Wet feet in camp [Archive]

A/B

11-16-2013, 11:59

Hiking the AT next year. After hiking in cold rain all day, you set up your tent/hammock. When do you put on your dry camp/sleeping clothes, and dry socks? How do you keep your feet dry and warm around camp until you crawl into your sleeping bag? Plastic bags? Booties?

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Rasty

11-16-2013, 12:00

You will see a lot of Crocs type camp shoes.

I just go barefoot

Turk6177

11-16-2013, 12:07

I was once a believer that camp shoes were not worth the extra weight. After a few rainy days in Georgia, I bought some mock crocs and would never go back. It is so nice to air out your feet at the end of a day. As far as sleeping/camp clothes go, I think the longer you wear your hiking clothes after stopping, (obviously depending on the weather) the drier they become. Your body heat tends to dry them off. I like to put on my sleeping attire when I retire into my tent, or right after a bath, if I am going to use a wet bandana to clean myself by a stream. If my feet have been wet all day, I put a zinc based diaper rash cream on them and then put on my wool sleeping socks at bedtime. Have an awesome hike.

johnnybgood

11-16-2013, 12:16

Some wear down booties. I put on dry socks and crocs to sit around camp if weather permitting. Change to sleep clothes when going to bed.

MuddyWaters

11-16-2013, 14:49

There doesnt have to be any sitting around camp.
Hike late, eat, go to bed.
Get up early, repeat

johnnybgood

11-16-2013, 15:26

Eat down the trail prior to reaching camp. Set up hammock/tent, look at next day's hike , go to bed.

Coffee

11-16-2013, 15:27

I don't carry camp shoes but I do carry extra socks. When arriving at camp, I clean my feet and change into clean (or cleaner) socks and put my trail runners back on. Even if the trail runners are a little wet it helps to have clean socks.

I'm thinking of changing my camp shoe routine going forward, however. I already have the Goosefeet gear down socks and I'm thinking of getting the overbooties to wear around camp. Of course this would only be in the colder seasons but I think it would be a very nice improvement. Especially since I have hiked in boots during the winter in the past rather than trail runners. Trail runners make ok camp shoes but it sucks to put boots back on in camp imo...

A/B

11-16-2013, 16:18

Thanks for the replies.
I'm bringing Crocs, to rest the feet in camp and around town. But when my feet are wet and cold, I'm cold. I looked at the Goosefeet booties, nice and light, but for $45, shouldn't they be seam sealed? Probably not difficult to do, but... Anyway, either with the down socks or regular, seems like a lightweight option, and I could wear them WITH my Crocs.
I just want to enjoy the BS sessions in the shelters with warm feet!

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daddytwosticks

11-16-2013, 19:26

I clean my feet as well as possible, sprinkle on a little foot powder, slip into clean warm socks, then don my lightweight sandals around camp. I almost always carry sandals as campshoes, unless is a simple overnighter in dry weather. :)

ChinMusic

11-16-2013, 19:40

When do you put on your dry camp/sleeping clothes, and dry socks? How do you keep your feet dry and warm around camp until you crawl into your sleeping bag? Plastic bags? Booties?

If my shoes are wet I will put bread bags over my dry socks and put my shoes back on. Almost no weight and the socks stay dry in camp.

Franco

11-16-2013, 20:09

Same as Chin Music except that recently I did a river walk (about 15 crossings...) to then camp in a fix spot for a couple of days so I took my Croc like shoes with me.I liked walking around with those the next day.

Rasty

11-16-2013, 20:45

Another Kevin

11-17-2013, 00:17

Me - depends on the conditions.

I have a pair of lightweight kayak shoes that I use for stream crossings. If I bring them (I only bring them if I think there's a real chance of a crossing that I can't rockhop) they double as camp shoes.

In cold weather, I do bring plastic bags like ChinMusic, so I can stick dry socks in wet boots for a few minutes to do the chores or take a Deuteronomy 23:13.

I put on dry liners and socks in my sleeping bag. Also, in really cold weather I seldom have wet socks, because I use bread bags between liners and socks as a vapor barrier. Clammy liners are tolerable. Wet socks are not!

In really cold weather, I might sleep in the felt inner boots of my pac boots, both to keep my feet warm and to keep the inners from freezing. (I leave the outers laced very loosely so that I can get them back on in the morning even if they're frozen. I don't understand how people can bring wet boots into the sleeping bag with them.)

bigcranky

11-17-2013, 10:18

The Goosefeet are for sleeping or hanging out, not walking around camp. The fabric isn't waterproof, so seam sealing won't help. You can get the overbooties for them, if you want to wear them outside your hammock.

If it's been raining all day and my feet are soaked, I put on dry wool socks and crocs. If it's still raining hard, and I need to walk around (like to get water half a mile away), I'll put my wet socks and hiking shoes back on -- need to keep those sleeping socks dry. Under those conditions, though, I'm pretty much ready to hit the hammock when I stop for the night -- set up the hammock, go get water if needed, pee, then get under the tarp and put on dry clothing and socks. I can cook dinner if needed under the tarp, though most of the time I'll have eaten several miles earlier (shelters are handy for this.)

rusty bumper

11-17-2013, 11:03

I camped solo almost every night on my end-to-ender. I usually set up my tent sometime between 6 and 7 pm. If my shoes and socks were wet, I just kept them on while setting up and then as I ate my dinner on the ground with a thin sheet of polycryo. When I crawled into the tent, the wet shoes and socks stayed outside in the vestibule. I wiped down my feet every night using a wet micro towel. If I was cold, a pair of clean dry socks went on my feet before climbing in the bag. In the morning, I put the wet (and often cold) socks and shoes back on and headed down the trail. I never regretted not having any sort of camp shoes to wear.

Malto

11-17-2013, 12:40

I generally follow Muddy's approach, hike, stop and sleep so there is little reason to worry about shoes. I got real good at doing all the "shoe required things" like getting water, hanging food etc. before stripping down on my bivy. I have used ChinMusic approach if I have to put shoes on after strip down. I usually pre packed my resupplies in 1 gallon bags so I had a steady supply of bags. Finally, if you know that you are going to have wet feet for weeks on end like I did on my thru then flip flops or similiar is very nice. it allows you to air out your feet to keep the funk at bay just a bit.

Drybones

11-17-2013, 19:04

I've got the goosefeet down booties for winter with the overboots. Very nice.

I've got the sleeves from a down jacket.

1azarus

11-17-2013, 19:21

Eat down the trail prior to reaching camp. Set up hammock/tent, look at next day's hike , go to bed.

very interesting. no one has ever suggested eating down before. does it work?

Wise Old Owl

11-17-2013, 19:32

Takes you from wet to a damp moist feeling... ruffles my feathers just thinking about it....

Seriously how about wearing dry suit booties - tad heavy but you are never cold.

Trance

11-17-2013, 20:26

You can buy these Croc type things at Neels Gap called Waldies..... worth every penny when your feet are prunes and your boots are full of water at night.

bigcranky

11-18-2013, 17:36

They still sell/make Waldies? Got some at Neels Gap in 2003 or 2004, still using the same pair both on the trail and around the house. Love mine -- much softer than Crocs, and more comfortable.

Drybones

11-18-2013, 19:27

very interesting. no one has ever suggested eating down before. does it work?

It's good if you want a light meal.

Wise Old Owl

11-18-2013, 19:57

http://www.waldies.net/

trinzushi

11-19-2013, 13:22

I don't have nearly as much experience as some of the other folks on this forum but from my personal experience this year I've tried a variety of things. I've tried flip flops, barefoot, using my hiking shoes without socks or with new socks, and crocs. Barefoot gets.. muddy, but that's a personal preference. Flip flops are just as wet as barefoot and broke within two weeks on trail. Using my hiking shoes without socks wasn't bad unless I had sore feet or hot spots.. and I just wasn't a fan of getting my precious warm dry socks wet in a wet shoe. I personally love the crocs and wouldn't go back. I can change into dry socks and keep them in dry shoes with cushion. The added bonus to crocs is having something different other than your trail shoes in town to give them a break. This is just my experience though. I would assume non-croc brand works too. :-)

steve0423

11-19-2013, 14:47

There doesnt have to be any sitting around camp.
Hike late, eat, go to bed.
Get up early, repeat

+1

Walk until just before dusk. Set up camp, eat, clean, sleep, repeat

Odd Man Out

11-19-2013, 15:04

...In cold weather, I do bring plastic bags like ChinMusic, so I can stick dry socks in wet boots for a few minutes to do the chores or take a Deuteronomy 23:13....

I'll admit I had to look it up. I don't believe it. I guess I have been going to the wrong web site for hiking advice!

Another Kevin

11-19-2013, 16:25

... Deuteronomy 23:13....

I'll admit I had to look it up. I don't believe it. I guess I have been going to the wrong web site for hiking advice!
There's a site that doesn't advise you to obey that commandment?

very interesting. no one has ever suggested eating down before. does it work?
I don't think it would work with my grandmother. She'd always tell me to sit down and eat up. Sometimes when I was a little kid, she'd tell me to sit up, but she never told me to eat down.