Wet feet and sock drying!

"Dave Moore" <[email hidden]> wrote

<snip>

In fact, if anybody's got any

Quoted message said:

ideas for drying out socks in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really

be

Quoted message said:

interested. Obviously there's a limit to the number of spare dry

socks I can

Quoted message said:

carry/afford!.

Any ideas?.

Keeping socks dry can be a real pain on long journeys. Yeti gaiters
seem to be the thing to have if you can afford them otherwise some
good ordinary gaiters will stop rain from getting in as long as you
wear your leggings on the outside (how many times do I see these
tucked in?). Of course, the Yeti gaiters are brilliant for stream
crossing if you have any of that to do. Assuming your socks are not
saturated because the water is coming in from a fault in the boots you
should be able to dry damp socks by keeping them in your sleeping bag
overnight - your body heat should do the job nicely.

Graham

Dave Moore said:

Hi All,
Just returned from a mid-wales backpack over the bank holiday which was
pretty good. Had a bit of trouble (as I typically do) with my feet getting
sore though. There seems to be a 'hot-spot' in the centre of each foot just
below the toes, which after a 2 or 3 days will enevitably develop into a
blister (with the associated pain). This doesn't seem to be boot dependant
as it occurs whilst wearing either my leather or fabric boots.

One thing I have noticed that I'm sure can't help is that my feet seem to be
constantly wet either through sweat or water entering through the top of the
boot. I find that I have to stop every couple of hours and take my boots
off to let my feet cool down and try to dry off my socks. This was made
worse this weekend when the weather was so wet (despite the weather forecast
specifically saying that there would be NO rain!), that I no chance to dry
socks out even overnight whilst wild camping. In fact, if anybody's got any
ideas for drying out socks in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really be
interested. Obviously there's a limit to the number of spare dry socks I can
carry/afford!.

Any ideas?.

Cheers,
Dave

I imagine most blisters develop when the part of the foot concerned moves
relative to the area of the boot it is in contact with. Most blisters I've
had have been on the heel - which seems to be the part most likely to move
relative to the inside of the boot. Maybe you're erring in favour of
slightly oversized boots? I think it's also got alot to do with wet feet as
well since the skin always seems to get wrinkled when wet for a long time
and maybe this exacerbates any rubbing? Tight(er) fitting socks as well as
ones that fill out the boot nicely might help as well as a thin liner sock
under your thick socks.

Dave Moore said:

There seems to be a 'hot-spot' in the centre
of each foot just below the toes, which after a 2 or 3 days will
enevitably develop into a blister (with the associated pain).

Join the club ... I got feet of the same type as yours, having enough
time to regret myself on our wet C2C three weeks ago 🙂

Quoted message said:

One thing I have noticed that I'm sure can't help is that my feet
seem to be constantly wet either through sweat or water entering
through the top of the boot.

As for the sweat problem, try another kind of socks material. Maybe you
ought to wear thicker socks, too. The socks have to to absorb the sweat
and lead it out of the boots (mostly up your legs to dry it off in the
air).

I haven't found the royal socks type for me so far.

As for the water entering through the top, try to wear rain trousers 🙂

Quoted message said:

I find that I have to stop every couple of hours and take my boots
off to let my feet cool down and try to dry off my socks.

That's a very good idea (I do it this way, too), but ...

Quoted message said:

This was made worse this weekend when the weather was so wet

.... that's the nag.

Quoted message said:

(despite the weather forecast specifically saying that there would
be NO rain!),

Obviously, the weather didn't listen to the radio. You never know if it
did.

Quoted message said:

that I no chance to dry socks out even overnight whilst wild
camping. In fact, if anybody's got any ideas for drying out socks
in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really be interested.

After walking through the rain for hours with leaking boots, I had to
wring my socks first thoroughly 🙂 As soon as my feet got dry and warm
in the tent, I put the socks on again, as the warmth of the feet helps
them to dry (allow air circulation, of course - I usually open the
lower end of my sleeping bag and let the feet stick out).

Quoted message said:

Obviously there's a limit to the number of spare dry socks I can
carry/afford!. Any ideas?.

Buy a new set of socks from every shop that's on your way and throw
away all the wet ones 🙂

vG

--
~~~~~~ Volker Gringmuth ~~~~~~~~~~~ http://einklich.net/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Ich lese übrigens immer weniger Big Eight und immer mehr de.ALL. Dürfte auch
daran liegen, dass der oft als "typisch deutscher" Ungeist beschimpfte Geist von
de. in der Tat dem Signalanteil gut tut." (Matthias Warkus in dang)

Dave Moore said:

In fact, if anybody's got any
ideas for drying out socks in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really be
interested.

oh, that one is so-oo easy ;-)

right... assuming you're not going commando, if you are then you're
stuffed ;-)

thread socks up inside of underpants, one sock 'down' each leg, so to
speak, and tuck top of socks into elastic waist of underpants: keeps
them there all night, driza bone in the morning :-)

If the thought makes you wince just prepare yourself by thinking of
wet socks, or not, in the morning ;-)

SteveO

NE Climbers & walkers chat forum;
http://www.thenmc.org.uk/phpBB2/index.php

NMC website: http://www.thenmc.org.uk

spongebob said:

Keeping socks dry can be a real pain on long journeys. Yeti gaiters
seem to be the thing to have if you can afford them otherwise some
good ordinary gaiters will stop rain from getting in as long as you
wear your leggings on the outside (how many times do I see these
tucked in?).

Gaiters should be outside when using crampons (cheaper to replace torn
gaiters than torn overtrousers) but when raining overtousers over
gaiters otherwise the water runs down your leg inside the gaiter and
into the boots.
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

Dave Moore said:

Hi All,
Just returned from a mid-wales backpack over the bank holiday which was
pretty good. Had a bit of trouble (as I typically do) with my feet getting
sore though. There seems to be a 'hot-spot' in the centre of each foot just
below the toes, which after a 2 or 3 days will enevitably develop into a
blister (with the associated pain). This doesn't seem to be boot dependant
as it occurs whilst wearing either my leather or fabric boots.

Ah, my feet are still recovering from my own BH excursion round the
lakes.

Normally when I'm going up mountains I'm fellrunning, wearing not much
more than vest and knickers. This time though I was making my first
stab at walking / wild camping, recce-ing part of the Bob Graham
Round.

Two wet 20-mile days standing in bogs and carrying a 25lb pack has led
to the expected blisters, but also some toes worryingly remaining
numb.

This may possibly be due to my wearing Tescos 3-for-a-£ nylon socks
and lightweight trail running shoes.

I can feel some shopping coming on....

Tom

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

socks out even overnight whilst wild camping. In fact, if anybody's got any
ideas for drying out socks in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really be
interested. Obviously there's a limit to the number of spare dry socks I can
carry/afford!.

stick them in your bag overnight and let your body heat dry them out

--
Darren

In article <[email hidden]>, SteveO says...

Quoted message said:

Dave Moore said:

In fact, if anybody's got any
ideas for drying out socks in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really be
interested.

oh, that one is so-oo easy ;-)

right... assuming you're not going commando, if you are then you're
stuffed ;-)

thread socks up inside of underpants, one sock 'down' each leg, so to
speak, and tuck top of socks into elastic waist of underpants: keeps
them there all night, driza bone in the morning :-)

thank god we only have 2 feet :-)

--
Darren

Darren G said:

stick them in your bag overnight and let your body heat dry them out

I put them between my sleeping bag and my mat (after I've dried them
as best I can by rolling them in a T-shirt). I don't like having wet
things inside my sleeping bag.

I always sleep in dry clothes (if it's cold) but will put yesterday's
damp clothes back on in the morning and put the dry clothes back in
their plastic bag. Shivering whilst trying to get to sleep in wet
clothes is horrible but you soon warm up when walking.

Judith

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Darren G said:

stick them in your bag overnight and let your body heat dry them out

I put them between my sleeping bag and my mat (after I've dried them
as best I can by rolling them in a T-shirt). I don't like having wet
things inside my sleeping bag.

I always sleep in dry clothes (if it's cold) but will put yesterday's
damp clothes back on in the morning and put the dry clothes back in
their plastic bag. Shivering whilst trying to get to sleep in wet
clothes is horrible but you soon warm up when walking.

advantage of a long bag and short legs is I can always find some room
down the end, which seems to get enough warmth for damp things. Really
wet things tend to get hung up somewhere and, as you say, dried while
wearing & walking the following bright warm sunny day. If only ...

--
Darren

Darren G said:

thank god we only have 2 feet :-)

nah, nah, nah; its linear, if you had threee legs (ergo three feet
ergo three socks) you'd still expect to havew have threee knicker-legs
to tuck your socks in to.... mind you, finding boxers with the leg
oles might be a tad problematical

SteveO

NE Climbers & walkers chat forum;
http://www.thenmc.org.uk/phpBB2/index.php

NMC website: http://www.thenmc.org.uk

On Fri, 3 Sep 2004 00:22:13 +0100, Darren G <[email hidden]> wrote:

<snip lots of talk about [censored]-footing around ;-) >

Quoted message said:

advantage of a long bag and short legs is I can always find some room
down the end, which seems to get enough warmth for damp things.

its an as-needs-must situation; you put your wet anythings anywhere
you like and *hope* they'll be dry enough to use in the morning,
without exacerbating problems the next day, to your heart's content.
*But* there's only one way to be sure ;-) ... its like salt and
cramp, you find out the hard way what works and then realise what the
<cough> other folk have been quietly suggesting all along ;-)

SteveO

NE Climbers & walkers chat forum;
http://www.thenmc.org.uk/phpBB2/index.php

NMC website: http://www.thenmc.org.uk

"Dave Moore" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

that I no chance to dry
socks out even overnight whilst wild camping. In fact, if anybody's got

any

Quoted message said:

ideas for drying out socks in a tent in the pouring rain, I'd really be
interested. Obviously there's a limit to the number of spare dry socks I

can

Quoted message said:

carry/afford!.

I've switched back from thick, heavy & expensive Smartwool socks to thin,
light & cheap trainer liner socks (with trainers but no reason not to wear
them with boots that I can see). Your feet don't overheat and get so damp
from sweat in the first place, socks dry quicker if they get wet, weigh less
and take up less space so you can carry more if you want. Haven't noticed
any loss in comfort but I never get blisters anyway. Feet do get sore if
they stay wet too long though. You could try sandals (no socks to worry
about, good for wading through bogs and laughing at others trying to find a
dry way around) as discussed here recently or trainers if it's dry to keep
your feet cooler.

SteveO said:

Darren G said:

thank god we only have 2 feet :-)

nah, nah, nah; its linear, if you had threee legs (ergo three feet
ergo three socks) you'd still expect to havew have threee knicker-legs
to tuck your socks in to.... mind you, finding boxers with the leg
oles might be a tad problematical

Dont you have a good Idiran gear shop locally?

The idea of sleeping with wet socks is horrible.. Still a big problem
this year.

I have a big problem with just battered soles in warm weather on firm
paths.. Bogs are great, no stinging feet. Alpine paths are torture

Richard Webb.

SteveO said:

Darren G said:

thank god we only have 2 feet :-)

nah, nah, nah; its linear, if you had threee legs (ergo three feet
ergo three socks) you'd still expect to havew have threee knicker-legs
to tuck your socks in to.... mind you, finding boxers with the leg
oles might be a tad problematical

Dont you have a good Idiran gear shop locally?

The idea of sleeping with wet socks is horrible.. Still a big problem
this year.

I have a big problem with just battered soles in warm weather on firm
paths.. Bogs are great, no stinging feet. Alpine paths are torture

Richard Webb.

In message <[email hidden]>, RJ Webb
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

SteveO said:

Darren G said:

thank god we only have 2 feet :-)

nah, nah, nah; its linear, if you had threee legs (ergo three feet
ergo three socks) you'd still expect to havew have threee knicker-legs
to tuck your socks in to.... mind you, finding boxers with the leg
oles might be a tad problematical

Dont you have a good Idiran gear shop locally?

The idea of sleeping with wet socks is horrible.. Still a big problem
this year.

Sandals are the answer. I've had no wet socks since May. I haven't worn
any.

Quoted message said:

I have a big problem with just battered soles in warm weather on firm
paths.. Bogs are great, no stinging feet. Alpine paths are torture

I find well cushioned footwear solves this. Also light, breathable
footwear so your feet don't get hot, sweaty and soft.

Chris Townsend said:

Sandals are the answer. I've had no wet socks since May. I haven't worn
any.

Quoted message said:

I find well cushioned footwear solves this. Also light, breathable
footwear so your feet don't get hot, sweaty and soft.

And you don't get much more breathable than a pair of sandals, of
course, plus they tend to be light.

Note that waterproof linings on boots tend to make matters worse if it's
dry, as they put your foot in an extra plastic bag that generates more
sweat than it lets out.

Another aspect is how stiff the sole is. On the one hand, a very stiff
sole tends to make life harder over easier ground by not letting your
foot flex naturally, but by spreading the pressure of very uneven
(especially hard and uneven) ground they can actually reduce fatigue there.
A thicker, relatively soft sole unit will tend to be more comfortable
over anything, but you pay a price for extra weight and less control of
your feet, with a greater chance to turn an ankle.

So you won't be surprised to hear you can't win!

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

"Darren G" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

advantage of a long bag and short legs is I can always find some

room

Quoted message said:

down the end, which seems to get enough warmth for damp things.

Really

Quoted message said:

wet things tend to get hung up somewhere and, as you say, dried

while

Quoted message said:

wearing & walking the following bright warm sunny day. If only ...

I did see a couple on the Pennine Way taking advantage of a sunny
spell after wet, by stringing a washing line between them which was
suspended from tent poles sticking out of their sacks........

Graham

On Fri, 03 Sep 2004 16:21:03 GMT, "spongebob" <[email hidden]> wrote:

|
| "Darren G" <[email hidden]> wrote
|
| >
| > advantage of a long bag and short legs is I can always find some
| room
| > down the end, which seems to get enough warmth for damp things.
| Really
| > wet things tend to get hung up somewhere and, as you say, dried
| while
| > wearing & walking the following bright warm sunny day. If only ...
| >
| I did see a couple on the Pennine Way taking advantage of a sunny
| spell after wet, by stringing a washing line between them which was
| suspended from tent poles sticking out of their sacks........

I have clean dry socks every day.
We go to the local launderette, to wash and dry everything after a week.

Ah! the joys of a caravan ;-)

--
Dave F