Fox River Socks Review
A new-to-me brand of socks to put through the travel paces.
Fox River Socks Review Introduction
Fox River - I wouldn’t call this a household name yet in the travel and onebag space. I think they’d like to get there though. Who are they? They are a US-made brand of performance socks ranging from hikers to runners to boot socks. And this company has been doing it for A WHILE. We’re talking 100 years. Interested now?
Beyond just their age however, Fox River is making socks the sustainable way, with certification, and they focus a lot on Merino wool - everyone’s favorite sock material. They have some interesting blends as well (like Merino silk). Wait, not everyone knows about Merino? Well they should! It’s awesome. That said, they also use some of the industry tech standards such as Eco CoolMax fabric in their running socks. That’s actually what I’m taking a look at today.
This is my review of Fox River socks for travel. Specifically, I’ll be focusing on the Arid Lightweight Quarter crew version made with Eco CoolMax (rather than Merino). I took these with me on my recent 8 day trip to Spain to test while en route as well as with lots of urban walking.
As always for full transparency - I was asked if I wanted to review a pair of their socks and I felt it was on-brand for me. That said, this is not a sponsored or paid article and Fox River had no input into the content. I do use affiliate links to support the site, but this comes at no cost to you if you choose to use them. Thank you for stopping by!
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Fox River Socks Overview
With the Arid Lightweight Running socks, Fox River set out to make a feature rich sock that you could use for running of course, but really any kind of higher activity where you wanted something more lightweight. That’s what made me gravitate towards this model, I don’t like beefy socks.
What you end up with is a quarter length sock made with some Eco CoolMax fibers and carries the features for active lifestyles without weighing you down too much.
Their plan when they designed an anatomical fit was meant to help eliminate “hot spots” or irritation points while you’re exerting yourself in these.
Due to the fabrics used, they are also fairly breathable and moisture wicking which is important if you’re going to be doing lots of activities in these.
Materials from Their Website:
51% Nylon, 47% Coolmax® Ecomade Polyester, 2% Spandex
They come in 4 different colors and as of March 2024 sell for $18.00 USD per pair - which is on par for the space they play in (SmartWool, Darn Tough, etc).
Fox River Socks Features
The Arid socks are hiding but I can assure you they are under the white kicks.
It might sound funny to talk about features in a sock. But Fox River put their engineering hats on and really did try to pack some in. Here’s the main list:
Unisex fit
Comfort Toe Seam
Arch Support
Reinforced Heel/Toe
Shock Absorption
Eco Coolmax®
Anatomical
Memory Knit
Moisture Wicking
Breathable Mesh
Some of these you might notice/feel more than others. You can definitely tell the seams are pretty technical and minimal. The reinforced toe and heel are very tangible and so is the arch support. I would say these have a high level of compression.
Below you can see the Fox River merino socks as well as a thinner pair from Darn Tough, and a thinner still pair from Western Rise. This is just so you see the fit.
The Good
I’m actually going to label this as a “very good”: these socks are wicked well made. They really are. When you pick them up (I also had two other pairs in my possession as well, so this was consistent across models) you can feel their quality. I know these are just socks - but I like that quality in a pair. You have to remember that of all the things you’re wearing, when you are out traveling and walking around a city all day or running or hiking - the most punishment taken? Your socks. Remember that. So, really well made. Nice job, Fox River.
I would say that overall the sock was pretty comfortable for me. As I noted, I took these with me to Spain and I was hitting 20K steps per day. While I did not wear these EVERY day of course, I did go with multi-days of wear to really push them in terms of comfort and uh….smell. That’s right. When you test socks for travel, you have to. I put the integrity of my olfactory nerves (and at times the respect of my wife when I’m smelling my socks) on the line for you folks. You can thank me later.
On that smell front these did well. They aren’t Merino so you’re not going to get the Merino performance (Fox River has plenty of Merino socks too) - but I think the CoolMax does a solid job here and you’re not going to have a problem squeezing extra wears out of them if needed. Though you do need to wash them every few of course. Don’t be gross. These are socks after all.
Fox River offers a lot of different designs. They are definitely all active lifestyle and outdoors leaning, and that’s OK, but there’s a lot to choose from. For these in particular, there are even 4 different colors and I think the turquoise version is pretty fire. Lots of choice in designs and materials is always a good thing for consumers. Find YOUR style, right?
For a pair of really high quality socks made in the USA - these are really nicely priced. Like it or not, manufacturing is more expensive here so to see them still offering a fair price for quality is great to see.
There’s a charitable bit here as well - as with every purchase, Fox River will donate one dollar to go towards helping Native young folks.
Lastly, they have a strong lifetime warranty. They will help for the lifetime of your socks if there are any manufacturer defects. I’d put this in the middle-to-high end of the pack but better than most - Darn Tough still has some wizardry they are wizarding and that’s hard to touch - but I would put this ahead of SmartWool which has maybe broader terms, but a capped timeframe that I find kind of short.
The Bad
Objectively speaking, I don’t think there is a ton to write home about here on the negative front. My only real criticisms are going to be pretty subjective and personal - but that’s kind of the point here! You can decide if these are deal breakers or challenges for you, I just want to highlight what I’ve experienced and let you run with it. You might read this and tell me to go kick rocks. That’s OK, too. Should be said that I have no quality concerns.
So what I didn’t really love, and this is true for ALL socks (for me) and not a knock on Fox River specifically necessarily, but they seem to lean pretty heavy on their reinforced heels and toes. For targeting hiking boots and such, I think that makes complete sense for a lot of people
But, for things like trail runners or sneakers, I’ll be honest the Merino pairs I had I just couldn’t wear. The padding was comfy in a vacuum, but it changed the fit of my sneakers to the point that they no longer fit my feet. Now like I said, this is subjective. I like thin-ish socks with no cushion. Some people swear by the cushiony comfort. So, make your call there. Admittedly I do think there is a real purpose there for things like maybe boots or larger hiking shoes. But for other sneakers or runners - you’ll see brands like Darn Tough and SmartWool focus more on having a lot more options with less cushion in the tech fabrics, Merino included. Being fair to Fox River - they have a pair of ultralight ankle socks in their runner collection and some longer crews. I’d like to see that concept expanded though to their Merino Lightweights and quarter socks. I think this is easily addressable however.
Lastly, I’d like to see a few more ‘lifestyle’ designs. Same technical materials, but designs that are better for everyday wear or wear with actual shoes. This is a key for travel friendly technical socks. Don’t want to look like I just came off the trail with my oxfords when I go to dinner. Again, easily addressable.
Picking a nit - they do tend to grab fibers and hair as you walk around. I honestly don’t care, some Western Rise socks can do that too, but there are folks out there that really dislike that so I will note it here.
Final Thoughts On My Fox River Socks Review
Shot of the cushion vs. the arch.
The Fox River socks that I got my hands on had a lot going for them. They are super high quality, with great minimal (almost unseeable) seams, a choice of materials, and many different outdoorsy designs. As someone based in the US, I love seeing that they are made here and using sustainable practices as well in their factories.
I would feel comfortable making a recommendation here for you to consider these socks for traveling, especially if you plan to be doing real hiking or outdoorsy stuff. We all know the benefit of Merino for traveling, and their Eco CoolMax performed solidly for me in my personal testing. Plus looks are subjective, and they offer many. But their merino socks I put on were quite comfy on my feet.
I would however keep in mind that they use heavy cushioning in many of their socks outside of the few “ultraweight” liner options. And as noted this could be a good thing or a bad thing for you depending on your viewpoints. Just be aware so you aren’t unfair to the brand with making an uninformed decision. That’s pure preference for the buyer.
As always with the indie brands, I’d suggest buying directly through their website for best service.
Wander more - and wander smarter everyone.
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