Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Lightweight vs heavy boots?

More videos i watch and reviews i read on various models and brands of boots, i question the weight of boots.


Brand XYZ, one review says it’s lightweight, one guy says it’s ok. One guy says heavy….

What’s it for you ?

I wear steel toe boots all day at work, so any thing less than would be lightweight for me. I walk each evening in a pair of Hoka Clifton’s.

25oz a boot?

20oz?

it seems always wet when i hunt in Minnesota plus most of the time i want to control my scent too,so i wear muck boots there easy on and off too . muck boots fit good i have walked many miles with muck boots on . i have light , medium and heavy insulated muck boots depends on the temp. and if i am going on a cold deer stand or walking. i seldom wear tie boots anymore but i always wear 2 pairs of socks , i do keep the inside of my boots dry with a boot dryer always.

BigDave;
Good morning to you sir, I hope that central Mississippi is getting appropriate weather and that you weren't affected by that tornado recently.

Boots...

When it comes to the topic of boots, one of the things I think that are missed a whole lot is the size of the person, thus the size of the boot because in my experience that makes a substantial difference.

We'll all talk about terrain, pack weight, wet or dry conditions, so that's helpful, but we seldom mention boot size.

Personally, I became aware of that as a factor years back when I bumped into another local sheep hunting and saw he had the same Canadian made boots on as mine. When I asked how he liked them, he said this was his second pair, that they were warranty because the first pair had broken on the welt with only a couple uses and the current pair looked like they were doing the same thing.

He was a big dude and I'm a little dude however, so my size 8½ boots were much, much stiffer than his size 12 or 13.

Now not all boots will be that way, but many are we've found.

We see that a lot in women's boots for sure too - that they're overly stiff in smaller sizes.

Now I've gone to Zamberlan Vioz GT boots since 2019 for early season boots and they're much lighter than my usual 11" tall Meindl boots.

The one downside is I get more spear grass seeds in them which is a pain. I could wear gaiters I know, but they're much warmer too which somewhat defeats the purpose for me.

Anyways, to wrap it up, if you have larger feet then you need to make sure that the lighter boots will still give you the support you require for the terrain you hope to traverse, you know?

Things I've noticed and all that.

Hope that made sense and was useful for you or someone out there.

All the best.

Dwayne

Dwayne,

Yes, we dodged the tornadoes.

As always, thanks for sharing your knowledge.


In my original post, i should have mentioned i was talking of hiking boots.

There’s plenty of choices, but it’ll be internet shopping for me, not real gear stores around here..

Pete, i do hunt in rubber boots. Dryshod brand.

BigDave;
Good afternoon sir, thanks for the reply.

I'm glad to read you were missed by the tornadoes for sure.

Sorry I wasn't more clear in my response and you were clear it was hiking boots.

That said, the lighter weight boots which might also give less support might be a stiff boot in say a size 7, just okay in a 10 and not give nearly enough support even for hiking on rough terrain in a 12 or 13.

Now I do get that I'm not answering your question head on, but using my lighter Zamberlan Vioz GT as an example, in my size and with my weight, they're fine for even medium heavy packs and some ugly sheep country - but - they might not be in a bigger size with a bigger user.

I apologize for perhaps over complicating the issue, but that's how I currently think those factors will affect what boot works for you.

In terms of do I feel better at the end of a tough stomp with lighter boots, yes absolutely.

Again, I'm a little old man though who is in decent to above average shape for someone who is in his early '60's.

Hope that makes a bit more sense.

Dwayne

PS extra thought.

For me using a walking stick - just an aluminum trekking pole has made at least as much difference as to how tired I don't feel as the lighter boots.

It was huge for me.

When weather is mild I wear trail runners like Salamon's and bring the wal-mart croks for stream crossings. Use to be a boot fanatic but boots gather dust now adays.

For hiking outside of hunting season it's trail runners (La Sportiva Akasha's); I tried trail runners as an experiment during hunting season and hauling meat and side-hilling make them no beuno

My hunting boots, while not really light, are relatively light for hunting boots- Crispi Thor II about 20 oz/boot in side 11. They are pretty stiff as well for a "lighter" boot, which I find I need in the mountains, especially with weight.

I used trail runners for the first time on a summer backpack scouting trip last year. It was awesome. For the actual hunt, I wore what I used to think of as my lightweight hikers. Those are Lowa Renegades. I think that I could have just used the trail runners for the hunt though.

I used to wear Kennetrek mountain boots for archery and rifle season. Then started using the Renegades for archery. Now I don't even own a heavy mountain boot. I've been using the Renegades in the snow.

Less boot is working for me, but I think it's taken some time for my feet to adapt. I think wearing Croc-type flips did something weird to one of my feet. Since I ditched those cushy sandal things my foot seems a lot better.

I wore a pair of Scarpa Rios for years. Went through 3 pairs of soles. Loved them, but they were quite heavy. Don’t know what they weighed, but the Rio was an old school leather mountaineering boot.

Now I am quite content with cheap lightweight hikers or trail running shoes. If it’s very wet, or cold and snow, I’ll wear pac’s or xtratuf’s.

My biggest bitch with most newer, more mountain oriented, boots is the narrowness of the sole. My ankles are pretty schit and regardless of the stiffness of the boot, the narrow soles seem to role my ankles far more than a cheap pair of nylon Costco “hiking boots”

Count me in the movement towards light, low-top hiking shoes. I’ve done a lot of miles (500+) in low-top Solomon X-Ultra’s.

In my opinion and experience, this general type of shoe is the far better mousetrap.

I know the standard refrain in service of big tall clunky boots is ankle protection. But consider this. Your ankle is a critical part of the biomechanics of your leg as it articulates and flexes moment by moment to adjust to vagaries in the terrain. That’s a GOOD thing. It’s why evolution put the dang thing there. Reducing your ankle’s ability to flex doesn’t reduce the forces acting on your leg as it’s dealing with terrain; it just requires OTHER parts of your leg and body to compensate; knee, hip, foot, back, etc. That ain’t ideal.

If you’re still wearing big boots, the 70’s called, they want them back <g>.

If I’m just out trail hiking I like lightweight trail shoes. Right now I’m using a pair of “ON” trail shoes and I really like them. Very light and comfortable. I even took them last year on my sheep hunt to use for crossing creeks and camp shoes. They’re light and seem to dry quickly.

If I’m mountain hunting I wear a leather boot. Meindl, Lowa, Kennetrek.
My favorite pair for mountain boots was Lowa Cevedale Tech Light Hunters. They were awesome. I’m a size 8 foot and not a big guy and these boots were light but with good stiffness under foot for heavy loads and good ankle mobility. They had narrower soles than other boots in the same size and with the good ankle mobility I felt very agile and comfortable in rocks. Only problem was they leaked like crazy right from new. I wore them way past their expiry date because of how good they felt. My sheep partner threatened to throw them away because my feet were soaked all the time ha ha. I really like the Kennetrek Hard Scrabble I have now, but they are heavier and wider sole so don’t feel as agile. But no wet feet anymore.

When cold weather deer hunting I wear Hoffman 14” Pac boots or a pair of Helly Hansen light weight winter boots.
The Hoffman’s are tall and very heavy but warm, good traction and good protection from getting wet.

The HH boots are extremely light and flexible like a shoe, and not as rugged as the Hoffman.

I seem to wear both depending on what I’m doing.

A lot of great info..

Thanks.


Guess i should have put in OP,

At what weight do you consider light vs heavy?

It’s subjective i know, just trying to get a reference to compare reviews with…

One guys heavy is anther guys lightweight… vice versa.


Take for example the scarpa Kalaish trek gtx,

Bills video says it’s lightweight.
Jim’s video says they are heavy…

i walk every day a mile or more and mostly outside i wear a size 13 light insulated muck boots ,2 pairs of socks and about 6 months a year we have snow i have no choice but to wear boots , so for me muck boots work great ,are really tuff and fit well too. its rare for dry weather where i live and right now we still have plenty snow will be weeks before its gone. i have wore muck boots in the wet snowy mountains all day long too. when you talk boot weight i worry more about dry and warm feet . i was a REA lineman / pole climber for 35 years in northern Minnesota so i understand boots and boots were important for me to have good boots always 7 days a week . this year i turn 70 years of age we climbed all poles in all weather conditions day or night we had no buckets my 1st 20 some years so lineman had to have real good boots . good luck with your choice,Pete53

It kind of depends on what you're using them for IMO. For my one and only sheep hunt in AK I wore a pair of Hanwag GTX's and those are right at 26 oz. each. I consider those lightweight especially for that application.

In a hunting boot anything sub 20oz is super light. I wear Crispi lapponia’s. They are 19oz. Best boot I have ever owned.

Have two pair. Stiff, but comfortable after a little break in.
Both have leaked. One badly.

Going back to Mendel perfects.

Your low tops should be almost perfect for you on a rocky side hill...

And therein lies the rub. What's best for your uses usually won't be best for mine.

smokepole;
Top of the morning to you once more sir, I hope the day's behaving down in Colorado for you all and you're well.

Indeed that is always the rub isn't it?

When we're comparing notes, it's tough to articulate all the variables.

Little canyon on the mountain behind the house for instance.



If we're hunting deer and it bails off the grassy section and drops off the cliffs into the rocks below, our day just got a tad more complicated and gear selection changed or might could do anyways.

Personally my tall Meindl boots sit behind the pickup seat complete with fresh sets of socks so at very least when I get back to it with the first load I can change it up if need be.

Oh, we hunt moose up on the grass too and if a bull did a death run over the edge, our plan is to move down to the carcass for a couple days and make jerky out of the entire thing...

Best to you all this Easter.

Dwayne

If your dumb enough to shoot anything bigger than a Cotton Tail, on the edge of that Canyon, forget the Boots, take some match's and build a fire and eat the critter down there. the hell with packing it out.I've never been that hungry or Dumb. Rio7

LOL, that's one way to look at it. The other way is to lace up your boots and get to work.


Thanks for posting Dwayne, beautiful country.

I have big feet, size 13, so I try to avoid heavy/bulky footwear as I don't need feet looking any bigger than they are and it makes driving more difficult too with jumbo boots on the pedals. In my experience, heavy footwear typically uses inferior quality components, as in outerwear, you pay a premium for lightweight. Every additional ounce on your feet compounds with every step adding to fatigue. My order of preference is fit/utility/weight as boots have to fit properly and do the job you have in mind.

Just like my hunting clothing, I prefer to eliminate weight whenever I can, going from heavy wool bids and jackets to KUIU has been a game changer to me, never going back! Same can be said for heavy, bulky boots. I've gone from wearing rubber pull-on mudders to my hiking boots with gaiters. Lighter, more comfortable, easier to walk in-cover more ground and the gaiters keep the could air from working up your pantleg and keeping your upper boots and pantlegs dry.

RIO7;
Good afternoon sir, I hope the day's been behaving for you down in your section of Texas and you're well.

Thanks for the chuckle, I appreciate it!

That little canyon is up on the mountain behind the house here. In fact the bluff in the center rear of the photo is just down the road from where I'm sitting. I can pretty much see the spot I took the photo from when I'm at the top of our driveway.

We're not as steep and rough as some of the coastal mountains or the Kootenays for that matter.

When we were mountain goat hunting up in the Stikine country which is just off the Alaska panhandle, there were a couple occasions where we just laughed at the goats we were watching because from our vantage point we absolutely could not conceive how they'd got there!

For sure I've never been the sharpest tool in the drawer and while I have been hungry on occasion, even while hunting, I'd say that mostly we hunt in those areas to test ourselves.

Honestly it felt pretty good to be working the same places I had in my 30's and being able to still keep up with one of our crew who was not even 30 yet and I'd just had my 60th birthday.

Different strokes and all that I suppose.

All the best and thanks again for the chuckle.

Dwayne

I don't really consider weight when picking boots. Usually its non-insulated vs Insulated. I used la sportiva karakorum's all last year and have Zamberlan Mountain Pro EVO GTX RR for when it gets real cold.

Bought some la sportiva aequilibrium's for this summer/early season this year.

They are. Note ankle doing it’s thang.

To me, a trail runner is light. A medium hiker for trails, like a Lowa Renegade or Salomon Quest, is mid weight. Off trail boots like Kenetrek mountain boots or Crispi Nevadas are heavy.

I consider anything above a medium hiker "heavy" but that wouldn't stop me from using them if needed. And I don't feel like there is a huge weight penalty going from a trail runner to a Renegade or Quest. Sure, there is a measurable difference but I don't really notice it.

I do know what you mean though. The Nevada seems noticeably heavier than a comparable Kenetrek but neither are light. Maybe that is just getting too picky.

I’d just say folks should try a pair of the modern light hikers/trail runners. Just try them. I’ve been backpacking for almost 50 years; I have a closet full of boots. I’m not saying this based on a trend or a whim, it’s based on experience. I’ve backpacked well over 500 miles in VERY rugged terrain in the last few years in those Solomons. And in mere days I leave for an 800 mile backpacking trip in very rugged terrain, and that’s what I’ll be wearing. Think some about what I said about the biomechanics of the leg. Don’t take the ankle out of the equation. Your knees, hips, and body in general will thank you. And you’ll feel like a kid out there without the clunky boots.

Just try ‘em.

First of all, nothing has to be heavy if there is a lightweight version that works. Then must get trekking poles to help. I hunt and hike in some of the steepest terrain and prefer low tops trail shoe over boot. Boot if strong in the right places can save your ankles but you are more prone to fall on your knees or hit your head falling without giving in the ankle first. Boot can be useful for snow. The determination for me is usually heavy snow. Gators can help but not so much on low top. Your ankles should be strong. If your ankles are strong and free moving range you will be more sure footed.

x2

Don't listen to this guy. If he was any good at backpacking, he'd have gotten there by now.

I’m hopelessly lost, but making good time!

Was just talking with my dad last night about our first actual backpacking trips. He’s thinking it was ‘77. The dude carried a half-gallon of milk the very first time, I kid you not. Lord only knows what else we were carrying. Hey, I was a kid. I blame him, haha. I remember my pack was some janky old thing checked out from the outdoor program at the college he taught at, same with the greasy stinky old flat sleeping bag, etc….. And I remember it was really hard, it hurt, got blisters, froze my ass off that night, and whatever I had for a sleeping pad, wasn’t.

Within a few years we had our gear much more together (for the era anyway) and my younger brother got old enough to start coming along. That was when we’d get up into the Pecos, the San Juans, I don’t remember where else. Put me in the wilderness with a creek and my rod and a few Panther Martins and I was in heaven.

I sure hope kids these days are getting these experiences, but I fear they aren’t.

I’ll have a pack on in just a few days. 7 weeks, 800+ miles. Maybe this time I’ll finally “get there”. Jeez, I hope not. Then what?!

You've got it all wrong. It's not "then what?"

It's "what then?"

Ha! Perfect! Love it!

I like lightweight boots for hiking. My heavy boots are pacs and swampers that are for other purposes.

For general hiking I like trail runners. I want something sturdy enough that my feet are well protected but I’ve never found myself needing the ankle support of a boot even back when I wore hiking boots. The freedom of movement and nimbleness in a shoe height hiker along with not having sweaty ankles is more than worth it to me.

That's me pretty much word for word.

Moreover, starting about 25, maybe 30 years ago, I began developing heel spurs. They've been surgically repaired so they are no longer ripping my achilles tendons open from the bottom (Haglund's Deformity) but I still have very protruding heel knobs. I cannot wear high top boots with the standard fairly vertical back anymore. I'm good for a couple hundred yards then my feet are disabled, trashed, for a period of days. Mediums are marginally better, I can go a couple miles a day or 3-4 miles then sit for a couple days to recover. With low tops I'm good for .. well, my heels aren't a hindrance anyway. I've done 20+ a number of times without problems .. or without heel problems. 20+ kicks my geezerly arse. Among low tops, weight does have an impact so far as fatigue. Lighter is mostly better but not taken to extremes. A shoe with good cushion will be heavier than one with none. There are good ounces and bad ounces.

The shoes I hike (and hunt, and fish, and explore, and whatever else) are mostly around a pound a pair. I've got some down around 6-7 ounces for the pair but they have no padding at all. They have a place but it isn't every place.

For general purpose, wear around town, wear on the trails, wear off in the woods, for me Merrell MOAB Ventillator low tops get the nod most of the time. If things are wet, I will switch to the waterproof version. I have a couple pair of mid height that I wear about 2 hours a year. For wet grass 'n' stuff I go with the waterproof low tops and gaiters. The only time I really NEED boots anymore are with snow shoes.

i prefer to protect my ankles and also get some ankle support too so short tennis shoes or real short boots for myself i never buy anymore . i have experienced a damage ankle and cuts from rocks , a broken ankle when i was young so give me a high top something for better protection.

Should be perfect in 6 inches of snow. Or when it’s not supposed to snow, but…..

Tried something similar once when I left for a winter day hunt and left my boots at home. Didn’t last long till my feet, socks and low riders were all soaking wet in 15-20F.

battue;
Top of the morning to you sir and Happy Easter, it's been a long time since we've chatted here and I trust time has been good to you overall in the interim.

You bring up a good point regarding "Or when it's not supposed to snow, but..."

We've got the luxury of looking up at the mountain behind the house most times and if it's got a fresh dusting of white, we'll dress and also drive accordingly.

Over the years we've seen the weirdest weather swings, even in the heat of summer when a hail storm dropped the temps from shirt sleeve to what felt like freezing with almost a half inch of hail on the ground.

Last fall we had no fall to speak of either, it went from full on summer with temps in the 30°C range in mid September to -10°C and snow up to my knees on the moose opener which is Nov. 01st. Now that much snow there isn't unusual, but it's typically not that depth until Christmas.

While we did see that it had snowed, we didn't understand just how very much it had snowed until we attempted to get into where we'd planned to look for a legal spike bull, only to find we were pushing snow with the front bumper.

It's been a good discussion here and I hope one and all find comfortable footwear and have a great season in the backcountry, wherever it is they find it.

Happy Easter to you all too.

Dwayne

Try a set of gaiters.

Low tops are no fun in deep snow- conceded.

“Boots” have their place. Just not on my feet in 99% of the circumstances I’m hiking.

Just put a brand new pair of Solomon X-Ultras in the resupply box that’ll be waiting for us at around the 500 mile mark. The pair I start out with- and will do the first 500 in- are gonna be wet for weeks. We cross a river over 200 times in one stretch of about a week’s hiking. Not kidding. No point in getting jiggy with it, changing shoes every 10 minutes….. Wet shoes it shall be. I’m not worried about the shoes per se but we need to average about 15 miles/day so I am worried what my feet are gonna do, banging big miles while wet. At that point we’ll be at least 3 weeks/ 300 miles in, so hopefully they’ll be hardened up… although it’s the hard spots (callouses) I’m worried about being wet for that long….

Of COURSE I tweaked my knee yesterday doing spring yard work trying to get the place in order to leave for so long. Greeeaaat.

Dwayne,

And Easter wishes to you and yours also. May Spring be springing in you area....It is trying hard here.

My only point would be the old saying "One size doesn't fit all". Some have weak ankles, some have had damage, some may have diabetic neuropathy where the ankles, shins and even calves can use some extra assistance. Some may hunt in low land slush or push cattails for Pheasants on a regular basis. Some may hunt the snow often. Others may even prefer some of the excellent supportive rubber options that are more common today. All situations where low hikers may not be the best choice..

Agree, shoe fit and preference is the very definition of personal and to your point, situational.

To my point if I described the things I’ve done in the last few years in detail the vast majority of guys would say oh you need big supportive boots for that! Just sort of by rote, they’d say it… “everyone knows…”, they’d say. And they’d be wrong.

I think the demographic here skews “older’n dirt” and might in essence medically require certain things from a shoe. But for the younger, fitter guys reading this… if I can save you a decade or two of unnecessary suffering and encumbrance then I will have done good work here today.

It’s for the children, battue. The children. 😎

There are LW boots with ankle support and LW Low cuts. You always seeming to relish playing the role of the contrarian, I'm not surprised what you choose. However, both boots in your pics would definitely be classified as hikers and not a Mountain hunting boot. At least not by the majority of those who go into the mountains during hunting season, and you would be old in the tooth compared to those who make a living at it, when the weather may be fickle. Anyway, in your pic was there a trail close by or were you constantly climbing the rocks you chose for you BA pic? The children would like to know. Since your activity....verified by pics and timing.... seems to be more along the lines of summer trekking rather than actual mountain hunting.

As this is the backpacking subforum on a hunting forum….

I think I’m the realm of hunting big game, with the possibility of packing meat- lightweight trail runners aren’t going to cut it. I’ve bagged a ton of peaks in Montana in trail runners, ditto racking up tons of 20-30 mile days backpacking. The weight on my back ranging from 5-30 lbs, it’s basically the only footwear I use in those endeavors.

Now with hunting big game, I’ve found that very lightweight boots and trail runners simply don’t cut it for hauling 70# loads. Simply isn’t enough stiffness and your footwear will roll over itself, especially side hilling.

I do look for the very lightest boots to accomplish that, but I don’t think I’d classify these boots as “lightweight”; lightweight among mountain boots, but not “lightweight” in the realm of hiking shoes/boots.

If there are folks capable of packing meat (in rough terrain) in very light hikers and trail runners- I tip my hat

battue- yes, I’m a contrarian among contrarians. That should just be an auto-.sig on the Campfire.

That pic is from the JMT in the high Sierra Nevada. If I get a chance I’ll post a few more pics that show the trail; but it’s over 220 miles long so, y’know…. 90% of your footfalls are on granite up there. It’s not a trail in the common sense. To your point, neither is it OFF-trail, although I’ve done tons of that in general in low top hikers. To my point, on the JMT your footfalls can be at any angle. Speaking for myself and I believe anyone with reasonably functional ankles…. Let them dogs RUN! Let the ankle flex and do its thing. It’s why it’s THERE. Millions of years of evolution are not wrong.

Mike- if weather allowed (I’m not wearing low tops into snow) I’d pack in in the Solomons, hunt in them, and pack the first load out in them. And have my stiffer, high top Solomon’s at the truck if I felt I needed to swap.

Y’all know I’m jinxing the effin’ F out of myself here and now I’m gonna sprain an ankle on my upcoming hike. 😂

100%...

Our steep rocky desert mountains even with little to
no weight on your back literally eat lite hikers. I've tried multiple pair of top shelf light hikers and they don't come close to cutting it...

Well if you'd stay out of the sotol and yucca, you might get more mileage......


JK, I like light hikers for day hikes on trails but anything else I use a boot. Never know what you might come across when you go cross-country.

That's where I'm at too.

I wear the lightweight trail hikers for kicking around the yard, and light duty trail hiking in dry weather. Problem is they don't hold up well at all if the going gets tough and wet conditions. The Gore-tex Salomon stuff that I wear, usually leak right out of the box. All that said, they are comfortable and I do like them for easy duty hiking.

What brand / model do you use?

Thanks for all the replies.. good info here.

I realize that what works for one person may not work for another. So I'm curious what you guys define as "light hikers". Some examples of shoes would be appreciated, for reference.

ETA - From what I have read in the thread, light hikers are not suitable for hunting. So what shoes or shoe class is enough for "hunting" off trail?

I'm looking forward to the replies as my opinion has definitely changed over the years. And I don't pretend to have all the answers.

I’ve settled into Crispi Thors, they fit me like they were made for me. Good stiffness, good outsoles, but relatively light.

When it comes to boots, fit is king. That is the top priority.

Boots are unique to the individual. I've not tried them all but I've tried a bunch. Kenetreks are my favorite fit, but they don't last me a year unfortunately.

I'm almost at 2 years with these. To me these are a sturdy boot, with a lightweight "feel" and have held up pretty dang well. They are Scarpa SL Actives..

GregW;
Happy Easter and good morning to you sir, I hope all is well with you and yours.

Thanks for the photos and the boot reports as well.

The slice marks on your boots speak volumes about where you're going and the type of rocks too. They're not all the same somehow or at least our BC rock slides don't seem to be.

We used to have a shop that stocked Kennetrek an hour north of us, but they don't apparently anymore and for us to order boots by mail just becomes problematic. I've actually heard similar reports about them not lasting from some of the folks up here who wander off the beaten path.

As I'd mentioned, the Zamberlan Vioz GT I got feel great, but I can't help but think they're not going to last super long without a rand, which is too bad but that's life.

The last thing I'll throw out as a bit of a broad statement or perhaps a question is that the German made boots always fit me just a wee bit different than the Italian made ones.

Our eldest daughter is my usual hunting partner and my wife and I offered to get her some new good quality hunting boots for a birthday present. As an aside, I find it really tough to get presents for our adult girls now, so we'll often do something akin to that - have them pick what they want/need.

Anyways she ended up with Scarpa boots I want to say and I thought they were really well made.

Thanks again for sharing your experience with us, I enjoy learning about conditions in parts of the planet I've never seen personally.

Happy Easter and all the best.

Dwayne

Have *multiple* choices when choosing your loadout:


Firearms/ammunition.

Apparel.

Tents.

Packs.

Boots.

Fuels/stoves.

Knives/tools/hydration/navigation, etc. etc.

Transport.

Back up

Plan B and C.


Never be confused again.

have you tried altra trail runners?

Looks like AZ eats up boots fairly quick.

I like midweights. I need as much ankle support as i can get with soft ground. Lowa Tibets for me. I do my daily 3 mile walk in them and hunt in them. In my area, everything gets wet and saturated. Keeping water out of them is the key to keeping things light.

Hey folks. Hope this finds you well. We are 3 weeks/ about 350 miles into our hike; so far so good. Averaging a bit over 15 miles/day per our plan. Did over 180 river crossings (Gila) some waist deep and fast… was very glad to have easy ankle articulation. The next section, north to Grants, has lots of sharp lava and I’m thinking I’ll have my house sitter send my next pair of Solomons in that resupply box. That’ll be around 450 miles on this first pair. They won’t be “done”, but the resupply after that is kind of sketchy as far as delivery. I already did a comical pad rodeo trying to get replacement sent ahead after my BA failed catastrophically in the desert south of Lordsburg… you can’t always count on deliveries to some of the remote places that accept hiker boxes etc.

I’m in cahoots with scores of other CDT hikers, some doing huge miles a day (25+)…. this is freaking NM on the geological continental divide; it’s rugged as hell. Every single one is wearing low tops. Every single one. Just sayin.

GFY

I agree with other posters - fit, so it does not rub feet / squeeze toes or slip and cause heel blisters.

But if walking over steep and uneven ground, plus carrying load, support is important.

Due to living in a wet country, I would add waterproof boot performance too. Wet feet quickly get cold, plus blisters / infections.

I can comfortably pack in a week's worth of hunting gear up a trail wearing lightweight merrell trail runners. I also use those for getting quickly up a trail or up a hill in the morning as they're easier on everything than boots. But I put real boots on at the top, and wear boots period for packing meat.

I'm not too sure that boot weight is super relevant used in this way. The old norwegian welt type is very heavy to hump up a hill, but a real godsend for packing meat down. Newer ultralight Charmoz or La Sportiva types are fine but they don't keep you upright like the old leather, having used both. The UL sportivas almost have a hinge at the ankle which gets annoying on a sidehill, no matter how tightly tied.

We are approaching 600 miles in, and I just ran the numbers, we are averaging 15.3 miles/day for the last 36 days with (1) zero day in Grants for Cyn to rest an injury. Very tan, very skinny, trail legs are rockin’. The very sharp young lava south of Grants in Malpais (sp) monument tore the top mesh my right shoe pretty good- I’ll post a pic later. I repaired it with 120-lb braided fishing line from my halibut reel that I carry for just this reason, and first a fishhook, then in Grants a heavy duty curved needle, so now it’s Frankenboot. It’s been holding for, hmmm, about 150 miles across all manner of terrain so I’m hoping it can do the last stretch here w/o drama. REI won’t fast-ship to general delivery so I couldn’t get new ones sent ahead in time, then I had no signal for a week+….

Great community of folks here on the CDT. Some really impressive hikers- people doing way more miles/day than we are.

(sensitive types, read no further)

In a hotel room in north NM, gonna go hit up the weed shop. In a world where personal freedoms rarely win the day, by God this one DID, and since I spent my misspent youth avoiding getting popped here in NM with weed, buying some legally, here, is gonna be pretty sweet.

Got home yesterday. The summary is 600+ miles hiked, 15 miles/day average with one zero day, started 4/11 and finished a couple days ago. We went from the border at Crazy Cook monument to Ghost Ranch in northern NM. We weren’t able to do the last section to the CO border, roughly 100 trail miles, due to the massive snow load in the southern Rockies. We did get a good taste of it going from Cuba up and over San Pedro Parks Wilderness. Unbelievably wet up there. Postholing thigh deep. Got caught in a storm. Very cold, very wet. There’s a reason folks stay out of the high country during big melts- it’s miserable up there. Not much fun; we felt better about the decision not to proceed into the mountains north of Ghost Ranch.

As pertains to this thread and as promised, my shoe. I ended up using the same pair for the whole hike. I would’ve switched out after this damage but it wasn’t feasible. The logistics of gear problems on the trail are formidable. Will explain if anyone cares. So, this happened on very sharp lava and falls under the operator error category- with the obvious caveat that a more stoutly-constructed (heavier) shoe would’ve likely fared better. When it first happened I naively tried to reinforce it with Tenacious Tape, which is remarkable stuff, but not THAT remarkable.



When we got to the ranger station at Malpais we sat at a picnic table and I was able to use a #8 fishhook as a needle and reinforce that very important rubber “finger” with a single loop of heavy braided fishing line. This was really difficult. It held until Grants, about 40-50 miles if memory serves.



In Grants we did our zero day so my wife could try to get her injured toe to calm down (it did not) and I bought a heavy curved repair needle at Walmart and did this. The mesh isn’t really structural per se, but it still seemed wise to back up the loops I put in the rubber “finger”.



When we got home yesterday the grass was thigh-high so I mowed in them. The repairs are still holding. In total the repairs held for almost 200 miles over all manner of terrain and many water and snow crossings.



FWIW, nobody and I mean nobody was using anything other than low tops. Mostly Altras. One guy used them with an ankle brace because he “has had a bad ankle since he was a kid”…… make of this intel what you will.

I lost 20 pounds on this hike. Hit the scale at 186 yesterday. I never thought I’d see 180-anything again in this life! Got seriously tan. Pics upon request. It was an incredible adventure.

Happy trails everyone.

Congrats to you and your wife- sounds like a fun, but tough adventure .

Thanks! The hiking itself wasn’t as relentlessly steep and rocky as say the high Sierra Nevada’s. But on balance, we felt it lived up to its reputation as a difficult hike. Parts of it were certainly really hard. Not the least of which was over 180 crossings of the Gila which was in flood. Waste-high fast cold water with strainers downstream will get your attention… especially when it’s x180. That’s where Cyn hurt her toe (rock fall) and it’s a bit miraculous I never hurt or tweaked anything. It was hard to leave the trail after all those miles and all that time. You get addicted; it’s pulling you north..… We met a bunch of great folks, of all stripes and some as old as us, and are rooting hard for them to make it to Canada. Statistically, most will not.

On the flipside… our bed at home feels goooood, lol, and eating real food is da bomb.

I had major sleeping pad issues combined with major logistical issues resolving said problems and ended up with some informed opinions about several different setups. I’m gonna dig up the post I made several years ago about older guys/backpacking pads and update it with what I learned.

Gorilla tape.

I carry a few turns around a water bottle.

Never low tops on boulders, scree and talus.

Nice repair job.

I carry waxed floss for sutures (loose), repairs etc.

Thanks. No tape was gonna hold that, not for almost 200 miles…. I also carry some Gorilla clear repair tape around a trekking pole. Had to use it on my Frogg Toggs ultralight* before San Pedro. Also, if you’ve never tried Tenacious Tape, it’s pretty amazing stuff for gear repair.

Cyn carries floss for that same reason. I carry heavy braided fishing line from one of my halibut reels. The problem here was that the needle she carries wasn’t touching the hard rubber of the Salomon’s. I now have a kit of much heavier needles- including curved- which I’ll winnow down to just a couple before the next big trip. Got it at Walmart in Grants.

We did a lot of boulders, scree, and talus. And everything else. The geological diversity of NM is off the charts. I do realize, I have awesome ankles, knock on wood, and not everyone does. I still believe everything I typed about these low light shoes for most guys for most backpacking.

*Frogg Toggs ultralight jackets are an amazing value and are very very light, and after 35+ years in a very wet climate i have an experience-based skepticism about the latest greatest waterproof/breathable wünderfabrics, and am loathe to spend the big bucks on them. However, they (Frogg Toggs ultralight) are very fragile.

Just gotta show this. We are on top of a big mesa here; I’m on the edge of a cliff. This is about 500 miles in. Now that’s a tan! My body knew just what to do in that sun- from growing up in NM I suppose. However it really trashed my skin on for example the backs of my hands. I have some pics that would make my dermatologist puke.

That REI sun shirt was awesome.

Yeah, used tenacious on a rainfly damaged in a windstorm.

Still Tenacious.

No mention by me that it would last the claimed """" 200 miles"""".

If you thought those crap shoes would last you 200 miles in that terrain...get some training.

Nice work, Jeff! Sounds like a fun trip.

They lasted 600+ miles total, and other than me catching the mesh on a sharp lava “gut hook” did fine even in the lava. And even THEN, they were structurally intact enough w/o any repairs to have gotten me to Grants where if I’d been willing to pay exorbitant shipping, or spend another day or two in a motel, I could’ve had a new pair waiting. They are excellent shoes and I highly recommend them, if they fit a guy. Full stop. I’ve been using them for several years now, both the regular and goretex versions. Over 1k miles of backpacking, from Hell’s Canyon to the Sierra Nevada to NM. I also have a closet full of “boots” and backpacking experience with them going back to the 70’s.

Put bluntly, in my experience what you describe as “training” is flat wrong for most actual backpackers. I do agree that there are *some* hunting conditions that warrant a more heavily-constructed shoe.

Horse/water and all that. Do as you see fit.

Hey Jordan! Been too long. Thanks! It was a remarkable experience. Still processing it.

Really nice trip Jeff, thanks for sharing. I've been using Salomon X-Ultras for the last ten+ years, and will NEVER go back to boots for backpacking. I think I have four pairs currently but I'm quitting them this year to try a pair of Hoka's (yeah I know, fuggly!). I'm curious to see if any of the hype is real - we'll see. There have been a lot of negative reports about the durability of the current X-Ultra you used, but I'd say yours did just fine, despite needing repair. Also, the idea that any tape would have fixed that shoe gave me a chuckle. Yours was the right solution, and is why I carry a super heavy needle/thread for just such a problem. Dental floss works too. I've also been carrying Tenacious tape for years. As you say, the stuff really works.

Any experience with 7-strand paracord?

TFF!

Brad, the Salomon’s (I also have some heavier mid-height boots from them) fit me like they were made for me… that, plus as you say it’s not like Altra’s or Hoka’s are going to get any traction (no pun) around here due to cosmetics, whereas at least the Salomon’s look “tuff enuff” that your basic ‘Fire denizen might at least consider them. So that’s why I’ve been pimping the Salomon’s in particular. Because truth is, the folks actually banging huge miles are using Hoka, Altra, and a couple others pretty much exclusively. Goofy-looking shoes, for sure. We had multiple conversations on gear with other CDT hikers as you can imagine… the single, overriding consideration is “does it WORK?”. It’s a reality-based endeavor. People backpacking huge miles every single day for months are not hung up on cosmetics.

On that note, I had to chuckle at SJ’s comment that I should get some training. Talk about being stuck in a mental rut and not even having a glimmer…. Training from WHOM? Why the heck would I listen to some “trainer” regurgitating decades-old pap? I’m in my late 50’s and just hiked over 600 miles with one day off in almost 7 weeks while averaging 15 miles a day. I’m all ears when it comes to intel from other experienced folks but, I mean, I are one.

A few more pics. Look at my hand. Zoom in. That spot on my index finger would re-split every day. That’s a trekking pole callous on my inner thumb. My skin is a disaster. There wasn’t much to be done about it other than, maybe, even MORE sunscreen and lotion. I don’t know. It was so dry and the sun was so intense…



Water was a major “thing”. It was over 120 trail miles from the Mexican border before we hit the first actual creek. Prior to that, it was water caches in the desert maintained by the CDT association and other “trail angels”, and cow water. Lots and lots of cow water. Here’s Cyn getting some. We- and everyone else- used a Sawyer filter. There’s a hint. Also, Smart Water bottles. There’s another.



There’s a lot of old stuff in NM. This was at the TLC Ranch; they maintain a water cache and let hikers camp on their land.



Water was NOT a problem in the Gila canyon, other than crossing the river over 180 times. Stunningly gorgeous. The tree is an Arizona Sycamore and is huge beyond the photo’s ability to communicate.







Yours truly, so that Mike can make fun of my “classic” old capilene leggings! Actually he’s off doing huge things of his own right now.

More shoe stuff. This is at the Toaster House in the tiny non-town of Pie Town. That’s the Wall of Shoes. Sorry for the bad pic. We ate major pie in Pie Town. It’s what you do. If you google Toaster House there's a lot there. Very cool story & place. If you dig around (early May) you’ll find a pic of Cyn and I in front of a really old truck.



These are my shoes/socks day 3 in the Gila canyon. It froze hard that night. My shoes and socks are stiff as boards. Had to put them on… and wade back into the icy river. This brings up another comment. Shoes/socks used on a hike of this type need to be able to a) function wet and b) dry quickly. Gore-Tex or leather would be a disaster.



And another comment. My Salomon’s were incredibly durable- everywhere except that top mesh. Many was the time I’d scrape them hard against something really sharp and look down expecting damage and there was nary a mark. In other words, absolutely zero “chunking”. My wife’s Altra’s were a different story. They are made of much softer rubber and kind of “eroded” as the trip went on. I’ll find them and take a pic.

Our filtration system. Dirty bag, Sawyer, clean bag. Requires a cheap adaptor- details on request. You can also use a Smart Water bottle to squeeze through to another one. You will not wear out the very light, incredibly durable Smart Water bottle. Big hint. . Geez, I sound like Larry. First pic is the Chama, where that water came from… I was carrying a Tenkara rod and planned on catching some trout there- which I used to do in the 70’s there as a kid- but obviously that wasn’t happening. You can see Cyn getting water if you look closely.



The Sawyer is awesome. Look at that. That’s after 6+ weeks of filtering god only knows what. Same filter… Never so much as funny-smelling farts from bad water.

Jeff, looks like you're using a cnoc bag for your dirty? In over 25 years of backpacking here in Montana, I've never treated water. One of the benefits of living here. Even on a 3 mos long Appalachian Trail trip in 1977 I think I treated water only twice (back then it was Halazone). But much of the CDT is another story, and there's no way I'd be drinking in cattle country without a Sawyer, BeFree, et al.

Yeah, goretex in hiking shoes is a zero. I quit buying them with it a few years back. I still use my goretex ones for spring snowshoeing, but that's about it. Same here on the Ultra's, they fit me great and I love the lace system! I'm just wanting to try something with more cushion, and the Hoka seems like the ticket. We'll see. Both the Altra's I've seen on trail, and those of friends, have left me unimpressed durability-wise. I'd like to see your wife's.

Yeah, CNOC for dirty and EverNew for clean and then the blue adaptor you see. Hang it, set up the Duplex or whatever, gravity does the work and there’s 2 liters clean water.

We tried a BeFree and it was the BEST…. Until it stops working. The Sawyer is field-maintainable but the BeFree really isn’t.

FWIW, the goretex X-Ultra’s are really good shoes. I toggle between those and the regular ones depending on the season; we have very wet winters here and they do a good job of keeping my socks dry on day hikes and around the property in the wet grass and weeds and so on. But for through-hiking type stuff, no way. They’d never dry out. They’d get really stinky.

I’ll track down her Altra’s and snap a pic—

The erosion I was talking about. These were new at the beginning so this wear is after the same 600+ miles as my Salomons.

As folks are looking at this, and judging the brand, please contemplate what 600 miles really means in this context. 600 miles is considered solid mileage to get from shoes in a through-hiking context.



The treads:



Turns out, one can buy a decent set of heavy repair needles for just a few bucks at WalMart:



And this is my dog, lol. My new phone keeps spitting these slideshows at me from my pics and I went “awwww!” and screen-shot this as it went by. She was pretty happy to see us when we got back.

El toro poo poo.

600 miles (in your pack).

Maybe you're thinking of the Maypop brand tires you bought for you rice-powered truck.

LOL, sheriff Joe, the hiking pice.

Jeff, lets see the sole wear on the bottom of the Salomon's if you don't mind...

Train so that your manboobs no longer bounce when you go down a flight of stairs.

Bring your ponytail out here. We can exfil you back to your couch after your second mile.

"Exfil" LOL. How are you gonna stay current when your subscription to "Soldier of Fortune" expires?

Just because you were a girl scout and I wasn't and you avoided service, doesn't mean youi need to bring your adoptive mother into your argument.

Fix your manbun, missy. You're not funny OR clever, either. A flamin' pus c, though! Ask the native Americans living in your vicinity that are aware of your short height. Go on, pus c!

Get back to your Target display merchandising, little dried up old rainbow man.

There were plenty of things in my pack for the 600+ miles I carried it. But my wife’s shoes weren’t one of them, lol. You should just stop digging. Your cute frilly lil’ pink insecurities are showing with every shovel-stroke.

10-ply BFG AT’s, FWIW.

Brad, I’ll snap a pic of the sole of the X-Utras here in a bit. I’ll put them next to brand-new pair I had here at home that I opted not to have sent in the Grants resupply box because the first pair still had so much life left in them… of course it was in the miles before Grants where the lava got ‘em, so I regretted that call.

We keep about an acre mowed here, and the grass was thigh-high when we got back, and I’ve been attacking it, so you’ll have to forgive them being a bit “green” now.

Yeah, 600 miles mowing your lawn. Got it.

Thanks, Grampy!