Petzl Nao - A great head torch for winter walking and trail and mountain running
In January 2013, a friend and I spent a long, cold night sitting on the side of a Scottish Munro, the result of us failing to negotiate steep crags and descend onto easier ground. The head-torches we were using that evening weren't the primary reason for us not getting down - there was some poor decision-making elsewhere on our part - but I did realise that the model I was using at the time was nowhere near powerful enough for me to navigate effectively on technical ground and I soon upgraded.
Fast-forward to 2017 and a passion I’d found for mountain running (or in my case, what I term the mountain shuffle – fast(-ish) walking uphill, jogging the flats and downhill), especially in my locals hills after dark. I was looking for something brighter than the head torch I had to help me feel more comfortable when moving at night, at speed.
After some research, and a steer from a friend, Chris Stirling (who is sadly no longer with us but who was way more skilled and experienced than I’ll ever be in mountain running), I chose a Petzl Nao head-torch, which I was fortunate enough to purchase in a sale at 30% off the recommended retail price.
What I like about the Petzl Nao head-torch
Comfort - Probably the thing I like most about Petzl’s Nao head-torch (aside from its brightness and battery power) is I don't feel like I'm wearing it, which is a huge positive. Altogether, the older version I have is somewhat heavy (200gm) but it’s very comfortable and I find there's minimal to no bounce.
Power output - The maximum power setting for the Petzl Nao model I use is 575 lumens (the Nao+ increased this to 750 lumens, with the latest model, Petzl’s Nao RL, offering a whopping 1500 lumens). On full power, I find the head-torch to be awesome - I’m able to move almost at the same speed I run in day light - but it does eat up the battery, lasting only 90 minutes. Fortunately, even half-power on the Nao is super bright and I’ve found 198 lumens (in a reactive setting - see below) to be more than enough for me to run on technical trails with lots of confidence. The lowest power rating I can set, 7 lumens, I find easily sufficient for map reading, use around camp or walking on easy ground uphill but it’s noticeable that there's very little light being spread around when I look up.
Efficiency - With the Nao head-torch, Petzl introduced what they call Reactive Lighting Technology. This adjusts the brightness of the beam depending on the ambient light around you. For example, if you were reading a map, the torch will recognise an increase in the light being bounced back to the bulbs and reduce the power of the light accordingly. Alternatively, when you look out into the depths of darkness the power levels increase. The advantages I see in Reactive Lighting technology are you can specify in the software how long you wish the torch to burn (e.g. 7 hours) and it will set the power levels appropriately, plus, perhaps more importantly, it delivers great savings in battery power. The technology can sometimes be confused by other torch beams or nearby light (and brighten or dim then you don't want it to) but, in the main, I’ve hardly noticed it (and I value it highly for the battery savings).
Programmability - Later Nao models enable you to programme your head-torch from your phone but I’ve not yet felt the need for such technology. During my preparation for a trip, I’ll decide what brightness and variance of light I’d like from the Nao and I can programme it on my desktop computer using Petzl’s basic but effective 'OS by Petzl’ software. Currently, I have it programmed it to cover a range of situations I know I’ll experience whether I'm trail running, winter hiking or winter camping;
- Reactive: Low (map reading, in or around tent and walking uphill on easy terrain) - 17 lumens / Medium - 90 lumens (walking uphill on more technical terrain) / High - 198 lumens (running on technical trails) / Extra High - 575 lumens (running off-trail or downhill)
- Static: (anytime I want a burst of bright, focused light) - 493 lumensEase of use - Switching on the Petzl Nao version I have involves the rotation of a large, tactile switch which is located on the side of the housing. This powers up the torch and enables you to toggle between power levels (a quick turn of the knob) or switch between ‘Reactive' and ‘Constant’ lighting modes (by simply turning and holding the knob). Crucially, it’s super easy to use with big gloves on and, with the difference in the brightness levels being obvious to me using the power levels I’ve set, I can easily understand where I am in the programme cycle.
Battery life - With the power set variably as above, and using a mixture of settings, including full power, I’ve easily had enough light for a 3-hour trail run in my home hills (the Pentland Hills above Edinburgh in Scotland), only using one of the three green LEDs that show you how much power you have left. Extrapolate that, with some contingency, and it would appear to give me around 6-7 hours on one charge, which is usually way more than I’ll need for a 2-3 day outing, with two nights out.
What I’d like to see improved
The cost of a spare battery - The Nao is rechargeable but obviously not when you’re away from a power source. Petzl designed older versions of the head torch so it accepted x2 AAA batteries in an emergency but I decided it was too fiddly to insert them in a real-life situation (and I understand it won’t be as bright) so I simply bought a spare battery.
(Q. Why did I feel the need for a spare when, as I’ve explained above, I can get more than enough power for the usual length of time I anticipate I’ll be out? Simple fact - I like redundancy and I feel more comfortable knowing I have a spare battery in my pack should I, for any reason, need it. Petzl’s Nao torch has three bulbs, which in a way does offer redundancy, but there is a risk in trail running, however low, that I could fall heavily and break all the bulbs and be stuck on a hillside in the dark with no light to be able to navigate home. If I did wish to mitigate such a risk, which I do feel to be low, I could have spent the money instead on a spare head-torch, to provide me with total redundancy. Petzl’s Bindi and Actik Core models were some alternative options I looked at. (This would also get around the fact that neither of my batteries are compatible with the Nao+, should my Nao reach the end of its life and I need to purchase a newer model).
The fact the battery isn’t upwardly compatible - See above, but this isn’t an unusual situation in the camera world so I can live with it.
A more focused beam - I don't think I’m able to generate as tight a beam of light as I could with an older Petzl head torch I had (Petzl Myo XP), which I recall was helpful when I wished to focus on a particular piece of ground. (The Myo XP had a frosted plastic covering which was attached via a hinge so you could lift it away from the front of the head-torch, which helped to collimate the light). This is likely a fallacy though and the terrain is just as bright (I’m sure it will actually be brighter), it’s just lit slightly wider.
Alternatives to the Petzl Nao
Petzl Swift RL - Released by Petzl in 2019, with a powerful 900 lumens. (See also the IKO Core).
Silva Trail Runner - Not as bright but a model that uses AA batteries which is useful. Popular it appears at 100-mile ultra races, with previous models gracing the foreheads of such luminaries in the trail running world as Francois D’Haene.
Silva Cross-Trail - The potential for multi-sport use is interesting (e.g. you could use it for both running and cycling).