
That’s why we spent 25 hours researching 65 sock choices. Then we took to the paths of Vancouver, British Columbia, mountain climbing for greater than 75 hours, 160 miles, and 350,000 steps in 18 pairs of socks.
Ultimately we decided that the girls’s and males’s Darn Powerful Mild Hiker Micro Crew Light-weight Mountaineering Socks are one of the best mountain climbing socks for most individuals. Backed by a lifetime assure, these wool socks provide the best mixture of consolation, sturdiness, and cushioning.
Our choose
The Darn Powerful Mild Hiker Micro Crew Light-weight Mountaineering Sock is available in each girls’s and males’s fashions and is essentially the most versatile mountain climbing sock we examined. Its micro-crew top is taller than an ankle sock however a number of inches shorter than the common crew sock, rising simply above the highest of a typical pair of mountain climbing boots.
The Darn Powerful Mild Hiker is constructed with extremely breathable merino wool, nylon, and Lycra spandex, which suggests your toes received’t really feel sweaty throughout summer time hikes. The sock’s form-fitted toe and underfoot padding make it particularly comfy too. And whereas these socks are among the many most sturdy we examined, Darn Powerful’s unparalleled lifetime guarantee will prevent in a pinch: You may ship again any merchandise, at any time—even when it’s only a worn-out sock—and the corporate will substitute it at no cost.
Runner-up
The Farm to Ft Damascus Crew Mild Focused Cushion sock, which is available in girls’s and males’s variations, is a superb second-best possibility if our high choose is out of inventory. The Damascus can also be an excellent possibility in case you plan to hike off-trail usually and want further shin safety, as this sock comes up greater on the shin than a lot of the different fashions we examined.
The Damascus is extraordinarily light-weight, extremely breathable, and loaded with padding across the toe, alongside the heel, and throughout the highest of the foot. The tight knit (a mix, like our high choose, of nylon, merino wool, and Lycra spandex) retains microgrit from attending to your foot. Plus, these socks are additionally assured for all times ought to the material ever put on skinny.
Additionally nice
If you happen to’re on the lookout for a non-wool mountain climbing sock, we expect the Darn Powerful Coolmax Hiker Micro Crew Midweight Mountaineering Sock, which is available in girls’s and males’s choices, is your best option. This artificial sock has midlevel cushioning, which suggests it’s extra padded across the heel and toes than the opposite light-weight non-wool socks we tried.
It’s additionally breathable: Whereas sporting the Coolmax Micro Crew in scorching summer time climate, our toes stayed dry and sweat-free. The shorter micro-crew top makes the Coolmax Micro Crew appropriate for each boots and sneakers, too. And like all Darn Powerful socks, this mannequin comes with a lifetime guarantee.
Additionally nice
The Icebreaker Hike+ Mild Crew sock (which is available in each girls’s and males’s fashions) comprises gentle cushioning and has ventilated areas alongside the foot, making it sock for hikers with sweaty toes. These socks have been among the many softest we examined, they usually have been additionally the one pair that match anatomically. Meaning higher breathability, with extra space round your foot within the boot. Notice that these socks confirmed indicators of damage extra shortly than the opposite fashions we examined, and in contrast to the remainder of our picks, Icebreaker’s socks don’t include a lifetime assure—as an alternative, they’ve a one-year guarantee in opposition to manufacturing or materials flaws.