John Aebi-Magee
June 1, 2007

SmartWool is a great name for this ultralight clothing manufacturing company. The founders of SmartWool had a simple goal in mind: to make wool socks not itch. This was a selfish goal. They wanted to keep their feet warm.

After trying all kinds of socks, wool turned out to be the best at keeping their feet warm and comfortable, without blisters, under mixed weather conditions. When they finally discovered a process to to make wool not itch, no one could believe it was true.

If you don't believe it yourself, please try a pair of smartwool socks. Personally, I love SmartWool socks and undershirts. It really is true, they do not itch.

I have walked hundreds of miles in my SmartWool Medium Weight Mini-crew Runner socks (only 1.8 ounces per pair). I even walked 40 miles in the rain on a two day trip. My feet were soaking the whole time and I completed the trip without getting any blisters or cold feet. About every hour, I had to stop and wring out my socks.

I also wear a SmartWool Micro Weight T-shirt (5.5 ounces) on every hike (not to mention almost every day at home). Why the shirt? Because wool is a wonderful product to wear. It keeps me warm when it's cool and cool with it's warm.

Another great feature of wool is that it does not smell from body sweat like synthetics do. You can wear a SmartWool t-shirt and socks for a couple of days without washing and no one will notice. Try that with a synthetic shirt and you better plan on solo hiking.

Contact SmartWool or look for their products in major outdoor stores.