Bandanas, The Underrated Backpacking Accessory

Every backpacker should have at least two bandanas in his or her pack. The bandana is of course very light and small, yet it has literally hundreds of practical uses in the great outdoors. Here are but a few:

• Use it to handle hot pots and pans
• Use it as a sweatband
• Use it to secure yourself in your hammock
• Use it like a whip to keep bugs out of your face as you hike
• Use it as an absorbent emergency bandage
• Use it as an emergency tourniquet
• Stuff it in your pot to keep the contents (silverware, cup, etc.) from clanging around