TOUGHER TIMES

INTREPID SORTS NEED A WATCH THAT CAN HANDLE WHATEVER THEY THROW AT IT, OR THEMSELVES AT. THAT'S WHY OUR TOP PICKS ARE BOTH HIGH-TECH AND HARD AS NAILS.

- CHRIS HALL

WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU THINKING? Taking a luxury watch on your next trip into the wild? Are you mad? Yes, we all know that Rolexes and Omegas and Tudors and Breitlings have been worn up Everest and into space and to the depths of the ocean floor. But that was when explorers wore tweed and Garmin didn't exist. And besides, who wants to spend thousands on a watch only to risk it getting scratched and scuffed? Well, the mechanical watch does still have a few cards in its hand when it comes to venturing into hostile environs. It won't fizzle in the desert or freeze on the steppes, and it won't run out of power, ever. Certainly, the role of the mechanical watch has changed since the days when it was a practical necessity for any explorer. But the irony is that today's watches are better equipped to face the elements, thanks to such modern advances as toughened steel, sapphire crystal and microscopic manufacturing tolerances.