Footwear Preferences?

[Charlie]

Prompted by Rob Kesselring’s new footwear feature story, HERE, I’m curious to know what forum readers wear for the trail?

I’ve been an old running shoe guy, myself. On week-long BWCA trips and summer-long tundra missions, I’ve generally been happy in my nearly-always-wet trainers and wool socks.

As important, I suppose, are the dry pair of shoes or boots I put on immediately after making camp and the dry-dry socks I sleep in that NEVER leave the confines of the tent or their stuff sack. (I consider donning them one of the simple pleasures of each day!)

I do prefer rubber boots for autumn trips, I must confess.

[Bushman]

I have had my best luck using dive boots from West Marine, They do wonerfull job of keeping the rocks & stones out of that make for a painfull & anoyoing day. IMO well worth the $40.00 I paid.
Granted I do very little to no portaging & always bring a dry pair of sandles for after the paddle.
http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/producte/10001/-1/10001/318852/377%20710%20797/0/Aqua%20Socks/Primary%20Search/mode%20matchallpartial/0/0?N=377%20710%20797&Ne=0&Ntt=Aqua%20Socks&Ntx=mode%20matchallpartial&page=CategoryDisplayLevel1&isLTokenURL=true&storeNum=193&subdeptNum=533&classNum=533

[kayamedic]

I never ever wear open toed sandals..

A cut toe can be more than a nuisance.

Keen Sandals are OK, have a fair amount of support but still gravel comes in.. I wore them for two weeks in Wabakimi. Real annoyance on beaches though as in Florida.

Salomon Techphibians are OK but have a proprietary sole that is slippier than Merrell Waterpros, which have a vibram sole. Neither shoe is beefy enough for more than two months tripping.

So I go through a pair of water shoes a year and found that Crocs, those ugly things from China are really good camp shoes. They offer a lot of support if you buy them a size down.

I endure wet feet all day. I have to unload the boat in the water and sometimes there is no place to change. I used to wear hiking boots. I found that with the thick soles I had no feedback from the ground and sank or turned ankles more often than with a thinner soled shoe. I also tripped over my own feet more often. I dont wear hiking boots anymore.

If you dry your feet immediately on arrival at camp and use talcum powder, your skin will not break down.

I dont wear boots as I have to kneel in my boats. Boots are incredibly uncomfortable kneeling and lead to cramps.. My partner wore Chotas (which I do have for my pack boat) and got such bad cramps he could not pay attention to paddling last week on a whitewater run.

[Canadienne]

I’m a wetfooter and swear by Merrell Waterpro. I had my first pair for 6+ seasons and just bought the updated version last year. The new version is much lighter, but less rugged. They are what work for me since I can’t stand wet boots, rubber knee-highs, or open-toed sandal on portages.

[mngreg]

A couple years ago, I thought I had traveling footwear figured out, but was struggling with camp shoes. Today, I guess it’s vice versa.

Basically, I think Crocs are ideal camp shoes, for my purposes at least. Dorky as all get out, but I don’t paddle and camp to be fashionable. 🙂

Here’s what I like about Crocs as camp shoes:

• so lightweight, which counts for camp shoes when, by definition, they’re going to travel on your back on portages)
• toe protection. important in rocky canoe country.
• heel strap – they stay on one’s feet pretty well and don’t slip around. the heel strap also flips up so you can slip them on and off very easily, which is great for getting in and out of the tent.
• comfy in warm and cold. well-ventilated for damp feet and warm weather, roomy enough to put some wool socks on with on chilly nights.

So, Crocs do the job for me. Just don’t expect to see me wearing them around town.

A couple years ago, I was content with my 8″ Red Wing leather boots (with Gore-Tex) for traveling, but now I’m not so sure. The problem is that if I step into water over them (which, as the stern paddler at tricky portages/campsite landings, usually happens at least once a day) my feet are wet and they stay wet. And the boots usually don’t dry overnight. And they’re heavy as all get-out, so my legs and feet feel exceptionally tired by the end of the day (another reason it feels so good to put on Crocs).

I think I’m going to give Wellingtons a shot. I’ve been using them for early/late season canoeing outside of the BWCA and think they might work. My biggest concern is ankle support on portages.

Thanks for the information article and discussion. It is an interesting and enjoyable dilemma. 😀

[dapaddlers]

Converse hi top chuck taylors, with or without neoprene socks depending on water temperature.
Have tried specialty shoes but, keep comin’ back to Chucks.

[Beaverjack]

I’ve used Crocs and concur, except that steep grades around camp make them less-than acceptable as camp shoes in those instances. I’ve got some Chota Mukluks, but they’re too hot for summer use. The Keens are worthless for me due to the pebble issue. I have a hard soled neoprene shoe that is as good as anything in the boat, but for portages, a good hiking boot is worth the weight. I don’t think there’s a single footwear that will cover everything. If someone invents it, I’m in for as many shares as my pension fund will buy.

[WillisB]

I use water shoes when paddling, sandals in camp, and boots for long portages.

[JacquesTrekker]

I use the summer-lightweight Chotas on the trail; sneakers around camp; and sandals for a swim (new swimshoes are better to prevent a rock scrape or cut, i’m going there).

I’ve been over-the-top in both water and mud with the chotas and come away with dry-ish results; and no mud inside; due to the calf gasket – it works. These don’t provide great ankle support (but ankle bungee sinch-lines tighten it up pretty well); and the soles can feel a rock edge; but they’ve been fine on any portage i’ve taken. Over lunch I wring out the socks & wash & dry the feet, and only dampness heading back out. Never had jungle rot with them, but i wash my feet at lunch and at camp everyday no matter what boot I’m wearing.

Over the years, i have this problem no matter what boot I wear…the skin on the bottom of my feet peels after home about 3 weeks. This all heals up but not particularly fun.
Anyone else on this?

Jacques

[Sawyerman]

I have to say that footwear preference is still my biggest headache. What’s the perfect choice?

I’d rather keep my feet dry. I have weak ankles from years of sports (and the injuries that go along with them) so a tall lace up boot is so helpful. I suffer plantaar problems like Rob does and have had surgery on one foot to correct it so am stuck with pretty much having to wear orthotics which limits me to “shoe-like” footwear. I prefer to dry foot so I have found a good leather boot that has a waterproof membrane. I also insist on something with a good to great grip for those wet rocks and such on the lake shores and portage trails.

The best solution I have now is a pair of Lacrosse leather 9-10″ water proof boots that I mink oil the bejeebers out of for my canoe country travelling and a pair of old running shoes for around the camp. I’m still looking for better footwear but I can’t cover all possible situations and I think these will work best for me again this year.

[bamaboy]

Tevas, are my favorite, almost always have on a pair

[Garry]

Hi people! You really have experience using safety boots. There is an excellent overview of comparing heavy boots here. He helped me choose a pair of cool winter ice fishing boots. I like to go fishing with friends from time to time. Since you spend quite a lot of time in the air, your main task is to keep your feet warm so that they are dry and relatively isolated from the environment. Naturally, professional shoes can best cope with this task. My last choice is KAMIK MEN’S GREEN BAY 4 COLD WEATHER. They are great for me for several reasons – they keep my feet warm, there are no problems with the laces, there is a removable liner that is easy to dry and ventilate.

[Author]

Posts