socks for warm feet
Equipment
what is the best sock combination for 0 degree treestand hunting? How good are the thermacell electric socks?
Alpaca x 3
Warmer than wool. Uber-soft.
I tried a pair of those had warmer bags that you open up and they start warming up. They make them for toes! A smaller bag that has sticky back and is rounds on one end. You stick them on the bottom of you sock under your toes. I had Loren wool socks and 400grain insulated boots. It was 6 degrees last Monday morning in Eastern Kansas with 4 inches of snow and my toes were toasty!!
How are the Alpaca socks if your feet sweat. I get dressed when I get to my stand but sometimes even with fresh wool socks my feet feel damp and then they get cold.
Owl,
"Warmer than wool. Uber-soft."
Warmer than merino wool?
Polypropylene socks, with wool. I use these with LaCrosse 18" burly's. LaCrosse rep turned me to these. Dry feet are warm feet.
Good thread topic as I suffer from cold feet when hunting even with the warmest boots known to man.
The link explains some of this but practical experience by hunters who have tried different socks and suffer cold feet as well and switched to Alpaca socks would be the best indicator of whether they really are the "warmest"
If they are I will buy some ASAP.
I would think the warmest socks would made from Qiviut. I would bet they are very expensive though and have never met someone who used Qiviut but it is supposed to be the warmest insulator there is . 8X warmer than wool.
Has anyone tried it?
"In the Yocum-McCall Testing Laboratories, alpaca was shown to be three times warmer than sheep’s wool. Why? One reason is that alpaca is more heavily medullated: in other words, there are tiny hollow areas in the centers of many individual alpaca fibers. These areas hold the warmth and, in addition, make alpaca lighter in weight than other animal fibers. Another study showed that if worn in a 0 degree F environment, alpaca would give a 50 degree F comfort range. Sheep’s wool would provide a 30 degree F comfort range in the same environment."
which alpaca sock is warmest and best place to buy?
My neighbor is an alpaca rancher. Her alpaca fiber goes into the making of these socks. They're pricey, but worth it. You can buy them here.
http://www.openherd.com/store/vendorItemPage.aspx?&id=7221&title=adventure-sock-by-kentucky-royalty
This might be a better link
http://www.riverhillranch.us/store/vendorItemPage.aspx?id=7221&title=adventure-sock-by-kentucky-royalty
Alpaca is awesome! Very warm!
I also spray my feet down with antiperspirant prior to putting my socks on. The less you sweat, the warmer your feet stay.
X2 on the antiperspirant spray. If your sock combination is too tight in your boot's that will work against you as well.
Again I listened to the voice of experience on the Bowsite and ordered two pair of the alpaca socks on the link. I just now tried them on for the first time.
My first impression was wow these socks are thick and heavy and soft, will they even fit in my boots or do they take up too much space? They fit in my boots (7mm aeroheads) but it was a tight fit. I hope not too tight.
I'll try them tomorrow for a day in the woods bow hunting. The temps right now are relatively warm - right at freezing so they won't get the cold weather test until later. I'm kinda looking forward to the cold test.
I abandoned the idea of Steger's MukLuks because I didn't think I would get enough use out of them. If it's wet out the MukLuks are not the boot I need and most of bow season is wet. Even late season is freeze and thaw, at best two weeks of frigid temps.
I like 2 pairs of the Merino wool socks from Bass pro with a toe warmer between the two socks. I wore just plain shoes in the stand in 7 degree weather with 25mph winds and my feet stayed warm.
Nockup,
I just gave my wife 3 pair of Expedition Ultimate Alpaca socks in her stocking for Christmas as her feet are always cold....even on a short half hour walk.
We went for a two hour walk today and she said her feet were toasty warm and never complained once! I have tried all kinds of other socks for her including Merino Wool but they just do not work in her case.
I am a size 10 and the extra large just fit. The large would definitely be too small.
They seem they would be too warm for my feet. If your feet sweat I would wear a thin pair of liner socks next to your skin.
Hammer,
I would definitely think the Qiviut (Muskox Wool)would be extremely warm. Almost bought a scarf made from it returning from my Muskox hunt several years ago but could not get past the price tag of almost $400. It did feel amazing to the touch.
I just bought a pair of Gerbing 7V heated socks. I'll let you know how they perform. I've tried everything else to try and keep my feet warm in that kind of temp and nothing works for me. Even -20 Schnees pack boots and foot warmers only worked for a couple of hours and then my feet eventually got cold in single digit temps. These socks cost me $150 but if they work it will be money well spent!
Kuiu has a new sock that runs $30 a pair they are probably pretty good
Handknit wool socks seclnd the alpaca also.
Handknit wool socks seclnd the alpaca also.
Smartwool heavyweight with a poly pro liner. I wear these with 1200gr lacrosse burly's and if it's really cold -25 C or colder I wear an Arctic Shield overboot.
