It has been a few years since ‘hiking’ regularly, but I still remember some of the habits I had, because hikes were every Thursday for the longest time:
I bought some very light, high top- like boots to wear. I think the brand name was ‘hi-tech’ or something like that. I never got blisters with them. They were only allowed for field use by the Marine Corps, so I only used them for hikes and boot-n-utes runs.
If you get boots taken care of then you can concentrate on the next problem: Boredom.
Talking to others keeps one’s thoughts elsewhere for a while, but at a certain point no one feels like talking anymore, everyone is, in a way, isolated to their own thoughts. I suggest stashing some beef jerky and Twizzlers for this time period. With all the sweating beef jerky offers something interesting to chew on, while also giving sodium, which the body will lose with all the sweating. Twizzlers offer a sharp contrast to the beef jerky, which is nice, but also gives one sugar.
I would say bring ‘moleskin’ which can be purchased at any store with a pharmacy. If you have a spot that blisters consistently on your foot you can tape if up with moleskin before starting the hike.
For socks I would suggest a fabric with ‘sweat-wicking’ properties for the under socks, then a thicker sock perhaps as the outer sock.
The very best way to make sure everything will go smooth would be to take a test hike, with the gear as you will wear it for the real deal. See how it feels…adjust as required.