Goretex socks for shoulder season worth it?

"I gave up on a few trails and headed back down the mountain when my feet became quite wet from hiking in snow in my trail runners. Now that I know these exist I should be able to push on. Thanks!" The socks should be perfect for you then. I would go up a couple of sizes, that will give you room for thicker socks, I haven't seen any issue with mine being large and roomy with thinner socks.

Great. Thanks Justin. It wasn't cold enough to merit waterproof boots but I didn't want my feet in snow for that long wet and cold.

I'm just curious. Haven't we come back around to gore tex lined boots being viable in a situation like what Heath describes? I use 2.5 ounce per pair event gaiters and gore tex boots (gasp) in very wet conditions. I blister if my feet get wet, even in trail runners. Is it possible that trail runners have their limits?

It was a warm spring day. Only about 3 miles of trail had snow. I wasn't trekking 15+ miles in an Alpine environment. I have mountaineering boots for climbing in the winter. This was not a scenario where I needed them.

Goretex socks – Put them on when you need them , take them off when you want breathability. Goretex boots – You are stuck with non-breathable shoes for the entire trip. Goretex boots – Can't ford streams without changing into stream crossing shoes or going barefoot. Goretex socks- Take your goretex and wool socks off and cross the stream with your shoes on, then put them back on after crossing. Goretex boots – The lining in the shoe can absorb moisture. Goretex socks – There is no lining to absorb moisture, just change into dry socks if they get damp from sweat. Goretex boots – They can start leaking leaving you with wet shoes that won't dry out. Goretex socks – If they start leaking, at least you don't have a lining to absorb moisture. And you can have a chance to dry out your shoes when you get out of the snow/rain. You also don't need to be using them all the time, reducing wear. When I was in Montana in May, at one point it was pretty warm out and breathability was important to keep my feet cool. Later I needed them to keep my feet from going numb walking in snow.

Points taken! I especially like the notion of being able to wear your boots to ford a stream, and then put on gore-tex socks to keep your feet dry from wet boots. In the spring in the high Sierra, you're in and out of snow and crossing rivulets all the time. Wearing event gaiters and gore tex boots–they only make Keens in gore tex and I need the toe box for my feet, that's why I wear them–I don't have any problems with wet feet. But I see how the socks are more versatile. Still…live with wet feet has been the ruling attitude here. Interesting to see this development.

If you can't find the Rocky Mountain socks, look around for the Gore Bikewear "Universal Gore-Tex Socks". I own a new pair after finally deciding that my years-old Cabella's brand Goretex socks were too leaky to be usable any longer. The Gore Bikewear socks seem very similar in design, and are made of the same material.

I often wear GoreTex socks if temps will be cool and my feet will often be wet due to frequent stream crossings and trail swampage, which is most of the time in every season except summer. I also use CertainDri antiperspirant on my feet before and during the trip. This cuts foot moisture significantly. Also, the socks protect my feet from sand and gritty dirt, which sometimes causes unexpected hot spots. Ryan J: Thanks! That's a great and exciting idea to use GoreTex socks as vapor barrier socks. They'll be much more comfortable and durable than the oven bags I'm using now.

I really like eVent; has anyone heard of eVent socks? EDIT- I just searched the site and sort of answered my own question but comment if anyone knows of anything new not custom made.

I read somewhere that Polartec Neoshell would be an excellent material for things like socks due to the stretchiness.

"I really like eVent; has anyone heard of eVent socks?" Event has relatively poor abrasian resistance so probably not the best for a sock. The fabric is also very subsceptible to a significant loss in breathability via body oils. With a sock, I would think this would be inevitable.

Doesn't neoshell have a much lower hydrostatic head rating? Maybe a problem when you are standing on top of the fabric with moisture underneath it, that's a lot of pressure/

I am not a big fan of using Goretex socks on the move as they tend to bunch up a bit, but like Ryan mentioned they are great for around camp for putting on over clean socks. I open up the laces of trail my runnersboots for more comfort.

I use light, seam sealed neoprene closed cell diver's sox for warmth inside my Merrill Moab GTX mid boots. But – and this is why I post this here – they work quite well in my non-GTX Moab low cut shoes as well. Over thin polypro liner sox these unusual socks keep sweat from my GTX boots and the boots stay dry inside, giving me a bit more insulation. This setup is good to about 10 F. WHEN I'm moving. If I wear GTX gaiters that drops to 0 F. I was amazed at this effect. when I first tried it. CAVEAT: Ya gotta turn the diver's sox inside out to dry in your tent. Some moisture will stay (freeze) in them so it is necessary to put them inside the foot of your sleeping bag overnight. Plus they are then nice and warm to put on in the morning. Also you need to change to dry polypro liners daily. Carry 3 pair and rinse them daily if possible. Polypro that thin dries very quickly. For years I had been using these socks as a VBL to keep sweat out of my felt pacs, not realizing how insulating they are by themselves. Last year was an eye opener in this respect.

• For the record:  I just used my goretex socks snowshoeing and I’m sold!

For years I used merrel Moab mids as my winter footwear.

Even with gators my socks always ended up wet and frozen.

Last trip I used trail runners>Rockys goretex socks>thick wool sock>wool liner sock and my feet stayed warm and dry.

In camp I did use some forty below overboots because it was perhaps 0-10 degrees.

Btw I also used the above setup with Microspikes and put about 7-8 miles on them my last day with great results as well.

Did you use gaiters? I’ve found that getting snow in my shoes gets my feet really cold, even though nothing is getting wet. Just the snow packed in there is cold. The gaiters don’t need to be waterproof.

Last winter I tried using some leather new balance shoes and they soaked up a bunch of water, the shoes were really cold. Like I would take off the shoes and my feet got instantly warmer. I’m going to try mesh shoes this winter.

Yep I used OR stretch gaitors.  They did help a lot.

I found that in cold wet conditions instead of trying to keep my feet dry (which I never seem to be able to do) I try to prevent cold water pumping through my trail runners. Neoprene socks or even just bread bags reduces the amount of cold water pumping through my toes. Then I dry and treat my feet at stops.

Goretex is more expensive than neoprene but should work the same and last a lot longer.

Neoprene should be more durable than WP socks. No delamination to worry about.