PDA

View Full Version : hiking in scrubs....



jclbug
03-19-2005, 20:39
so i recently saw a picture on here(can't remember of who) but she was wearing scrubs to hike in. i never really thought about wearing them til then but they are very lightweight and dry so quickly. I wear them everyday and they are the most comfortable things to work in. anyone use them to hike in?

hikerjohnd
03-19-2005, 21:24
I've worn scrub tops while hiking - I definitly agree they are comfortable and dry quickly. Since I don't work at the hospital anymore I haven't thought about them again until now, but I would definitly go out in them again on day hikes (most have cotton so I would not take them on multi day hikes). :sun

orangebug
03-20-2005, 08:36
I use scrub tops in the woods in warm weather. I find them much more comfortable than t-shirts. There are poly/blend scrubs that work pretty well. I like them mainly as for dry camp clothes, although walking in the shirt is pretty good.

Prison jump suits are more colorful, in my opinion.

Lugnut
03-20-2005, 11:31
Wearing scrubs will no doubt earn you the trail name "Doc". ;)

weary
03-20-2005, 13:56
I've worn scrub tops while hiking - I definitly agree they are comfortable and dry quickly. Since I don't work at the hospital anymore I haven't thought about them again until now, but I would definitly go out in them again on day hikes (most have cotton so I would not take them on multi day hikes). :sun
I doubt if cotton has any adverse effects during the seasons that scrubs would be appropriate for AT hiking. Despite all the misinformation, cotton is useful during the hot days of summer.

Weary

alanthealan
03-20-2005, 17:37
I doubt if cotton has any adverse effects during the seasons that scrubs would be appropriate for AT hiking. Despite all the misinformation, cotton is useful during the hot days of summer.

Weary
What are the benifits of cotton on hot days?

weary
03-20-2005, 17:47
What are the benifits of cotton on hot days?
The complaint about cotton is that it doesn't wick away moisture and thus can lead to winter chills and possibly hypotherma.

But on hot summer days that is a plus. Your sweat evaporates next to the skin and adds cooling. Other benefits? It's cheap, natural, readily available, and most importantly doesn't collect odors like synthetic fabrics do.

We all wear casual cotton year round. Just as it is the standard fabric for working around the house and in the yard, it serves equally well on the summer trail. But I always carry a non-cotton outer wrap of some kind that at least repells water when that unexpected cool storm comes rushing through, and in all these several decades have yet to have a problem.

Weary

Mags
03-20-2005, 18:25
About ten years ago, I used to work as an orderly in both an ER and a a surgical unit up until my AT thru-hike in 1998. (orderly = glorified go-fer! :D) Anyway, when I started backpacking, found scrub tops made a great hiking shirt. They were durable, even though they had cotton they dried quickly due to being 65% poly (and being thin), had a nice large pocket for my camera and were free. Used scrub tops on my AT thru-hike as well as two Long Trail hikes.

Now that I live out West, the scrub top has been retired in favor of a long sleeve poly-cotton dress shirt for sun protection. These shirts, while not free, did cost the princely sum of $4 at the local thrift store. (One for the PCT that is now in a landfill somewhre in B.C., the other for the Colorado Trial that I still use)

If you wea clothing with cotton in it, be sure you have non-cotton clothese to change into when the weather turns bad. Personally, I find poly-cotton blend shirts wonderful for warmer weather. YMMV.

Fiddleback
03-20-2005, 18:27
QUOTE:The complaint about cotton is that it doesn't wick away moisture and thus can lead to winter chills and possibly hypotherma.

But on hot summer days that is a plus. Your sweat evaporates next to the skin and adds cooling. END QUOTE

For some,not for all. :(

Three years back I did an impromptu hike into the Bob Marshall Wilderness to try to find a horse that had spooked, thrown its rider, and run off. Pushing hard and fast, my cotton t-shirt got soaked quickly...and never dried out. It was wet and sopping and heavy. And that was the last time I wore cotton on the trail. I use synthetics now for my shirts...those do dry out nice and fast.

FB

Alligator
03-20-2005, 20:53
If you do wear scrubs, do you have to get the sloppy haircut?

Mags
03-20-2005, 22:43
If you do wear scrubs, do you have to get the sloppy haircut?

Hmm..I buzz my hair for every hike. Guess that could be considered a short AND sloppy hair cut. :)

Alligator
03-20-2005, 23:15
From the TV show. I had a friend visit last spring and I couldn't figure out if his haircut was deliberately bad like the doctor on Scrubs, or just bad. To add further ambiguity, he's an engineer.

BlackCloud
03-21-2005, 00:49
I wear scrubs as my sleeping clothes, they being lightweight & comfortable. I like to hike in swimtrunks, as they dry fast & cut out the middle man of underwear........:jump