View Full Version : wet rotting feet
karoberts
05-28-2010, 21:57
I am starting SOBO at the end of June. I have been told that my feet will be wet and people drop out due to wet rotting feet in Maine. What can I do to keep my feet healthy? This is my current plan:
1. bring baby powder and powder feet at night
2. wear breathable trail runners
3. bring 3 pair of socks, 2 for day, 1 for night
4. bring flip flops and wear them around camp
Lone Wolf
05-28-2010, 22:00
i SOBOed starting the end of June one year and didn't have a problem. you got bad info. my feet did get wet when i forded the kennebec though
SonrisaJo
05-28-2010, 22:12
karoroberts, I think you have a good plan. I hiked SOBO last June and my feet (and others') got destroyed due to being always wet. It was an overly-rainy year, but maybe it's always wet in June. In either case, way to be thinking ahead!
The one suggestion I have is to trade in the flip-flops for a pair of Croclike shoes ($5ish at a chain store), because if flip-flops get wet, they are slippery and dangeous to walk in. With the river fords, I think more substantial shoes are well worth the extra weight, at least until you get out of Maine. Also, if you do get blisters, you can hike in Crocs. I did for at least 30 miles - definitely not ideal, but it was so much better than hiking in sopping wet boots for the 7th straight day. You can always ditch Crocs later and pick up 99 cent flip flops along the way. I carried mine to West Virginia and will take them the rest of the way this year.
Good luck!
I think that your plan is a very good one. Last year my feet were wet and muddy for maybe a week at a time (or more) for as long as my hiking day was. I didn't do the baby powder thing, but I def. had camp shoes, and clean socks for nighttime.
Eventually though my feet woud start to get red irritation sores (all over) and blisters from being wet for so many days in a row. I simpy had to take a day off when this happened to let my skin dry out and recover.
njordan2
05-28-2010, 22:22
Karoberts, it sounds like you have the right idea. Keeping one's feet healthy is a primary key to being able to enjoy a hike.
I have found that Fox River sox are the best for preventing blisters. Other than that, just what you said; try to keep them dry and at camp wear sandles or flip flops to let them air out.
wcgornto
05-28-2010, 22:22
I too hiked SOBO last year. While hiking, my shoes, socks and feet were constantly wet through all of Maine and much of NH and VT. Upon arrival at my stopping place for the night, I always got out of the wet shoes and socks and into Crocs. I generally didn't wear any socks at night, but if I did, they were certainly dry ones.
I don't think you'll have any foot rotting problem as long as you let your feet dry out when you are not hiking (14-16 hours of the day).
Bear Cables
05-29-2010, 00:18
Hydopel has been recommended to me to protect wet feet. My most comfortable hikers are not waterproof, but very light and comfortable. Haven't found a gortex or Event pair that feel as good so I am trying the hydropel this hike. Last summer it rained everyday of our 6 day section and my feet got wet. I used Dr.Scholls foot cream in the blue tube and did not have any problems. I do get out of my wet shoes and sock at camp to dry my feet out.
garlic08
05-29-2010, 00:34
I think what affects me more than water is mud. My feet would be better if I was able to wash them and my socks at least once a day in clean running water. Clean and wet is much better than dirty and wet.
NowOrNever
05-29-2010, 11:00
I would like to suggest for socks get Columbia brand hikers 2 pairs for 11buck at their outlet stores and they really do a great job displacing moisture AND ARE QUITE SUPERIOR TO OTHER SOCKS COSTING MUCH MORE MAKE SURE THEY ARE THE WOOLBLEN NOT THE SYNTHETIC.
oTHERWISE IF ITS JuST POURING OR MUDDY `GO WITH HIKING SANDALS OR cROCS save the boots for better conditions.
I think what affects me more than water is mud. My feet would be better if I was able to wash them and my socks at least once a day in clean running water. Clean and wet is much better than dirty and wet.
Great point, Garlic.
Yes, this does make a big difference. If you are walking thorough rushing water all day, it makes a difference on your feet.
Trudging thorugh mud, though...much more uncomfortable, and your feet will be alot more irritated. I found this to be more of a problem in the N than the S.
Blissful
05-29-2010, 15:54
Also take your shoes off whenever you stop and let the feet dry, along with drying out your insoles. Unless we get really rainy weather in ME, I dont anticipate the trail to be that horribly wet. Going NOBO, there was more mud in VT then ME
vonfrick
05-30-2010, 07:30
I think what affects me more than water is mud. My feet would be better if I was able to wash them and my socks at least once a day in clean running water. Clean and wet is much better than dirty and wet.
agreed, especially when a lot of the 'mud' is moose poop!
agreed, especially when a lot of the 'mud' is moose poop!
Thank you for that visual. Made my muffin catch part way down.:)
vonfrick
05-30-2010, 11:51
Thank you for that visual. Made my muffin catch part way down.:)
:sun i like to tell people they are edible chocolate eggs left for them by the easter moose
wcgornto
05-30-2010, 14:04
:sun i like to tell people they are edible chocolate eggs left for them by the easter moose
Or precious stones to be used in the jewelry trade, as done by David at Pine Ellis in Andover.
Old Grouse
05-30-2010, 15:33
:sun i like to tell people they are edible chocolate eggs left for them by the easter moose
There's an old song about mooseturd pie. Anybody remember how it goes? Had to do with a cook in a logging camp, if memory serves.
Update: No, I stand corrected. The song was by Utah Phillips, who claimed it was about his experience as a gandydancer on the Santa Fe Railroad.
i SOBOed starting the end of June one year and didn't have a problem. you got bad info. my feet did get wet when i forded the kennebec though
How did your feet get wet in a canoe, was there a leak in it?:D
warraghiyagey
05-30-2010, 22:47
How can your feet get wet when you walk on water? . . . :confused:
agreed, especially when a lot of the 'mud' is moose poop!
Good example here, well blended Moose poop and mud has a funny color:
http://www.tfhrc.gov/pubrds/05sep/images/rea6.jpg
-- Dry out feet mid-hike during the day
-- Use powder in the evenings. During a hike powder can dampen and lump up.
--Apply Hydropel Sports Oinment Google it.
Clogs work well in water crossing. Water rushes through the holes, relieving pressure. They can roll off rocks, however. So be careful.
Keep a dry pair of socks for camp use only.
Injinji socks can help prevent between-the-toe blisters.
http://www.injinji.com/tetratsok/performance.htm
Check out www.fixingyourfeet.com (http://www.fixingyourfeet.com) .Lots of good info there.
:sun! i like to tell people they are edible chocolate eggs left for them by the easter moose
Oh! I love Easter Moose!
Wet and hot is a bad combination, but wet and cold is not so bad as long as it isn't too prolonged. Oiling your feet might help more than powdering feet in wet and cold conditions. Hope we do get lots of rain this summer though. It has been very dry so far, up here that is. I'm guessing Maine has been similarly dry, so far. This week is wet though. Lots of rain in the forecast.
Trail runners that drain well are very important.
I like thin wool dress socks for most of the year, or the thinnest of the smartwool.
Nylon or polyester dress socks might be better in really hot weather. Not sure.
warraghiyagey
06-02-2010, 07:59
Wet and hot is a bad combination . . .
Doesn't sound bad at first blush. . . ;)
You've been catching those feral movies again.
You need to give yourself a good bath and scrub in cold lye water.
warraghiyagey
06-02-2010, 22:18
A good wind chill would probly help too . . .
Anumber1
06-03-2010, 02:30
Your feet will never be dry or clean enough for baby powder to be effective.
Take off your shoes/boots and socks everytime you take a break and let your get some much needed air.
At night, or when you're done hiking pull out your insoles and let the air get into your footwear too.
A good wind chill would probly help too . . .Yes indeed. :)
It is good to stop for a cold or hot drink every hour or two, and take your shoes and socks off. Just the act of checking for blisters will help prevent blisters. Sort of like watching a pot boil. I usually put my socks back on the other side in. When in a hurry or in the zone I stop less often, but it is good to have some forced rest, even before the feet get sore. You can usually hike a longer day this way.
I've heard that as long as your feet dry out completely once a day (like when you sleep) your feet won't actually rot. Seemed to work for me hiking the PCT in Washington. Wet all day long, dry at night, no problems.
Bear Cables
06-10-2010, 00:04
I hiked in my non waterproof hikers for a week last week and they were always wet. I used Hydropel daily and never had a problem. I will swear by it. So I would say, use the hydropel, dry out your feet daily and air them out in camp with sandal or crocks. I would also say keep your feet clean! Bacteria can cause alot of foot crud.
I must have set some sort of record for the worst feet in the 100 Mile Wilderness last year (mostly self-inflicted). Thankfully, there were some really sharp folks hiking in the vicinty (they hike the "Wilderness" every year). My first thoughts were "you've got to be kidding", but they proved themselves right. I wish I could remember their trail names, but can't at the moment. Here are a few successful ideas from them and ones which I borrowed and found worthwhile.....finding it out sooner would've made my trip that much more successful and fun. This is obviously not the last word on the subject, but I was impressed with their experiences and hope it helps.
1. Trail runners vice boots no matter how lightweight the boots are.
2. Trail runners NOT waterproof....they dried faster (or as dry as shoes in Maine ever get).
3. Sealskin socks: I used these alone and with a light sock; both worked well, but better with a light sock. I had a lot of open sores/blisters and this at least kept the obvious crud out of them (most of it).
4. Sandels: I made the HOMERIC mistake of using Croc Flip-flops as camp shoes to save weight. I found them almost useless once my feet were in bad shape and downright dangerous (slippery). At one point I literally duct-taped them to my feet. Croc sandels would've been better, but I went for Keens and found them ideal. While heavier, I could've walked out of the woods in them and that's important if your feet swell as badly as mine did. I could barely get my boots on and my back-up plan of Croc-Flip-flops was absurd in the extreme.
5. A couple of these hardy souls wore sandels (Keens, Teva, etc) with Seal-skin socks and motored past me like I was standing still. We spent several days in the same area and I never ceased to be amazed at their mobility.
6. Lighter socks which dry faster.
7. In the evening get off your feet, clean them up and dry them and enjoy your sandels.
Hope this helps. Good Luck and tell the folks at Whitehouse Landing hello from Lemhi and thanks.
Lemhi
I hiked in my non waterproof hikers for a week last week and they were always wet. I used Hydropel daily and never had a problem. I will swear by it. So I would say, use the hydropel, dry out your feet daily and air them out in camp with sandal or crocks. I would also say keep your feet clean! Bacteria can cause alot of foot crud.
Are you putting the Hydropel on just the bottom of your feet or the whole foot? I have just recently switched to breathable trail runners and I have wondered about using Hydropel. I have a couple of tubes of it already.
Olive oil will help sometimes. Alcohol will help other times. Hiking in barefeet is also very helpful sometimes, especially over pine and spruce needles, and with sticky tar and gums and stuff. A more coarse wool sock can help your feet also sometimes, to get rid of some of the dead skin.
vonfrick
06-15-2010, 16:05
I must have set some sort of record for the worst feet in the 100 Mile Wilderness last year (mostly self-inflicted). Thankfully, there were some really sharp folks hiking in the vicinty (they hike the "Wilderness" every year). My first thoughts were "you've got to be kidding", but they proved themselves right. I wish I could remember their trail names, but can't at the moment. Here are a few successful ideas from them and ones which I borrowed and found worthwhile.....finding it out sooner would've made my trip that much more successful and fun. This is obviously not the last word on the subject, but I was impressed with their experiences and hope it helps.
1. Trail runners vice boots no matter how lightweight the boots are.
2. Trail runners NOT waterproof....they dried faster (or as dry as shoes in Maine ever get).
3. Sealskin socks: I used these alone and with a light sock; both worked well, but better with a light sock. I had a lot of open sores/blisters and this at least kept the obvious crud out of them (most of it).
4. Sandels: I made the HOMERIC mistake of using Croc Flip-flops as camp shoes to save weight. I found them almost useless once my feet were in bad shape and downright dangerous (slippery). At one point I literally duct-taped them to my feet. Croc sandels would've been better, but I went for Keens and found them ideal. While heavier, I could've walked out of the woods in them and that's important if your feet swell as badly as mine did. I could barely get my boots on and my back-up plan of Croc-Flip-flops was absurd in the extreme.
5. A couple of these hardy souls wore sandels (Keens, Teva, etc) with Seal-skin socks and motored past me like I was standing still. We spent several days in the same area and I never ceased to be amazed at their mobility.
6. Lighter socks which dry faster.
7. In the evening get off your feet, clean them up and dry them and enjoy your sandels.
Hope this helps. Good Luck and tell the folks at Whitehouse Landing hello from Lemhi and thanks.
Lemhi
this story sounds familiar. you the one that split the 'shuttle' with kanga?
vonfrick
06-15-2010, 16:09
4. Sandels: I made the HOMERIC mistake of using Croc Flip-flops as camp shoes to save weight. I found them almost useless once my feet were in bad shape and downright dangerous (slippery). At one point I literally duct-taped them to my feet.
hahaha...i just had this vision of thousands of trojan soldiers in croc flip-flops....if only they had the right footwear it would have changed history
Ditto to the advice above:
Breathable trail runners
Quick-dry socks
When you stop for 15 minutes or more (and it's not actually raining), take off your shoes and socks. Lay socks and insoles on a hot rock, and open up the shoes to air them out.
Crocs for fording and camp wear.
Rinse socks at the end of the day and hang out overnight. They won't be dry in the morning, but they'll be a bit cleaner.
Take shoes apart and let insoles and shoes air out in your tent overnight.
What I haven't seen anyone else mention:
I usually washed my feet at the end of the day (water, but no soap), then dried them with Purell. That will kill anything that's trying to rot your feet. Then I put on clean socks before I got into my sleeping bag--more to protect the bag than for my feet.
vonfrick
06-15-2010, 22:13
What I haven't seen anyone else mention:
I usually washed my feet at the end of the day (water, but no soap), then dried them with Purell. That will kill anything that's trying to rot your feet. Then I put on clean socks before I got into my sleeping bag--more to protect the bag than for my feet.
i also clean my feet at night, but with an alcohol prep pad to kill any cooties and get them really dry. one a day is usually sufficient.
i have a pair of thse extra snuggy slipper socks, you know, the ones that look like they're made out of muppet fur, that i only wear to sleep in.
this story sounds familiar. you the one that split the 'shuttle' with kanga?
Yep...that's me and you and your friends were the ones I was referring to in my post. I hope I got most of the details right. If not, please correct me. If I had met you folks sooner I'd have had a better time of it. I got sorted out in Bangor and then finished VT, MA, CT and then back to NH and some of southern ME (talk about a flip-flop).
You folks made it look easy!
Best,
Lemhi
BTW, as I recall the details... I did actually start using Purell on my feet in the evenings to clean/disinfect. Whether it helped or not I can't say, but it made me feel better about their condition.
I still have no feeling in 6 toes...the medical guy in Bangor said he'd never seen feet in worse shape.
Next time will be different.
Looking back over my posts I hate to sound like a "one man how NOT to do it" show, but if it helps someone get it right....sooner...then please feel free to chuckle and shake your heads at my misery. I do.
Lemhi
West Africa
this story sounds familiar. you the one that split the 'shuttle' with kanga?
haha! lemhi! my cloud blazing buddy!
vonfrick
06-16-2010, 16:03
Yep...that's me and you and your friends were the ones I was referring to in my post. I hope I got most of the details right. If not, please correct me. If I had met you folks sooner I'd have had a better time of it. I got sorted out in Bangor and then finished VT, MA, CT and then back to NH and some of southern ME (talk about a flip-flop).
You folks made it look easy!
Best,
Lemhi
glad you had a great time :sun
BTW, as I recall the details... I did actually start using Purell on my feet in the evenings to clean/disinfect. Whether it helped or not I can't say, but it made me feel better about their condition.
I still have no feeling in 6 toes...the medical guy in Bangor said he'd never seen feet in worse shape.
Next time will be different.
Looking back over my posts I hate to sound like a "one man how NOT to do it" show, but if it helps someone get it right....sooner...then please feel free to chuckle and shake your heads at my misery. I do.
Lemhi
West Africa
i was 'that guy' my first time...hell of a learning curve :)
Bear Cables
06-23-2010, 00:22
Are you putting the Hydropel on just the bottom of your feet or the whole foot? I have just recently switched to breathable trail runners and I have wondered about using Hydropel. I have a couple of tubes of it already.
I put the majority of it on the balls of my feet and heels,(the areas I tend to get hot spots on) then up and around my toes. I applied a small amount to the tops of my feet. I highly recommend it. I was also able to put dry socks on each morning. When my shoes were really wet I found that keeping them on longer in camp actually helped dry the socks .
I put the majority of it on the balls of my feet and heels,(the areas I tend to get hot spots on) then up and around my toes. I applied a small amount to the tops of my feet. I highly recommend it. I was also able to put dry socks on each morning. When my shoes were really wet I found that keeping them on longer in camp actually helped dry the socks .
Thanks, this is pretty much the same advice I have been given before. I bought a couple tubes of Hydropel and tried it with my hiking boots but I couldn't really tell if it was helping or not. Now I have switched to breathable trail runners so I'm thinking of using it again.