My recent backpacking trip over the Christmas holiday highlighted the inadequacies of my sleep system, mostly around a nucleus of a bag not suitable for the temps (low 30's) that we encountered. However, it was a good test of my baselayers while sleeping and I walked away with one problem to solve:
Problem: My 3/4 length merino bottoms, coupled with all three of the pairs of socks I took (took extras to test), left a couple inches of exposed calf that definitely DID get cold and uncomfortable.
I set out to solve this problem first thing upon my return by ordering full length bottoms. However, to my chagrin nothing was on sale so $75-98 was the order of the day. Then it hit me, something I certainly never remember seeing in any thread…..
Why not use ski socks to sleep in? Ah-hah!
After some research I actually settled on SmartWool Snowboard Medium Weight socks because they were both the weight I was most interested in (most versatile for me at least), and because the snowboard variety has "all over padding" not just heavy shin padding. Upon my at-home test (which is still being run as I type this) the tights plus socks combo is absolutely perfect insofar as the tights haven't slipped out from under the top cuff of the socks, nor have the socks ridden down.
So hey, there ya go. Crafty! I figure the 3/4 length will be perfect as an "if it gets cold" layer for 3-season stuff either under pants or shorts, the combo will obviously be great for chilly sleeping nights, and the socks alone are, at the end of the day, still nice merino socks I could walk/snowboard in. And on top of everything, cheaper than a new pair of tights by a factor of 3.
