Socks

[madhatter]

I have always had the impression that wool was warmer, but in hot weather, cotton or cotton-rich was thought to be more comfortable than commonly available alternatives. Seeing more cotton-rich socks marked “cool fresh” or similar than I could shake a stick at seems to support this impression.

However, while in conversation with the person selling me a pair of walking boots in Cotswold Clothing, he definitely said that woollen socks were to be preferred for keeping dry feet as they “wick up the moisture”.

He seemed to know his stock, and found me a well fitting pair of Salomans which felt comfortable from the start and still feel comfortable after a 5-10 mile walk so he may well be right re the socks though it seems contradictory.

Are there any walkers recommendations regarding wool/cotton comfortable socks for use in hot weather?

[JMN2]

No recommendations from me but based on my experience the chap was right about wool in general. During the winter I wear thick 100% wool socks inside and my feet are dry and warm. If I wear any other material my feet get a bit moist if not wet, and then cold. Wool breathes. I believe same goes with thin summer wool suits. Linen suits get awfully wrinkly and are best worn in Graham Greene's novels based in Havana.

[Dod101]

Wool I think can be woven less 'tightly' than cotton and so breathes much better. I have no doubt that woollen socks are the answer to wear with walking boots. Italians tend to wear no socks with shoes in summer but then their Geox shoes have a specially designed breathable sole.

Dod

[madhatter]

Interesting thank you.

So even in the summer, wool would indeed seem preferable to the plethora (a veritable cornucopia, even) of cotton-rich varieties.

What about hard-wearingness? Not much use seeking out a thinnish, dark (with no silly pattern) hopefully not too expensive woollen sock if it springs a ruddy great hole halfway through a walk.

[BobbyD]

So even in the summer, wool would indeed seem preferable to the plethora (a veritable cornucopia, even) of cotton-rich varieties.

What about hard-wearingness? Not much use seeking out a thinnish, dark (with no silly pattern) hopefully not too expensive woollen sock if it springs a ruddy great hole halfway through a walk.

I wear cotton sports socks under 8" boots year round, without much problem, although that probably has more to do with the boot than the sock. Assuming you already own some lighter socks and you followed his advice and invested in a pair of more expensive wool socks you are well placed to run your own little experiment and find out what works best for you.

[madhatter]

Assuming you already own some lighter socks and you followed his advice and invested in a pair of more expensive wool socks you are well placed to run your own little experiment and find out what works best for you.

One on each foot perhaps?

That’s a thought!

What hadn’t occurred to me when buying the walking boots was that the way the tongue is gusseted allows me to cross a field of longish grass without getting seeds, burrs etc stuck in the socks as frequently occurs when wearing the normal shoes. The top of the gusset is above the bottom of the trouser leg.

[fuiseog]

I've used Brasher wool socks for hillwalking but they're no longer available since Berghouse took over Brasher. I bought 4 pairs maybe 10/12 years ago and they are ready for replacing. These were thick (I think labelled 4 seasons) and soft wool. Even wearing them in hot Mediterranean conditions, I found them more comfortable and breathable than anything else I've tried. The thick, soft cushioning effect matched slightly looser fitting Meindl boots, so feet could expand during long hot walks.

I tried different cotton socks and cotton lined socks, but none were satisfactory, and in particular very uncomfortable if wet.

I've not found thick, soft, pure wool replacements. All seem thinner, to have a varying % wool, with many using Marino, mixed with a variety of synthetics.

I'm just about to replace my boots and would like to get new socks. Any suggestions appreciated.

[BobbyD]

I've not found thick, soft, pure wool replacements. All seem thinner, to have a varying % wool, with many using Marino, mixed with a variety of synthetics.

Are you sure the originals were pure wool?

http://www.fishing-boots.co.uk/componen ... ason-socks

...and at the back of the label here for fibre contents https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-BRASHER- ... 2690408233

Berghaus Trekmaster (same as on one of the sets of Brashers also labelled 4 season above) appear to use similar blends, although surprisingly the %'s aren't stated.

[marronier]

Earlier this year I bought some " Boot Socks " from Marks and Spencer . They are woollen and wonderfully comfortable, like walking on a thick pile carpet , without my feet feeling at all sweaty as they do with cotton rich socks , even in this heatwave.

[Julian]

I wear wool all year round.

As it happens I just bought a few pairs of socks a couple of months ago and the ones I had ordered were out of stock so they offered me an alternative in a cotton range(*). I did 30 - 45 minutes of research on the internet googling for "cotton vs wool socks" and reading maybe 5 - 10 articles, blog posts and forum threads on the subject. The message that I came away with after that research was that it was pretty much unanimous that wool is better, will wick away moisture better and keep one's feet cooler, and that the only real disadvantage of wool socks is that in theory they are less happy being machine washed and tumble-dried and should be hand washed and air dried. I ignore that care advice on a regular basis although I do always wash my non-whites at 30C. On my finer more dressy wool socks I do see a bit of bobbling but it is so minor that it doesn't bother me and on chunkier walking socks any slight bobbling is even more of a "who cares?" non issue for me.

- Julian

(*) After my research I mailed back and asked them to ship alternative colours in the wool range that I had ordered rather than ship the originally requested colour in the cotton range.

Moderator Message:
RS: Edited to change typo at OP request

[bungeejumper]

Most summers, the wife and I walk about 100 miles in rural France, where my trusty Skechers desert boots are fine even in 35 degree heat. (I guess that's why they call them desert boots?)

I've tried most sorts of socks, including white tennis/sports socks, which simply brought me out in blisters, and two pairs of standard socks (too hot). Top favourite for comfort are my Jeep hiking/work boot socks, which are 80% cotton/20% polywhatnot, and which have indestructible heel and toe patches. (The soles are almost felted!) And which seem to shrug off the heat.

Best of all, you can buy a three-pair pack on Ebay for less than eight quid. That's not a lot of money to risk. If you don't like them, they'll still be good for digging the garden.

BJ

[BrummieDave]

I wouldn't claim to be an expert in anything, but hiking is the closest I get, and this includes apparel as well as routes, locations, holidays etc.

Unsurprisingly, your assistant at Cotswold Outdoor was correct. Whilst the store is on the expensive side, the staff are well trained and usually practitioners of the activities the advise on. Regardless of weather, cotton should be avoided as it soaks up sweat and moisture (like rain) and can easily causes blisters. Wool is infinitely better, and will be comfortable in hot and cold seasons. Other newer technical combinations including bamboo have more recently become available, but do little to improve on wool IMHO.

The two most prominent brands are probably Bridgedale and SmartWool and expect to pay between £10 and £20 for a good pair. Trust me, it's worth it. The actual choice can only be made of course by trial and error, with your boots/shoes, and in varying length of walks and in different weather conditions. So buy one pair that seem to fit, try them, buy more/ try others. Remember that on a walk in any weather your feet expand, more so in hot climates, and longer walks.

Socks come in varying thicknesses often positioned as being for different weathers. For me, it's all about the fit regardless of thickness, and I walk all year round in the same sock and always have four pairs in good condition, and two pairs on their way out. The latter are my 'reserves' if I'm away for more than a week, and this year will be worn at temperatures ranging from -5C to around 35C.

These are what I wear: https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/p/smart ... colour=122

They work equally well with my choices of footwear all year round, and in the countries I visit most frequently for hiking, and again have been chosen and refined over several years:

Summer walking https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/p/salom ... olour=3623

Summer hiking https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/p/salom ... olour=3524

Winter https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/p/hanwa ... colour=123

Hope this helps, and encourages others to take up this fantastic pursuit. Finally, as this is after all a finance board, buy good equipment as it's worth it, and once you're out and about, the countryside with its wonderful valleys and hills are, of course, free!

[BrummieDave]

Perhaps as a foot note to my post, no pun intended, for anyone unfortunate enough to get blisters, there are a number of products available to enable you to carry on walking whilst they heal. These range from the crude use of duct tape (just Google how to apply it for blisters) to a number of 'second skin' products such as 'Compeed' shown here, for consistency, on the Cotswold Outdoor website: https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/p/compe ... colour=180

For anyone who has had blisters but never used these products, they're pretty amazing tbh, and come in a variety of shapes, sizes and types.

[Itsallaguess]

Perhaps as a foot note to my post, no pun intended, for anyone unfortunate enough to get blisters, there are a number of products available to enable you to carry on walking whilst they heal.

These range from the crude use of duct tape (just Google how to apply it for blisters) to a number of 'second skin' products such as 'Compeed' shown here, for consistency, on the Cotswold Outdoor website:

https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/p/compe ... colour=180

For anyone who has had blisters but never used these products, they're pretty amazing tbh, and come in a variety of shapes, sizes and types.

These really are great - I've used the Wilko ones in the past, which I can't compare with the Cotswold ones (having not used that particular product..) but certainly the Wilko ones are superb, and great value at just £1.45 for a pack of five -

https://www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-blist ... /p/0307862

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

[Dod101]

Best of all, you can buy a three-pair pack on Ebay for less than eight quid. That's not a lot of money to risk. If you don't like them, they'll still be good for digging the garden.

I find a spade works better

Dod

[GrandOiseau]

For blisters take one plaster and cut a hole in the middle the size of the blister, put over the wound. Then put another over the top.

[madhatter]

Thanks to all on this thread. I had never used walking boots before seeing an earlier thread on on this board (and not having gone for longish walks for some years).

After a few walks in shoes, which were reasonably comfortable but didn’t do the shoes any favours what with sharp flints or pushing through brambles, I saw the thread about walking boots and read it carefully, then again, this time making brief notes about advantages and pitfalls, names to look out for or steer clear of.

I expected to look in several places but Cotswold Clothing had boots by some of the names on my ‘approved’ list like Meindl and Saloman and the salesperson measured my feet and reckoned the Saloman boots would fit well, which they did although I also tried a few others. I was surprised at size number, as with Clark’s shoes I fit the UK7 wide, or UK8 standard, and the measurements indicated walking shoes at UK10.5!
They fitted though. I’d not thought at the time about socks, and didn’t buy any at the time, but would have assumed cotton would have been best suited for summer use but for the remark from sales chappie about wool “wicking up moisture”. In the Bluewater M&S a few days ago looked at the socks en route to Waterstones and most were cotton rich and claimed to be cool and fresh, which brought to mind the comment about wool.

Again, didn’t buy anything apart from a book (and saw a cormorant outside the bookshop) but the apparent contradiction led to my OP on this thread.

Tempted now to try wool, just in the spirit of scientific wossname.

[vrdiver]

...would have assumed cotton would have been best suited for summer use but for the remark from sales chappie about wool “wicking up moisture”.
.
.
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Tempted now to try wool, just in the spirit of scientific wossname.

A different sport, but cold water SCUBA divers tend to avoid cotton in favour of wool or other "wicking" fibres for wearing under a drysuit*. I've dived in cotton t-shirts as a base layer and any sweat just stays on the shirt, making it a rapid cooling point as soon as you get in the water. With proper wicking, the moisture is carried away from the body, leaving the skin dry(er). For me, that means better insulation whilst under water, and for walkers etc. it also ensures less rubbing / blisters / damp smelly feet etc.

VRD


*Diving in a wetsuit makes the issue moot.

[BrummieDave]

If cotton was better, sheep would be covered in it...

[UncleEbenezer]

If cotton was better, sheep would be covered in it...

You prefer feather socks?