Socks first, everything else second
We've spent a good chunk of this course on water and storms and training hills. Today we're talking gear, and I'm going to disappoint anybody hoping for a big list.
Here's the thing about gear: most of it doesn't matter much. I'd rather you spend your money on wool socks than on a two-hundred-dollar jacket. That's not me being cheap on your behalf. That's me having hiked in the wrong socks and having hiked in the right ones, and there's no comparison.
Why socks first
Your feet do all the work. If they fail, the hike is over, no matter how good your jacket is or how expensive your pack was. Blisters aren't a minor annoyance out on a trail. They change how you walk, which changes your balance, which is how people twist ankles miles from the trailhead.
So: socks first, everything else second.
What to actually buy
- Wool or a wool blend, not cotton. Cotton holds moisture against your skin and moisture is what causes blisters. Wool wicks it away and it still insulates a little when damp, which matters more than you'd think even in summer, especially early morning starts when it's cold at the trailhead and warm by the ridge.
- A sock that fits snug, not loose. Bunched-up fabric is friction, and friction is a blister factory.
- Two pairs, broken in before your hike. Not on the hike. Before it. Wear them around the house, wear them on your training walks up the neighborhood hills. If they're going to rub you wrong, you want to find that out on your own street, not four miles up a canyon.
That's it for socks. It's a short list on purpose.
The rest of the gear, briefly
Since we're on the topic, a quick pass through what else is worth your money, roughly in order:
- Enough water. We've covered this at length already, so I won't relitigate it, but it's still rule one.
- A paper map. Also covered. Still not optional.
- Real hiking shoes or boots, broken in. Doesn't have to be fancy. Does have to fit and does have to be worn before hike day.
- A layer for wind or cold at the ridge, even in summer. Doesn't need to be expensive.
- A basic first aid kit — some gauze, tape, ibuprofen, moleskin for the blister you'll eventually get anyway.
Notice what's not on that list. No trekking poles required, no GPS watch, no special hydration vest. Nice to have, maybe, someday. Not what keeps you safe.
A story about ignoring gear entirely for a minute
I want to tell you about a hike where gear wasn't the problem at all, because it's a good reminder that all this planning works together.
I was up on a ridge with my group at 1:15 in the afternoon and I watched the clouds start stacking up over the peak the way they do. I've talked about this in an earlier lesson — that build happens almost on a schedule in the summer. I told everybody we were done, time to head down. Two of them grumbled. It was sunny where we stood. It felt like sunday best hiking weather, honestly, no wind, nothing dramatic overhead yet.
Twenty minutes later it was hailing on the switchbacks below us. Marble-sized. Nobody grumbled after that.
I bring that up here because good gear doesn't save you from bad timing, and good timing doesn't save your feet from bad socks. It's all the same system. You do the boring, unglamorous stuff, the socks and the water and the clock, and the mountain mostly leaves you alone.
One more thing on socks
If you've got a teenager who thinks wool socks are dorky, I'd let it go the first time and let the blisters do the talking. Mine did. Two dimes-sized blisters on a Timpanooke trail was worth more than any lecture from me. She wears the wool socks now. Didn't say a word about it and didn't have to.
Before next time
Go check your sock drawer. If it's all cotton crew socks from a ten-pack, that's your one errand this week — pick up a pair of wool hiking socks and wear them around the house before our next lesson.