Powering our electronics was the sun’s job on our last big thru hike. At that time we made a shelf of flexible solar panels that could attach to the top of our packs. It charged our gadgets well, but was a bit awkward to lay flat on the top of our packs. For this trip, I made lightweight sun hats for us with solar panels on the brim.

I made a couple prototypes of boonie hat designs and panel configurations. I soon realized that it’s more streamlined to wire the panels side-to-side than end-to-end. This requires a broader brim and we had to weigh the pros and cons. A major pro: We’ll be above the timberline for much of our hike, so bigger brims will be welcome for the extra shade. The only real con: they are a bit less stylish. Utility outweighed pride and we went with the wide brims. Besides, backcountry nerdcore is kind of awesome.

This was the first time I have made hats (other than fleece beanies), so I had to revise the patterns a few times. I’m on the lookout for pattern drafting software now because Illustrator has limitations for measuring curves, matching measurements, etc.

Each hat has six panels and a battery pack. Once the battery is charged, it can be popped out and put into a USB power bank to charge other batteries or devices. The hats were a success on our first test run and we’re glad to have so much charging power in the wilderness for this trip!

Materials

Panels: PowerFilm 4.8V 50mA Flexible Solar Panel MPT4.8-75  from Sundance Solar

Battery: 3400mAh Orbtronic Li-Ion 18650 Protected Cell

Fabric: 2-ply Laundered Supplex from The Rain Shed

Interfacing: 2-sided Fusible interfacing from Joann Fabric.