[pct-l] Debating about boots...How many?

[Eric Lee]

Joyce wrote:
>
I just went through this in my planning process. I hike in Lowa Renegade
boots and they do have Gortex in the uppers. There is very little break in
time. In fact I can't remember if my old ones (that I'm starting the trail
in) had any break in time. My current Lowas are 12 years old and I'm sure
don't have enough left in them to finish the trail so my question was, would
a 2nd pair do the trick. I called Lowa and found them surprisingly
responsive. We went through a full discussion of the new boot designs before
deciding that a 2nd pair would probably work.
>

I use and really like the Lowa Renegades as well.  For a leather boot,
they're surprisingly light and their design happens to agree very well with
my feet so I don't have blister problems.  (Well, I do tend to get blisters
on the balls of my feet without preventative measures but that happens
regardless of what kind of footwear I use and Kenesio-Tex tape takes care of
it.)

My feet and ankles are kind of messed up, bio-mechanically speaking, so I
tend toward a really aggressive heel-strike on the outside edges of my
heels.  That causes the soles to wear down on the outside of the heel far
before the rest of the sole or the upper has any serious wear on them.  That
happens in some amount to a lot of people but for me it's really pronounced.
I end up having to replace the boots because while they're still in good
shape elsewhere they lose the stability I'm using them for in the first
place.  In the past I've had to replace them once a year (mileage including
an annual 100-150 mile PCT section hike and the training leading up to that)
but this year I've been doing more walking as part of my commute and the
boots I bought last summer are about ready to be replaced now (again,
because of the stupid heel wearing out before anything else).

All of that to say that the mileage you get out of any set of footwear is
highly dependent on your body, how you walk, what kind of surfaces you walk
on, and what kind of support you need from your shoes/boots.  I suspect that
a lot of thru-hikers end up causing damage to themselves and ultimately put
their hikes at risk because they don't replace their footwear often enough.
Trail runners work great for a lot of people, boots work great for a some
people, but no footwear is helpful if it's worn out and unable to do the job
you need it to do.  I understand that a lot of people are on very tight
budgets but don't skimp on your shoes.  It's not worth it.  I'd say that on
average people get about 500-700 good trail miles out of their shoes.
They'll sometimes use them for a lot longer than that but they often end up
suffering for it.

Footwear is one of the most individual gear choices you can make and what
works for one person may be horrible for another, so don't make any
decisions based solely on someone else's recommendation.  If you've tried to
use a particular brand of boots and they consistently give you pain or
blisters, dump them and try something else.  A lot of people buy hiking
footwear too small - try going up a size or two.  Shoes that are too tight
cause blisters far more often than shoes that are too loose.  Goretex is ok
for some people but death for others.  Do what works for you.  Sadly, it can
be kind of expensive to experiment with but I don't know of any easy
shortcuts.

Eric