How to choose your hiking socks ?

Are you going to explore the mountains alone or with your family? Your bag is ready: backpack, walking sticks, softshell in the bag if the Wind Rises, sleeping bag, tent ... but have you thought about your hiking socks? All too often, we tend to neglect our dear extremities, which are essential when it comes to staying throughout a hiking day or a long trek.

It's decided! Stoplight bulbs, overheating feet or frozen toes and I will explain how to choose your hiking socks!

How do I choose my hiking socks?

Choosing your hiking socks is as important as choosing your hiking shoes because your feet are the first to suffer on a long trip. However, it is not a small matter, because each hiker has his own foot morphology: length, width, volume, but also the alignment of the toes (Egyptian, Greek or Roman) or The Shape of the arch (arched or flat)... in short, there is no such foot!

Here is a brief overview of the different general morphologies of the foot :

As you can see, there are many different foot shapes. Each hiker will, therefore, choose a hiking sock adapted both to his sporting practice but also to his own morphology! In addition, physiologically, each one reacts differently: some (and often some) will tend to have cold extremities very quickly, while others will have the opposite problem, that is to say, a strong sweat of the foot during the effort. Some people will also be very prone to the formation of plagues at the back of the foot, to the formation of Cala under the arch or to the swelling his feet... and if all these phenomena are here in our daily life, they obviously increase the pain during a long walk or a long hike.

It should not be forgotten, moreover, that each footprint is different because each foot is different! Which one is closest to yours?

The friction intensifies, the outside temperature can vary considerably during your hike and you need to manage different degrees of intensity (during exertion versus post-exertion). It is therefore essential to know each other well and to know both their morphology and your type of footprint in order to adapt the hiking socks as well as possible. I offer you some tips for choosing your hiking socks... either for this winter or this summer!

How often do I hike?

The first question to ask before buying your hiking socks, as before any purchase of sports equipment, is: what use do I need them for? You will have to take care of two things: first, the duration of your outing, and then the intensity of the effort. In this way, practices are often classified into five categories:

Activity	Intensity	Detailed explanation
Walk	Low	I go for a walk (with family, on a half-day) with a slight slope, optimal conditions of approach, this is a small trip of 1 to 2 hours at most.
Nordic Walking	Average	I go alone or with team for Nordic walking, that is to say a fast walk (day or half-day), the difference in altitude is moderate and the seek the best approach conditions.
Hike	Average	I go for a hike with friends, in the middle of the mountain, as for example on a plateau (moderate altitude).
Heavy hike	High	I am going on a hike for several days, with a relatively heavy backpack and with one or more peaks to reach (high altitude).
Alpinism	Very high	I do, in high altitude, summer and winter, ascents on one or several days, in quite extreme conditions (temperature below 0°, foot in contact with ice).

The second point to consider the outside temperature! Indeed, it is essential to have both hiking socks adapted for the off-season and summer as well as specific hiking socks to manage winter conditions! And of course, the more chilly you are, the more you can orient yourself towards winter ranges even in the offseason.

Different categories of socks

Once your use has been well defined, you will then have to opt for a pair of hiking socks that will meet your own technical requirements... but also your own comfort requirements.

This may sound obvious, but we think it is useful to remind you: hiking socks protect your feet in your shoes. These must be adapted to the shape of your shoe, in addition to the technical characteristics of comfort, breathability or warmth. So there are low, medium and high hiking socks. As you can imagine, it is absolutely not necessary to combine low hiking socks with rising hiking shoes, at the risk of considerably irritating your skin due to friction. We will come back later in this article on some flagship models to choose according to your sports needs.

How do you judge the technicality of a pair of hiking socks?

The Comfort in General

When choosing your pair of hiking socks, it is important to check that the seams are flat, especially in the toe area, in order to minimize unnecessary pressure points that generate plagues way too often after a few hours of walking. The stem (rising part of the sock) must also be extensible enough not to compress your calves. The best way to optimize your comfort, however, is to choose a pair of hiking socks that offer an anatomical shape of the left and right foot. The fit becomes much more precise, regardless of the shape of your feet and calves.

Reinforcements and anti-bulb protection

The more intense your use, the more you will have to be careful about the quality of the reinforcements (the thickness of the knitting and the type of mesh) of your hiking sock, especially on sensitive areas such as the Achilles ' heel or the underside of your toes. 

• For the heel, the reinforcement goes up more or less high depending on the models. If you have high stalk hiking shoes, feel free to pick up some very high reinforcements! 
• For the toes, the reinforced area helps to limit the amount of heating. A good fleece (buckle) also helps to reduce shocks and bad points of contact with your shoe.

Maintain

A good grip means that your hiking sock does not slip under your toes or go down on your calf. The presence of an elastic kick ensures good support, but be careful if you have a strong foot, it can get in the way and compress the top of the foot. The presence of elastine also allows you to give your hiking socks greater scalability while guaranteeing a good lifespan. Finally choose a height of hiking socks (low, mid-high, high) according to your hiking needs and temperatures, but be especially careful with the size that depends on your foot and calf!

Materials: how do I decide the warmth and breathability of my sock?

One last and not least thing to look at before buying your hiking socks are the compromises between warmth and breathability! That is why it is essential to look at the composition of different materials. Today, many innovations have emerged, such as the use of hydrophobic fibers to better manage moisture, or new generations of wool to optimize heat supply. 

So be careful: the thickest hiking socks are not always for the hottest days.

The materials that bring warmth to the hiking socks

It is an obvious fact, the heat supply is obtained mainly thanks to wool. But don't worry, the traditional wool (the one that scratches and prevents your feet from breathing) is less and less present on the market and it is indeed the merino wool that has been on the front of the scene for some years. For those who don't know it yet, this wool is obtained from Merinos, an altitude sheep breed found mainly in Australia. Three times thinner than traditional wool, it does not sting, it is more elastic and therefore has silky characteristics that will suit even the most sensitive skins. Icebreaker is one of the pioneers in the use of this wool, especially for its first very technical textile layers for skiing, hiking, trail riding, and mountaineering.

The more you are looking for a pair of warm hiking socks, the more you will have to be careful about the percentage of these famous wool. There are also new processes to optimize heat: the Lorpen brand uses, for example, a two-layer system in Polartec Power Stretch, a wire specially designed to maximize heat while allowing very good freedom of movement thanks to its fine mesh and elasticity.

Materials that bring breathability to hiking socks

It is well known that it is very unpleasant to feel moisture under your feet after a few hours of walking ... the innovation market has been able to take into account this problem, and you will thus find many fiber technologies that guarantee an excellent moisture transfer!

Components such as Coolmax, a polyester fibre, in a fluted structure that very effectively removes sweat from the feet outside, or Tencel, a cellulose fibre from Lenzing (from certified Eucalyptus plantations that respect the environment) in nanostructure that offers very good regulation and exceptional drying of moisture, are also found in Lorpen, a great specialist in sock making. The presence of synthetic fibers (such as nylon) for your hiking socks is also very sought after as it accepts a higher degree of humidity than wool, hence the importance of combining these two materials in order to obtain a good compromise between heat and breathability.

Different style of a hike, different socks!

I have just explained to you how to judge the technicality of a sock, now let's take a look at the different models of hiking socks that exist on the market, according to types of the hike. As you can imagine, these are a multitude of choices! It is therefore often difficult to compare models and brands, but especially to understand the gibberish of technologies. 

I have selected several models of hiking socks, in different brands, very pleasant to wear and equipped with the latest technologies, but this list is by no means exhaustive.  In order to help you get to know each other, we have compiled all the essential information on the stocks mentioned in the table below.

Socks suitable for walks

Remember, if you like small walks, you don't need to break your carp-reading in ultra-technical hiking socks. Low hiking socks, adapted to the practice of running, will do perfectly well if it is a short walk of one or two hours on flat terrain! The low socks suitable for running will support your arch and stabilize your support while absorbing the vibrations transmitted in the tibia. 

Socks for Nordic walking

Now, let's move on to the next level. Nordic walking is a very good compromise between small walk and hiking. Nordic walking is generally made in teams (but it is not excluded to do it solo !) and is distinguished from hiking or walking by its dynamism. In fact, it is not a question of hiking at a slow/medium pace, but of heating the thighs and strengthening the heart!

The principle of Nordic walking is very simple: you have to accentuate the natural balance of the arms to propel the body forward, using two sticks. Nordic walking is an endurance sport, with medium to high intensity (the average speed can be more than 6km / hour), which allows 90% of the muscles to work! How to equip? Nordic walking requires a good pair of walking shoes with a low shaft because the ankle must be released during the effort. Therefore, it is also necessary to choose a pair of low hiking socks! The choice of the sock is very important because unlike walking or hiking, the foot is going to be much more solicited. Friction, perspiration, irritations, thicknesses: multiple parameters must be taken into account.

Socks suitable for hiking

Your practice is limited to the day or half-day, on various terrains, with a low to moderate altitude difference? You don't need to equip yourself with overly technical hiking socks and to break your reading-car, you just need to equip yourself with intermediate socks, more or less high, to protect your extremities well.

Socks adapted to the practice of hiking

Great hiking or long treks are an integral part of your vacation? So we imagine that your hiking shoes are rising, that's why, it is also necessary to equip yourself with high socks to avoid any discomfort with the skin, until then, we teach you nothing.

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