Wicking/Dri-fit Polo recommendations (and other travel gear)

In My Humble Opinion
1

My Employment is ending soon and I am taking the chance to apply for graduate school. Then before I goto school I will using my nest egg to take a very long term(8+months) backpacking trip around the world.

I’ve decided to invest in some comfortable, versatile, durable travel/adventure clothing. Right now i’m looking for shirts. I think that Polo’s are the most versatile as they are both comfortable and passable for ‘dressier.’

I recently bought this shirt, the Mountain Hardware Super Wicked Polo
The thing is amazing. It fits perfectly, It moves well and It was immediately clear that it was better at keeping you dry then my other performance shirts. It’s seriously like going shirtless, possibily even better as I suspect it increases your surface area for evaporation. Best of all it looks great!

The problem? It pills at the sight of velcro or anything too abrasive. I took it climbing gym… and in the 2 hours I was there there are at least a dozen snags already in it.

The first part of my backpacking trip is going to be several months of rock climbing. This shirt might be good enough for casual wear and maybe straight travel but my climbing habit would leave it shredded in no time flat.

Thus I ask the teeming millions… Recommend any travel shirts? I’m probably still going to get one of the mountain hardware shirts. I -really- like it I just won’t climb.

And because I put down other gear.

I decided to go with the Arcteryx rampart pant for my 1 of 2 pairs of travel pants. It’s very light and strechy yet tough enough to handle climbing, and breathable to keep me dry while doing so all while looking good for travel. But I still need another pair of pants if anyone has any recommendations.

or any other gear for that matter.

2

Check out the Columbia Sportswear Powers Vertical pant. It’s a great lightweight, but durable pant with a gusseted crotch for ease of movement (almost required for climbing). Zip pockets are a handy feature as well when traveling.

As for the shirt, you picked a very nice one. That particular shirt and it’s crew cousin are probably the most comfortable shirts that exist, but the snagging tendency is a major downside. To counter that, you’ll want a shirt that is not quite as stretchy, but will still wick and drape well. Icebreaker makes a superfine merino wool shirt that excels at wicking and cooling. They’re expensive, but they are very good quality clothing. The Ex Officio Dri Tee is a lightweight, wicking t-shirt with a soft hand that also won’t snag and is just as nice as a top layer as it is useful as a base layer (i.e., under a button down). Unfortunately, most of the polos are cotton/poly blends that just don’t wick as well or dry as quickly as full poly or merino shirts. I usually advise people to go with a cotton/poly blend only if cotton makes up less than 35% of the blend. Otherwise, it’s heavy and unbreathable once it becomes damp with sweat. You’ll find more rugged shirts in the t-shirt and button-down variety. I’ve heard rave reviews from co-workers and customers of the CS Tamiami II.

Hope that helps.

3

Harmonix - I take outdoor gear very seriously. I mainly shop at Arcteryx, Patagonia, Ibex and Northface. I find their gear to be reliable, rugged, and engineered to last and perform the job they advertise. Price is the least of my concern when it comes to good gear. If you like the Arcteryx hiking pant, you’ll love their base layer and performance shirts. I have several of them and love them. I’m also a big fan of the Patagonia hiking/performance pant…light, breathable and dries with ease quickly. I bought their brsh pants last year and they are fabulous.

4

Whoa yikes. You weren’t kidding about the icebreaker gear being expensive. I thought I was paying a hefty premium for my arcteryx gear. Do you own one? whats your personal review? as compared to synthetics? ever wash one in a sink? I wonder if they’re any cheaper if you buy it locally in new zealand…

Phlosphr, do you have any recommendations on zip off pants? Shorts come in handy.
Also, what were those Patagonia pants? I searched “brush” but came up with no results.
What in particular do you like about them? I’m a fan of the arcteryx because of the strech material it in no way inhibits my climbing. I am very flexible with my legs and stem more and step higher then nearly anyone I know.

5

Yeah, they are really pricey, but as you can see from the reviews, they are well worth the price. My friend bought one when we found a heavier weight long sleeve top on sale and she wore it a lot while it was chilly. She said it was so incredibly comfortable, she wanted to wear it all the time. I haven’t bought any yet but I think I’m going to save up for the Icebreaker 200 weight base layers and I want a 150 weight Atlas zip and…man, I wish I had more money. I covet Icebreaker.

As for washing, the key is wash normally, but will little heat. Handwashing in the sink is no problem. Roll it up tight in a towel to get most of the water out of it afterwards and then lay it out to dry. Should be dry by morning if you do that before bedtime. Or you can wash in the washing machine in cold (or warm) water, but don’t use bleach or fabric softener (the fabric softener coats the fabric and reduces it’s wicking and breathability). Don’t put it in the dryer unless you can fluff with no heat, but it’s better to just lay it out to dry naturally.

You can buy them directly from their website, but they are still pretty pricey. I don’t know if you can find them cheaper in NZ. The prices look maybe slightly lower to about the same at a NZ outfitter called bivouac/outdoors. But don’t forget they are in their winter season apparel while we’re in summer. Selections may differ.

I know you are not asking me, but as for Patagonia, if you’re looking for a good lightweight climbing pant, check out the Rock Guide pants, for more of a hiking/travel pant, try the Sol Patrol or Gi II pants. If you really like Mountain Hardwear, the Talus pants are pretty cool. For convertible pants, there’s the REI Saharas, Mountain Hardwear Mesa, The North Face Paramount(which are a bit heavier than the rest), and the Columbia Sportswear Silver Ridge II (which I think are a bit baggier in the seat than the rest). They are all going to fit differently, so you’ll want to see if your local REI (or other outfitter) has them to try on.

Full disclosure: I work for REI and I’m a female, but I also shop at REI and buy a lot of different brands of a lot of products. My recommendation come from personal experience combined with listening to our customers and learning as much as I can about the products. I completely agree with Phlosphr’s take on the best quality performance clothing*. Plus, I outfit my husband and that’s not as easy as outfitting total strangers. :wink:

*Although, I think The North Face is a bit more hit or miss with it’s clothing line. Their mass production has reduced the quality somewhat as they’ve become a more popular brand. Not true at all, though, with Arc’teryx, which I think still has a pretty niche following. They are pretty much the Bugatti of outdoor gear.