Best Trail Running Headlamps in Australia

When it comes to trail running, headlamps are an important piece of running gear that a runner needs. While trail running at dusk or to set up your camp at night, a running headlamp provides hands-free lighting convenience. You should always look out for features that are there in the best trail running headlamps. You should always look out for Led headlamps or headlamps with good battery life. One thing that you should keep in mind is that always buy headlamps that are exclusively made for either running or hiking. Often people buy cycling headlamps that are very heavy to wear on the head. Hiking or running headlamps are lightweight to keep the running experience as smooth as possible.

You can take a look at our collection of the best trail running headlamps. We have a quality collection of headlamps for hiking and running in Australia and all over the world as well.

You should always be careful while buying a running headlamp. There are certain factors that determine how good a running headlamp is. So the question here arises, what makes a good headlamp for running?

Brightness

Brightness is measured in lumens, which is a standard measure of the light output in all directions. Higher lumens mean a higher level of energy consumption. Therefore a running headlamp with high lumens would consume more energy and require a heavier battery. The best trail running headlamp should have 300+ lumens of brightness.

A headlamp with this output has the optimal balance between light output, weight, and battery life. If you are someone who goes on occasional trail runs, then you must go for a 300 to 800-lumen capacity with adjustable output. At Tribe&Trail we have managed to bring together a collection of versatile running headlamps for hiking and running in Australia. Headlamps with different lumen capacities are available for you to choose from.

How many lumens is Good for running?

Determining the ideal lumen count for a headlamp can be subjective and dependent on the specific use and purpose. The lumen range for trail running headlamps can vary widely, from 25 to 1400+ lumens. As a general guideline, around 300 lumens is often sufficient for everyday needs.

It's important to keep in mind that as the lumen count increases, the run-time or battery life of the headlamp tends to decrease. To make an informed decision, it can be helpful to consider both the lumen count and the beam distance of the headlamp, as these factors work together to determine the overall lighting performance.

Furthermore, the appropriate lumen count may vary depending on the specific activity. For activities like trail running, hiking, biking, or even basic tasks like reading or close-up repairing, the desired lumen count may differ.

Battery life and battery type

A good running headlamp should have a battery life of at least 20 hours. Cheap headlamps run out of battery at a very fast rate. If you don’t run very often, then choose a running headlamp accordingly. Charging your headlamp every day may become a nuisance. Always look out for headlamps that go with your running routine. If you run occasionally or shorter distances, then the running headlamps with single-use batteries are the best. You can take a look at our collection of the best trail running and hiking headlamps in Australia.

Rechargeable Ni-MH (nickel-metal hydride) are the most common type of batteries used in a running headlamp. These batteries come in standard sizes (typically AA and AAA for headlamps) and are rechargeable up to 300-1000 times. Ni-MH batteries are relatively cheaper and are known for their reliability, longevity, and output. Ni-MH batteries are environment and budget-friendly and have less output voltage for a given size compared to good single-use cells. You can choose the best trail running headlamp for hiking and running from the Tribe&Trail website.

Running Headlamp Beam Type

The best headlamp for hiking and running usually has a high focused beam. Running headlamps have mainly three types of beam, i.e. spot, flood or adjustable beam. Spot is a highly focused beam type whereas a flood beam lights up a whole area. Flood beam is considered better for trail running, because it does not focus especially on one area, but gives you an overall wider view of the surroundings.

For commute running a highly focused beam is considered to be the best. Another advantage of a highly focussed beam is that the light can be used to ‘tag’ a hazard. An adjustable beam allows you to adjust the beam type between a flood beam or a highly focused beam according to your need. Here at Tribe&Trail, we have made available a collection of the best adjustable headlamps for hiking and running in Australia.

Additional features in the best trail running headlamps

Tiltable light

Many running headlamps don’t have a tiltable beam light, thus making it less productive for many trail runners. Having a tiltable light is a deal-breaker and a feature usually present in the best trail running headlamps. It allows you to adjust the light according to your comfort and the distance from the ground where you would like the light of the running headlamp to hit the ground in front of you.

Adjustable brightness

Best headlamps for hiking and running in Australia come with an adjustable brightness feature. Many trail running headlamp manufacturers focus a lot on this feature. This feature is so important in running headlamps because when runners run in a brightly lit area, they keep the headlamp on low setting and when they run in dark areas, they keep the brightness on high setting. When your headlamp is low on battery, you can dim the brightness to save some battery, for the headlamp to last a little longer.

Water or Dust Resistance

Always buy an IPX7 rated running headlamp. IPX7 is a higher standard of water resistance than IPX6. IPX7 is a higher standard which allows for submersion at 1 meter for up to 30 minutes. That does not mean that you can constantly swim with your headlamp. The IPX7 is better designed to save the batteries or rather the weak spots in the running headlamp from water. You can check out the collection of water-resistant headlamps for running and hiking in Australia at Tribe&Trail.