Camping Socks

When you’re hiking, backpacking and camping you’re on your feet a lot, likely all or most of the day. You also very likely spend a good amount of time walking from here to there. And if your feet aren’t happy while you’re out and about, the rest of you isn’t going to be having much fun either. Which is why a good pair of camping socks is so important. Ideally more than one pair, but there are a few pairs that you could wear for days on end without noticing much dirt or smell.

Camping Socks

What to look for when you're looking for camping socks.

• Material – First and foremost, you need to decide on a material for your socks. And while there are a few exotic choices available to you, like bamboo, the first and best choice is always going to be wool. It regulates body temperature well, wicks away moisture and is also a natural antimicrobial, so after a long day of hiking your socks will smell just as good as they did at the start.
• Fitted – A simple tube sock is always the cheaper choice, but a more expensive fitted sock definitely has a few positives on its side. For one, a fitted sock tends to feel better over a long day of being inside a shoes. Fitted socks also tend to crease and wrinkle a lot less, creases and wrinkles being on the common causes of blisters and hot spots.

Best Camping Socks

A few of the best camping socks to choose from.

• Teko Merino Midweight Hiking Sock - First, a great pair of midweight camping socks from Teko. They're made with high quality merino wool, as the name suggests, and have a number of great features, including extra padding on the bottom, extra ventilation on the top of the sock and a fitted shape throughout. A really fantastic camping sock if you're looking for something midweight. There's also a women's version.
• Smartwool PhD Outdoor Light Crew Sock - Another camping, this a light one from Smartwool, which are well known for making excellent wool products. These particular socks are fitted, and offer a bit of extra cushion on the bottom where it counts, and Smartwool's 4 way fit system, to keep your socks in place at all times. Another fantastic pair of wool camping socks. There's also a women's version.
• Injinji Tetratsok Mini Crew - You may or may not have seen these before, but they're the socks with individual toes. Far from a novelty, there is actually an excellent reason for those individualized toes, which is that it eliminates the blisters that many people experience from having their toes rub together, particularly when putting in big miles on the hiking trail. They also wick moisture very well, and are an all around great sock, putting the unique toe design aside. Worth looking at, especially if you get blisters on your toes. They're also unisex, so no women's version.