At the risk of this turning this thread into another "The Best Off-Road Tire, Ever," I hate to be the one to break this to you all but there is another contender that threatens to rock your notions on how good your socks are. Considering that I've tried nearly every fiber and brand that has been mentioned in the previous posts, I'm pretty confident of my claim. Anticipating the inevitable wisecrack - who would know better than I since my first socks "were made from Stegosaurus hides harvested by Haggis in his quest for clanhold protein."
Altera Alpaca Socks -
http://alteraalpaca.com/
Alpaca fibers have a unique hollow core, which aids in their ability to regulate temperature in both cold and hot environments, they are water resistant which helps maintain their warmth value when wet and are lighter and stronger than merino wool. In fact, Alpaca fibers are up to 30% warmer—or cooler—than wool, and have a greater moisture wicking ability and more natural loft. Harvested from a network of small domestic Alpaca herds in the Northern Rocky Mountains near Bozeman, MT and processed and woven near Springfield, KY these are American made. And it doesn’t stop there.
Alpaca fibers are naturally smoother than wool so they're less "itchy." They don't have lanolin in their fiber and are therefore hypoallergenic and naturally antimicrobial. Naturally fire resistant they are popular among US Forces and are available with an NSN. They also have other components such as silver to prevent bacterial growth and lycra for stretch.
They even advertise these as the "5-day trail sock." Seriously. Well, they haven't met my sweaty, stinky feet, so naturally I had to try these out. I took them on a trip in April to Oregon and tried them out; have been wearing them to work in the shop every day; been on a couple of trips like the steamy Mid Atlantic Overland Festival and I can report to you that they didn't smell and they held their loft. They were damn near as comfortable on the fifth day as the first day I put them on and the wife or fellow campers didn't complain of rotting fish. Especially after this last summer at the shop where the heat and humidity this year has been outrageous, the one part of my anatomy that's dry and comfortable all day long are my feet. I prefer the Conqueror and Prevail models in the crew length. You be the judge.
One of our forum members some of you have met, Mark Smith of Smith Product Group, who mostly provides gear to high speed, low drag USG customers, sells these items. Give him a holler and tell him you're an American Adventurist member and he'll probably cut you a good deal. You won't find these in a 10-pack at WalMart. If you can find them elsewhere, they aren't cheap, but they'll last longer than regular socks and they have a lifetime guarantee for workmanship. What you would expect from American craftsmen.
and tells me of the evil of REI, read the rest. It is coming time for me to start replacing socks and get something new into the rotation that is not from REI. What brands are you guys using for your adventures? I like the merino wool, they hold up great, breath, and don't get too funky in a boot, but I am willing to try out some of the synthetics on a good recommendation.
I'm cheap, Dickies work socks.
