Necessity and choice of headlamp

The day is getting darker and darker. Headlamps that will make a big success in the outdoor season!! So in this time, I would like to introduce the necessity of headlamp and the points when you choise them, our recommended products. First of all, I will teach you to use them for each situations.

Necessity of head lamp

1 Climing【Necessity of head lamp】

Even in a day climbing, the situation of the surroundings will change completely, and it will become darker and darker by a delay of the descending mountain due to an emergency such as injury. Climbing in the dark is really dangerous. So the necessity of the head lamp is very high level. And it is essential item for climbing!! Also, it is very convenient when staying in a mountain hut and staying in a tent, if you use headlamps instead of lanterns.

2 Walking and Cycling【Necessity of head lamp】

Not only to securing your own visibility, but also it makes easier for you to recognize your existence from the surroundings. Most headlights have a function to adjust the angle, so it is suitable for illuminating your feet during walking. It is recommended to use it with reflective material to protect yourself from cars.

3 At the time of disaster such as blackout【Necessity of head lamp】

In recent years, many disasters occurred due to the influence of the earthquake and typhoon. While the damage caused by blackouts is occurring frequently, we think that everyone has thought about preparing for that. Unlike a flashlight, it is very convenient because you can illuminate with both of hands free. Since a headlamp is compact and above all, it is not troublesome for storage place.

Not only climbing and walking, also helpful in the event of a disaster head lamp.

Points to choose a headlamp

There are various kinds of headlamps. In addition these functions and these prices are various. “I don’t know which one to choose …”. I think many people think like that. For that person, we will introduce some points when choosing a headline!

1 Brightness (lumens)【Points to choose a headlamp】

It is a unit called “lumen” that is often used as a unit of the brightness of the headlamp. Lumen is the light flux, the amount of light that the bulb is emitting. Please be careful as it is different from the brightness of the illuminated place!!

 

The unit called “lux” is used for the brightness of the illuminated place. The distance that light can reach depends on the illuminated range. Although the beam is narrow and the range of lighting is narrow, it seems that the headlights boasting to brightly far tend to be indicated by “Lux”.

 

General aims

1. 30 ~ 50 lumens ⇒ Basically do not use headlamp hiking.
2. 50 ~ 70 lumens ⇒ Mountain climbing to act until dusk in the no-snow period.
3. Over 100 lumens ⇒ Climbs to act early in the morning and at night.

2 The type of power supply【Points to choose a headlamp】

Head lamps are mainly divided into “dry battery” and “recharge type”. Both of them should carry spare batteries and chargers when you use them! Also, some person say, “the switch entered in the bag and the battery is wasted!” It is safe to have spare batteries even at such times!

3 Function【Points to choose a headlamp】

As a standard function,

1. Illuminance adjustment
2. Flash (flashing)
3. Night vision (red lit etc.)
   

1 Illuminance adjustment

Most headlamps are adjusted for brightness. The brighter and brighter, the battery becomes more consumed. Adjusting to the necessary brightness is a key point to reduce battery consumption.

2 Flash (flashing)

To appeal your presence in the dark.

3 Night vision (red lit etc.)

It is a function to switch to light such as red. It is a function that can also be said the manner mode of the headlamp. And it is used not to annoy the surrounding people when using the headlamp in the dark. Also, long wavelength red light is hard to be scattered by dust and moisture in the air, and it can be used even in dense fog.

4 Weight · thickness of the belt · size of the button【Points to choose a headlamp】

Most of the headlamps for mountaineering are compact and lightweight. While climbing, we often move my head, seeing our feet and watching the surroundings. I recommend the headlamp which you wear, the thick of a belt easy to fit on the head. And even better, it has the large buttons for easy to operate even while the gloves!