Wearing contact lenses while backpacking can be a convenient alternative to glasses, but it requires careful attention to hygiene and comfort. When you’re outdoors, access to clean water and facilities may be limited, making it crucial to maintain proper lens care to avoid eye infections or irritation.
By following a few key steps—such as practising good hand hygiene, using sterile solutions, and packing the right supplies—you can safely enjoy the benefits of contact lenses during your backpacking adventure without compromising eye health.
Safely Wear Contact Lenses
By following a few key steps—such as practising good hand hygiene, using sterile solutions, and packing the right supplies—you can safely enjoy the benefits of contact lenses during your backpacking adventure without compromising eye health.
Contact Lenses When Backpacking
Exploring remote natural environments can be rewarding, but it can be challenging, too. Backpacking in the rain, which is fairly common in the UK, perfectly exemplifies how difficult it can be in the wilderness.
Rain makes it more challenging to navigate uneven terrain and can damage your supplies. That’s why it’s crucial to prepare carefully for a backpacking adventure. Packing water filters, lots of food, cooking equipment, your tent, and a first aid kit is essential, and you’ll want to include softshell clothes and backpack covers to weatherproof yourself and all your gear.
However, you’ll have to take extra precautions if you wear glasses. They can break during intense hikes and will fog up in cold and rainy weather, affecting your vision and putting you at risk of accidents. To prevent that, consider wearing contact lenses.
There are over 3.9 million wearing contact lenses in the UK for one key reason: convenience. This benefit extends to backpacking. Contacts won’t fog up or break on the trail but will provide sharper vision, so you can enjoy consistently clear eyesight as you hike. But given the rough conditions you’ll face, it can be harder to maintain them so they don’t cause eye infections and injuries.
Fortunately, glasses wearers like yourself can take a few simple steps to keep that from happening. Here’s how to use contact lenses safely so you can more fully enjoy your next backpacking adventure.
Use Daily Contact Lenses
Daily contact lenses are single-use products, so they don’t give bacteria enough time to grow, potentially enter your eyes, and cause infections. In comparison, reusable contact lens wearers are nearly four times more likely to develop rare corneal infections that can cause sight loss.
Given the dirt and debris you’ll encounter while backpacking over the course of multiple days, dailies are thus the safest kind of contacts to use on your trip. You’ll have to dispose of them often, so consider buying your contact lenses online. Brands like Acuvue and Everclear offer daily contacts in packs of 30 and 90. They can also accommodate single and multifocal prescriptions, so you can be sure they’ll meet your vision needs.
Touch Contacts With Clean Hands
Washing your hands before applying and removing contact lenses is crucial to prevent bacterial transfer, especially if your hands are dirty from a day of backpacking. However, that can be easier said than done since you’ll have limited access to clean water in remote areas. There are a few things you can do to work around this challenge. For example, you can filter extra water at night so you can wash your hands with soap. If you don’t have water to spare, consider using wet wipes. The ones from Sea to Summit are thick, durable, and made of sustainable materials, making them a great match for backpacking. The best part? Their alcohol content also makes them a great fire starter.
Keep Contacts Away From Water
Although water is great for cleaning your hands, it doesn’t mix well with contact lenses. Natural water sources like lakes and rivers contain microorganisms that can enter your eyes if they touch your contacts, again heightening your risk of developing infections. That’s why studies advise against wearing contacts while swimming. Be sure to follow that recommendation if you’re planning to take a dip while you’re backpacking. Even water filters may not eliminate all the bacteria that can cause your eyes harm, so don’t wear your contact lenses if you’re bathing or washing your face.
Hydrate your eyes as often as possible
Since contact lenses sit on the surface of your eyes, they partially block oxygen from flowing in. That’s why contact lens wearers are more prone to eye dryness. You’re at a higher risk of experiencing this as a backpacker, especially if you’re exploring areas with drier climates or heading to higher altitudes where the air holds less moisture. Aside from causing discomfort, dry eyes can blur your vision and make it harder to see where you’re going.
To prevent that, consider packing moisturising eye drops and using them frequently. Look for those with hydrating ingredients, like The Eye Doctor’s Advanced Triple Action Eye Drops. These use hyaluronic acid and glycerol, which help with moisture retention, to specifically target dry eyes in people wearing contact lenses.
Travel Safely
By being mindful of hygiene, properly storing your lenses, and preparing for unexpected situations, you can safely enjoy the freedom and convenience of contact lenses on your backpacking adventures.
Always carry a backup pair of glasses in case conditions make wearing lenses difficult, and don’t hesitate to switch if your eyes feel irritated. With the right precautions, your eyes will stay healthy, allowing you to fully immerse yourself in the beauty of the outdoors without worrying about your vision.
For more advice have a look at my gear guides.
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