Bushwalk Australia

hey all any tips on how to stop a pom becoming a tomato out on the track?

whats the best option suntan cream just won't cut it, should i try one of
those cool aussie hats with the corks, I've enjoyed enough bottles of the
vin to make one!

love the place is their any cuties out their needing to marry a red peeling
very over ripe winging pom; (just jocking)

Am kicking around the otways and grampians np - who knows the good hikes.

Chow - look forward to the tips

happy walking

Strewth! . No special Aussie tricks, cobber. Hat, long sleeves, long pants and 30+ sunscreen will have you sorted by jingo.

a diet rich in bioflavonoids and antioxidants can help reduce the suns damage to the skin.
bioflavonoids are the plants sunscreen.... also people living in the tropics who eat lots of tropical oils like coconut oil have les skin damage.
but then theres genetics as well.... bit hard if yo're very fair skinned

I am a "burner" as well - lightweight long pants and long sleeve shirts plus a wide brim hat and SPF 50+ sunscreen or




stay indoors -

yes - covering up is the key.
Forget the corks - get in the way of slapping mossies, march flies and are just a plain nuisance IMO.

Wayno people who live in the tropics don't have to endure the sun like we at 42° south do. Different climate.
At 22 I had skin like a 60 year old I was told by my dermo. I was bought up on tropical luxuries.
It was my fair skinned parents that was to blame, after the sun ie. So yes genetics came into play too.

JC44 make sure you don't have a shirt that rides up and leaves a gap between that and your strides.
Burnt top of your cheeks is far from pleasant.
Dark glasses too to avoid the UV damage to your eyes, though just plain glass will take out the UV, but not the glare.

in places like the pacific islands you still get people walking around without a shirt on in the sun. if they are eating a traditional diet of fresh food and tropical oils they dont go on to develop skin problems despite long hours baking in the sun...

My comment was aimed at the ferocity of the sun here (Tasmania).
I spent a month in Hawaii last year and the weather is hot but the sun isn't fierce as it is here.

Not doubting the oils etc.

It's a recognised fact (by the skin bods I see) that Tasmanian sun is more damaging than the island to the north.
That's what I am told.
I don't doubt there concerns as I have lost a bit of flesh over the years to a keen knife removing sun damaged skin.

So JC44 - look after yourself.

yeah but what altitude are you normally walking at,
higher altitude stronger sun.
depends what the ozone hole is doing at the time of year you're walking, this year the ozone hole isnt as bad,
a few years back a mate of mine who'd been bushwalking since the 60's said he could feel the sun's intensity was stronger than it had been when he started tramping, thats when the ozone hole was a major problem..

Broad brimmed hat, quality waterproof 30+ sunscreen regularly reapplied and don't be sparing as far as thickness of cover goes, light long-sleeved gear (maybe consider a collar for some extra cover), light long pants. If you are using sunscreen from home it may not have the same 'waterproof' rating test applied. 'parrently the Aus one is much more stringent than the US one. Dunno about how they compare to Old Blighty and the EU.

the bulk of my skin damage was done by the late 1970's when ozone was something you made in the science lab.
I predate the ozone layer
And my outdoor life is spent around 10-300 m above sea level, with short forays to 1200-1400 m.

well people closer to the equator on average have higher vitamin d levels gained from stronger sunlight..
maybe hawaii has enough smog to reduce the suns rays.
the further away from the equator the more atmosphere the sun has to angle through, esp in winter and the lower the uv rays. Unless you're in the snow a lot or near the water. there there happens to be a higher than normal amount of thin cloud which refracts and increases uv rays.

wayno wrote:well people closer to the equator on average have higher vitamin d levels gained from stronger sunlight..
maybe hawaii has enough smog to reduce the suns rays.
the further away from the equator the more atmosphere the sun has to angle through, esp in winter and the lower the uv rays. Unless you're in the snow a lot or near the water. there there happens to be a higher than normal amount of thin cloud which refracts and increases uv rays.

Wayno,
Tasmania has some of the highest recorded UV in the Southern Hemisphere perhaps something to do with our clean clear atmosphere and it does not matter about your elevation
corvus

andrewbish wrote:Strewth! . No special Aussie tricks, cobber. Hat, long sleeves, long pants and 30+ sunscreen will have you sorted by jingo.

+1
corvus

justcruising44 wrote:
whats the best option suntan cream just won't cut it, should i try one of
those cool aussie hats with the corks, I've enjoyed enough bottles of the
vin to make one!

Agree - for serious sun protection suncream is a second best option. You will always get a period you forget to reapply in time and get burnt. It makes you hotter and stickier too.

Best option is wear a very light baser layer top to tail. Something like heatgear long shirts and long tights - second skin tight not compression tight. Just don your normal shorts and shirt over the top. It isn't hot - best research is a skin tight very light polyester layer is as cool as, or maybe even a fraction cooler, than wearing nothing at all.

For hands some coolmax or equivalent gloves (i prefer fingerless).

For the head a hat gets in the way in scrub and when scrambling on steep rock. And even the mesh ones are hot. Try two buffs (or equivalent knockoffs) - one around your neck up over your ears and nose to just under the eyes. You can breath just fine through it unless it becomes wet. The second one over the head down to just over the eyebrows. Think a ninja hood. Add some sunglasses. You will still need a touch of heavy duty suncream (zinc cream is better) around the bridge of your nose but very little skin area is left to cover then.

This is the garb I wear for days out at sea under blue skys in tropical summer and on hot, exposed North Queensland walks. It is amazing how much even a light sunburn wears you out for the end of the day - I feel much less tuckered out around camp now I don't rely on suncream (which would see me always a little burnt). I still get a fraction tanned on the bridge of the nose - i need to find a coolmax full balaclava ! (with just two eye holes).

Be warned however - it is not an attractive look

"Peak UV should occur within the tropics (high sun, low ozone), at a high altitude site, in the Southern Hemisphere." Plus but and etc. Lily/McKenzie

Collared shirt hat and sunglasses.
By Jingo, is pure Bertie Wooster.

taswegian wrote:My comment was aimed at the ferocity of the sun here (Tasmania)....
It's a recognised fact (by the skin bods I see) that Tasmanian sun is more damaging than the island to the north.

Sadly 2006 must have been a Brissie Com Games year for the Aus Govt. Hobart doesnt make the map. Would have been interesting. Sun certainly had a sting to its tail up Mt Wellington.

justcruising44 wrote:hey all any tips on how to stop a pom becoming a tomato out on the track?

whats the best option suntan cream just won't cut it, should i try one of
those cool aussie hats with the corks, I've enjoyed enough bottles of the
vin to make one!

love the place is their any cuties out their needing to marry a red peeling
very over ripe winging pom; (just jocking)

Am kicking around the otways and grampians np - who knows the good hikes.

Chow - look forward to the tips

happy walking

I'm a full blown red head with Irish blood, prone to getting sunburnt by just thinking of the sun.

Just make sure that you're wearing appropriate clothes, long pants, and a top (with UV protection if possible), a hat (preferably one that covers your ears as well), and cover up with 30+. NOT ZINC!! Make sure its proper sunscreen that absorbs into your skin.

There are some brands out there that have their own "sports" sun cream. I generally dont bother with them. Just so long as its 30+, and IS NOT ZINC, you will be fine.

I also reapply at least once every 2 - 3 hours, just to be sure. There is nothing worse than getting a bad case of sunburn on day 2 of a 6 day hike.

I also treat my skin after exposure as well. Cocoa Butter is great if you burn easily, and helps repair your skin after a day in the sun. I never go a day in the sun without putting it on at the end of the day.

Why not zinc? Is it an allergy thing for redheads?

Sunscreen with zinc is the highest protection and most effective sunscreen you can get.

The chemical blocker stuff is fine for your average bush walk but when it gets serious you really need a physical blocking sunscreen.

Mountaineering on glaciers the chemical blocker stuff just doesn't cut it, only decent zinc based sunscreen does the job out there. I find the Cancer Council Classic sunscreen the best on the market.

mattyc25 wrote:Sunscreen with zinc is the highest protection and most effective sunscreen you can get.

Correction - its the best you can get, so long as it stays on your skin.

Working up a decent sweat, Zinc sweats off real fast, because it creates a layer on your skin rather than absorbing, hence the warnings on the back of most zinc sunscreen packages that tell you to reapply if you build up a sweat.

That's why I recommend a sunscreen that absorbs into your skin, rather than one that creates a layer on your skin that can easily lost.

That said, if you just don't build up too much of a sweat (unlike myself!), then Zinc may be fine, however with most 30+ sunscreens, and even some of the 50+ sunscreens on the market, that's all most mere mortals will ever need. If you manage to get burnt with 30+ these days, you're doing something wrong.

one answer to save yourself from strong tasmanian sun could be move to melbourne...

*I think the correct term is a Pomato..

I'm a pomato, marr, just cut off the dodgy bits you'll be right

But yes, big hat, L/S shirt.. I grabbed some fishing shirts from Orvis they are big and loose, l/weight material, collared and with thumb hole/ hand cover. Not much left for sunscreen really. Long pants (Montane Terra have big zippered leg vents (sometimes get a little burnt through the gap) cutting grass will scuff them but pretty tough otherwise)

Do everything that everyone has said here. But when you are wearing that collared shirt turn the collar up like the country boys do. You may or may not look like a wanker but fashion is slightly less important in the bush and it's better than a sun burnt neck.

The whole Tassie sun is more intense than other places is a load of bollocks, sorry folks.

I've lived in WA and literally had my body baked, been so burnt my skin blistered(multiple times). We prided ourselves as the people of the sand, surf and sun, and no the Tassie sun is not hotter.
It's all a matter of conditioning. When you spend 300 days(a guess) at below 20degrees max then the 15 days(another guess) at 30+ degrees it seems extreme.

In WA we often didn't drop below 20 degrees for 4 or 5 months and often spent 15 or 20 days straight above 30 often above 40 for a week or more. I've experienced some hot days here but they don't compare to the West.

So to the OP just cover up as has been explained well, stay hydrated and wear something on your feet.

stepbystep wrote:The whole Tassie sun is more intense than other places is a load of bollocks, sorry folks.

So the gaping big hole in the ozone layer across the northern half of the state is bollocks too, is it?

It's not about it being hotter, it's about UV. Two completely different things my friend.

You can burn badly anywhere, but in places like Tassie where the Ozone Layer is damaged as it is, you are always going to burn easier.

ryantmalone wrote:

stepbystep wrote:The whole Tassie sun is more intense than other places is a load of bollocks, sorry folks.

So the gaping big hole in the ozone layer across the northern half of the state is bollocks too, is it?

It's not about it being hotter, it's about UV. Two completely different things my friend.

You can burn badly anywhere, but in places like Tassie where the Ozone Layer is damaged as it is, you are always going to burn easier.

Don't know Ryan, but I'm here to tell ya it's far more intense elsewhere. I think the lower angle of the sun has some effect but there is absolutely no way it causes as much damage.

I dunno SBS, for example when I was in Thailand it was consistently hot and sunny, and with the same level and care of sun protection (ie: I chanced my arm a little) I got nowhere near as burnt as I would've in Tassie. In fact I only got burnt slightly once out on the water and that was because I was dumb.

And the sun HURTS when it shines on you down here, for a like for like temperature and humidity as say Qld, it feels more acute in Tassie. These are just observations obviously...

And I am a "pinker" - I burn like a pom does.

As far as I know the hole in the ozone layer grows and shrinks throughout the year, in fact I think the hole has on average decreased in size over the past decade. The sunlight is more intense where it hits the Earth directly and therefore would contain more UV but is more or less than Tasmania, where the thinness of the ozone layer depends on what day it is, and then does low or high humidity affect the intensity of UV light? I'm a whitey who burns in any weather so I'm a slipper, slopper, slapper..

According to BOM:
"Ozone depletion in the 1980s and early 1990s was more severe in the southern hemisphere than the northern. Observations suggest that, in southern mid-latitudes (which includes Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide, Melbourne and Hobart) the amount of depletion caused by ODSs during this time was about 5%. The amount of depletion was observed to be smallest in the tropics and to increase with distance from the equator. It is important to remember, though, that total ozone varies considerably from year to year due to natural variations, not all of which are currently fully accounted for. This means that it takes many years for clear trends to be discernible. Further long-term ozone changes can be caused by changes in transport rather than chemistry. Nonetheless, there are now tentative early indications that ozone is recovering following the success of the Montreal Protocol and its amendments."
(From http://www.bom.gov.au/uv/faq.shtml)

The major ozone hole is over Antarctica and this changes in size a lot. It affects NZ big time, where they have the highest melanoma rates in the world. The good news is that it seems the Antarctica ozone hole is trending smaller. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/artic ... d=10833172

ryantmalone wrote:You can burn badly anywhere, but in places like Tassie where the Ozone Layer is damaged as it is, you are always going to burn easier.

I very very rarely burn in Tassie. However, in NZ I burn just hanging out the washing!