I've used Sorbothanes for many years. They're pretty expensive but last for up to ten years, and can be washed (in non-bio detergents: see previous items on ankle and leg rash). The most recent full-foot ones (NOT the kind with separate pads) have been renamed 'double strike' and work just as well as they always have except that for some some reason they don't have the previous adhesive-ness to the boot's or shoe's own insoles. But so far they haven't moved or bunched under the toes, like the cheaper ones. In the 60s and 70s I used to get 'bashed' soles of my feet but not blisters, till I experimented with extra insoles and eventually found Sorbothanes.

You might try putting your enquiry in a new thread.

I had a big problem for years with very itchy legs and reddening after a hike and looked around the internet and 2 solutions were offered
Put vaseline on affected area to reduce friction
or shave legs in affected area to reduce friction
both work really well and shaving is a lot less effort

Thanks Deirdre. Looking up Urticaria (which includes nettle-rash as well as allergies) I found this:

"The low-histamine diet [tested in the study] omitted food such as cheese, preserved meats, strawberries, raspberries citrus fruit, bananas, kiwis, plums, papaya and alcohol ... many [people with the condition] complain of worsening of symptoms by consuming histamine-rich food, like red wine or matured cheese, but ... until now [2017] no studies were available supporting these observations".

So the usual mix of alleged and possible, but supporting the view that anti-histamines will suppress the symptoms. In my case I do take anti-allergens (are they still anti-histamines ?) on walk days in the hayfever season, but by then I will have switched to shorts, which lessens the problem anyway. I do take both strong-ish cheese and a diluted citrus juice mix, so maybe reducing one or both of those would help.

I'm due to see a dermatologist in the summer for un-related reasons, so I'll ask if there's any recent reliable evidence or advice. A previous (1970s or 80s) GP said "it's dermy, too difficult" or words to that effect, but maybe things have improved. On day or weekend walks it's only a minor problem, but over several continuous days it might become quite serious. My Pennine Way walk in 1969 and 1970 was (so far as I remember) unaffected, so what's changed since then ?

Iain

Iain, Oh dear, I could write a book about this. I first had it in 1974[! gives my age away...] when back packing the Pennine Way, in hot conditions in the first three days. I nearly gave up at Malham when it had extended to a full raised weal 6" high right round my lower legs, and I was beside myself with the burning.I managed to calm it down by cooling my feet in all available rivers, then the weather turned cold and it went away. However it has returned since then, whenever it is warm or the terrain means I am working hard over a long period. I get it on every challenge walk, and sometimes on longer group walks. It comes on in winter in snow and ice, and when wearing shorts and sandals, so lots of breeze to the legs. I have never used biological washing powder, and before events I give my socks a good hand wash in pure soap. It usually disappears a couple of days after the event or long walk. Years ago, I asked my GP, complete with gory photos, and she said it was 'exercise induced urticaria' [a bit less scary than vasculitis, I guess]. Recently I have found that a good antihistamine taken before I set out seems to delay onset-don't always remember to take one though. I doubt there is a solution or a cure. I am sorry yours has returned. It is a nuisance.

As far back as the 1980s I and others in a (non-LDWA) walking group realised that we had in common a problem associated with long walks - a pinkish, blotchy and mildly itchy rash under the sock line (ankle rash), sometimes extending to the lower limbs (leg rash) and top of the feet. The rash was noticeable towards the end of a walk and immediately afterwards, but usually would diminish and disappear within 24 hours. In more serious cases (I've seen only one or two), the 'blotches' might merge into a more extensive and persistent ankle-to-knee rash.

The solution which has worked for me is to avoid 'biological' clothes-washing detergents, particularly powders. Initially I was careful to wash my 'walking socks' by hand using bleach- and enzyme-free products. I now use only non-bio liquid detergents and, when away from home, am careful not to include my socks in a washing machine cycle. Other than occasional minor ankle-rash, this has been a good strategy, till now.

Early last year and again now, I've noticed a return of the more serious version of the problem, extending for the first time to my thighs. This time last year I had bought new pair of Craghopper walking trousers, and Googling suggested it might have been associated with fibre-softening additives which are often found in new clothing. But if it was they should have washed out by now.

Other than pesticides in field crops (I've never had the problem in mountains) there's little to explain it. Until the advent of weather persistently warm enough for shorts (ventilation always works), do I have to put up with this ? Have any others noticed a recent return of what seems to be termed 'exercise-induced vasculitis'. Or is it my toxic trousers ?

Iain