WJ Tested: Dahlgren Hiking and Light Hiking Socks Review
WJ Tested: Dahlgren Hiking and Light Hiking Socks Review
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WJ Tested: Dahlgren Hiking and Light Hiking Socks Review
New to Dahlgren socks? Find out more about their technology here:
Dahlgren’s Description:
We use superfine alpaca, one of the softest natural fibers in the world. And surprisingly, also one of the most durable (3 times stronger than worsted wool). Alpaca is also incredibly insulative (10 times more insulative than wool) and as a result, is a perfect thermal regulator, keeping you cool in the heat and warm in the cold. Alpaca is wonderfully absorbent and performs an exceptional job of drying off the foot.
We use alpaca in combination with merino wool in order to provide all-day resilience, so that your socks will continue to provide positive cushion from the moment you put them on until you take them off. They are reinforced in the high wear areas for additional durability. Zones of alpaca and merino work together to absorb moisture, provide cushion, regulate temperature, and help prevent blisters while separate zones of hydrophobic ECO-Dri™, Dahlgren’s 100% post consumer recycled poly, removes the absorbed moisture and moves it up and out of the sock, creating the only active moisture management process available in a sock.
WJ Tested: Dahlgren Hiking and Light Hiking Socks Review
WJ’s Review:
There’s nothing worse than socks that don’t fit well, bunch around the toes, slide down your ankles, get sweaty and stinky quickly, aren’t tough enough to last a few days of hard wear and just aren’t very comfortable. So, with those thoughts in mind, WJ spent the last six weeks field-testing a couple styles of Dahlgren socks – light hiking and hiking.
And, we love them!
As it is still early days in the field-testing, we’ve been wearing these socks constantly and depending on the weight of sock we require and which shoes we’ll be sporting, we have alternated between the hiking and light hiking socks. So far, we have found the light hiking sock to be the most versatile – the one sock that works in most shoes and boots and for most conditions.
When the weather is a bit cooler or we’ve got a larger pack and longer hiking distance to cover, we do enjoy the extra cushioning and warmth from the hiking socks. Either way, both socks offer superb comfort, stability, wicking and have kept our feet blister and odor free.
To date, we have only machine washed the socks, turning them inside out for the cycle. Jill prefers her socks to be air-dried while Viv loves throwing hers in the dryer. So far, there hasn’t been a difference in the socks soft feel and how they’re holding up based on drying preferences. Plus, we haven’t found the socks retain odor or lose their shape (no sagging or bagging), even when we have worn them without laundering them for 3 days at a time (part of the testing). We also found they air-dried very quickly and depending on humidity levels were typically dry within a couple of hours.
With approximately 250 hours of wear there is only slight pilling on the top of the foot. We’re thrilled with that result!
The toe seam on these socks is smooth and hasn’t caused any hot spots either. That is a big plus from our perspective as we often find other brands cause blisters from rough toe seams.
Sizing is true and both Viv (size 7) and Jill (size 9) have been very pleased with the fit of the women’s medium.
Bottom Line:
From the moment we slid them onto our feet, we knew Dahlgren was going to be our new favorite sock manufacturer! Not only did the socks feel custom-fitted to our feet, but the super-soft material enveloped our tootsies and just felt so much better than our “old favorites”. If our feet could only talk they’d be shouting Dahlgren’s praises from the mountaintops.
No blisters. No hot spots. No foot fatigue – feet actually feel supported. No stinky feet, even after wearing in waterproof (and not breathable) hiking boots and not washing them for a few days. The wicking of these socks is unbeatable and really did keep our feet dry as the moisture was moved from the foot, up to the ankle area and out the top of our hiking boots.
As for the life expectancy of these socks… check back and we’ll keep you updated as we continue to field-test them over the next few months. And, if you’re interested in buying American made products, Dahlgren is a family-run company that keeps production in the USA.
