Trail runners in snow??

[B-Rabbit]

So, I have already bought a pair of trail runners for my upcoming thru attempt and no they are not gortex. I was watching some videos and saw the trail where it was nothing but icy slush. Everyone seems to recommend trail runners but what do you do in this situation? It seems like these conditions would be miserable in trail runners and possibly dangerous? Is hypothermia a concern? I know that it has been a mild winter, but I am not confident that it is over. Any advice would be appreciated! Would seal skins be a good solution?

[B-Rabbit]

Oh and leaving March 21st

[SGT Rock]

Goretex trail runners make you feet sweat unnecessarily. But Goretex socks with trail runners in snow kick ass.

[B-Rabbit]

So I guess that's the solution? Switch the socks and not the shoes if necessary?

[SGT Rock]

The socks go over whatever you normally wear. Seal Skinz work well, but my favorites are Rockys http://www.lehighoutfitters.com/Rock...3039304d572d52

I made the mistake leaving Damascus of not putting them on and suffered for half a day as I thawed my feet out. Other than that they always were perfect. I guess I cannot blame them for my mistake though.

[Smokestack]

So, I have already bought a pair of trail runners for my upcoming thru attempt and no they are not gortex. I was watching some videos and saw the trail where it was nothing but icy slush.

Here's an even cheaper solution... put your foot in a bread bag, newspaper bag (or something similar). Note: bag goes inside shoe, and over sock. (Bag over shoe won't get you very far). Your foot will stay nice and dry, and the bag will dry quickly in camp. Same trick works for shallow stream crossing, and even rainy days. A couple fat rubber bands can be used to hold them closed over the cuffs of your long johns, too. Keeps the snow out.

[RockDoc]

Trail runners are way overrated... I remember watching a pair of thrus bail out and hitch into Gatlinburg, their little trail runners soaked and brown after a cold wet day over Clingman's Dome. The rest of us, in decent boots, waved 'bye' and marched right on up the trail.

When your little trail runners are drenched and soggy, you really have very few options. And you'll have a lot of days when the freezing water runs down the trail like a streambed.

[SGT Rock]

Trail runners are way overrated... I remember watching a pair of thrus bail out and hitch into Gatlinburg, their little trail runners soaked and brown after a cold wet day over Clingman's Dome. The rest of us, in decent boots, waved 'bye' and marched right on up the trail.

When your little trail runners are drenched and soggy, you really have very few options. And you'll have a lot of days when the freezing water runs down the trail like a streambed.

Silly me gave up on boots years ago. I guess I just haven't learned after years of being forced to wear boots.

Wait. Did that make any sense?

[Memphis Tim]

Trail runners are the way to go. One thing I learned very early on the trail was that my feet were going to get wet. Once I accepted that it is so much easier to hike- no more elaborate attempt to cross streams and bogs with dry socks. No matter how cold the day you'll be amazed how quickly icy water warms up and dissipates if you just keep moving. Your shoes, socks and feet will also stay cleaner and fresher in the long run (hike!) if you just bite the bullet and plunge in.

[Malto]

I did over 500 miles of snow last year in regular trail runners, feet get wet but they will be wet anyway. Using bags didn't work for me when hiking, they got holes within a few miles. They were great to put on over dry socks when I got into camp. YMMV.

[Firefighter503]

Just trudge on through. Keep moving, keep blood flowing, stay warm.

[pdcolelli42]

Trail runners are way overrated... I remember watching a pair of thrus bail out and hitch into Gatlinburg, their little trail runners soaked and brown after a cold wet day over Clingman's Dome. The rest of us, in decent boots, waved 'bye' and marched right on up the trail.

So your feet never get wet in your superior boots? My feet end up wet no matter what I wear on my feet. I prefer to have lighter more breathable trail runners so that when they do get wet they dry much faster. I used to wear boots, but when they got wet I dreaded lugging them around on my feet. Probably even more so than having cold feet.

[Montana AT05]

Trail runners are way overrated... I remember watching a pair of thrus bail out and hitch into Gatlinburg, their little trail runners soaked and brown after a cold wet day over Clingman's Dome. The rest of us, in decent boots, waved 'bye' and marched right on up the trail.

When your little trail runners are drenched and soggy, you really have very few options. And you'll have a lot of days when the freezing water runs down the trail like a streambed.

Truth is: Footwear (and any gear) is a highly personal decision. Advice you'll get here or anywhere is still good--it shows you the scope of what is possible, or at least the scope of what is tried.

I used to be a die-hard boot guy and punished my feet accordingly. Turns out after many long hikes, including thrus, my preferred set-up is a sandal with socks. In cold or wet or snow I use sealskinz socks over my socks (not that they are they are the best, they are just what I had access too). I wouldn't do sandals on a long deep snow trip though, I'd wear trail runners with sealskinz (the snow under the feet between the sandal can be chilly but easily kicked out when dealing with a jyust few days or a week of snow.

Sandals worked just fine for this year on the AT. Rainy days, wet snow, trails that were streams in the Smokies, mud, leaves, sticks, all was fine. In the morning when people were putting on sopping wet boots, or frozen boots, I just slipped on my sandals and walked. Curiously, my socks seemed to be just as dirty using sandals as they get using trail runners.

If you're starting in March you'll be fine in trail runners. I wish I had learned that lesson as early as others. Trail runners dry fast (sandals even faster).

Lastly, the best footwear for any long trip is footwear that doesn't easily slip off the gas pedal.

[BrianLe]

"When your little trail runners are drenched and soggy, ..."

Hard to respond to such anti-HYOH stuff in any polite way, so I'll stick to saying that --- short of a full-on mountain climb (for which I'd go to plastic climbing boots) --- trail runners do it all for me. Ditto comments above about goretex socks or VB socks of various type (including breadbags). For those inclined to go this route, it just takes a little experience and somewhat of a shift in expectations.

I would, however, suggest gaining some experience with trail runners in snow and slush before committing to a long trip, somewhere that you can reasonably bail out of if it's really not working for you.
And on a related note, I do have a couple of very experienced friends who use trail runners most of the time, but will use some sort of a boot when in lots of snow/slush. Each to their own.

[turtle fast]

Putting baggies over your socks in the snow while hiking will just get your foot wet. The bag is a vapor barrier and condensation from foot perspiration will collect on the cooler bag surface thus getting your sock wet. It works for a few hours if you are just sitting there but will just get damp slower. The whole boots versus trail runners debate boils down to your personal comfort and your personal footwear beliefs. It sounds silly but their is really two differing opinions. The boots camp believe in more rugged trail footwear that takes more abuse and believe that it offers more foot and ankle support though heavier and if wet dries slower. While the trail runner camp believes in more disposable lighter footwear that dry faster is the way to go and that hiking with a light shoe allows more flexible movement thus less injury. Like underwear it boils down to personal choice.

[daddytwosticks]

I love my "little trail runners". Works great for me. Guess I've been doing it all wrong these past few years. I learn something new every day here on Whiteblaze.

[Tinker]

Trail runners are way overrated... I remember watching a pair of thrus bail out and hitch into Gatlinburg, their little trail runners soaked and brown after a cold wet day over Clingman's Dome. The rest of us, in decent boots, waved 'bye' and marched right on up the trail.

When your little trail runners are drenched and soggy, you really have very few options. And you'll have a lot of days when the freezing water runs down the trail like a streambed.

Trail runners (nylon and leather or nylon and fake leather) dry WAY faster than an all leather boot.

I started my long section hikes with a pair of 6lb. custom Limmer boots back in the early 1990s. I gradually went to lighter leather boots, leather and fabric boots, low topped light hikers, trail runners, and lastly, sandals. I went back to trail runners for most of my hikes, but if I know it's going to be very rocky I will use my daily wear shoes, Merrill Moabb Ventilators.

I carry Sealskinz socks when I know it will be very wet. They need to be replaced now, but they used to keep my feet dry. Like Gore-tex, eventually the friction of being inside footwear will cause them to leak. Gore-tex is a PTFE membrane. Sealskinz use a polyurethane membrane which isn't breathable at all as far as I can tell. I wear mine without socks. The liners are very comfortable.

I plan on trying Rocky socks, like Sgt. Rock uses, eventually, to see if I like them more.

[Tinker]

So your feet never get wet in your superior boots? My feet end up wet no matter what I wear on my feet. I prefer to have lighter more breathable trail runners so that when they do get wet they dry much faster. I used to wear boots, but when they got wet I dreaded lugging them around on my feet. Probably even more so than having cold feet.

Maybe he was just dayhiking over Clingman's Dome

Lots of people love their boots.

The majority of thruhikers and long section hikers I've met are either using trail runners or low topped hikers. A few are using lightweight fabric/leather boots. Very few are using all-leather boots.

Waterproof boots make your feet sweat, which encourages friction and blisters. Avoid footwear with a waterproof (even if it says "breathable" - is isn't, appreciably) membrane liner. The friction of daily walking will wear it out in a few hundred miles, and the salt in sweat actually sucks moisture from the outside to the inside.

It's a nice idea which is good for weekenders, but, for the reasons above, not so good for long distance, multi-day hikers.

Btw, if your feet are a 'tweener size, go with the smaller waterproof sock. They are somewhat stretchy, but not that much. A larger sock will form folds under your feet and may cause blisters.

If you use the socks a lot, don't be surprised when they start to leak. Nothing is forever, even technologically advanced equipment.

[garlic08]

Superior footwear dispute aside, and to answer one untouched question, no, hypothermia is not an issue with trail runners. You won't lose enough heat through your feet to affect your core temperature. Leather will not provide enough additional insulation by itself, especially when wet, to make a difference anyway. Frostbite is more of a concern.

Back to the dispute. I had the exact opposite experience in the Smokies. My partner and I had the place to ourselves in our trail runners in blizzard conditions, in April '08. Those trudging along in cold, wet leather boots bailed out to Gatlinburg by the dozens at Newfound Gap--every single one. I'm not crediting the footwear. We had the experience to keep one pair of socks and all our insulation dry for sleeping, and we used the "bagtex" trick to keep our wet feet warm. We also knew how to eat and hydrate and keep moving in those conditions. It took a lot of trips with cold feet in many different kinds of footwear to gain that knowledge. It ain't all about the shoes.

[Two Speed]

Sounds like that old skill vs. gear issue to me: those with more skill tend to need less gear.