“The outdoors” is not one hobby. It is five groups of people who happen to use the same landscape, and who are politely uninterested in each other’s version of it.
That is the whole difficulty with buying an outdoors gift, and it is why a hiker handed a hunting shirt looks briefly confused before saying thank you. This page splits 67 designs from $21.99 by which group they are actually for.
Work out which one they are first
Most people who spend time outdoors do one or two of these things seriously and the rest occasionally. The serious one is the identity, and it is the one worth naming on a shirt. If you have heard them talk about gear, whatever the gear was for is the answer.
Camping — 12 designs
Campers are the group most likely to actually wear the shirt at the thing itself, because a campsite has no dress code and a fire ruins clothes anyway. That makes the practical rules matter more here than the joke does.
Log On Campfire
Embrace your love for the outdoors with this unique 'Log On' campfire design. Perfect for campers, hikers, and nature enthusiasts who enjoy a good pun.
See detailsBigfoot Camp Cryptid · CAMP Life · Campfire In A Jar · Campfire Nights · Campfire Social Club Cozy Ducks · Camping and Cornhole · Campsite Landscape · Chug-a-Brewski Summer Camp · Let's Go Camping · Rustic Campfire Mountains · S'more Foolery Camping Opossum
Buy something they will not mind losing to a spark.
Hiking and mountains — 13 designs
Hikers are the group that most often gets bought the wrong thing, because from the outside hiking looks like camping. It is not: a hiker is moving, and their relationship with weight and fabric is completely different from someone sitting by a fire.
Hiking Bye
Skip the social plans and head for the trails with this funny, retro-distressed hiking quote design.
See detailsClimb Mount Everest · Dam Straight Hiking · Hiking Cheaper Than Therapy · Leave The Road Take The Trails · Mountain Bike Sunset Ride · Mountain River Sunset · Mountain River Sunset · Mountains and 3 People · Sloth Hiking Team · Take A Hike · Take Me to the Trees · Tree Stump Hiking
Cotton is the wrong fabric for walking in. This is a shirt for the pub afterwards, and worth saying so when you hand it over.
Boating, canoeing and the lake — 12 designs
Water people split again between the ones with an engine and the ones with a paddle, and they are quietly rude about each other. Worth knowing which one you are buying for.
It's a Canoe Thing You Wouldn't Understand
Canoeing, not kayaking — paddlers care about the distinction more than anyone else does.
See detailsBoat & Sky Beige · But did we Sink · Canoe Heartbeat · Hitch'd n' Haulin' · I'D RATHER BE KAYAKING · It's a Canoe Thing — Second Print · It's a Canoe Thing — Third Print · It's a Kayaking Thing You Wouldn't Understand · Let's Cruise · Liberty Lake Weekend Club '76 · Things I Do Boating
Sun exposure on water is relentless, so darker prints hold up better than pale ones over a season.
Hunting — 4 designs
The smallest group here and the one to be most careful with, because hunting shirts read very differently to people outside the hobby. Fine for someone who hunts; a misfire for someone who merely likes the woods.
He's Hunting
Declare the passion for the outdoors with this "HE'S HUNTING." camouflage graphic tee. Perfect for hunters and their families who love the wilderness.
See detailsBorn To Hunt Forced To Work · Camo Deer Head · Hunt Fish Run
If you are not certain they hunt, buy from one of the sections above instead.
Parks, places and travel — 8 designs
The quietest group: landscape and place designs, bought by people who like being outside without belonging to any particular sport. This is the safe choice when you know someone loves the outdoors but not what they actually do out there.
Death Valley National Park
Embrace the spirit of adventure with our vintage Death Valley National Park t-shirt. Perfect for hikers, campers, and nature lovers who appreciate the iconic American West.
See detailsAirplane Moxie · Apparently I Like Traveling · Happiness Is Being Outdoors · Howdy Desert Scene · National Parks Word Art · Pine Tree Sunset View · Sunset Fish
These also work as souvenirs of a specific trip, which the activity designs do not.
Fishing has its own page
Anglers are the largest and most particular group of the lot, so they are covered separately in the fishing shirt guide rather than squeezed in here.
What actually matters on an outdoor shirt
- It will get ruined, and that is fine. These are worn to the campsite and the trailhead, not kept for best. Buy accordingly and do not spend up.
- Darker colours last a season longer. Sun, smoke and mud all work against pale prints.
- Cotton is for afterwards. Nobody hikes in a graphic tee if they are serious about it; this is the shirt for the drive home and the pub.
- Printed to order — allow two to three weeks, so buy before the season rather than during it.
The full range sits in the outdoors collection. For someone whose interest is one specific activity rather than the outdoors generally, the subject-specific line covers kayaking, hiking and canoeing individually.
