Socks, Liners, and Trekking Poles

        First, I have to say that my hiking adventure was rough! I need that I was going to be sore when my hiking partner decided that we should climb up the side of a mountain. Don't ask me why I didn't object. Maybe I didn't want to taunted for being a woose. I don't know, but up the mountain I went. It was a REAL workout!! If I can keep that up then I know that I will be ready! Alabama has enough mountains to climb. Ha ha ha.

      My socks and sock liners came! YAY! I can't wait to try these out with my boots that will be here tomorrow! I got Smart Wool socks and liners.

     From all the reading that I have done, this seemed like the best choice. At first I wasn't sure about getting the liners; however, after reading about different people's experiences with and without liners, I quickly changed my mind. What is the purpose of a liner? Well, it's to cut down on the friction that comes from the sock rubbing against you foot.

Just FYI about Keen boot sizes and using socks:
      I was a little concerned about have too much room with having a whole size bigger when I ordered my boots, but I found a great solution which seems to be agreed upon by many. You can wear an extra pair of socks to help with the sizing issue then as you are walking the Camino you can take off the extra pair when/if your feet swell. I am thinking that this solution will work great, but as thick as my socks are, I may not have to resort to that. I bought an extra pair just in case though. I always have to be prepared.

Anywho.......
       I am still waiting for my trekking pole to come. Hopefully it will be here soon. After a long search for the best option, I came across the collaspable poles. Now trying to find one that doesn't weigh a lot was a little tricky. There was one that I saw that looked pretty sturdy but it shipped weighing 3 pounds!! I can only carry so much people! This one ships weighing only 1 pound, so that leads me to believe that it's less than that because the weight of the box and backing materials. Maybe I'm wrong....we'll see.

      My thinking was that I could put it in my pack when I am flying without having to check it in. Since I know they will not let me on a plane with a giant stick. Number one it won't fit in that stupid overheard compartment, but number two, I just might use it as a weapon on that morron that likes to kick your seat for the entire flight. What is everyone's thinking about this?? Is a collapsable pole a good idea???

A side note:
   I think that I officially tired my friends on the topic of the Camino. They no longer listen to my preparation stories. How sad. I guess that means that I will just have to continue to tell myself how excited I am even if the trip is about a year away.