Sunday Afternoons has designed a hat to help keep bird watchers comfortable while at the same time preventing harmful UV rays from damaging your skin.

About Sunday Afternoons: Located in Southern Oregon, Sunday Afternoons was established in 1990. The company name was derived after the time of the week when most people head to outdoors. The hats are so effective in providing coverage for UVA and UVB, even doctors recommend using one when doing outdoor activities.  

Impressions: With the constant exposure to UV light while birding it's important to cover up. Birdwatchers look for high SPF sunblock, wearing long sleeve clothing, and wearing head protection to keep those damaging rays off our skins. Sunday Afternoons Sun Hats are designed with functionality in mind, but are among the most attractive hats that we have seen.
 
Supplex: Engineered by DuPont, Supplex Nylon provides the soft supple feel of cotton with the strength, durability, and performance advantages of nylon. Supplex is currently used in many articles of outdoor and active wear and is designed to be ultra lightweight, breathable, water resistant, and won't wrinkle, shrink, or fade.

Design: The well thought out construction of the Sunday Afternoon hats are designed to maximize the protection to both your face and neck while you're birding. To start off, the material plays an important role in the makings of these hats. The Supplex material has many advantages over standard nylon. The 2-ply Supplex nylon has a tight weave that holds a rating of 45 Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF). Unlike a SPF rating used for lotions, the UPF rating refers to the weave and construction of the fabric which means it will provide permanent protection without washing off. In addition Sunday Afternoons applies a reflection agent to repel the UV light. With this combination the overall protection is excellent.

The Sunday Afternoons outdoor hats have flexible 4" brims that incorporate a downward slope to further assist in shading the entire face while still allowing adequate vision. In addition, a foam core is added to the brim and allows the hats to stay afloat if they ever fall into the water. In our tests not only did the hats float, but the Supplex nylon didn't soak up water like cotton would.
 
With a nice long brim that goes from ear to ear to provide a 360 degree sun protection, the Sunday Afternoons Adventure hat uses a 7.5" veil that completely covers your neck. If the veil is not needed there is an option to raise and attach it via velcro. While the veil is long enough for good coverage the light weight does create problems when the wind picks up. During the tests we found that heavy wind would blow the veil upwards, exposing the neck to the sun.
 
While most hats will wrinkle and distort after being packed in the bag during travel, the Sunday Afternoons hats will not look awkward if properly packed. The only thing you need to do is fold the veil towards the brim, then roll the brim up before throwing it into your bag. If you want to prevent the rolled up hat from springing up, simply place a rubber band around it. Once you arrive to your destination unroll it and the hat will be in good form, and ready to wear.



 Comfort: Aside from its primary goal to delivering sun protection, comfort was also an important requirement when developing the hats. Sunday Afternoons designed the hats so you can wear them for an extended period of time without any unnecessary discomfort. With a total weight of only 3 ounces you never feel like you are bearing a heavy load. Another element in comfort is a good fit. The hats come in only two sizes and they will fit most adults with ease. The sun hats also have an elastic band and a rear sizing tape for minor adjustment.  The operation of the rear band is simple and can be tuned using just one hand.
Aside from having a light load and a firm fit, other features such as an oversize crown and side mesh panels allow proper ventilation. Keeping the heat from being trapped under the hat is critical in feeling comfortable while birding all day. While baseball caps often will give me a headache towards the end of the day, the Sunday Afternoons hat was very comfortable throughout many birding expeditions. The hats are designed with a moisture wicking sweat band that uses a material called Coolmax.  Coolmax is also widely used in sport apparel and effectively keeps sweat away from the human skin. A big bonus if you perspire during those long treks to find the elusive birds.

Conclusion: Sunlight-induced advanced aging and the skin cancers are increasing in many areas of the world, and for birders this concern shouldn't be overlooked. Normally when we go birding it's during the daylight hours when ultraviolet rays are at their strongest. One way you can begin to fight the sun's radiation is by providing a layer between you and the UV light, either in a form of clothing or lotion. Aside from applying a high SPF sunblock to your face, ear, nose, and neck, wearing a hat is a great way to keep the sun from damaging your skin any further. Sunday Afternoons makes many outdoors hats, and for birders that are designed with quality materials and features that will not only protect you from the UV light, but also make your next birding adventure even more enjoyable.

Amazing Bird Watching Tips

The way birds soar up above the sky has always made humans wonder what it's like to be a bird. Inspired by these marvelous creatures, man has created air vehicles that would mimic the flight abilities of a bird, allowing us to fly above the sky too. But still it's not comparable to what birds can do. They are truly some of the most fascinating creations there is.

For this reason, bird watching has become an all-time favourite activity of many people. If it's your first time to go bird watching or if you've tried it several times but still have no luck, here are some amazing bird watching tips you will find useful in your next venture to find these wondrous flying creatures.

1. Try getting a good night's sleep so you can wake up early in the morning because the best time to watch perching birds is the first two hours after sunrise. A quality rest is important to ensure that you have enough energy as well as mental alertness to keep up with these speedy creatures. Lack of sleep will cause you to be slow and sluggish. Needless to say, the early bird watcher gets to watch the early bird that catches the worm.
2. Be careful in selecting which clothes to wear. It's a good idea to opt for light clothing material with natural colors that may camouflage with the flora and fauna such as green, brown and so on. Also, try not to wear anything that can easily tear or make noises.
3. When you arrive at the bird watching site, move slowly with caution. Birds are very sensitive creatures. They can easily sense any movement and rowdy movements can easily drive them away.
4. Stay quiet as much as possible. If you should talk, do it in a low voice, whisper or gestures. It's a good idea to prepare hand signals with your bird watching buddies for some of the possible things you need to say like “I saw a bird land on that tree” or “Let's rest for a while.” Because like raucous movements, noise can also scare birds away.
5. If you want to take some pictures, do it without disturbing the birds. Do it from a distance and make as little noise and movement as possible. It's advisable to bring a camera with zooming abilities so that you can capture a bird up close without having to come near it.
6. Try to hide behind bushes or trees while waiting for birds to land or perch on trees.
7. Bring foldable and portable Coleman chairs for you and your bird watching buddies. You'll find these chairs handy when you're exhausted and want to have a comfortable rest for a while or you want to keep bird watching while sitting down.
8. Always stay on the trail so that you won't make the mistake on treading on any of the bird's delicate habitat.
9. Whatever you do, stay away from the nests of the birds and never ever take their eggs or their offspring.
10. Invest on high quality and reliable bird watching equipment like binoculars and camera to enhance your bird watching experience.

Bird lover or not, no one can deny the fact that bird watching is definitely an experience like no other. Challenging, educational yet inexpensive, bird watching is an activity any nature lover will enjoy.

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