Hi Everyone! First time posting but I've been visiting the forums for a while.......

I'm planning to thru-hike the AT in 2016 and I was wondering what people typically do about new shoes. Generally before I go out hiking in a new pair of shoes, I like to wear them around town for a couple of weeks to break them in.

I've read that one should expect to replace shoes every 500 miles or so, which would mean 4 pairs of shoes for the thru-hike.

My thought is that it might make sense to buy several pairs in advance and break each pair in for a couple of weeks. (Well, I'd buy a single pair and break them in to make sure they are the right ones for my feet, then buy the extra pairs and break them in, all before starting the hike.) I would then mail drop them to the appropriate spots along the trail.

I also have a wide foot and always have a hard time finding a proper fitting shoe, so i also have some concern about being able to find the right size along the way.

So... what do people tend to do when thru-hiking? Do you pre-buy and mail drop? Do you buy along the way? And how long do your shoes tend to last you?