I just read Freda's recent post and feel a bit braver myself. Judging from the lack of bi-socking in the sandals/socks thread, I fear that many catters live in ignorance. I say:

When you go for a long walk, wear two pairs of socks.

An inner, friction-lowering polypropylene pair. (Your sweat goes right through this pair to the outer pair.)
An outer, wicking, wool pair that extends above the boot to where the moisture can evaporate from the sock.

Got that advice from Colin Fletcher's The Complete Walker, and it works. True, I never face extreme heat, but Colin does, and still wears two pairs of socks.

Cotton socks don't wick as well, so they are only good in sandals, or for very short periods. Nobody should ever wear nylon socks (or poly socks without an outer wicking sock).

And as soon as you stop walking, take off both your shoes and socks; keep something else to slip into if you can't go barefoot.