HikeArizona.COM

Ok, here's a topic we know everyone loves--stuff for feet.
We want to know your favorite hot weather foot-gear, especially your favorite 'summer sock.' How do you keep your feet the coolest temperatures possible during your hot weather excursions? (Ok, we will allow Teva comments on this list, too, but we're primarily interested in traditional footwear, the kind of shoes and boots that use laces and not velcro straps!)
We need some of your sage advice right away as we're going to soon spend a bundle at Popular and will be field testing your recommendations ASAP.
J&S in RR

From early spring to late fall I live in Birkenstock, Arizona model. That is when I'm not wearing hiking boots/shoes or golf shoes.

OK, we are hoping to receive some advice regarding how to keep our feet cooler while hiking in hot weather. We realize there are a variety of shoes and sandals that can keep our feet cool during normal ambulatory activities. We want to know which hiking boots/shoes and which hiking socks you think produce the coolest foot temperature for HIKING, not ordinary walking around in daily life.

As a side note, we were looking at a backpacking website and we found a forum thread where these hard corps backpackers are in a real nit pickin' discussion about socks, black men's nylon socks to be exact. Get a load of this--one guy posts that he bought his black nylon socks in the late 60's and the finally developed a couple of small holes in the toe seam so he tried to take them back to JC Penney's 25 years later. Our 'sock search' is getting far more interesting and weird than we ever dreamed it would! Hoping to hear your opinions, we remain, :twisted:

J&S in RR

Here is the best sock bar none.

( dead link removed )

As for boots, well, good support and fit is my most important factor. I don't know of any that are cooler when it gets hot. I take them off when I can to let them dry out as well as my feet. Chaco Walkabouts are my favorite when I walk in sandals. On long hikes in the wild country I choose boots. Low cut Lowa Tempest for daypack weight and the higher cut Lowa Tanark for backpacking loads. The low cut boots are cooler but don't give me enough support for major undertakings.

Dear Roasting in Rimrock (or was that Wasting Away in Wet Beaver Creek):

My opinion is much like the old saying about the desert Bedouins who wear all the long robes and headgear in the hot Sahara sand: it keeps the sun off them and it breathes.

Back in my gunfighter days, (that's another story...) my winter wear was Levi 517s, a dark denim pearl snap shirt, Acme Ruffouts with roper heels and a black stetson. My summer wear was to switch to the silverbelly stetson and the light blue chambray pearl snap shirt. That's it.

Foot attire is about the same. I wear the same sox for hiking year round. Thin Wigwam 'Gobi' polypro liners next to the skin, followed by Wigwam Merino wool 'Rugged Hiker' sox. The liners wick the moisture away from the skin to the outer sock for evaporation. I rarely end up with wet feet at the end of a hike (unless I fall in) no matter what the temperature. I'm going to Havasupai next Monday and thats what I'm wearing inside a pair of Boreal Asan Approach/Mountaineering Boots. I like a stout boot with lots of ankle support, but I'm a fairly hefty guy.

Teva's may be cool at the beach but I can't imagine walking thru the Cholla on top of Black Mesa or coming down the Shake Tree trail around Mazatzal Peak wearing them.

I think the wicking liners and wool (the above wool sox are 18% nylon and 2% spandex) are a good breathing combination. I can't imagine what black nylon sox from JC Penney are good for, unless you need to start a fire in the rain. -Randy

I second the Lowa Tempest! I bought my first pair from REI in December 2000. I replaced them this month with the new model. Same great boot. I've tried a number of footwear options since moving out here...trail runners don't give me enough support, a full boot was too hot and too much, so I focused on low cut hikers...Nike made a good one, but the treads wore out in about 3 months. Tried the shoes from The North Face b/c I like their products, well their shoes wore out in less than 3 months...bad product...I even wrote the company about it... I tried the Merrill Blade with the 'sticky sole'...total crap. One trip up and down Squaw Peak and lugs were missing, those went right back to REI where I picked up a mid-cut Montrail that is all black...I wore it around the house, but didn't like them and ended up with the Tempest. This is a great hiker!

As for socks. Two pair, one wicking, one thick, no cotton. Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall.

Socks: light weight to heavy weight wool by Fox River, acrylic blend 72% for hot weather and or short hikes, also by Fox River. Boots: redwing insulated 400 gram, Herman Survivors (the ones made in eastern europe) insulated 200 grams.