Comments on: Is Merino Wool Worth It? Pros and Cons https://dawnoutdoors.com/is-merino-wool-worth-it-pros-and-cons/ Sharing advice, info and inspiration about my happy place: the Great Outdoors. Tue, 08 Oct 2024 16:57:32 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 By: Taryn Eyton https://dawnoutdoors.com/is-merino-wool-worth-it-pros-and-cons/#comment-127358 Wed, 27 Mar 2024 13:56:03 +0000 https://dawnoutdoors.com/?p=20715#comment-127358 In reply to Nadine.

I wear a synthetic sun shirt (OR Echo, Patagonia Capilene Cool, or Mountain Hardwear Crater Lake) on backpacking trips. They all dry quickly, which is my priority. I do sometimes wear merino wool shirts to sleep in or at camp where I’m not sweating. I prioritize quick drying over anti-stink. All of my shirts don’t smell great after a week in the backcountry, but I’m ok with that if it means that I don’t feel soaking wet all the time. But if merino wool is already working for you, stick with it. As I said in my article, there are pros and cons to merino wool and each person should evaluate them for themselves.

]]> By: Nadine https://dawnoutdoors.com/is-merino-wool-worth-it-pros-and-cons/#comment-127357 Wed, 27 Mar 2024 03:04:15 +0000 https://dawnoutdoors.com/?p=20715#comment-127357 Hello Taryn, have been enjoying your blog, got to it researching the overland track. Regarding merino, what do you wear on multi-day hikes? As it sounds you don’t like merino much because it dries slowly. I get so hot and sweaty myself, even in colder temperatures that I use merino because other shirts stink so much. Then put my rain jacket on if having a break because the by then soaked and sweaty merino will make me feel cold otherwise. I have tried expensive synthetic hiking shirts, but they stink after the first day. Even those with odour control. So I just keep going with merino. I have 1 shirt for walking and 1 for the hut/camp for let’s say a 6 day trip and at least it doesn’t stink (I don’t take deodorant as saving weight wherever I can, maybe that would help?) Do you have a magical solution you could share? Thanks for your blog from NZ!

]]> By: Taryn Eyton https://dawnoutdoors.com/is-merino-wool-worth-it-pros-and-cons/#comment-126975 Thu, 11 Jan 2024 19:23:36 +0000 https://dawnoutdoors.com/?p=20715#comment-126975 In reply to Nicole.

Thanks for the comment Nicole, this is a good point and something I was definitely aware of but spaced out on including when I was putting this piece together. It was definitely an oversight. I’ve updated the article to list ethical/sustainable issues as a neutral since I added in the negative aspects of polyester.

]]> By: Nicole https://dawnoutdoors.com/is-merino-wool-worth-it-pros-and-cons/#comment-126974 Thu, 11 Jan 2024 00:01:33 +0000 https://dawnoutdoors.com/?p=20715#comment-126974 While you touched on the animal welfare side, I don’t believe being a non-vegan material is a con, as some sheep can not shed their wool naturally and need to be sheared in order to improve their quality of life.
More importantly, I would have liked to see the sustainability impact in your assessment. I agree with the importance of doing research to ensure proper animal treatment, but what about research into the sustainable impact of the fabric used. The fact that wool is a natural product that is renewable is a huge pro compared to polyester fabrics that are derived from fossil fuels. You are wearing plastic that will not decompose in our lifetime, which significantly contributes to microplastic shedding contaminating our oceans, and has no end of life solution. Wool is biodegradable and decomposes naturally back to earth. The world is experiencing a climate crisis, and expressing the importance of choosing sustainable fashion will be impactful.

]]>