Winter Backpacking Boots

[Remix]

I just want to give testimony that vapor barrier liner socks or 1-2 gallon glad plastic zip bags over your feet can make a huge, favorable difference for thermal comfort.

 

[vegematic]

I use Kamik boots, something like this. They do well with snowshoes and spikes but would not be crampon-compatible. At night I remove the insulating inner boot and keep it in my sleeping bag to dry it out and start with warm feet in the morning.

 

[KRooney]

I use Kamik boots, something like this. They do well with snowshoes and spikes but would not be crampon-compatible. At night I remove the insulating inner boot and keep it in my sleeping bag to dry it out and start with warm feet in the morning.

I did a little poking around and found that Kamik has a presence in Littleton.

 

[maineguy]

I just want to give testimony that vapor barrier liner socks or 1-2 gallon glad plastic zip bags over your feet can make a huge, favorable difference for thermal comfort.

I've never understood this vapor barrier for boots thing. It seems to me that all that does is ensure your feet are swimming in sweat the whole day. I use a wick sock under my winter socks to ensure my feet stay dry. Summer and winter.

 

[Remix]

Yes, the amount of perspiration that accumulates can be a surprise. But my observations and the underlying theory are consistent.

I suggest people try it for themselves if they are curious. I wear a liner inside the bag.

 

[KRooney]

I've never under I(stood this vapor barrier for boots thing. It seems to me that all that does is ensure your feet are swimming in sweat the whole day. I use a wick sock under my winter socks to ensure my feett stay dry. Summer and winter.tel

I don't completely understand it either, but I do know it works. I make sure I don't put the VBL's on until I'm ready to go hiking.

 

[DayTrip]

From what I have read, the accumulation of moisture that can't escape reduces the amount of evaporative cooling and that is why you stay warm. I don't really notice a ridiculous amount of moisture but my feet run cold and I wear the VBL outside of a wool sock. The feel of a VBL against the skin I find quite creepy and annoying. My socks get damp but never totally wetted out. I don't generally do this unless we're talking sub-20 deg F temps though.

 

[KRooney]

From what I have read, the accumulation of moisture that can't escape reduces the amount of evaporative cooling and that is why you stay warm. I don't really notice a ridiculous amount of moisture but my feet run cold and I wear the VBL outside of a wool sock. The feel of a VBL against the skin I find quite creepy and annoying. My socks get damp but never totally wetted out. I don't generally do this unless we're talking sub-20 deg F temps though.

I've never worn a VBL next to my skin. Just the opposite, I put it on last.

 

[ImYourHuckleberry]

I'm going with the VBL over a thin merino wool sock. I think there are a few ideas in play.

One is that once humidity reaches 100 percent, you stop sweating. I'm not sure why that works, but it seems true. In my tests so far, the liner socks get clammy, but not soaked.

The second idea is to prevent that moisture from creating evaporative cooling. If the moisture is trapped it cannot evaporate.

The final idea is to prevent the insulation in the boots from wetting out. This is particularly important on overnight trips, where the insulation would either freeze overnight, or get transferred into your sleep system \, if you have removable liners and take the liners into your sleeping bag to dry overnight.

 

[DayTrip]

The final idea is to prevent the insulation in the boots from wetting out.

Yah that is what I have generally read. The VBL should prevent moisture from getting into your sock, the boot's insulation, etc. So you do skin (or thin liner) > VBL > Socks. I personally don't like the sensation of the wrinkles and "crumpling" I feel through a thin sock so I go with the normal thickness sock. I always bring sleep socks for overnights so I am not as concerned about the socks I use during the day. I don't really camp below 20 deg F though. Just getting into "real" Winter camping. May have to change my tactics.

 

[NH2112]

My only experience with VB was wearing Mickey Mouse boots in the army. I hated them. They were warm but unless you were just standing around your feet would sweat like crazy. You had to change socks regularly and dry out the insides of the boots because they were known to cause conditions like immersion foot. I bought a pair of Danner Ft Lewis insulated GTX boots as a young SP4 in 1988 and never put a pair on again.

 

[dug]

I've never understood this vapor barrier for boots thing. It seems to me that all that does is ensure your feet are swimming in sweat the whole day. I use a wick sock under my winter socks to ensure my feet stay dry. Summer and winter.

By keeping the moisture to your feet, your boots stay dry on the inside which makes them more comfortable, less likely to freeze up in the morning. Wicking moisture just puts is somewhere else, which may be a good thing, but not around your feet since that moisture won't go anywhere.

Your feet will feel warmer because you are trapping moist 100-degree weather around your feet. You must remove them when you reach your destination so they will dry and be ready for the next day.

My feet get so warm I wear only a really thin sock under them, or no socks at all, in my boots.