Merino Wool T-Shirts / Socks - Brand Suggestions Please?

[Michael Mattalo]

Buenas tardes amigos and fellow perigrinos. My wife and I are set to walk Norte from Santander to SdC onwards to Muxia and Finisterre leaving Toronto on Sep 26. We are both big fans of merino wool as a base layer and for t-shirts / socks. After a few Caminos, our existing t-shirts and socks need to be retired .

We originally purchased Icebreaker brand t-shirts (in 2017) and were quite satisfied with the performance, laundering, and durability. That said, I've read that the brand was sold to an offshore company and the quality is a shadow of what it once was.

Same with socks. We both had Icebreaker brand and Smartwool brand merino wool socks, which, overall, performed very well, although the Smartwool held up better than Icebreaker. I tried Darn Tough socks on Norte last year, but maybe it was the thickness of the socks, but I really didn't like them and found I got more blisters lasting longer with them.

So, here I am reaching out to read and learn about your experiences with merino wool brands of t-shirts and socks. I have "Unbound Merino" brand flash across my social media feeds regularly but honestly have never purchased them.

We don't want to go crazy with the cost of t-shirts and socks, but are completely open to spending more for good quality.

Thanks everyone and Buen Camino.
Michael

 

[DTCamino]

I switched from Icebreaker socks to Merino Wrightsocks. The Wrightsocks have a poly liner and Merino outersocks and are practically blister free because of the combination!

 

[VJoy]

Darn tough socks and Issoba tee shirts/ long sleeve tops. Both have served me well over 3 Camino's. Treated myself to new socks every year but tee shirts live on!

 

[David]

I wear cotton shorts and t shirts at home but wanted Merino shorts for Camino ... this company do 'three pack' deals on their shorts so I checked their reviews and then bought from them as the cheapest real ones I could find online and they had side opening too - they are marvellous, very happy.

EDZ merino wool activewear

EDZ range of merino wool activewear for sport, adventure, & everyday. Top quality merino clothing & accessories, great value, free UK delivery

edz.co.uk

 

[Tante]

I walk in Injinji toe socks liners combined with Stoic light merino wool socks. Perfectly cushioned, not too thick, no blisters and durable.
My favorite merino t shirt is a very thin Patagonia one. It's so smooth and airy! Love it

 

[Robo]

Sadly brands change over time.

I used to love Icebreaker shirts. Then they got bought out, changed the fabric / weave......

Now they suck

If you find gear you like............stock up

 

[K_Lynn]

Darn tough and/or Injninji merino socks.

I’m still a fan of Ice Breaker for shirts and hoodies and underwear. I like the feel of the weave and have found them durable. I do not like the feel of Smart Wool on any of their products, it’s rough and scratchy. Both Icebreaker and Smart Wool are owned by the same corporation (VF) that also owns Altras and other higher end brands.

Patagonia has a range of merino shirts. I like their Capilene Cool for hot weather or as a thin base layer. Some of these shirts do get window-paney over time with the abuse I put them through, especially machine washing and drying.

 

[C clearly]

I use Smart Wool and Icebreaker shirts. I like the merino-polyester blends for better durability in the very light weights. My favourite long pants are a wool blend Icebreaker in a woven fabric.

I don't wear wool socks for walking. I prefer a thinner synthetic.

 

[Beth and Rodney]

I use the thinnest, lightest, Injinji toe socks. Then on top I like light or ultra light REI merino wool crew socks.
That's been a good combination for Caminos for me.

 

[Wendy MS]

Buenas tardes amigos and fellow perigrinos. My wife and I are set to walk Norte from Santander to SdC onwards to Muxia and Finisterre leaving Toronto on Sep 26. We are both big fans of merino wool as a base layer and for t-shirts / socks. After a few Caminos, our existing t-shirts and socks need to be retired .

We originally purchased Icebreaker brand t-shirts (in 2017) and were quite satisfied with the performance, laundering, and durability. That said, I've read that the brand was sold to an offshore company and the quality is a shadow of what it once was.

Same with socks. We both had Icebreaker brand and Smartwool brand merino wool socks, which, overall, performed very well, although the Smartwool held up better than Icebreaker. I tried Darn Tough socks on Norte last year, but maybe it was the thickness of the socks, but I really didn't like them and found I got more blisters lasting longer with them.

So, here I am reaching out to read and learn about your experiences with merino wool brands of t-shirts and socks. I have "Unbound Merino" brand flash across my social media feeds regularly but honestly have never purchased them.

We don't want to go crazy with the cost of t-shirts and socks, but are completely open to spending more for good quality.

Thanks everyone and Buen Camino.
Michael

Craghopper merino T’s and Injinji socks for me!

 

[jayree]

We are both big fans of merino wool as a base layer and for t-shirts / socks. A

We originally purchased Icebreaker brand t-shirts (in 2017) and were quite satisfied with the performance, laundering, and durability. That said, I've read that the brand was sold to an offshore company and the quality is a shadow of what it once was.

Same with socks. We both had Icebreaker brand and Smartwool brand merino wool socks, which, overall, performed very well, although the Smartwool held up better than Icebreaker. I tried Darn Tough socks on Norte last year, but maybe it was the thickness of the socks, but I really didn't like them and found I got more blisters lasting longer with them.

So, here I am reaching out to read and learn about your experiences with merino wool brands of t-shirts and socks. I have "Unbound Merino" brand flash across my social media feeds regularly but honestly have never purchased them.

We don't want to go crazy with the cost of t-shirts and socks, but are completely open to spending more for good quality.

I have become disenchanted with the durability of SmartWool T-shirts and have switched to Ridge Merino. So far so good but I suspect they too will not be as durable as cotton. I avoid anything polyester. It literally stinks.

 

[AchimBerlin]

Buenas tardes amigos and fellow perigrinos. My wife and I are set to walk Norte from Santander to SdC onwards to Muxia and Finisterre leaving Toronto on Sep 26. We are both big fans of merino wool as a base layer and for t-shirts / socks. After a few Caminos, our existing t-shirts and socks need to be retired .

We originally purchased Icebreaker brand t-shirts (in 2017) and were quite satisfied with the performance, laundering, and durability. That said, I've read that the brand was sold to an offshore company and the quality is a shadow of what it once was.

Same with socks. We both had Icebreaker brand and Smartwool brand merino wool socks, which, overall, performed very well, although the Smartwool held up better than Icebreaker. I tried Darn Tough socks on Norte last year, but maybe it was the thickness of the socks, but I really didn't like them and found I got more blisters lasting longer with them.

So, here I am reaching out to read and learn about your experiences with merino wool brands of t-shirts and socks. I have "Unbound Merino" brand flash across my social media feeds regularly but honestly have never purchased them.

We don't want to go crazy with the cost of t-shirts and socks, but are completely open to spending more for good quality.

Thanks everyone and Buen Camino.
Michael

Merino shirts from Tierra also perform well and durable. I like their merino sweaters, too.
Cheers
Achim

 

[Walks2way]

I love my Patagonia merino t-shirt. Minus 33 also makes excellent merino shirts. Darn Tough offers socks in various thicknesses. Maybe try a thinner style?

 

[Nanners]

I like Smartwool tee shirts for walking. I've managed to find them at a reduced price at REI and Amazon. Icebreaker didn't fit me right. Some of the shirts (including some Smartwool styles) didn't have a high enough % of merino wool. Read the labels.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

The other day I bookmarked this webpage to get back to it. I still haven't but it looked good enough to share.

15 Best Merino Wool Shirts for Travel and Everyday | Pack Hacker

Whether going to the desert or the rainforest, these Merino Wool shirts will help you be more comfortable and odor-free while saving water between washes.

packhacker.com

 

[JoeBoston]

I've had luck with Smart Wool socks and Woolx t-shirts. Woolx is quite expensive, though.

 

[J Willhaus]

Canadian brand Unbound Merino has done ok for us. We both have t-shirts and my husband especially likes that you can get V-neck collars. I have a travel dress from them. It is my go to summer evening clothes. Can double as a nightgown or a dress for church or supper. It weighs very little and I can wear a light scarf or scarf jacket to dress it up. I have a winter Wool& dress for my winter Caminos with Ibex tights.

We also wear a lot of Ibex brand long and short sleeve things and they have some nice heavier sweaters and jackets. Darn Tough socks are our go to. Smart wool also has some good boxer briefs per my husband.

 

[Rmarkob]

I’ve only used Darn Tough socks on 3 Caminos and weekly hikes at home, and never had a blister. I use Altra Lone Peaks a half size larger than my normal shoe size which may account for that.

I don’t have any short sleeve merino shirts, but have two light weight long sleeve shirts which I’ve been very happy with. One is Smartwool and the other WoolX. I don’t have a preference for either- both are equally comfortable.

 

[Rozenn]

I always wear merinos t-shirt and socks and even panties from the Swedish brand Devold.. excellent !

 

[CoreyGafnea]

I just finished hiking from Pamplona to Santiago in early May. I brought 1 long sleeve and 2 short sleeve Patagonia merino wool tees. I hiked in one merino short sleeve every day and changed into my "clean" merino short sleeve tee every afternoon after a shower. I hardly had to wash the "clean shirt" and only had to wash the hiking shirts a few times a week, sometimes by hand, other times in the machine. They both held up beautifully and look the same as when I first bought them. I am home now and wear them all the time. Still look great.

I brought one pair of smartwool socks but found that it took them a while to dry. I brought two pairs of wright double lined socks and wore them every day. Quick to dry. I walked the last 5 days into Santiago in pouring rains, I had luckily picked up a pair of cheap nylon running socks from Decathalon (along with rain paints) and wore them 5 days straight, through a lot of puddles. Incredibly I never got a blister though my feet were soaked for most of those days. I wore Altra Lone Peaks, which weren't waterproof, but did dry quickly with newspaper.

Buen Camino.

 

[Tincatinker]

Six sweaty weeks in Italy left me content with Marks & Spencer’s vests and pants and Bridgewater socks. But I’m easily pleased me. And I hate shopping

 

[SureFtWayEli]

I switched from Icebreaker socks to Merino Wrightsocks. The Wrightsocks have a poly liner and Merino outersocks and are practically blister free because of the combination!

I agree here. No blisters. But I also have used toe socks (Ininji) inside Smartwool socks & no blisters. My feet get hot & without a liner I get hotspots between my toes. The Ininji toe socks called “5 fingers” take care of that problem & I have worn them inside Wright socks so it’s like a double liner, but absolutely no blisters. Wearing Teva hiking sandals. When there was a gully washer, I put my socked feet inside plastic grocery bags, then inside my sandals. In regular rain, Smart Wool kept Ininji socks & feet dry. Only had one gully washer morning then carried on in intermittent rain & hail later without the plastic. Smartwool especially nice when the temps change drastically.

 

[KeyserSoza]

Smartwool socks (cannot remember model) with Danish Endurance merino liner socks. Two full CF with no issues.
Patagonia lg sleeve Capilene Cool Daily and Icebreaker short sleeved shirt.

 

[GaryRobArms]

I use thin Injinji toe socks with thin Icebreaker socks over them, and find that both last longer this way than they do when used on their own. However neither of them are really durable.

I bought a pair of darn tough as an experiment and I think they would be more durable, but found them uncomfortable, in particular, the toe box is too snug.

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

Darn Tough offers socks in various thicknesses. Maybe try a thinner style?

Indeed. I'm another Darn Tough fan, have both: two thicker, higher pair's for mid winter and 3 pairs thinner 3/4 socks for the other three seasons. I wear mine on the building site as well, after 18 months I have yet to develop any holes.

Darn tough socks and Issoba tee shirts/ long sleeve tops. Both have served me well over 3 Camino's. Treated myself to new socks every year but tee shirts live on!

I'm curious why you've bought new Darn Toughs each year, they have a lifetime guarantee? If you get a hole, you send them back and they replace them.
That said my three 3/4 pairs did over 1500 kilometers last year between them plus over 150 days on the Jobsite - no holes, not even any particularly thin spots yet.

T shirt wise I wear whatever is on sale - at the moment I've got two Icebreakers, one short one long; and two Alpin Loacker t-shirts. The Icebreakers are 100% Merino and slightly more comfortable, the Alpin 86% and longer wearing.

My Merino t-shirts also get worn in winter on the job site.

 

[SabsP]

Bridgedale socks.

Bridgedale Socks

World leading technical sock manufacturer. We offer the latest in fibre and design innovations for socks used in endurance sports and activities.

www.bridgedale.com

Merino clothes at Woolpower.

Svensktillverkande Woolpower gör hållbara kläder i merinoull | Woolpower

Woolpower tillverkar produkter från garn till färdig produkt i Sverige. Vi producerar hållbara kläder med ansvar för människorna, djuren och naturen.

woolpower.se

Alternative is the lyocell fabric from Fjallräven.

Abisko Cool T-shirt W

T-shirt met korte mouwen met een aantrekkelijke pasvorm en V-hals. Gemaakt van comfortabel, koel functioneel materiaal met lyocell en biologisch katoen. Gemaakt zonder PFAS.

www.fjallraven.com

 

[Astipad]

Decathlon now sells Merino t-shirts (short sleeves and long sleeves) that are actually not bad at all, as well as merino underwear (the briefs are good, the black bra is horrible, the blue one is better but the dye fades so it needs to be washed several times before wearing it).
They also sell merino socks but I love my Injinji toe socks so I don’t know how good the Decathlon ones really are.

 

[Stivandrer]

I always wear merinos t-shirt and socks and even panties from the Swedish brand Devold.. excellent !

Sorry DeVold is Norwegian, Woolpower is Swedish, only difference is when talking to it!

 

[AnnieS]

I switched from Icebreaker socks to Merino Wrightsocks. The Wrightsocks have a poly liner and Merino outersocks and are practically blister free because of the combination!

Those merino Wrightsocks are the best! I'm in Canada and was buying them at MEC, but that store no longer sells them, and I'm having a hard time finding them elsewhere. I've been darning the socks I do have so much there isn't much left to darn!

 

[DwainS]

Buenas tardes amigos and fellow perigrinos. My wife and I are set to walk Norte from Santander to SdC onwards to Muxia and Finisterre leaving Toronto on Sep 26. We are both big fans of merino wool as a base layer and for t-shirts / socks. After a few Caminos, our existing t-shirts and socks need to be retired .

We originally purchased Icebreaker brand t-shirts (in 2017) and were quite satisfied with the performance, laundering, and durability. That said, I've read that the brand was sold to an offshore company and the quality is a shadow of what it once was.

Same with socks. We both had Icebreaker brand and Smartwool brand merino wool socks, which, overall, performed very well, although the Smartwool held up better than Icebreaker. I tried Darn Tough socks on Norte last year, but maybe it was the thickness of the socks, but I really didn't like them and found I got more blisters lasting longer with them.

So, here I am reaching out to read and learn about your experiences with merino wool brands of t-shirts and socks. I have "Unbound Merino" brand flash across my social media feeds regularly but honestly have never purchased them.

We don't want to go crazy with the cost of t-shirts and socks, but are completely open to spending more for good quality.

Thanks everyone and Buen Camino.
MichaelM

Most people probably have there favourite brand. I don't really have a favourite brand, I just wanted 100% merino wool. Never having walked the Camino before and never having owned a merino wool product before I picked Icebreaker socks, long sleeve and short sleeve shirts for my first Camino Francés in 2023. They worked well and I used the same ones I bought last year for my Camino Francés this year. I used 175 weight and they worked well in some pretty chilly days and some very hot days on the Meseta.

 

[Liica]

Buenas tardes amigos and fellow perigrinos. My wife and I are set to walk Norte from Santander to SdC onwards to Muxia and Finisterre leaving Toronto on Sep 26. We are both big fans of merino wool as a base layer and for t-shirts / socks. After a few Caminos, our existing t-shirts and socks need to be retired .

We originally purchased Icebreaker brand t-shirts (in 2017) and were quite satisfied with the performance, laundering, and durability. That said, I've read that the brand was sold to an offshore company and the quality is a shadow of what it once was.

Same with socks. We both had Icebreaker brand and Smartwool brand merino wool socks, which, overall, performed very well, although the Smartwool held up better than Icebreaker. I tried Darn Tough socks on Norte last year, but maybe it was the thickness of the socks, but I really didn't like them and found I got more blisters lasting longer with them.

So, here I am reaching out to read and learn about your experiences with merino wool brands of t-shirts and socks. I have "Unbound Merino" brand flash across my social media feeds regularly but honestly have never purchased them.

We don't want to go crazy with the cost of t-shirts and socks, but are completely open to spending more for good quality.

Thanks everyone and Buen Camino.
Michael

Falke socks and Danish Endurance

 

[susanposton]

Canadian brand Unbound Merino has done ok for us. We both have t-shirts and my husband especially likes that you can get V-neck collars. I have a travel dress from them. It is my go to summer evening clothes. Can double as a nightgown or a dress for church or supper. It weighs very little and I can wear a light scarf or scarf jacket to dress it up. I have a winter Wool& dress for my winter Caminos with Ibex tights.

We also wear a lot of Ibex brand long and short sleeve things and they have some nice heavier sweaters and jackets. Darn Tough socks are our go to. Smart wool also has some good boxer briefs per my husband.

You two inspire me with your helpful information and kind words. . I am doing my first Camino (CF) at age 60 this September and your posts have been super helpful!

 

[Zoe7]

Why is it good to wear a merino wool t shirt? Wouldn’t it be hot?

 

[DwainS]

Why is it good to wear a merino wool t shirt? Wouldn’t it be hot?

probably depends on how heavy it is. Probably 150 or 175 when its warm out and probably 250 in the fall or early spring when its cooler out. I wore 175 this past May-June and was walking in some pretty cool weather around Pamplona and was walking in 35 C on the mesta and my merino wool shirts worked great. July and August I would probably go with 150.

 

[Stivandrer]

Why is it good to wear a merino wool t shirt? Wouldn’t it be hot?

As opposed to a cotton tee shirt when temps run high, merino wool will preserve its temperature insolating properties and not get cold on your skin when your perspirate.
I have used a merino tank top from Icebreaker to that effect and my favourite is a HH tee shirt w a 70/30 mixture of wool to synth fibrs on hot and windy days