Turtle Fur Hats and Beanies

We reviewed a couple of Turtle Fur Hats we thought would be great for your backcountry activities. A good beanie (toque for those of us North of the 49^th Parallel) is a must have in your pack for any season. Especially along the Continental Divide where it isn’t unusual to have snow in August at higher elevations. Turtle Fur has been making head-wear since 1982 in a combination of materials ranging from synthetic fleece, recycled ocean plastic, to grown fibres such as hemp and cotton to sheared animal fibres like Yak, Lamb and Merion Wool. We had a chance to try out the Sully Hat and Merino Beanie Wool hats. Both are made from natural fibres. With the Sully made from Yak Wool and the Merino Beanie, you guessed it, made from Merino.

Sully: The Sully is made with a unique cable pattern that makes the Yak wool even softer and warmer. The Sully is ideal for those very cold apres-ski times when you want a warm comfortable hat to keep you from cooling down too quickly on those -20 C days. Yak’s hollow fibres are even more effective than merino effectively trapping air.

While luxuriously soft, the cable knit pattern does allow a bit more airflow than a dense wool cap, but the exceptional warmth of the Yak wool compensates, making it perfect for warming up around the truck or cabin. Given the higher cost and delicacy of the Yak fibre, users should be mindful of hand-washing and careful storage, especially compared to the 'Carefree' nature of the merino, which holds up better to being stuffed (and occasionally forgotten) in a pack.

Features:

• Heavyweight warmth 
• Luxuriously soft against skin
• Low impact yarn
• Natural fibre
• Highly Breathable
• Shorn from Yaks 
• Thermoregulating
• Moisture-wicking
• Naturally odor-resistant
• Hypoallergenic

Specs:
Price: $115 CAD / $86 USD
Fit Type: Regular
Colours: Charcoal, Wine & White
Fabric Type: Machine knit Yak Wool
Fabric Content: 50% Yak Wool/50% Wool
Weight: 3.0 oz

While the Sully is an ideal apres-ski hat, the Merino Beanie is ideal for the skin track on those particularly cold winter days. The Turtle Fur Merino Beanie is a lot lighter and has become a staple in my day pack, both winter and summer. It comes in both heavyweight and superfine merino wool. The ‘heavyweight’ description of the merino wool is a bit misleading as it is still very light on your head.

Turtle Fur correctly describes the fibre as ‘Carefree Merion Wool’. I left it damp in my pack a couple of times and on my next adventure, it was very surprisingly dry and still had no odour.

The Beanie comes in two Merino Wool weights Merino Beanie and Superfine Merino Beanie. The Superfine Merino Beanie is the lightest option at just 0.8 oz, making it the perfect choice for high-output spring tours or as a thin liner under a helmet on colder days, where minimal bulk is key. The Superfine fits much better under a helmet.

Features:

• Heavyweight performance 
• Surprisingly-soft against skin 
• Natural fiber 
• UPF 50+ 
• Highly breathable 
• Quick-drying 
• Moisture-wicking 
• Naturally odor-resistant  
• Wash/dry without shrinking, pilling

Merino Beanie Specs
Price: $70 CAD / $54 USD
Fit Type: Regular
Colours: Black, Navy, Wine, Diagonal Stride & Touring Time
Fabric Type: Carefree 100% Merino Wool
Weight: 1.5 oz

Superfine Merino Beanie Specs
Price: $59 CAD / $43 USD
Fit Type: Regular
Colours: Black, Charcoal & Navy
Fabric Type: Carefree 100% Merino Wool
Weight: 0.8 oz