Silver Shadow Mini Ultralight Compact Umbrella: The Ultimate Mini Travel Umbrella Offering Sun and Rain Protection - Perfect Hiking or Backpack Companion. A trekker's dream.

Good quality but a bit tricky to fold up.

Just back from walking through Tuscany on the Via Francigena. This light weight umbrella kept me cool and protected from the sun. I overheat with a hat, but not so under the protective dome of this umbrella. The only issue is attaching it to my backpack, so I can still use my hiking poles. Something for me to figure out before my next hike.

My adult son and daughter and I went backpacking in Spain. Each of us had one of these umbrellas, expecting to use them to shield us from the sun. Instead, it rained almost every day and the temps were sometimes quite cool. The umbrellas are very lightweight and I had doubts about the sturdiness. After using them in some moderate with sometimes strong winds I am pleased with how rugged they were, and we used them nearly every day for 3 weeks. My son used his last year and made the recommendation to us to also get one. They fold down partially or fully and fit inside or on the side of the backpack. Their light weight makes them great for carrying along when walking around town as well. The ONLY negative comment I have it that you shouldn't expect to ever get the small fold to work. Most of the time we just closed like a regular umbrella and attached them to the side of the pack (with or without the cover). Trying to make that smaller fold where the umbrella is extremely short was just impossible to do neatly. You can fold it that way, but it's going to be wrinkled. It doesn't seem to affect its use, however.

I hike with this umbrella and had to figure out how to attach it to my pack. I think I have a good clamp now. Works best with 2 and one attached high on the shoulder strap. So far I have only used it for sun protection and it is super. Can take the hat off. Doesn't work well on a brushy trail. It folds up super small and weighs very little. I put it in the water bottle pocket of the pack since I'm using a hydration bladder for water. The umbrella will be a permanent part of my pack.

Nice and light and small in size when folded up. But let's talk about the folding up of this thing. I gave it 4 stars as this takes a few extra steps in folding this thing up. But I'm sure this is necessary to have something smaller to hike/travel with. It may or may not be an issue for some but look into it. I decided to keep it and it does the job.

Update: The company replaced the umbrella quickly. I've revised my overall rating to 5. Hope this one doesn't break!!! Like the umbrella a lot. One of the little ribs broke after very limited use. Glad I am not in the middle of a desert hike depending on this umbrella. Have emailed the company and will revise this if they reply.