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-   -   Which headlamp? (https://www.fodors.com/community/mexico-and-central-america/which-headlamp-811974/)

plumboy Oct 27th, 2009 07:49 AM

Which headlamp?
 
Can someone tell me what headlamp they have? I bought a Petzl E02 P e+LITE last year, and it's just not bright enough. I found myself using it and a flashlight. I want something very bright for that dark Central American night.

Thanks.

volcanogirl Oct 27th, 2009 09:01 AM

I got ours at REI; the brand is black diamond. It's bright and has different power/brightness settings.

wego Oct 27th, 2009 10:34 AM

We also purchased headlamps for the whole family before going to costa rica. we thought they would be great for our bug lady hike in the osa. we ended up not using them on our heads because they attracted the flying bugs right to our faces and when you looked at someone there was a bright light shining in your eyes. we held them in our hand instead. just thought i would pass that on. however, i do love them for reading in bed in hotel rooms

hopefulist Oct 27th, 2009 12:12 PM

I'm really fond of the Princeton Tec Quads:
http://www.rei.com/product/736937

We purchased one for each family member 6 or 7 years ago and they're still going strong. We replace the batteries before each trip so they're good and bright. I like that they have 3 or 4 different brightness settings and that they're hinged so you can angle them down to avoid shining in each other's eyes. They're waterproof, too. Sometimes I wear mine around my neck instead of on my forehead which works well for walking on trails and streets but not so much for caving.

volcanogirl Oct 27th, 2009 12:45 PM

I wear mine on my head and also carry it by hand - excellent for doing a sweep of the room if you have to get up in the middle of the night. Ours swivel too - that's a great feature.

plumboy Oct 27th, 2009 04:25 PM

Thanks everyone. I'll check all these out.

By the way, I kept flashing Phillip at BdC in the eyes with my headlamp on the night hike -- he was not amused (is he ever?).

volcanogirl Oct 27th, 2009 05:56 PM

plum, did he give you one of his withering looks?!

Linda137 Oct 27th, 2009 08:59 PM

I bought a Black Diamond NightRay for digging razor clams and didn't find it helpful at all. This time of year our clam tides are in the evenings but I would have had to crawl on my hands and knees to see anything. For reading in a dark area or something like that, it would work great but not for what I was trying to do. We have flashlights at work that my co-workers say will light up someone's house number at night without even pulling into their driveway.

fright_attenadant Oct 31st, 2009 07:23 AM

I have a Tikka headlamp @REI and it's fantastic. Super comfortable, light weight, and has two settigns plus a red light. You also don't have to cycle through the regular light to turn the red light on or off.

volcanogirl Oct 31st, 2009 07:25 AM

fright, a red light is a great bonus; I've never seen those before. That would be excellent for turtle spotting.

fright_attenadant Nov 3rd, 2009 07:13 PM

It's a pretty amazing headlamp. I have major discomfort issues with head gear, and it's amazing. I want to say it's the Tikka Plus, maybe $39.95 and they have a semi-hard sided case for it for another $15, which makes it easy to find and hard to damage. I really can't rave enough about it, as we're big (US) rugged-outdoorsy types.


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