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Nobadays
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# Posted: 26 Dec 2020 11:56am
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Hey all with winter on us and cold for us northern cabin'eers, thought I would share some hacks for warmer and healthier feet. Some you may know others you may not.... certainly up for anything anyone can add!
1. If your feet sweat, you will eventually have cold feet even with well insulated boots. Try spraying your feet with antiperspirant... this helps cut down the sweating and your feet stay warmer longer.
2. Dry winter feet... big toes and heels for me. I've tried lotions and Working Hands but the solution is Bert's Bees. It's a waxy, oily salve and it works.
3. Chilblains (see pic below) if you have no explanation needed. If you don't, it is painful red sores that develop on your toes... sometimes fingers. My understanding is it usually develops from repeatedly frost nipping your toes and or hands. Very painful. I have suffered for years every winter, red develops, then pain, eventually the skin dies and the bottom of my toes peel off. Then repeat. Last year I began using Tiger Balm when I fired noticed my toes getting sensitive and it helped. This year I have been putting it on my toes every day..... no Chilblains at all! Pretty stocked.
Hope these ideas help!
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FishHog
Member
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# Posted: 26 Dec 2020 12:57pm
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I suffer from sweaty feet and hands even on the coldest of days. Drives me nuts as I always have cold hands and feet. I've tried everything without much luck.
Did use Vapor Barrier socks for the first time this year hunting. Basically glorified bread bags on your feet. Feet still sweat, but seem to hit the point of damp and stop. Wear a thin sock, then vapor barrier sock, then warm socks.
While not 100% solution, it does stop my outer socks and boots from getting damp. Otherwise I'm always changing socks and drying boots.
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gcrank1
Member
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# Posted: 26 Dec 2020 02:55pm
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Warm is dry, in clothing.
Cheap, thin, synthetic dress socks as first layer, the syn. wont hold the moisture at skin (it was silk in the old days). Some say womens 'nylon' footies work...I cant say.
Then the bulky/wooly/etc insulating layer. I do better if I change those at mid-day and get out of the 2nd pair asap at day's end. None of my boots are big enough for the liner sock and a dbl layer of thick socks.
If you have wool boot liners or even just the soles, they have to come out to dry every night.
I lucked into one of those elec dbl tube boot driers at the town dump, looked unused and works like a champ for damp/wet boots or gloves.
And be extra careful if diabetic and/or have neuropathy in your feet (yes, you can have neuropathy without being diabetic!). The nerve damage can make you not aware of how bad your feet are getting of a day. The wounds (ulcers) can be terrible and slow to impossible to heal.
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Nobadays
Member
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# Posted: 26 Dec 2020 03:27pm
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Good advice!
I usually only wear a medium weight wool sock... over the years I figured out that heavier, for me, meant more sweat, colder feet. A liner sock would be a great idea. The only time I've worn liner socks is when we are doing a wet backpack where I know I'm going to be in the water a lot. I use the "toed" sock, kind of like hl ou vest for your feet, keeps the silt and sand from causing blisters. Might have to try them in the winter.
I have heard of, and used bread bag "socks" but didn't have much luck.
This year I bought a pair of the military extreme cold boots... not the rubber bunny boots but the newer canvas ones. Love them! The canvas breathes so the wool liners rarely get very damp. Yes take those and the felt foot beds out at night to dry.
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paulz
Member
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# Posted: 27 Dec 2020 11:39am
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Yuk. My hat's off to you guys. It's in the '40s here this morning, I've just packed up for the cabin. The bed of my truck is wet, everything in it and outside is wet. Had to fix something on the truck, tools are wet, and cold. Took a pre-cabin trip morning shower, I'm wet..
Probably be summer day for you guys, but I hate it. Of course in 6 months it will be 90 degrees and I'll bitch about that too.
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Alaskajohn
Member
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# Posted: 27 Dec 2020 01:21pm
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I have raynauds which plays havoc on my feet. I typically wear boots that are rated about 20 degrees colder than the outside temps and a few other tricks. I did two things different last winter that made a difference and I am repeating them again this winter. I bought one of those heated and pressurized foot massagers, using it twice a day. The second thing was I would rub my toes with coconut oil. The black and purple coloration went away last winter in about 2 weeks and this winter they have not shown up on my toes.
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Nobadays
Member
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# Posted: 27 Dec 2020 04:09pm
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AJ.... sweet! I don't know how painful Raynauds is but if it's anything like Chilblains.... also from blood vessels constricting, it's good to find something that keeps it at bay.
I used the Tiger balm as it has a warming effect hoping that would help and it has.
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moneypitfeeder
Member
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# Posted: 30 Dec 2020 11:19pm
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AJ, I have the same condition & I've found that Columbia's omni-heat reflective gloves and boots have worked well for me. I also have glove liners that are heated by rechargeable batteries. I actually found a medication when I was in China that worked wonders, but I haven't been able to find it stateside (I went in wanting aspirin and came out with something herbal that was supposed to be for migraines, but actually made the blood flow well to my fingers when exposed to cold).
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Nobadays
Member
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# Posted: 30 Dec 2020 11:42pm
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Moneypit.... where in China? We spent two years in Zhengzhou then 4.5 years in Urumqi...the frozen north west! I remember being on a bus in Urumqi, hadn't been above 0F for two weeks... night times -25/-30, daytime -5- -10, the bus just died, so the bus driver jumps out and starts a fire under the propane tank.... everybody got off the bus! Stood on the sidewalk but low and behold a few minutes later the bus started and we all got back on and away we went! Dang it was cold up there! Hot in the summer, short fall and bam! Winter hit!
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