Smartwool  Intraknit Ski Targeted Cushion Over The Calf Socks - Men's

I've always been a big fan of Smartwool ski socks and this year's line is no different. As always perfect skinning in my K2 Aspects while splitboarding and seamless comfort in my Atomic Hawx Prime XTDs. Even jammed into rock shoes for a late season alpine climb I didn't feel any seams digging into my tootsies and didn't get any hot spots on the approach in La Sportiva Aequelibriums or the climb itself in Evolv Yosemite Bums.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Tested these on several early/shoulder season tours out East in conditions ranging from 50 to -5 degrees F and would definitely consider adding them to my rotation. Smartwool does a great job of ensuring that the right pressure points and the use of spandex-like material create a perfect fit with no potential for blisters. This is huge for all the winter activities that inevitably involve poorly-fitting footwear. Additionally, the wool materials keep your feet warm even when wet and generally regulate temperature to keep your feet happy (all while mitigating odor, which your tent or car mates will appreciate). The cons: durability is a sore spot with Smartwool products, and these socks are not backed by the same guarantee as Darn Tough or Farm to Feet, which makes the price point less doable. But, for performance and fit-minded outdoor recreationalists, this sock cannot be topped. *I received this product for free in exchange for my honest review*

Truly love these socks!--and can't wait to take them to the slopes! They feel amazing. . . soft with padding in just the right places-- and just the right amount! Cheers, Smartwool! ~TV

A friend recommended these ski socks and they are worth the money. Not only with warmth but durability and wicking. Great for cold weather without the bulky Ness.

This is just the right thing for cold days, even if just sticking close to home. Not overly thick, but also durable and warm.

Ski over 150 days per season and these are the only socks I wear. They wear like iron and are super comfortable.

In the absence of mountains full of snow to really put these socks to the test, I had to make due with testing them in other ways. To really get a good idea of how they performed over time, I wore these socks exclusively for 4 days. During that time I hiked in them, mountain biked, wore them as a approach socks to go climbing, did several hours of yard work and wore them under my waders while fly fishing. I tested them in temps ranging from frigid sub-aqueous temps of just over 30F to 65F and sunny whilst wearing leather boots and doing yard work. In other words, I did my best to put these socks through the wringer in the few snowless days I had to test them. Here are my thoughts: They're not as warm as I would have liked. My feet got pretty dang cold while fishing and were even a bit chilled on an early November bike ride in 40° temps. They were honestly pretty comfortable at higher temps. My feet didn't feel too aggressively hot despite definitely sweating in leather workboots on a sunny 64° day of yard work. T that end they did a good job at wicking as well. After 4 hard days of use, the socks still felt and performed great, and given the magic of merino, didn't even smell that bad. Definitely appreciated that. I'm a tall-ish gent at 6'2', with a size 13 foot. I was testing a size XL which fit great in the foot and maintained a great fit all four days. I felt like the sock could have pulled higher up the calf though. I found that the sock slowly slipped down my calf over the course of the day which got a bit annoying. I think if it reached higher to begin it might preclude slippage. All said, these socks will be great socks for the quiver, but will serve more as a base-layer sock on chillier days.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I received this product for free in exchange for my honest review. Unfortunately, we've had a very dry early winter here in Colorado – there's been no snow to tour in so far, but I'll share my initial thoughts here after testing these socks in touring boots and directly comparing them to my current favorite ski socks. I examined the socks on my legs and in the boots, comparing them to other options one leg at a time. I mostly ski tour, so my review will be based on that use case, more than alpine skiing. I need my socks to be warm, but more importantly, I need them to be breathable, comfortable, and perform well with a lot of motion. Inside my touring boots, some ski socks have generated blisters because of seam placement, so that's one major thing I avoid. I also exclusively use merino socks, since there are a lot of good options at reasonable prices these days. Merino blends like the one found in these socks are ideal because they maintain the breathability and odor resistance of merino, while gaining a bit of durability from other fibers like nylon. Broadly, Smartwool's Intraknit line uses a manufacturing process that is supposed to decrease the number and prominence of seams, and also allows for more mapped material density across areas. In theory, this should be perfect for touring, decreasing hot spots compared to socks that have prominent seams or abrupt material thickness changes. I'm comparing these socks to the ones I use most often – a pair of Smartwool PhD ski socks I've had for about 5 years. The Intraknit Ski Over The Calf Sock that Smartwool sent me slots in the middle of my ski sock range. On hot days, I wear a think Icebreaker liner sock. On cold days, I wear a heavy Icebreaker ski sock with lots of padding (and in exchange, I often get skin discomfort). The Intraknit sock is the correct weight for most standard ski touring days for me. Comparing these socks to my PhD socks, they at first seem quite similar. I think that the PhD socks have a bit higher merino wool content, but in my experience, this roughly 50% blend is ideal for durability vs. performance. Most of the sock feels the same, but there is an actual difference in the seams, most clearly seen at the top seam: the PhD seam isn't exactly high-profile, but the Intraknit sock has literally no upper seam at all. I could see this making a big difference in rubbing during long ski tours. Overall, my impression of the sock is good: it seems like an ideal weight, seems likely to be durable, and has a slightly more smooth profile with fewer seams. I would expect it to perform really well as a touring ski sock.