What is your favorite sun hoodie?

Honestly, I tried a lot of sun hoodies after having to shelf my first one. I ended up re-upping on the BD Alpenglow (not pro). The hood is nice and spacious, and honestly, I like the fabric. Maybe I'm just used to it.

has anyone tried this? I like the idea of being able to vent through the front buttons. 

Patagonia River Rambler

BD Alpenglow Pro if I'm wearing a shirt underneath. Regular BD Alpenglow with no shirt underneath. Rab Pulse hoody for super hot weather, but it's very prone to snagging on things.

For the Europeans amongst us I can totally recommend Decathlon's anti-UV fishing shirt. It has a white option, a nice loose hood, is very breathable and costs 18£ in the UK / 20€ in Germany. It served me great while climbing in Spain this year. Later today I will report back whether the hood fits over a helmet. Edit: Yes!

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/fishing-anti-uv-t-shirt-500-with-hood-upf-50-green/_/R-p-329166

Had a BD - it was pretty good but stretched a lot.  Just bought mountain hardwear and love it.

Between personal climbing and guiding I wear the rei basic sun hoodie probably around 300 days a year

would recommend 

Any experiences with the Stio Vescent hoodie?

ZT Gwrote:

Between personal climbing and guiding I wear the rei basic sun hoodie probably around 300 days a year

would recommend 

Do the newer ones have a tight neck like the older style ones?

earl mcalisterwrote:

Do the newer ones have a tight neck like the older style ones?

I’m not sure.. I’ve never noticed a tight neck so maybe? I’ve been wearing them for around 4 years, lost my pro deal 2 years ago and am still surviving on those couple 

I’ve been using freefly apparel bamboo sunhoodies for years now. They are a fishing brand solid sun performance, comfortable, and they hold up well after getting beat up. Couple holes from crack climbing will show but they last. I have moved away from climbing brand sun hoody’s and pants, I feel they are overpriced and fall apart. I sweat a lot and the bamboo material breathes well.

Robert Vasilieffwrote:

I’ve been using freefly apparel bamboo sunhoodies for years now. They are a fishing brand solid sun performance, comfortable, and they hold up well after getting beat up. Couple holes from crack climbing will show but they last. I have moved away from climbing brand sun hoody’s and pants, I feel they are overpriced and fall apart. I sweat a lot and the bamboo material breathes well.

While I agree the Freefly bamboo breathes better than 150 g/m2 merino wool sun hoodies, I find they do run warmer than thin polypro ones. For me personally, they are 3-season use, Fall through Spring, and Summer temps necessitate polypro ones to avoid overheating. YMMV

OR echo is easily my favorite. Some sun hoddies are honestly pretty thick for wearing in the warm weather @blackdiamond 

The OR echo is 4 ounces, which is amazing, stuffs up tiny and the fit is amazing to me. This is less than half the weight of a lot of the brands on here, and I’ve never gotten any sort of burn through it.

Pretty sure already noted but OR echo UPF is much lower @ 15.

I have one and use it for local runs, but wouldn't want to trust it to an all day sunny multipitch mission.

(Lack of sunburn doesn't confirm no damaging UV exposure)

As an owner of several OR echos and having spent 1000s of hours in the sun, they protect very well. As a physical barrier they perform better than any sunscreen and most other regular shirts.

A light weight hoody that you actually wear is way better than the most protective one that you don't because it's too hot or sweaty.

Vouri Strato tech

Prana Calder is the best I’ve ever used. Better than BD alpenglow and better than the Patagonia sunshade 

Francois-Xavier Ahartwrote:

Prana Calder is the best I’ve ever used. Better than BD alpenglow and better than the Patagonia sunshade 

Does the hood fit over a helmet? Does the zipper interfere with a harness waistbelt?

earl mcalisterwrote:

Does the hood fit over a helmet? Does the zipper interfere with a harness waistbelt?

Yes fits over helmet perfectly and doesn’t interfere with harness. There’s also a back pocket that sits below the harness waste belt and I put zyn or clif shot bloks for easy access. They must’ve discontinued it because I can’t find it online. What a gem of a sun hoodie. Bummer they don’t make it anymore. I guess you could check out the sol shade it might be a newer model

Peter Tidballwrote:

I’ve been using a NW Alpine sun hoodie for a few years now. The UHMW fabric blend pills a bit and has similar breathability and feel to similar merino layers I own. The fit is a bit tight compared to my other sun hoodies, but that’s my only gripe. Highly recommend for durability,  function (no burns yet) & the USA made factor. 

They just announced they went out of buissness a few weeks ago i think?