Hi,
Problem:
A few weeks ago I was on a 4 day hike totalling 90 miles, thus hiking about 20 miles every day. I carried a 50 liter backpack weighing about 12kgs. I got serious blisters already on the first day, it started to hurt after 10-15 miles. The remaining 3 days I had to "deal" with the blisters. I never in my life had blisters occurring so fast!!!
History:
I have a set of Meindl Perfekt leather boots that served me well for 20 years, but they are very rigid (almost like walking with ski boots) and I easily get blisters because my feet slide inside the boot (especially the heel and the toes) - basically the boot is not a perfect fit. For that reason I never used these boots for multi day hikes.
A few months ago I bought some very comfy New Balance running shoes. The sole is very soft and flexible. I have been running 3 mile runs in these shoes and hiking 15 miles however WITHOUT a backpack. They are perfect - almost as walking on clouds. No blisters at all. When I put these shoes on, my feet stay put and dont slide at all anywhere - they give me a very good feeling. A much better feeling than my "professional" highly expensive leather boots.
The reason why I bought these running shoes is a result of my internet readings that most people use some sort of trail runners, lightweight shoes - and most often NOT a heavy leather boot weighing 6 pounds for a pair. For doing a thru hike.
Result:
When I left on day one with my 12kg backpack and my New Balance running shoes and a merino sock liner and a merino 2nd layer sock I was VERY confident that this 4 day hike would be a breeze since I was walking on clouds from the first mile. I had also trained with these shoes and had a very good feeling about them (no backpack). However, after already 10 miles I could feel my feet were aching and blisters were on their way - I was VERY surprised since the shoes were so comfy at the beginning. When setting up camp after 20 miles I had a huge blister on my "ball of the foot", a zone without sliding but only vertical pressure. I have never had that in my life before - only blisters on the heel.
As the days went by, my feet would always hurt more after a 10-15 min break (I always plan a small break after 1h) - comparable to small needles poking the zone of the foot in contact with the sole. I also noticed that the comfy, flexible sole of the running shoe turned into a problem, a small pebble on the road/track could be felt directly on my feet resulting in more pain (since the soft sole would yield): Had my sole been more rigid (like the heavy leather boots) my feet would not be able to sense the pebbles.
NOTE: I feel I was ready for 20 miles on the first day since I had done these stretches before without any problems (multiple 15mi hikes), however without a backpack. So the added 12kg somehow resulted in the blisters.
Does anyone have some ideas on how to improve my "shoe situation" without having to buy shoes/boots for 1000s of dollars and go on multi day hikes with each pair?
The terrain was flat (Denmark, Europe) and there was no hilly terrain.
Regards, Lucas