Conditions were occasionally sandy, and I had shoes with netting on top for breathability.
They’re wool. I held them over the fire every night, just close enough to get them hot enough to kill bacteria. But you can’t replace soap and water.
How do through hikers do it?!
Wash them?
If you are backpacking, you should have at LEAST 2 pairs of socks and you wash them at the end of the day. Use campsuds or the equivalent. I also had a ritual of washing my feet every morning with the cold stream water right before putting on the socks. It helped prevent blisters. This was back in the day when you had to have a pure wool sock and a polypro liner as a separate sock. now the smartwool is much easier to deal with.
I guess my worry was that they wouldn’t be dry by the morning.
I wash my feet before going to bed, and I have a second pair of socks that I only wear at night (when it’s cold, otherwise none).
Like I say, if I had to go more than two nights, I’d have to figure something else out. Maybe two pairs of hiking socks, so one has 36 hours to dry instead of just 8 or 10.
That’s actually not a bad idea… I could do that now for little effort 🤔
Sleep socks are so nice when it’s cold!
For low humidity, I only bring 2 pairs of hiking socks for up to a week out: one to wear and one to dry. Even without making campfires, they’ll dry on a sunny rock, in the mesh pocket of a backpack, on a clothesline outside, hanging in the tent overnight…
If it’s super humid, good luck.
The type of sock also matters. Thin polyester/nylon running socks will dry faster than heavy cushioned stuff.
socks dont weigh much, then again I dont subscribe to the ultralight stuff. I am paranoid so I bring 4. One to wear, one I just cleaned and is drying, one for a backup (if I am hiking in wet conditions and want to change mid day or if I get a hole in one pair or…), and one as a backup to the backup. Three is probably enough, but I always have that second backup.
I do subscribe to the ultralight stuff and I still bring 4 pairs. It’s well worth the extra ounce or so.
That’s why I bring 4 pairs of socks, although I will change out my socks at lunch because my feet sweat like crazy.
But you can dry them near the fire like you’re already doing.