Who doesn’t need that beacon of light to help navigate
their way to a late night destination? Or to locate gear inside a pack when
daylight is dwindling? Or for more obvious reasons, like when nature calls in the
middle of the night? A backpacking light needs to be compact, versatile,
bombproof, lightweight, reliable, and able to outlast the rigors of the journey.
We’ve used three different headlamps by three
different manufacturers on our hiking journeys and wanted to share the results
with you. These and others are available occasionally
at TheClymb, an outdoor flash retailer of Outdoor Equipment.
First off, I will say that in the beginning, I did
not use a headlamp with a night feature. I’ve come to find out there’s nothing
worse than having a late night arrival at a backpacking shelter and having powerful
LED bulbs shining full in your face as you are trying to sleep. When I was given
a headlamp that had this capability, I was happy to have it, not only for my
sake, but for the sake of bunkmates who now won’t be blinded by the
light…literally. In my opinion, all headlamps should have this feature.
The following headlamps we have tested on
backpacking adventures:
Princeton
Tech Fuel
What the manufacturer says – “When applied well,
technology should be simple. Such is the case with the innovative Fuel headlamp
– designed to meet the widest range of applications while remaining small,
lightweight, and robust. What could be better than a light that weighs only 78g
with 70 lumens of brightness and 146 hours of burn time? A light that also has
an asymmetrical single arm bracket that makes directing the light effortless
and reliable; a large, easy to find button switch and a virtually bulletproof,
easy access battery door that protects the 3AAAs and its electronics.”
My take – This is a lightweight (at 78 grams)
standard headlamp for outdoor activities. The headlamp performs adequately with
good lighting in modes ranging from low to high as well as slow and fast strobe
pattern. The battery life on it is good except when the headlamp has switched
on in my pack—which occurred a few times. It is inexpensive. Drawbacks: No red
light for nighttime use in a shelter. Essentially only two modes—the white LED
in different strengths and the strobe in two patterns. The manufacturer claims
it’s bulletproof. For some reason I’ve had durability issues on several of
these I own. Either the battery casing has cracked, the door to the casing has broken
off, etc. Perhaps if they made the battery compartment easier to access without
the tiny tool-like device on the headlamp necessary to access it. And the
casing itself is more durable and holds up to the rigorous activities of a
hiker.
Black
Diamond Spot
What the manufacturer says – “Now featuring more power
than ever, the 90-lumen Black Diamond Spot headlamp is the light to have when you
only have one. Whether you’re cooking up some grub after a long day hike on the
trail or spotting anchors on an after-dark rappelling epic, this compact super-bright
headlamp features multiple modes that are customizable to any lighting
situation. Red angle-power LEDS provide proximity lighting without cycling
through the white mode, so you won’t accidentally compromise night vision. The
lock mode prevents accidental battery drain in your pack or while stored and
the 3 level power meter means you’ll never be caught with a dead headlamp hours
from camp.”
My take – I was immediately happy to have a headlamp
with a night feature so fellow hikers aren’t blinded. I liked the different modes
it has, from a spotlight type feature to bright, multi LEDs for that rare
nighttime hike to the strobe and then the red light for nighttime. The lighting
in several of the modes can be dimmed by holding down the button, thus improving
battery life. Batteries were easy to change with a flip of the front cover and
seemed to hold life well. And it features
a lock mechanism mode so the headlamp doesn’t accidentally turn on inside the
pack. Reliable piece of gear thus far. Drawbacks: This is heavy at 90 grams. More
expensive than the Princeton Tech Fuel.
LED
Lenser SEO Headlamp
LED Lenser is a division of the Leatherman Tool
Group producing a set of headlamps with multi function capability. I was sent one
to test and was happy to have a fellow tester take it on a beach / backpacking
trip for his evaluation.
What the manufacturer says – “All the lights in the
SEO line feature Smart Light Technology for switching quickly between high and
low power and a signal mode. The SEO5 and SEO7R also use LED LENSER’S Advanced
Focus System for either a wide beam for reading a map or a power spot for long
distance. All the SEO lights feature a red light mode for preserving night
vision. All SEO headlamps weigh less than 3.5 ounces, have a helpful carabineer
clip for carrying on the go, and feature a swiveling head to direct the light
exactly where it’s needed.”
Out tester’s take on it – Our tester used this
headlamp on a backpacking trip to Back Bay in Virginia. This headlamp has a
very bright setting and was perfect when trying to find gear or other lost
object in the dead of night. With the red light vision, the tester found he was
able to walk the beach at night and still gaze up at the stars or see the
whitecaps of the ocean waves undisturbed. The zoom focus capability on the
headlamp was a unique feature. Battery life was good; the battery compartment
easy to access and seemed sturdy. Drawbacks: With so many features, this
headlamp was a bit of a bear trying to learn to operate it. It is not
instinctive but one needs to read the instructions to know what to do. Some
lights are easy in their function, but with this, the manual is necessary. This
headlamp is also heavy at 90 grams.
There are other brands out there (like the Petzl) we
did not get to test. If you have a review of a favorite headlamp, feel free to
post it under comments.
Copyright 2013 Lauralee Bliss. All rights reserved.
