Days are short, nights are long and we’ve come round to the time of year when every mountain walker should be packing a head lamp with them. This is one of the most essential pieces of kit you can carry, up there with waterproof jacket and water bottle. Planning a night out? You’ll need a light for use around camp, in the bothy or to find your way to the stream after it gets dark. Just heading out for a day walk and expect to be back before nightfall? A head torch is your insurance policy in case your route takes longer than expected – or an accident, navigation error or other mishap leads to a forced benightment.
In the darker months, I like a dependable light with good battery life, a bright long-range beam that can be used for following vague trails, and controls that are easy to use with gloves. Although a head torch is most important from autumn through to spring, I’ll usually carry one in summer as well. In summer I’m less likely to need it for actually hiking – and nights tend to be less dark. Extended battery life at full burn and trail-finding performance are less important in summer. I probably won’t need to use it with gloves on, and it may sit in my pack unused for long periods. In summer, I look for a lightweight, compact package and decent battery life on the low power setting; at this time of year a torch is most likely to be used for short periods at close range in camp.
Some walkers will end up with two torches: a beefier winter model and a slimmed-down one for summer use. However, advances in tech mean that many lightweight, compact models now pack in a lot of performance and battery life. In this review I have selected torches across this good middle-ground spectrum, ideal for the needs of average walkers and backpackers.
Features
Battery life
For winter use, I look for at least 100 hours on low burn, and at least 10 hours on a setting bright enough to follow a bearing after dark in poor visibility. For summer, around 100 hours on low burn and 2-3 hours on a higher setting is sufficient
