Socks for down to -30C/-22F (worse case)?

Looking for one or two socks to create a not too thick layer for not too roomy shoes.

Up to 6000 meters and in very extreme cases down to temperatures mentioned in the title.

I went for:

• Woolpower Liners: woolpower.se/en/produkt/lin…
• Alt 1: Thorlos Mountaineering Thick Cushion Socks: amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00…
• Alt 2: Darn Tough Men's Mountaineering Over The Calf Sock: amazon.co.uk/Darn-Tough-Mer…

What would you have opted for in combination with a shoe like this?

Love the darn tough OTC mountaineering socks. No expierence with others mentioned. In my expierence, very heavy socks can restrict circulation by taking up significantly more space in the boot (compared to thin) socks, and therefore cause your feet to be colder. If your going to use those boots, make sure you have enough room.

I busted out my REI expedition weight Merino wool socks doing the presidential traverse. It was -77F on Washington, and I kept my toes.

Those don't look like 6000m boots at all. Socks aren't meant to provide warmth, they are meant to provide protection against friction. Multiple days in -30C with those boots sounds like frostbite.

chrisccc wrote:Those don't look like 6000m boots at all. Socks aren't meant to provide warmth, they are meant to provide protection against friction. Multiple days in -30C with those boots sounds like frostbite.

To get other shoes, it's better to wait for my friend/relative to come visit. I don't want to send shoes that have not been tried on. In the meantime, I'm sending socks, and hoping the expeditions are limited to multiple hours.

Max Forbes: That's great to know that you had a good experience with them! Cheers for that!


RockinOut: REI doesn't seem to exist in the EU-market so that won't be an option unless I go for custom fees and so on.

My feet run very cold. These are by far the warmest I've tried, despite being low volume. They look goofy but are surprisingly comfortable. The other bonus is you don't soak the boot from the inside & at those temps unlikely to wet from outside, so boots stay dry & warm.

rbhdesigns.com/category/170…

The biggest problem that cause cold feet is poor circulation or a core core temp, not insufficient insulation. Anything that could reduce the blood circulation in your feet is trouble. Overly thick socks included.

(Though I'm probably lucky. I've never experienced cold feet even in -20C temps....)

Wear the warmest pants you can. Insulated gaiters, supergaiters or even overbootys. The idea is to keep the blood warm on its journey to the toes.

As others have mentioned, heavier socks only add warmth if you have the room for them. Too much sock will cut off circulation and make your feet colder.

And yeah, those don't look like 6000m boots. Tell your friend to be careful.

I have Scarpa Phantom 6000s and I wear ski liners with them. Maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I thought I read that thick socks aren't necessary when wearing a double boot?

Have you looked at a vapor barrier liner? People use all sorts of things, oven bags, plastic bags, etc... They are pretty thin and can trap a lot of heat.

Mark Ra wrote:Have you looked at a vapor barrier liner? People use all sorts of things, oven bags, plastic bags, etc... They are pretty thin and can trap a lot of heat.

They don't trap heat, they trap moisture from getting into the insulation of your boots. Very useful for multi-day sub zero trips where you won't be able to dry the inside of your boots/liners/socks.

Takes getting used too, also good to bring along multiple thin liner socks to wear inside the VBL.

Some people also suggest using antiperspirant on your feet.

Hi,

-30C/-22F is very cold. You will need more than socks in that environment.

Vapor barrier and a single super thick sock.

If I want a VBL sock I wear those made by Gator: gator-sports.com/shop/produ…

For the outer sock I wear a heavy Dachstein sock: sweaterchalet.com/quality-w…

I size my books for this combo plus a superset insole.

I tried out Lorpen's Inferno Expedition socks toward the end of last season. I tend to get very cold feet. They are different than other socks and they seemed to work great, though it never got REALLY cold during the days that I used them.

lorpennorthamerica.com/mens…

I've also heard great things about Sealskinz socks, but haven't had a chance to check those out yet.

Little tip, carry along a piece of cheep foam mattress to stand on when you stop moving, great help when your boots aren't warm enough.

Bring a couple pairs of stick-on chemical toe warmer pads as a backup (check the expiry date).

Allen Sanderson wrote:If I want a VBL sock I wear those made by Gator: gator-sports.com/shop/produ… For the outer sock I wear a heavy Dachstein sock: sweaterchalet.com/quality-w… I size my books for this combo plus a superset insole.

Stay well away from gator socks my anti virus flagged it for trying to give me a trojan.

Ryan Hamilton wrote:I tried out Lorpen's Inferno Expedition socks toward the end of last season. I tend to get very cold feet. They are different than other socks and they seemed to work great, though it never got REALLY cold during the days that I used them. lorpennorthamerica.com/mens… I've also heard great things about Sealskinz socks, but haven't had a chance to check those out yet.

Hi all!

I'm back with an update...

First of all thank you kindly for the time you dedicated towards answering my question. But due to the European unavailability of most of the products mentioned, I decided on the socks I mentioned in the original post, as well as Ryan Hamilton's recommendation: Lorpen's T3+ Inferno Expedition Polartec.

My friend used the Lorpen's on a day expedition to a 4000 meter mountain with the earlier pictured three season Asolo shoes.

Conditions: -18 and 70km/h winds. He kept his toes with a bit of pain.

I'm hoping to improve his shoes before something goes wrong. But the Lorpen's received thumbs up on day 1. Not sure what liners he used.

Update number 2: After a period of time it looks like the socks that stand the test of time the best are the "Darn Tough Merino Wool Mountaineering Extra Cushion Sock" with a layer of regular merino liners underneath.

Thanks for all the advice!