Rocky Mountain Conservancy’s Night Sky Bear is a good starting point for a simple, soft cap. For a particular view, we like Grinnell Point reflected in Swiftcurrent Lake on Glacier’s patch trucker and Ruby Beach across Rainier Hat Co.’s Olympic cap. A hiking hat needs a different shape, with more coverage than a baseball brim.
Our picks
Panoramic embroidery$44.99
Rainier Hat Co.
Ruby Beach at sunset, embroidered on the cap with no patch.
Embroidered patch$30
Yellowstone Embroidery Trucker Hat
ililily
Grand Prismatic and bison on a patch, about $30.
Sun hat$41
Joshua Tree National Park Association
Wide brim, chin cord and a neck flap, from Joshua Tree’s store.
What park hats cost
Park-store patch caps usually start as a stock blank like the Richardson 112, while brands with their own art, like Parks Project and Sendero Provisions, charge $32 to $45. Panoramic embroidery costs about $45.
Park stores have some of the lower-priced options. Zion Forever’s hats cost $21.99 to $40, and the Joshua Tree store charges $18 to $41.
Not every park store sells hats online, though. Olympic’s and Mount Rainier’s don’t, but the company that runs Mount Rainier’s lodges sells a few for $25.99 to $36.99.
The styles guide draws dad caps, truckers and five-panels side by side to compare their shapes.
Before you buy
Where the money goes
Most park stores are run by a nonprofit, so the profit goes back to the park. The lodge company at Mount Rainier says it gives $1 per hat.
Rainier Hat Co. says it donates 100% of its profits to the National Park Foundation and the National Parks Conservation Association. Parks Project posts what it has given each park, and other brands give a share of sales. There’s a longer list in the giving guide.
Under $30
Best for a soft cotton cap under $25
Night Sky Bear Hat
Rocky Mountain Conservancy
- Style
- Unstructured dad cap with a relaxed fit, in navy
- Design
- White embroidered constellation bear and park name
- Made of
- 100% cotton garment-washed twill
- Fit
- Slide buckle
- Giving
- Sold by Rocky Mountain Conservancy, a nonprofit
A bear drawn in stars gives this soft cotton cap its park design without a large patch. Rocky Mountain Conservancy has worked with the park since 1931 and says purchases support research and education there. Members pay $21.24.
Downsides
It comes in one size with no measurements given.
Patch caps
Best for a gift, or a cap you'll wash
Zion Vintage Patch Hat
Parks Project
- Style
- 5-panel camp cap in natural and red, 6.5 in crown
- Design
- Oversized vintage-style patch on the front, plus embroidery on the front, back and right side
- Made of
- 100% cotton
- Fit
- Brass-clasp strapback; one size, 19.5–24 in per the maker's chart
- Giving
- Parks Project says it has given more than $60,000 to Zion Forever Project
- Reviews
- 5.0 from 5 reviews on Parks Project's site
It’s a cotton camp cap with an oversized vintage patch that you can machine wash cold and dry flat. Parks Project says it has given more than $60,000 to Zion Forever, the park’s nonprofit, and puts its total for all parks at over $2.8 million. There are matching caps for Rocky Mountain and Joshua Tree, and a chenille one for Yosemite.
Zion hats compares it with what the park store sells, and the Parks Project page has more on the brand.
Downsides
$40 is about $10 more than a park-store cap, and shipping is free only on orders over $125. A return for a refund costs $9.
Best for a patch of the view from the park's own store
Grinnell Point Sunburst Hat
Glacier National Park Conservancy
- Style
- Trucker-style cap
- Design
- Panoramic patch of Grinnell Point reflected in Swiftcurrent Lake
- Made of
- 74% polyester, 26% cotton
- Fit
- Snapback
- Giving
- Sold by Glacier National Park Conservancy, the park's nonprofit fundraising partner
Grinnell Point reflected in Swiftcurrent Lake, on a wide patch. It comes from the Glacier National Park Conservancy, which runs the park’s stores and puts the profit into its work in the park.
Downsides
The store doesn’t give a size range.
Embroidered caps
Rainier Hat Co.’s panoramic embroidery continues onto the sides of the crown, while ililily’s embroidered patch fills the front. How to judge a park hat shows the difference up close.
Best for panoramic embroidery
Olympic National Park Hat
Rainier Hat Co.
- Style
- Structured mid-profile 5-panel snapback
- Design
- Panoramic embroidery of Ruby Beach at sunset across the front and sides
- Made of
- 100% cotton crown in heather gray
- Fit
- Plastic snapback; one size
- Care
- Hand wash only
- Giving
- Rainier Hat Co. says it donates 100% of profits to national park nonprofits
- Reviews
- 5.0 from 15 reviews on Rainier Hat Co.'s site
Rainier Hat Co.’s Olympic cap has Ruby Beach at sunset embroidered across the front and onto both sides, with Abbey Island, sea stacks and a pod of orcas. There’s no logo on the front either.
Rainier Hat Co. sells the same cap for 16 other parks, each with a different view. US shipping and 30-day returns are free.
Downsides
At $44.99 it’s near the top of what park caps cost, and since it’s all cotton with no mesh, it runs hot. It’s hand wash only, and the back of the embroidery isn’t lined.
Best for an embroidered patch for $30
Yellowstone Embroidery Trucker Hat
ililily
Some colors or sizes were sold out when we checked.
- Style
- Trucker with a structured cotton front, mesh back and distressed brim
- Design
- Embroidered patch of Grand Prismatic Spring and bison across the front; Yellowstone on the back mesh
- Made of
- 60% cotton, 40% polyester
- Fit
- Snapback
Grand Prismatic and bison on a patch, with Yellowstone embroidered on the mesh back. ililily makes the same cap for Grand Teton, Yosemite, Great Smoky Mountains, Glacier Bay, Grand Canyon and Death Valley. There are more Yellowstone caps on the Yellowstone page.
Downsides
ililily says not to wash it at all, only wipe it with a damp cloth. It comes in one size, about 23 inches around, so a big head may not fit.
The Grand Canyon and Arches and Canyonlands park stores carry Rainier Hat Co.’s caps for their own parks at $45 to $46.99, and if you buy there the store keeps the profit. Pendleton’s $35 National Park Trucker has Pendleton’s own park logo instead of a picture, in six park colors. The trucker roundup has more.
Sun hats
A ball cap won’t cover your ears or neck. The CDC says to wear a brim at least 3 inches wide all the way around.
Do not rely on standard baseball caps.
The Park Service’s Arches hiking page says to wear a wide brim too, and there’s trail-by-trail advice for the Grand Canyon and Zion.
Best for summer trails with no shade
Hike Smart Bucket Hat
Joshua Tree National Park Association
- Style
- Wide-brim bucket hat with a tuck-away neck cape
- Design
- Round Don't Die Today, Hike Smart patch with a bighorn sheep and the park's name (product photo)
- Made of
- 75/25 poly/nylon ripstop treated with No Fly Zone insect repellent
- Fit
- Chin cord (product photo) and a crown cord; S/M 21 5/8–22 3/4 in, L/XL 23–24 1/4 in
- Sun
- UPF 30+ (seller's claim)
- Giving
- Sold by Joshua Tree National Park Association, a nonprofit
Joshua Tree’s park store sells it with a bighorn sheep on the front, inside a ring that says Don’t Die Today and Hike Smart. It has a wide brim, a chin cord and a neck flap you can tuck away, and it comes in two sizes, which park caps almost never do.
Downsides
It’s UPF 30+, a step below 50+, and $41 is high for a park-store hat.
Best for sun cover from the Grand Canyon's store
Hike Smart Bucket Hat
T.R. McTaggart, sold by Grand Canyon Conservancy
- Style
- Nylon bucket hat with mesh vents; brim width not stated
- Design
- Round Grand Canyon Hike Smart patch on the front
- Made of
- 100% nylon, water repellent, with mesh vents and a wicking sweatband
- Fit
- Chin cord and rear draw cord; sizes M and XL only
- Sun
- UPF 50+ (seller's claim); the listing doesn't say whether that covers the mesh
- Giving
- Sold by Grand Canyon Conservancy, the park's nonprofit partner, which says purchases help protect the park
A nylon bucket with a round Grand Canyon Hike Smart patch, sold by Grand Canyon Conservancy, which says the money goes back to the park. It has mesh vents, a chin cord and UPF 50+, and comes in M or XL.
Downsides
There’s no neck flap, so tie a bandana back there.
Rocky Mountain Conservancy sells a UPF 50+ bucket with the park on it for $32.99. It’s L/XL only, and the listing gives no brim width.
Beanies
Glacier National Park’s safety page says to pack a warm wool hat on every hike.
Best for a park beanie for camp and the car
National Park Stripe Beanie
Pendleton
- Style
- Cuffed knit beanie
- Design
- Park stripes on the turn-back cuff; seven park colorways
- Made of
- Acrylic
- Fit
- One size, pull-on
- Care
- Hand wash cold, dry flat (Pendleton says)
- Giving
- Pendleton says it supports the National Park Foundation, nearly $2.4 million so far
- Made in
- USA, of imported material (Pendleton says)
- Reviews
- 4.5 from 77 reviews on Pendleton's site
Pendleton uses park colors rather than a landscape picture, with the stripes gathered on the folded cuff. Each of the seven colors is named for a park.
Downsides
Some buyers say the top is boxy and doesn’t sit close to the head. It’s acrylic rather than wool.
For a wool option, Yosemite Conservancy sells Rustek’s all-merino Wool Thick Knit Beanie with Yosemite on it for $35, made in the US. The beanie roundup compares it with other park designs.
Sizing
Men’s and women’s park hats are the same hats, since nearly every park cap is one adjustable size sold as unisex. What matters is your head size and how deep the crown is.
Measure around your head an inch above your eyebrows and compare it with the maker’s chart, if there is one. Parks Project says its Zion cap fits 19.5 to 24 inches, and ililily’s fits up to about 23. Some buckets also come in sizes; check each listing.
If you’re buying for someone else, the gift guide lists each store’s return window.
Compare more hats for your park
Our Yosemite, Glacier, Rocky Mountain, Grand Canyon and Mount Rainier guides compare the places pictured, cap shapes and sellers for each park. The Zion, Yellowstone and Great Smoky Mountains guides cover more park-store and brand options.
For construction and artwork, compare embroidered national park hats. For a brim all the way around, compare national park bucket hats by fabric, published size and sun rating.