I am not enamored of sun hoodies for warm-to-hot weather protection.
I find the hood traps heat. The polyester or wool layer makes me hot and doesn’t breathe as well as my simple but effective Western snap shirt and boonie-style hat combo.
At the end of my Northern New Mexico Loop
I sweltered in the 80F heat and mugginess of New England last October when the weather proved historically warm. The Colorado Plateau heat also felt much too warm for me with this popular and fashionable item.
However, I have grown to like sun hoodies for temperatures around 60F or lower. The hood adds warmth that proves handy in mild wind or cooler weather, especially when the hood itself is not overly floppy.
Where it all began for me at 12 years old, the summit of Mt. Lafayette in New Hampshire
For the warmer side of these conditions, the no-longer-made Squak Swell Hoodie remains my go-to. It is light, compact, and breathable.
But for cool to moderately cold weather, I found a budget item that works extremely well: the OYGSiegMen’sns Athletic Hoodie UPF 50+.
From Amazon
I now think of these less as sun hoodies and more as cold-weather base layers with hoods.
The added warmth of this fabric means less airflow. It does not let heat escape as quickly as my lighter sun hoodies or my collared shirts. In warmer conditions, I choose more breathable pieces.
In cool-to-cold desert use, the balance works well. The fabric takes the edge off wind and shade without requiring a shell or midlayer right away.
Another pleasant surprise is the hood itself. Many sun hoodies run floppy. This one holds shape better and stays put while moving. It layers cleanly under hats or other layers and does not feel sloppy.
I reach for these budget sun hoodies constantly now for weekday outdoor exercise, quick hikes as part of our volunteer work, yard work, and shoulder-season errands. I use them frequently because they strike a useful middle ground between warmth, bulk, and fabric weight.
On weekend trips, when I want something warmer than the Squak Swell but not as warm as the Squak Woolie I use for deeper cold, these budget hoodies fit nicely. My Swell weighs about 4.5 oz or sub-130 g. These budget hoodies weigh roughly twice that.
The overall value is excellent at roughly $9 each when purchased in multi-packs.
A late winter’s day on the Colorado Plateau.
You get a functional, warm-leaning sun hoodie that fills a niche. It is not the lightest fabric or the most breathable option. That is not the point. As a cool-weather desert layer, it offers an excellent price-to-performance ratio. I can keep several in rotation through the week and often weekends, so I always have one that is not sweaty, dirty, or in the wash.
There are other similar choices made in other factories, too.
Overall? I still do not think sun hoodies excel for my warm-to-hot weather hiking. I treat them instead as a light hooded base layer for cool to cold conditions, especially in the Colorado Plateau winter. For my use, they make a lot of sense. At roughly $10 each, these particular hoodies work well without breaking the budget.
From Joan. We’ll soon switch to our three-season tent once the weather continues to warm.