). Two days later and the hole right between the eyes was a siphon for rain water.

Also, bring a repair kit. It's great for glasses but the plastic box is a perfect fit for the sewing needle so it won't poke holes in your air mattress.

[Plodderman]

I hike with glasses and yes they get fogged up and at times the rain makes it hard to see. I have never worn contacts and usually clean my glasses with toilet paper. I do not carry and extra pair but try check them more while out hiking.

The most trouble I have had is when it rains and I wear my poncho and the heat from my breath the steam coming from inside the poncho makes them fog up. This is usually temporary.

For the most part I do not even notice.

[darkage]

I wear glasses also while hiking, for the most part ... like some have said they can't wear contacts ... thankfully i can ... in most of my pics in the gallery i think i'm wearing classes in 90% of um ... I carry my contacts are there small, not as hard to take care of as some think, and i also carry a small bottle of bacteria killing soap to clean my hands before i put them in or take them out ....

Yes, you run the risk of an eye infection, blah blah i'm sure someone would bring it up if they haven't already .. i skiped a few posts ... But in 2 years using them in the woods, i've been just fine using my cleaning methods ... Just keep your hands clean before ya put them in or out .. but when i'm hiking in the rain and can't see a darn thing ... its all about the contacts, or if its 100 degree's an sun's beating on me ... contacts go in ... easier to not have to stop every 10 minutes to remove the glasses then wipe your face ...

So many different reasons for both, i simply carry glasses and contacts ... To keep your contacts from going dry from wind/heat ... I use Systane ... its a thicker rewetting drop ... little 0.16oz bottle can last quite awhile ... I also use opti-free replenish but its not as good as the systane imho ....

Foggy glasses and impaired vision from it drives me nuts, i've learned i gotta hike with contacts for either a backup, or as a primary in crazy weather ...

Less focus on keeping your vision will keep your feet safer by knowing where your walking.

Anti-fog does work, but ya still gotta keep the water off your glasses ...

[Colter]

I know there are prob. a lot of threads already addressing this question, but I'll ask anyways. For those hikers that wear glasses, what have your experiences been? I have glasses and was wondering how much of a pain they are, especially when it's raining or when your sweating a lot. Have those who wear glasses had lots of problems with them fogging up. I've also seen 30-day contacts. Has anyone tried those out. What is your opinion of them?
Thanks

I'm an eyeglass wearer. Usually I don't have any problems and prefer them over contacts. I always wear a brimmed hat when it's raining to protect the lenses with very little fogging problems. Most fogging comes from being outside and coming into a heated building. On the trail it's usually not a problem and when it is it can usually be solved by just venting your clothing/raingear a bit more. And I always carry something to clean the lenses, like a soft cotton bandana or a small lense cleaning cloth.

Like others, I carry a spare pair, with one pair being prescription sunglasses.

[mudhead]

Covering nose and mouth with a scarf or balaclava will fog mine up.

Seirus Powerstretch balaclava comes below the lower lip. Only one I've found that rides low. May be others now.

[Quoddy]

The only thing that hasn't already been mentioned that I do is that I wear my backup glasses and leave my new ones at home. I don't mind doing the quick wiping and the occasional mild abuse when they're the old ones.

[buz]

Good hints for glasses people, thanks. I always carry two pair, one is prescription sunglasses, in hard case. The morning of a 10 day backpacking trip out west, my nylon string broke that holds the lens in. Unfixable except at opticians. Duct tape to the rescue, some slit cutting and careful application, good to go enough in about a half an hour. Duct tape should be on your have to bring list if it isn't already if you wear glasses.

[DLFrost]

I’ve used a paper clip in place of a frame screw where the threads got stripped out and were unrepairable. Thread through, bend, clip off. Bombproof.

The other problem you’ll see with glasses is pad failure: either the nose pad will be lost or the wire connecting it to the frame will break off. (It will break at the yoke holding the pad or at the lens frame.) If the pad is gone, wrap the yoke with something to substitute for the pad. If the yoke is gone, leaving a bare wire, slip the padding onto that. If the wire is gone you’ll have to use a pad large enough to bridge the gap between the nose and the glasses frame. An obvious choice for improvised padding is from a sleeping pad, if carried. Another are trimings from boot/shoe pads (whew). You can also use a band-aid, possibly folded over a filler (a pad from the medical kit or one removed from a second band-aid, etc.). If you have access to a drug store or WalMart, the gray pads sold as heel cushioning are serviceable. (Cut into equal halves & press together.)