[at-l] Backpacking Boots??

[icw39@ncfreedom.net (Clark Wright)]

Boots/shoes/sandals [some of each are used by thru-hikers] will be the
single most important decision you make; over the long distances of the
AT, your feet become everything - well, not quite everything, food and
water ranks right up there too! :)  Be sure to try on a ton of different
ones, listen to a ton of people [many who will have rather rigid
opinions], and then just go with what feels the absolutely most
comfortable on YOUR, unique feet!

With the above in mind, here are my own personal-experience driven
thoughts and suggestions:

1)  Your feet may grow as much as a full size or more during your hike;
unless you have totally flat feet, and have already done a 1,000 mile
plus hike, odds are they will both swell some, gain some mass, and
lengthen - especially if you have higher arches.  There is not much you
can DO about this in advance, other than recognize, like much of what I
will say, that flexibility over time in your shoe/boot selections is
important.

2)  You may well end up wearing several different boots/shoes/sandals. 
Last summer, I started in my trusty, well broken in, heavy duty hiking
boots [brand is not important].  They were awesome for the first month
of my northbound hike, which began 3/16/01; great in mud and snow; gore
lined to keep water out; insulated to keep my feet warmer.  After that
first month, however, the negatives of such heavy boots emerged . . .
they were becoming too hot, and the old saying about a pound on the foot
equalling five pounds on the back began to ring true . . . thus, in Hot
Springs I "bounced" (i.e., mailed UPS second day - which lets you mail
that box on to another stop or even home with no additional postage
charge as long as you do not open it) the trusty winter boots ahead a
notch, just in case something nasty in terms of winter weather came back
on us, and bought there at the outfitters in Hot Springs a lightweight
boot in the nature of what many on this list talk about.  Break-in was
not much of a problem; unfortunately, I had not factored in the fact
that my foot had grown an entire size!  I ended up having to buy a
SECOND pair of lightweight shoes, as I did not have the inclination to
get off the Trail and wait to mail those boots back to HS for a
trade-in.  Later on, I even hiked as many as 17 mile days in a pair of
old Nike ACG sandals that were my around camp shoes.  Given the
technology and features in many new sandals, you should give them a
good, close look for summer hiking.

3)  Socks are real important; thicker weights for winter and thinner,
cooler weights for summer.  Smartwools are popular, comfortable, but do
not wear very long for many people.  Bridgedales are awesome in my
opinion, especially for winter, spring and fall; they might be too thick
and hot for some in the summer - but not if you are wearing sandals.  In
winter and early spring, I like going with a two layer approach; thin
polypro liner socks and then the woold blend outers - the theory, which
works for most people, is that most of the blister potential rubbing
takes place between the outer sock and the inner liner sock, not between
the inner sock and your skin.

4)  While hiking, be willing to stop on occasion to tighten/loosen
laces, air out your feet, or cool them down in a stream in hot weather -
or to tend to hot spots!  You may laugh at first, but duct tape works
wonders on most hot spots.  If you use hiking poles [fancy metal, or old
fashioned wood] you can just wrap a number of turns of duct tape around
your pole as your source of tape - a great way to store it.  Duct tape
stays in place, and the slick outer skin on the tape is a great friction
reducer.  THIN moleskin works well for some foot problems, too.  If you
have a nasty spot and need to keep walking, the second skin stuff works
minor wonders.

5)  A number of people have had fine luck with just cheap tennis shoes
for the entire Trail, or for all of it after winter passes.  If you use
poles, and are a good hiker, you might be able to "rock hop" your way to
Maine in just el-cheapo tennis shoes.  I would not recommend that, but
once summer hits, you may find yourself fantasizing about such, or even
about sandals, for some portion of the walk! :)

6)  A number of people swear by "superfeet;" hard, plstic insoles that
replace the [usually cheap] insoles that come with most boots, hiking
shoes and sneakers.  There are also a ton of other companies that make
softer insoles to replace and "improve upon" the original insoles that
came with your pair.  I have not tried the $50 buck "custom superfeet
fitting" route, but some say if your foot is weird shaped, it can do
wonders.  It is a great scam market, but a large number of hikers now do
buy some kind of "improved" insole to replace the original ones, whether
it be in fancy heavy boots, lightweight hiker shoes, or sneakers.  I
used to run and loved an insole shock absorbing material called
"sorbothane."  There is a company that still makes "sorbothane" insoles,
but they were a disappointment to me - the top surface of the insole is
slick as glass, and there is only a bit of the [expensive] "sorbothane"
in the heel and around the ball of your foot.  I would kill for a well
designed insole incorporating this material in a manner designed for
hikers!  Anyoone know of such a thing?  Anyhow, back to the insole game;
you should quiz other hikers on this important point, too - I think they
can be almost as important as the shoe/boot itself.

7)  Back to hiking poles; to me they ought to be a part of your
shoe/boot decisionmaking process - in general, I believe that the more
you are willing to use two, modern hiking poles, the more you can "get
away" with ligher weight shoes on your feet.  I'd never used two metal
hiking poles in my 30 years of hiking until last spring on the snow and
ice covered mountains of the AT in GA/TN/NC, but after I bought a pair
in Hiawassee, GA, I came to love them, and now swear by them.

8)  Last item - back to foot first aid again; in addition to duct tape
and a bit of moleskin, and maybe one "thing" of that second skin stuff,
consider taking a bit of antibiotic ointment, and a few bandaids; some
also like to take a tiny plastic bottle [or film canister] of rubbing
alcohol - I did for part of my hike, and the refreshing feeling of a dab
of that on my feet after a long day was sometimes the highlight of my
evening! :)

Hope all this rambling helps you [and maybe some others!] out!

Hike on!

thru-thinker


Phil Klotzbach wrote:
> 
> Hi everyone.  I'm new to this email list.  I'm planning on starting a thru hike of the AT starting in mid-May, and I was looking for suggestions on good backpacking boots.  Oh yeah, also, if anyone knows of good water filters, could you please let me know as well?  Thanks!
> 
> Phil
> 
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