I was thinking more of a lightweight trail shoe I could put in my pack when I'm going along more gentle stuff and save the boots for the rougher parts.
This is not a good idea because you have to put your heavy boots in your pack when wearing the lightweight trail shoes. The older I get, the lighter my pack gets, so I'm not going to carry 5# of boots in my pack. You will soon learn that one of your best friends is a good pair of strong hiking boots with Vibram soles and good ankle support whenever you are carrying a backpack, no matter what the terrain is like. I recommend that you pick one pair of hiking boots and stick with them.
Crocs are great for camp. I tie them on with a short piece of parachord when crossing streams so they can't fall off and float downstream.
KC