How many shoes 4 your Thru?

[StormBird]

I was talking with another fellow thru-hiker that lives in Seattle and we thought it would be interesting (generally) and informative (for newbies) to have a poll for hikers that have walked 2,000+ miles in one year.

How many pairs of shoes did you go through?

[maybe clem]

I got a pair of shoes in a mail drop every 500 miles - all broken in ahead of time, of course. No foot problems at all. Happy feet = happy hiker.

[Iceaxe]

I used 5 pair on the PCT including the pair I left Campo CA in.
I used another 5 pair on the CDT including the pair i left Columbus NM in.
About 500 miles per pair for New Balance 479's works good. They get pretty trashed walking through snow but held together. The mesh gets cut up and sometimes the rubber at the toe gets a little delaminated but never a true failure.
The real breakdown occurs in the foam midsole. They become soft like slippers after about 400 miles.
On the PCT I would chuck the stock insoles and swap my super feet insole in when ever i got my new pair of shoes. I had foot pain after about 3-400 miles.
On the CDT I started putting my super feet insoles in directly on top of the stock insoles and had no foot pain at all the whole way.
I don't know if all Y'all have "Big 5" sporting goods where you live but they have shoe sales every month or two. I usually get my NB 479's for 35 bucks and even 29 bucks once. Normally they go for $69.

[garlic08]

Running shoes look good for about 500 miles but the midsole breaks down before that so if you have the money it's good to replace them at 500 or so. If you're on a budget, you can get them to last 750 to 800 miles before they really start to fall apart, and even then you can nurse them a little farther than that if you have duct tape in your budget. I've seen shoes with close to 900 miles and have heard of 1000 miles+.

I used up three pairs on my AT thru.

[Mountain Maiden]

Hiked into Hot Springs barefoot. Wayne at Bluff Mtn Outfitters fitted me with a pair of $49 Hi-Tecs and Superfeet. Walked the next 1800 miles in those shoes. Never had a blister, never had any foot probs on or after the trail.

Thanks, Wayne!

:sun

[Franco]

I usually get my NB 479's for 35 bucks and even 29 bucks once. Normally they go for $69.

Ouch...
They are $139 here in Australia, so maybe $80 on sale . (if, when...)
Postage from there is about $40 .
Franco

[Grampie]

I did the whole AT, and than some, with one pair of boots. Montrail, AT Hikers. They don't make them anymore.:)

[Ender]

I did the whole AT, and than some, with one pair of boots. Montrail, AT Hikers. They don't make them anymore.:)

I did basically the same thing with a pair of Vasque Sundowners. I picked up a new pair in Hot Springs, And that pair lasted me the rest of the trail, and many hundreds of miles after that. Good boots.

[Grampie]

I did basically the same thing with a pair of Vasque Sundowners. I picked up a new pair in Hot Springs, And that pair lasted me the rest of the trail, and many hundreds of miles after that. Good boots.

I hiked with a guy for about 800 miles who went through 3 pr on Vasque Sundowners. They just came apart.:-?

[Spokes]

Really depends a lot of the weather. The outsoles of most every trail shoe/boot manufactured today are heat cemented in place rather than stitched and therefore affected by weather.

The more wet weather you hike in the more likely your outsoles will delaminate.

[Ender]

I hiked with a guy for about 800 miles who went through 3 pr on Vasque Sundowners. They just came apart.:-?

Well, when I did it was back in 1998, before Vasque got bought out, by Redwing I think. Possibly they aren't made as well now? Another possibility is that your friend is harder on footwear than normal?

[maybe clem]

[QUOTE=Spokes;1100545]Really depends a lot of the weather. The outsoles of most every trail shoe/boot manufactured today are heat cemented in place rather than stitched and therefore affected by weather.
/QUOTE]

Padding compresses long before soles wear out. You want to switch to your next pair before the padding is shot.

[Jim Adams]

3...one for the right foot, one for the left foot and a spare.

geek

[Jim Adams]

Well, when I did it was back in 1998, before Vasque got bought out, by Redwing I think. Possibly they aren't made as well now? Another possibility is that your friend is harder on footwear than normal?
My Sundowners lasted the entire hike.

geek

[Trailbender]

2 pairs. The pair I am wearing now I got in a mail drop at HF. They are relaced with paracord, and I reattached the front half to the upper with paracord, the soles are still good, you can tell they are very worn, but they have hundreds of miles of tread left. If I had to replace a pair of shoes after 500 miles, I probably wouldn't buy that brand again. Once the tread is worn off these soles, I'll probably cut fresh tread with an xacto knife.

[Iceaxe]

This thread is interesting. On the PCT sundowners and similar full leather boots are the extreme minority. In southern California in particular the arid climate and sandy soil just tears people feet right up. Some hikers resort to tevas, and even crocs but the vast majority wear running shoes or trail runners.
I think individual feet vary a lot as well. I tried Raichle, Red Wing, and Vasque boots over the years and had nothing but blisters and foot pain.
Since i switched to trail runners 15 years ago I have not had any serious problems other than they wear out pretty fast on the trail.
I am jealous of you folks that can use boots. I wish i could as it would certainly be cheap over the long haul.
I remember 3 hikers that wore boots on the PCT in 2009; Sidewinder, Yogi Beer, and Indy.
The interesting thing is that many of the hikers i met on the PCT were recent AT veterans and none of them wore boots. I wonder if they switched footware due to something they learned on the AT?
Maybe because there are 10 times as many hikers on the AT as the PCT that there are more boot wearing folks.

[Spokes]

Really depends a lot of the weather. The outsoles of most every trail shoe/boot manufactured today are heat cemented in place rather than stitched and therefore affected by weather.



Padding compresses long before soles wear out. You want to switch to your next pair before the padding is shot.

Didn't say the soles would "wear out". Try hiking 3 weeks in continuous rain and see what happens to the cement holding those soles on. They delaminate. Worse than wearing out. And forget about flexible repair adhesives.

Cheers!

[Trailbender]

And forget about flexible repair adhesives.

Cheers!

Punch a hole through the sole and upper, and run a piece of paracord through it, pull the loop tight, and sew it together. I cut a u-shape piece out of the sole as well, so when the paracord is pulled tight and sewn, it sits slightly above the sole so it doesn't rub directly against the ground.

[10-K]

Running shoes look good for about 500 miles but the midsole breaks down before that so if you have the money it's good to replace them at 500 or so. If you're on a budget, you can get them to last 750 to 800 miles before they really start to fall apart, and even then you can nurse them a little farther than that if you have duct tape in your budget. I've seen shoes with close to 900 miles and have heard of 1000 miles+.

I used up three pairs on my AT thru.

I generally agree with this with the caveat that 1 mile in New Hampshire = 5 miles anywhere else on the AT when it comes to shoe destruction.... ('cept maybe PA).

[Appalachian Tater]

I hiked with a guy for about 800 miles who went through 3 pr on Vasque Sundowners. They just came apart.:-?

I can understand him buying the second pair but why a third pair if they only last a few weeks?

[Spokes]

Vasque? Isn't that Norwegian for "crappy shoe"?